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S>tiks 


2 


THE 


CHARITABLE     INSTITUTIONS 


Kings   County   and   Brooklyn. 


Brooklyn  Orphan  Asylum. — In  the  summer  of  1833,  the 
city  was  visited  by  the  cliolera;  and,  among  tlie  disastrous 
consequences  to  be  laid  to  its  account,  was  the  homeless  con- 
dition of  a  number  of  children  whose  parents  died  of  the 
epidemic.  Their  forlorn  state  excited  the  sympathy  of  some 
good  people,  who,  after  consultation,  proceeded  to  act  in  the 
matter  l)y  organizing,  on  the  17th  of  May,  1833,  the  Brooklyn 
Orphan  Asylum,  the  first  institution  of  its  kind  in  the  city. 
Among  the  ladies  engaged  in  the  work  were  Mrs.  Charles 
Richards,  Mrs.  Elizabeth  Davison,  Mrs.  Phcebe  Butler  and 

Mrs.    P.    W.    Eadcliffe.  ^-;_ 

They  were  aided  by  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Cutler,  who  had 
that  year  taken  charge 
of  St.  Ann's  Church, 
Judge  Radcliffe,  Adrian 
Van  Sinderen,  Esq. , 
Judge  Lefferts,  and  other 
gentlemen.  The  first 
residence  of  the  Society 
was  the  old  Jackson 
house,  on  the  Heights. 
It  stood  on  the  bank,  a 
little  north  of  the  line  t)f 
Pierrepont  street,  and 
was  entered  fromWillow 
street  by  a  lane  bordered 
with  Lombardy  jioplars, 
that — passing  by  a  vege- 
table garden,  lying 
where  the  roadway  of 
Columbia  Heights  runs 
— led  around  to  the  west 
side  of  the  house.  It 
was  a  Dutch  mansion, 
the  lower  part  of  stone, 
the  upper  of    scalloped 

wooden  shingles,  low-pitched  and  some  60  feet  in  length,  and 
was  of  ante-Revolutionary  War  date.  The  front,  with  its 
three  entrance  doors,  was  toward  the  river,  and  of  the 
interior  there  are  still  relics  in  some  blue  and  white  tiles 
from  the  fire-places,  preserved  by  a  family  in  the  neighbor- 
hood. 

The  affairs  of  the  Asylum  at  this  time  were  in  charge  of  a 
boai-d  of  thirty-five  ladies,  who  superintended  domestic  mat- 
ters, Wilde  seven  well-known  gentlemen  acted  in  the  capacity 
of  Advisory  Board.     Fourteen  boys  and  twelve  girls  consti- 


BKOOKLYN    ORPHAN    ASYLUM. 


tuted  the  family  during  the  first  year  ;  $837.69  paid  the  bills, 
and  one  cow  supplied  milk  for  the  household.  It  seems  as  if 
the  managers  of  fifty  years  ago  had  an  easy  task,  but  there 
are  more  to  bear  the  heavier  burden  of  to-day.  The  Asylum 
has  now  a  host  of  friends,  who  give  to  it  systematically. 
The  boys,  objects  of  solicitude  in  this  generation,  were  gener- 
ally so  in  that.  It  was  as  difficult  to  keep  them  busy,  when 
tempted  to  roU  down  the  bank  to  get  at  the  river  (Furman 
street  not  then  being  opened),  as  it  is  to  keep  their  success- 
ors from  scaling  the  wall,  to  reach  the  ponds  near  by. 
"Times  are  changed," 
but  neither  boys,  nor 
other  of  the  chief  prob- 
lems in  managing,  are 
changed  with  them. 

In  1839,  the  main  part 
of  the  Cumberland  street 
Iniilding,  long  occupied 
1)3- the  Society,  was  com- 
jileted ;  in  IS.'iil  it  was 
added  to,  affording  then 
accommodation  for  130 
children. 

Dr.  Cox  and  Mr.  Gcnigh 
lectured  for  the  cause ; 
Fanny  Kemble  read,  and 
Jenny  Lind  sang  for  it. 
Once  a  month  Dr.  Bud- 
dington  preached  the 
children  a  sermon,  which 
they  unfeignedly  en- 
joyed. Now  and  again 
they  had  the  delight  of 
a  picnic,  or  Christmas 
treat,  or  anniversary 
feast,  where  the  aim  of 
their  entertainers  evi- 
dently Vas]to]^ascertain  how  much  cake  the  orphans  could  eat. 
The  population  of  Brooklyn,  numbered  in  1833  at  20,000, 
gained  apace,  and  the  necessity  of  a  still  larger  Asylum  long 
pressed  on  the  Managers,  who  had  to  deny  many  worthy  ap- 
plicants. At  length  the  matter  was  taken  in  hand,  and  a 
number  of  lots  were  secured  at  the  corner  of  Atlantic  and 
Kingston  avenues.  On  December  Ist,  1870,  tlie  corner-stone 
of  the  present  building  was  laid,  and  vigorous  efforts  in  be- 
half of  the  enterprise  were  made  thenceforward  by  all  con- 
nected with  it.  The  ladies  developed  newtalent  as  financiers; 


nTSTORT  01  KINGS    COUNTY. 


the  gentleman  gave  and  a-sked  others  to  follow  the  example. 
It  was  not  easy  to  provide  for  the  heavy  exjiense  incurred, 
and  yet  it  was  punctually  done.  Every  exigency  was  met, 
every  dollar  paid  when  it  was  due.  The  work  was  carried  in 
this  prudent  way  to  its  conclusion;  and  on  "opening  day," 
June  IStli,  1S72,  the  Society  was  relieved,  by  the  kindness  of 
a  watchful  Ix-nefactor,  from  a  mortgage,  its  only  remaining 
liability.  The  building  stands  in  tlie  center  of  the  grounds, 
and  is  regarded  as  a  model,  not  only  of  exterior  an^hitectural 
l)eauty,  but  of  taste  and  adaptation  in  its  interior  arrange- 
ments. Its  cost  was  $310,000;  it  has  ample  accommodation 
for  400  orjihans,  but  additional  room  is  already  needed.  The 
institution  is  supported  by  an  endowment,  bequests,  and 
sjM^cific  donations,  and  bj-  contributions  from  the  charitable. 

During  the  half  century,  four  ladies  have  filled  the  office 
of  Directress  :  Mrs.  Charles  Richards,  Mrs.  Phoebe  Butler, 
Mrs.  James  L.  Morgan,  and,  for  the  past  twenty  years,  Mrs. 
John  B.  Hutchinson,  whose  care  for  the  children's  welfare  in 
body  and  soul  takes  no  rest.  It  is  estimated  that,  from  the 
l>eginning,  the  Ayslum's  aid  has  been  given  to  nearly  5,000 
children,  through  whom  its  influence  is  now  sown  broadcast 
in  the  land.  Many  of  them  have  returned  to  their  friends 
and  been  heard  of  no  more.  A  number  are  known  to  have 
been  useful  and  respected  in  the  various  departments  of  life, 
from  preachers  and  teachers  down  to  the  humblest  vocations. 
One  of  the  boys,  so  cri|ipled  that  he  was  limited  in  his  exer- 
tions for  a  livelihood  to  selling  papers,  did  this  in  an  honest 
way  that  gained  him  favor,  and  enabled  him  to  lay  by  $700, 
wliich  at  his  death  he  left  to  the  Asylum,  with  the  words, 
"  To  the  Orphan  Asylum  I  am  indebted  for  all  that  I  am  and 
all  that  I  have;  it  has  been  both  father  and  mother  tome."" 
With  those  placed  in  homes  selected  for  them,  correspt)nd- 
ence,  as  far  as  practicable,  is  maintained  by  the  Chairman 
of  the  Adoption  and  Indenture  Committee,  and  frequent 
letters  come,  telling  of  contentment  and  gratitude. 

The  Officers  for  1884  are  as  follows  :  First  Directress,  Mrs. 
J.  B.  Hutchinson;  Second  Directress,  Mrs.  Anna  C.  Field; 
Recording  Secretary,  Mrs.  P.  P.Sherwood;  Corresponding 
Secretary,  Miss  V.  Sami)son:  Treasurer,  Mrs.  Peter  Palmer. 
The  Board  of  Advisors  consists  of  Hon.  S.  B.  Chittenden,  J. 
B.  Hutchinson,  Abraham  Wyckoff,  Franklin  Woodruff,  C. 
M.  Field,  Jonathan  Ogden,  A.  H.  Dana,  J.  G.  Jlorgan,  F.  A. 
Crocker,  J.  W.  Kh\oll,  J.  W.  Mason  and  J.  L.  Truslow.  The 
Board  of  Finance  consists  of  Messrs.  J.  W.  Mason,  A.  H. 
Dana  and  J.  W.  Elwell.  The  Counsel  for  the  association  is 
A.  H.  Dana. 

The  Brooklyn  Bureau  of  Charities  was  organized  in  1879 
with  the  following  officers  :  Seth  Low,  President ;  Alfred  T. 
White,  Secretary;  Darwin  R.  James,  Treasurer. 

The  objects  of  this  Society  are: 

1.  To  secure  the  co-operation  of  the  benevolent  societies, 
churches,  and  individuals  of  Brooklyn,  that  they  may  work 
with  an  understanding  of  the  exact  conditions  and  needs  of 
every  case. 

2.  To  obtain  and  diffuse  knowledge  on  all  subjects  con- 
nected with  the  relief  of  the  poor,  so  that  all  relief  may  be 
of  the  kind  best  adapted  to  the  needs  of  each  case,  and  ad- 
ministered in  the  best  possible  manner. 

3.  To  encourage  tlvrift,  self-dejiendence  and  industry 
tlurough  friendly  intercourse,  advice  and  synqiathy,  ;ind  to 
aid  the  poor  to  help  themselves  rather  than  to  help  them  by 
alms,  raising  them  as  speedily  as  possible  above  the  need  of 
relief. 

4.  To  prevent  imposition,  and  to  diminish  vagrancy  and 
pauperism  and  their  attendant  evils. 

This  Society  seeks  to  aid  all  benevolent  societies,  churchcy 
and  individuals  to  attain  the  highesc  aims  of  charity  and 


thereby  the  truest  welfare  of  the  poor.  It  neither  solicits 
or  receives  funds  for  the  purpose  of  alms-giving. 

The  Society  consists  of  the  following,  ex-offlciis:  The  Minis- 
ters of  aU  Churches,  the  Mayor,  the  State  Commissioner  of 
Charities  for  Kings  County,  the  Commissioner  of  Charities 
of  Kings  County,  the  Heads  of  City  Departments,  and  Cap- 
tains of  Police  Precincts  ;  of  the  officers,  managing  boards 
and  agents  of  all  charitable  organizations,  and  all  physicians 
who  are  connected  with  dispensaries,  or  do  gratuitous  service 
among  the  jioor.  Membership  is  obtained  by  any  who  con- 
tribute to  the  support  of  the  Bureau.  District  Conferences 
are  established  in  each  Ward  with  an  Executive  Committee, 
who  keep  a  register  of  all  needy  cases  in  their  district,  and 
assist  in  visiting  and  relieving  the  poor.  Mr  Low  was  suc- 
ceeded as  President  by  Alfred  T.  White. 

The  Officers  for  1883-'84  are  as  follows:  Manly  A.  Ruland, 
President:  I.  H.  Gary,  Jr.,  Rec.  Secretary;  Darwin  R.  Jauies, 
Treasurer;  Geo.  B.  Buzelle,  Oen'l  Secretary ;  M.  Bennett,  E. 
D.  Berri,  J.  O.  Carpenter,  I.  H.  Gary,  Jr.,  S.  B.  Chittenden, 
Jr.,  G.  B.  Forrester,  D.  R.  James,  D.  A.  Kendall,  F.  T.  King, 
M.  A.  Ruland,  A.  F.  Smith,  F.  F.  Underbill,  J.  D.  Wells, 
D.D.,  A.  T.  White,  Executive  Committee. 

Evangelical  Home  for  the  Aged. — The  friends  of  the  Ger- 
man Evangelical  Aid  Society  determined  to  build  a  home  for 
the  aged.  They  bought  14  city  lots  on  the  south-west  corner 
of  Bushwitk  avenue  and  Fairfax  street.  They  rented  the 
house.  No.  79  Himrod  street,  for  their  immediate  use,  and 
the  corner-stone  of  the  new  Home  was  laid  October  15,  1883. 
On  the  19th  of  February,  1883,  the  new  building  was  occu- 
pied. The  house  is  large  and  well  suited  to  the  wants  of  the 
Society.  It  now  contains  4;i  inmates.  Those  desii'ous  of  en- 
tering the  Home  as  inmates  are  required  to  pay  |500,  if  able. 
If  not  able,  they  pay  according  to  their  means;  the  majority 
being  received  entirely  without  money.  The  institution  is 
supported  by  the  charitable  among  the  German  Evangelical 
Churches.  The  Officers  for  1883-4  areas  follows:  Rev.  J.  M. 
Wagner,  President;  Rev.  J.  Weber,  Secretary;  of  the  Board 
of  Managers,  Mrs.  M.  A.  Miller  is  First  Directress;  Mrs.  M. 
Wied,  Second  Directress;  Mrs.  E.  Hehr  and  Mrs.  M.  Krapf, 
Secretaries;  Mrs.  P.  Achterrath,  Treasurer. 

The  Brooklyn  Home  for  Aged  Men. — In  1877,  Mrs.  Mary 
G.  Brinkerhoff,  Mrs.  J.  G.  Wilbur  and  Mrs.  Mary  E.  Whiton 
found,  in  what  had  purported  to  be  a  Faith  Home  for  old 
men,  in  Grand  avenue,  near  Atlantic,  seven  aged  men  in  a 
suffering  condition.  They,  with  five  others  who  became  in- 
terested in  the  work,  cared  for  these  men  during  five  months 
at  their  own  expense.  In  1878,  they  became  incorporated 
under  the  above  name.  Soon  after  their  mcorporation,  Mr. 
Frederick  Marquand  presented  to  the  Society  the  undivided 
half  of  the  house  in  which  the  Home  was  established — 84 
State  street.  This  house  was  valued  at  |10,000.  To  it  these 
men  vifere  removed,  and  others  have  been  added,  till  it  is  now 
quite  full.  Its  present  capacity  is  twenty.  Mrs.  Mary  G. 
Brinkerhoff  was  the  first  President,  followed  by  the  present 
President,  Mrs.  Lucien  Birdseye.  The  other  Officers  for 
1883-'4are:  Mrs.  H.  W.  Wheeler,  Mrs.  John  Winslow,  I7ce- 
Presidents ;  Mrs.  A.  F.  Kibbe,  Mrs.  J.  H.  Williams,  Secre- 
taries;  Mrs.  J.  N.  Bergen,  Treasurer. 

The  Brooklyn  Association  for  Improving  the  Condition 
of  the  Poor  (lOS  Ijivingston  street)  was  f(u-nied  in  184:1  The 
Presidents  of  the  Society,  up  to  the  present  time,  have  been 
Seth  Low,  1843-'53 ;  Jolm  H.  Brower,  2)ro  tern,  Stephen 
Crowell,  1854-'56;  George  Hall,  1857-'63;  R.  W.  Ropes,  18G3 
to  1884.  The  General  Agents,  during  the  same  period, 
have  been  :  Stephen  Crowell,  1843-53  ;  Samuel  G.  Arnold, 
1853 ;  Luther  Eames,  1854-'60;  Rev.  Samuel  Bayliss,  from 
1861  to  October  13, 1876,  when  David  H.  Hawkins  was  elected. 


CHARIIABLE  INSTITUTIONS. 


975 


Mr.  Hawkins  died  in  Spring  of  1879,  and,  on  October  13th  of 
that  year,  Albert  A.  Day  was  elected,  and  continues  to  fill 
tlie  office.  This  Association  aims  to  improve  the  condition  of 
the  poor,  morally  as  well  as  physically,  by  relieving,  their 
immediate  necessities,  and  by  giving  them  such  advice,  re- 
lief or  encouragement  as  the  several  cases  seem  to  require. 
Accordingly,  it  visually  excludes  from  its  benefits  those  of 
intemperate,  or  confirmed  vicious,  or  indolent  habits  ;  those 
who,  from  disease,  imbecility,  old  age,  or  other  causes,  are 
likely  to  be  permanently  dependent  (such  persons  would  be 
better  cared  for  in  various  public  institutions),  as  well  as  such 
as  are,  or  ought  to  be,  provided  for  by  relatives,  churches 


men  of  wealth  and  influence,  each  of  whom  has  a  district 
containing  from  fifty  to  a  hundred  families,  which  he  can- 
vasses thoroughly  during  the  montlis  of  November,  Decem- 
ber and  January.  The  work  of  distribution  is  carried  on 
through  an  experienced  corps  of  paid  Ward  agents  (under 
the  superintendence  of  the  General  Agent),  who  visit  each 
aijplicant  and  investigate  the  case  before  giving  an  order  for 
assistance. 

The  Association  has  its  own  storehouses,  and  purchases  the 
supplies  disbursed  at  wholesale.  The  Thirty-fifth  Annual 
Report  shows  such  disbursements  made,  at  a  cost  of  8^  per 
cent,  of  the  value  of  the  goods  disbursed.     From  six  to  eight 


FIRST  BUILDING  OF  THE  ASSOCIATION.    (In  rear  of  present  one). 

or  other  associations  with  which  they  may  be  connected ; 
recent  emigrants  (who  properly  come  under  the  care  of  the 
Commissioners  of  Emigration);  and  those  whose  long-con- 
tinued poverty  render  them  unquestionabh'  fit  subjects  for 
the  Superintendents  of  the  Poor.  In  fact,  it  aims  to  confine 
its  labors,  as  nearly  as  possible,  to  those  whose  poverty  is 
caused  by  temporary  reverses,  which  they  may  rise  above; 
and  those  whose  condition  may  be  elevated  by  judicious 
assistance  and  advice.  The  society  has  no  permanent  fund, 
but  depends  entirely  upon  annual  contributions.  The  collec- 
tions are  made  by  voluntary  unpaid  solicitors,  usually  well- 
known  residents  of  the  district  where  they  solicit,  and  often 


THE  PRESENT  BUILDING,  108  LIVINGSTON  ST. 

thousand  families  are  assisted  each  year.  During  the  past 
six  years,  a  very  thorough  and  accurate  system  of  business, 
in  all  the  details  of  this  work,  has  been  inaugurated  and  is 
now  maintained.  The  last  Annual  Report  shows  a  disburse- 
ment for  the  current  year  of  over  $29,000. 

The  original  Officers,  in  1843,  were:  Seth  Low,  Pres.; 
C.  P.  Smith,  John  Greenwood,  Henry  G.  Murphy,  William 
Rockwell,  Henrj'  N.  Conklin,  Vice-Presidents;  Abraham 
Halsey,  Treas.;  James  How,  Rec.  Sec;  Stephen  Crowell, 
Cor.  See.  and  Oeti.  Agt.,  office,  Brooklyn  Institute,  Wash- 
ington street;  with  a  Board  of  Managers,  consisting  of  five 
representatives  from  seven  Wards,  and  eight  elected  members. 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


THE  GRAHAM   rNSTITTTION. 

The  Brooklyn  Society  for  the  Relief  of  Respectable  Aged 
Indigent  Females,  more  popularly  known  as  the  Old  Ladies" 
Home  (or  more  familiarly  as  the  Graham  Institution),  and 
designed  for  the  benefit  of  poor  gentlewomen  who  had  been 
unfitted,  l)y  previous  culture  and  refinement,  to  accept  will- 
ingly the  public  asylum  provided  by  the  State  for  the  poor 
indiscriminately,  was  first  suggested  in  1850.  At  a  public 
meeting,  held  at  Rev.  Dr.  S.  H.  Cox's  church,  in  January, 
18.')1,  the  project  took  a  definite  form;  a  building  site,  corner 
of  Washington  and  DeKalb  avenues,  valued  at  ^4,000,  was 
presented  by  Mr.  John  B.  Graham,  and  it  was  calculated  that 
a  proper  building  would  be  comjileted  within  sixteen  months 
from  that  time  ;  Mr.  Graham  offering,  during  the  meantime, 
to  furnish  relief  at  their  own  homes,  to  all  applicants  for  ad- 
mission. The  co-operation  of  twenty -six  different  (orthodox) 
congregations  was  secured,  and  the  enterprise  was  thus 
j)laced  on  an  unsectarian  basis.  A  cliarter  was  obtained,  the 
building  commenced,  and  the  corner-stone  was  laid  on  the 
1st  of  Jjily,  1851.  The  architect's  report,  read  on  that  oc- 
casion, stated  that  the  edifice  would  accommodate  ninety  old 
ladies,  and  would  contain  a  chapel,  liospital,  committee- 
rooms,  etc.,  at  a  probable  cost  of  .l;22,000;  Mr.  Graham  pledg- 
ing himself  for  its  completion  in  18.52,  and  the  amount  to  be 
raised  by  personal  application  to  the  citizens  of  Brooklj-n. 
The  Society  failing,  however,  to  raise  the  sum  within  tlie 
stipulated  time,  Mr.  Graham,  with  his  accustomed  liberality, 
assumed  the  responsibility  of  the  undertaking,  and  carried  it 
on  to  completion,  at  a  cost  of  $29,044.95.  He  then  presented 
it  to  the  Society,  and  it  was  dedicated  to  its  beneficent  uses 
on  the  26th  of  Octoljer,  1852.  Mr.  Graham's  original  gift  to 
this  Society  was  |13,044.95,  together  with  his  time,  labor,  and 
many  smaller  but  valuable  aids  to  its  success.  It  was  his  re- 
Ijeatedly  avowed  intentioh  to  build  handsome  dwellings  upon 
the  two  side  lots,  and  give  the  rents  of  the  same,  yearly,  to 
the  institution;  and  also,  to  free  the  building  from  debt,  by 
an  already  prepared  deed  to  that  effect.  But  whilst,  with  pen 
in  hand,  calling  upon  his  clerk  to  hand  him  this  deed,  death 
closed  Ills  fingers  in  its  icy  gra.sp.  This  left  the  managers 
under  very  discouraging  circumstances,  struggling  through 
each  j'ear,  as  l)est  they  could,  with  scarce  a  hope  left  for  the 
relief  of  the  institution,  and  dependent  upon  the  uncertain 
support  of  public  charity.  In  the  year  1855,  it  was  thought 
best  to  ap])eal  to  the  public,  through  the  pastors  of  the  dif- 
ferent churches  represented  by  the  management,  for   the 


means  wherewith  to  cancel  the  mortgage  and  its  accumu- 
lated interest.  This  plan  proved  entirely  successful,  and  the 
institution,  since  that  time,  has  been  crowned  with  success 
sufficient  to  promise  its  permanent  and  honorable  position 
as  one  of  the  most  valuable  charities  of  Brooklyn.  In  1862, 
the  sum  of  $5,000,  given  by  the  estate  of  the  late  Wm.  H. 
Cary,  furnished  a  nucleus,  which,  with  additions  of  various 
sums  from  individuals,  both  living  and  deceased,  formed  a 
permanent  fund,  the  interest  of  which  was  applied  to  the 
support  of  the  umiates.  With  the  exception  of  $1,500  froju 
the  State  Legislature,  no  aid  was  received  from  any  public 
body  ;  annual  subscriptions  and  donations  have  been  its  de- 
pendence. 

The  Presidents  of  the  institution  have  been:  Mrs.  Dr.  Cox, 
ilrs.  Lansing,  Mrs.  Buckley,  Mrs.  J.  S.  T.  Stranahan,  Mrs. 
Webster,  and  Mrs.  David  M.  Stone. 

The  other  Officers  are  as  follows:  Mrs.  Theo.  Polhemus, 
Jr.,  Vice-President;  Mrs.  W.  H.  Smith,  Mrs.  J.  Arthur  Burr, 
Secretaries;  Mrs.  A.  C.  Washington,  Treasurer. 

The  Flower  and  Fruit  Charity  was  organized  May,  1874, 
"  to  distribute  fruits,  flowers  and  other  delicacies,  with  suit- 
able reading  matter,  personally,  among  the  sick  poor  in  hos- 
pitals, asylums  and  their  own  homes."  It  numbered  about 
twenty  members  originally,  which  is  the  present  aver- 
age. 

The  first  Officers  were:  Miss  Badger,  President;  Mrs.  J.  H. 
Lester,  Jr.,  Vice-President;  Miss  A.  Mali,  Secretary.  Every 
Monday,  from  9  to  11  o'clock,  the  ladies  meet  in  the  basement 
of  the  Brooklyn  Lilirary  building,  arrange  the  contributed 
flowers  in  small  bouquets,  and  carry  them,  with  fruit,  maga- 
zines or  newspapers,  to  the  hospitals  for  distribution.  At  Christ- 
mas, the  inmates  of  all  the  hospitals  are  presented  wdth  cards 
and  oranges,  while  the  wards  are  decorated  with  greens. 
The  charity  is  supported  entirely  by  voluntary  contribu- 
tions of  money  and  supplies,  and  the  work  performed  by 
ladies. 

Its  Officers  for  1883-'4  are:  Miss  A.  Mali,  President;  Miss  J. 
Duckwitz,  Vice-President;  Miss  C.  Lane,  Secretary;  Miss  Kate 
Crane,  Treasurer. 

Faith  Home  for  Incurables.— In  1871,  Mrs.  Kennedy,  of 
New  York,  opened  an  asylum  for  incurables  of  both  sexes  in 
Harlem.  This  was  soon  afterward  reiiuned  to  Grand  avenue, 
near  Atlantic,  in  Brooklyn,  and  subsequently  to  the  corner 
of  Putnam  and  Grand  avenues.  In  April,  1875,  Mrs.  Ken- 
nedy transferred  this  charity  to  Mrs.  Rev.  William  E.  Martin; 
and  by  her  it  was  soon  transferred  to  Misses  E.  F.  and  A.  H. 
Campbell.  In  1877,  it  was  removed  to  Lexington  avenue, 
near  Franklin,  where  it  remained  three  years.  In  Novem- 
ber, 1878,  the  institution  was  incorporated  under  its  present 
name,  which  sufficiently  indicates  its  object. 

The  institution  has  been  supported  wholly  by  voluntary 
unsolicited  contributions.  In  1876,  a  donation  of  seven  dol- 
lars was  made  toward  a  building  fund.  In  1881,  this  fund 
had  increased  to  $8,000,  about  $4,000  of  which  was  a  legacy. 
In  the  spring  of  that  year,  Mr.  A.  S.  Barnes  donated  to  the 
home,  land  on  the  corner  of  Classon  avenue  and  Park  place, 
and  superintended  the  erection  of  the  elegant  and  com- 
modious building  which  stands  there.  In  addition  to  his 
donation  of  the  land,  he  paid  about  $17,000  toward  the  erec- 
tion of  this  structure,  which  cost  about  $32,000.  Of  this, 
about  $7,000  were  donated  by  others.  The  home  has  accom- 
modations for  fif tj'  patients.  Most  of  the  rooms  in  the  insti- 
tution have  been  furnished  by  imlividuals  or  churches, 
and  they  are  named  after  those  furnishing  them.  The 
Officers  for  1883-'4  are  Rev.  Geo.  F.  Pentecost,  President; 
James  M.  Ham,  Treasurer;  S.  B.  Childs,  M.  D.,  Secretary; 
Emily  F.  Campbell  and  Abby  H.  Campbell,  Managers. 


CffARtTABLE  INSTITUTIONS. 


V     9^7 


THE    BROOKLYN    NURSERY. 


The  Brooklyn  Nursery.— In  the  spring  of  1871,  Mrs.  E.  B. 
Rollins,  Mrs.  H.  F.  Aten,  Mrs.  Charles  Ruslimore,  Mrs.  W.  G. 
Lawrence,  Mrs.  A.  G.  Houghton  and  Mrs.  L.  W.  Seaman, 
with  a  few  others,  interested  themselves  in  forming  a  tem- 
porary home  for  infants  and  young  children  of  working  people, 
where  they  would  receive  kind  care  during  woi-king  hours. 
A  house  in  Adelphi  street  was  secured,  an  Industrial  School 
established,  and  a  charter  granted  the  Institution  as  Tlie 
Flatbush  Avenue  Industrial  School  and  Nursery.  Soon  after, 
the  Industrial  School  was  discontinued,  and  a  new  charter 
granted  to  The  Brooklyn  Nursery.  In  Jime,  1871,  the  institu- 
tion was  opened.  i:iO  children  were  cared  for  during  the  first 
year.  The  first  Officers  were :  Mrs.  E.  B.  Rollins,  First  Direc- 
tress; Mrs.  M.  Graham,  Second  Directress;  Mrs.  G.  W. 
Alexander,  Third  Directress;  Mrs.  Charles  Rushmore,  Treas.; 
Mrs.  W.  F.  Swalm,  Rec.  Sec:  Mrs.  H.  F.  Aten,  Cor.  Sec. 
Three  years  later,  the  Nursery  was  removed  to  larger  quar- 
ters at  No.  188  Prospect  place.  In  1883,  the  house  was  sold 
and  lots  purchased  on  Herkimer  street,  near  Kingston  avenue, 
where  the  corner-stone  of  the  new  building  was  laid  Septem- 
ber 14th,  1883.     This  building  is  substantially  constructed,  on 


the  plan  of  the  letter  T,  with  a  front  of  52  feet  on  Herkimer 
street,  and  a  wing  45  by  58  feet  in  the  rear.  It  is  faced  with 
pressed  bricks,  relieved  by  bands  of  terra  cotta;  is  four  stories 
in  height,  witli  a  basement  containing  the  culinary  and 
laundry  apparatus.  The  first  floor  is  used  as  the  parlor,  recep- 
tion and  eewing  room:  the  ujiper  floors  are  occupied  by  dormi- 
tories, matron's  room,  and  lavatories.  Special  attention  has 
been  i)aid  to  ventilation  and  precautions  against  fire.  The 
cost  of  the  building  was  about  $30,000.  The  Officers  for 
1883-4  are  as  follows  :  Mrs.  E.  B.  Rollins,  First  Directress; 
Mrs.  G.  C  Wood,  Second Direetress;'M.rs.  D.  D.  Barker,  Third 
Directress;  Mrs.  D.  Hustace,  Treasurer;  Miss  J.  Thompson, 
Recording  Secretary;  Mrs.  H.  F.  Aten,  Corresponding  Secre- 
tary. 

Brooklyn  Benevolent  Society. — The  late  Cornelius  Heeney, 
Esq.,  gave,  for  charitable  purposes,  151  lots  of  land  lying  be- 
tween Hicks,  Columbia,  Congress  and  Henry  streets,  in  the 
city  of  Brooklyn.  He  directed  that  the  income  from  this 
jiroperty  should  be  expended  for  the  relief  of  the  poor,  one- 
fifth  for  fuel,  one-tenth  for  clothing  for  poor  children  attend- 
ing school,  |250  for  a  teacher  for  poor  children,  and  the  re- 


ore 


fflsrOEY  01  KINGS  COUNTY. 


maindcr  for  tho  inainteuance  aiid  education  of  poor  orphan 
fhildron,  from  four  to  fourteen  years  of  age. 

In  1845,  tlio  Benevolent  Association  was  formed,  for  the 
purpose  of  carrying  out  the  provisions  of  the  tinist.  The 
devise  \-ields  from  ^22,000  to  |25,000  per  year,  which  is  ap- 
portione<l  among  the  poor  of  the  Roman  Catholic  church 
principally.  The  OFFICERS  for  1882-'83  are  Rt.  Rev.  John 
Ix)ughlin,  Prcs.:  Conolly  Roddy,  Treas.;  John  McGreevey, 
Sec'i/.  The  Standing  Committee  is  Andrew  Dougherty, 
Chairman  ;  Kiernaii  Egan,  Jno.  McGreevey,  Hon.  W.  H. 
Hurtha.     ■Williinn  K.I1>.  Agent. 


The  Baptist  Home,  of  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  was  incorporated 
liy  an  act  of  the  Legislature,  passed  April  9,  1869.  The  es- 
tablishment of  this  Home  was  first  urged  by  Alexander 
McDonald,  with  whom  Francis  D.  Mason  co-ojierated  actively 
ami  efRciently.  These  gentlemen  contributed  |25,000  toward 
the  Ijuilding  fund,  but  neither  lived  to  see  the  commence- 
ment of  the  building.  Tlie  object  of  the  Home,  as  set  forth 
in  its  charter,  is  to  furnish  "  an  institution  where  the  deserv- 
ing infirm  and  needy  members  of  the  Baptist  churches  of 
the  city  of  Brooklyn  *  *  *  may  be  provided  with  a  com- 
fortable home,  support,  and  employment,  medical  and  other 
necessary  care,  with  the  religious  and  church  privileges 
which  they  have  been  accustomed  to  enjoy  as  members  of 
their  resjiective  churches."  Tlie  corner-stone  of  the  Home 
wa-s  laid  October  23,  1873,  and  the  building  was  dedicated 
June  22,  1875.  It  is  three  stories  in  height,  with  basement 
and  pavilion.  It  is  112  feet  in  front,  on  Greene  avenue  (corner 
of  Throop),  and  has  an  average  depth  of  about  45  feet  ;  the 
coat  was  $81,500.  The  current  expenses  of  the  Home  are 
defrayed  by  contributions  from  churches  and  individuals. 
Edward  Adams  bequeathed  to  the  Home  $5,000,  and  Mis. 
Sarah  A.  Bertine,  .$15,000.  Officers (1883-84) :  Wm.  Rich- 
ardson, Pres.;  Fred'k  C.  Linden,  Treas.;  Geo.  B.  Forrester, 
Sec'?/. 

The  Church  Charity  Foundation  of  Long  Island. — This, 
as  the  name  itni>orts,  is  a  foundation  on  which  to  build  sev- 
eral institutions  for  different  classes  of  beneficiaries  to  which 
tlie  charity  of  the  church  may  be  extended.  Its  origin  is 
due  to  the  late  Rev.  Francis  Vinton,  D.D.,  when  rector  of 
Grace  Church,  on  the  Heights  (to  whom  had  fallen  the 
cliarge  of  three  orphan  cliildren  of  a  communicant  of  his 
parish);  and  a  few  noble-minded  and  generous  ladies,  among 
whom  were  Mrs.  Richards,  Mrs.  Pierrepont,  Mrs.  Hastings, 
and  others.  These  ladies,  in  1850,  rented  a  small  building  in 
Love  lane  (which  had  been  occupied  by  Harry,  once  a  slave 
of  Samuel  Jackson),  and  tliere  gathered  a  few  aged  women, 
supiilying  their  wants  from  day  to  day,  and  watching  over 


them  with  affectionate  care.  Tliis  enterprise  enlisted  the 
interest  of  others,  and  led  to  the  holding  of  a  meeting,  on 
the  6th  of  February,  1851,  in  the  church  of  the  Holy  Tiinity, 
at  which  steps  were  taken  for  the  organization  of  the  Church 
Charity  Foundation,  wliich  was  incorporated  under  the  gen- 
eral act,  April  14,  1852. 

The  ciiarity  contemplated,  1st,  the  establishment  of  a  hoine 
for  aged  indigent  persons,  at  first  of  females,  but  in  course 
of  time,  of  aged  men  and  aged  married  couples ;  2d,  an 
orphan  house,  for  the  protection,  support,  and  education  of 
indigent  orphan  and  half-orphan  children,  and  such  other 
children,  without  distinction,  as  shall  have  been 
left  in  a  destitute  and  unprotected  condition  ;  3d, 
the  establishment  of  a  hospital  and  infinnary  for 
the  sick  and  helpless  ;  4tli,  a  training  house  for  the 
instruction  in  nursing  of  the  sick,  of  such  minister- 
ing women  as  may  desire  to  work  for  tlie  afflicted, 
not  only  in  the  departments  of  this  foundation,  but 
in  other  charitable  or  penal  institutions  of  the  city, 
among  tlie  poor  in  their  abodes,  and  in  cases  of 
contagious  disease,  or  in  times  of  pestilence;  5th,  a 
liome  and  bethel  for  seamen  and  boatmen,  and  their 
families.  Besides  tliese,  a  provision  is  made,  au- 
thorizing the  receiving  and  executing  of  any  trust 
for  charitable  uses  ;  it  being  intended,  under  this 
comprehensive  arrangement,  to  enable  any  benefac- 
tor to  establish  charities  and  supply  wants,  not  at 
the  time  of  the  organization  of  the  society  parti- 
cularly foreseen,  but  which  the  future  growth  of 
the  city  might  render  desirable,  and  a  riper  experi- 
ence in  benevolence  might  discover  and  i)rovide  for.  In  1857, 
the  Society  purchased  23  city  lots,  at  the  corner  of  Albany  ave- 
nue and  Herkimer  street,  and,  in  1858-'59,  erected  thereon  a 
house  and  chapel,  of  sufficient  capacity  for  25  aged  people  and 
40  orphans.  For  the  first  twelve  years,  the  care  of  this  num- 
ber was  the  work  of  the  Society. 

In  1871,  a  separate  house  for  the  aged,  of  both  sexes,  was 
erected.  This  was  120x45  feet,  four  stories  in  height.  About 
tlie  same  time,  a  dispensary  for  the  poor  was  opened,  fol- 
lowed, in  a  few  months,  by  an  embryo  hospital,  which  was 
established  in  the  new  home.  In  1873,  a  separate  house, 
35x70  feet,  was  erected  for  a  hospital,  wliich  was  opened  on 
St.  John's  day  (December  27th)  of  that  year,  and  was  named 
St.  John's  Hospital.  The  grounds  were  enlarged  by  the  pur- 
chase of  35  additional  lots,  and,  in  1877,  was  commenced  the 
erection  of  a  larger  building,  140  feet  on  Atlantic  avenue,  by 
95  feet  on  Albany  avenue,  and  five  stories  high.  This  build- 
ing was  completed  at  an  expense  of  $90,000.  It  is  massive 
and  elegant,  and  contains  140  beds.  Herein  are  provided  the 
most  skillful  physicians  and  surgeons,  the  personal  care  of 
devoted  deaconesses,  and  the  consolations  of  the  church, 
where  services  in  a  chapel  opening  into  every  ward,  are 
heard  liy  all.  A  resident  physician  and  a  chaplain  are  also 
included  in  the  staff  of  workers. 

This  latest  addition  to  the  equipment  of  the  Long  Island 
Church  stands  in  complete  working  order,  rising  grandly  at 
the  intersection  of  the  broadest  avenue  in  our  city,  and  a 
rapidly  developing  thoroughfare,  with  its  massive  basement 
of  smoothly-dressed  sandstone,  its  lofty  walls  of  fine  brick, 
its  ample  lights  for  rooms  or  wards,  its  great  window  of 
stained  glass,  with  its  wide  and  high  corridors,  its  sunnj'  and 
elegant  private  rooms,  its  clean  and  capacious  wards,  its 
manifold  appliances  for  comfort  and  health,  and  its  spacious, 
convenient  and  handsome  cliapel,  altogether  constituting  a 
Hospital,  pronounced  by  experienced  observers  as  unsur- 
passed in  its  adaptation  to  its  purposes  by  any  similar  insti- 
tution in  the  country. 


CHARITABLE  INSTITUTIONS. 


979 


ORPHANS'  HOME,  ON  THE  CHURCH  CHARITi'  FOUNDATJON. 


^^^\\ 


'LlLDii  tillbliiii    ' '^ '^^ 


llllilll  IIH     .  ;'^^ 


fe^'"''^^ 


"T"*  (         -^     .  -v    !»    f'  i^  ^  .J  5  •}  j5       n         r      |f>  «  1  S  S  ^^  8  fi     §  95  S 


iiiiittii  itwf;. 


ST.   JOHNS    HOSPITAL,  ON  THE    CHURCH    CHARITY    FOUNDATION. 


HISIORY  OF  KINGS   COUNTY. 


The  construction  of  the  Hospital,  including  its  furniture, 
has  added  not  less  than  $112,000  to  the  previously  existing 
pos.sessions  of  the  Foundation  ;  and  competent  persons  esti- 
mate that,  as  it  stands,  finished,  fitted,  and  furnished,  it 
could  bo  replaced  for  not  less  than  $150,000. 

The  endowments  consist  of  amounts  variously  contributed 
and  p<'rmanently  invested  for  the  i)urposes  of  the  Founda- 
tion. General  endowment,  $66,119 ;  hospital  endowment, 
$12,127.93;  total,  $78,246.93.  The  real  property  of  the 
Fomidation  is  valued  at  $268,000 ;  to  this  add  the  endow- 
ments, $8,246,937,  and  legacies  to  be  received,  $7,500,  gives 
as  total  amount  of  assets,  $353,746.93.  Tlie  significance  of 
the.se  figures  cannot  be  overlooked.  The  united  charities, 
from  a  feeble  beginning,  have  accumulated  at  the  rate  of 
$10,000  a  year,  for  more  than  thirty  years.  And,  in  addi- 
tion to  tliis,  the  annual  contributions  for  expenses  approx- 
imate a  sum  equal  to  the  unincumbered  value  of  the  projierty. 

From  its  very  beginning,  tliis  work  has  drawn  to  itself  such 
interest  and  lil)erality  as  to  ttamp  it  unmistakably  with  the 
seals  of  necessity  and  popularity.     For  five  years  the  Hos- 


ing the  last  nine  years,  the  beneficiaries  of  the  Founda- 
tion have  averaged:  aged  people  50;  orphans,  80;  sick,  25. 

Its  first  Presidents  were :  Rev.  Francis  Vinton,  D.D., 
who  served  three  years;  Rev.  W.  H.  Lewis,  D.D.,  who 
served  four  years;  Rev.  Thomas  Guion,  D.D.,  who  served 
three  years;  and  Rev.  A.  N.  Littlejohn,  D.D.,  who  served  by 
election  until  his  connection  to  the  bishopric  of  L.  I.,  in  1869; 
since  which  he  has  been  President,  ex-officio. 

Officers  in  1884  were:  Rt.  Rev.  N.  Littlejohn,  Pres.; 
Charles  Hall,  D.  D.,  Vice-Prcs.;  Carlos  A.  Butler,  Esq..  Sec'y ; 
and  Edwin  Beers,  Treas. 

The  Brooklyn  Children's  Aid  Society. — This  Society  was 
originated  at  the  house  of  Hon.  S.  B.  Chittenden,  on  the 
evening  of  January  13,  1866.  Its  objects  are  :  "  The  protec- 
tion, care  and  shelter  of  friendless  and  vagrant  youth;  fur- 
nishing them  with  food,  raiment  and  lodging;  aiding  and 
administering  to  their  wants;  providing  them  with  occupa- 
tion: instructing  them  in  moral  and  religious  truth,  and  in 
the  rudiments  of  education;  and  endeavoring  to  make  them 
virtuous  and  useful  citizens." 


HOME   OF   THE    UKOOKLYN    C!l  I  l.lil!  r  s  <    AID    SOCIETY. 


pital  work  has  been  supported  by  the  income  from  its  endow- 
ments, and  the  contributions  to  its  purposes.  It  has  also 
attracted  for  building  purposes,  in  the  same  period  of  five 
years,  at  the  annual  rate  of  $20,000.  Further,  it  has  received 
by  voluntary  contributions,  often  of  the  most  affecting  asso- 
ciations, the  furniture,  and  even  the  decorations  <  f  offices, 
rooms  and  wards,  to  the  value  of  more  than  .$12,000.  Its 
absolute  freedom  from  debt  has  enabled  the  Foundation  to 
have  its  first  consecrated  chapel  on  unincumbered  ground. 
As  might  be  expected,  such  a  sjiontaneously  developed  energy 
has  exerted  effects  instantly  appreciable  upon  the  older 
activities  by  its  side.  Beds  in  the  Orphan  House  have  been 
generously  endowed;  and  large  sums  have  been  devised,  by  a 
will  now  in  probate,  to  each  of  the  three  great  works  of  the 
Institution,  which  bequests  are  known  to  have  been  prompted 
by  the  unflagging  persistence  shown  by  the  prosecutors  of 
the  enterprise  in  behalf  of  the  sick  and  wounded. 

The  Foundation  lias  always  maintained  an  excellent 
primary  school  for  the  orjihans,  and  it  has  a  chaplain  to  care 
for  the  spiritual  and  moral  welfare  of  the  inmates.     Dur- 


The  foremost  citizens  of  Brooklyn  have  served  on  the 
Board  of  Trustees,  and  the  story  of  the  Society  is  one  of  con- 
stant and  vigorous  growth.  Wm.  A.  Lawrence,  as  general 
superintendent,  organized  the  work;  and  the  generous  gifts 
of  Frederick  Marquand,  Chauncey  Rose,  H.  B.  Claflin,  S.  B. 
Chittenden,  and  many  others,  with  the  most  careful  business 
management,  have  kept  the  Society  above  pressing  want.  It 
has  constantly  reached  out  for  more  work,  year  by  year.  Its 
first  institution.  The  Newsboys'  Home,  61  Poplar  street,  was 
opened  September  1st,  1866.  The  special  relief  department 
began  work  June  1st,  1867,  furnishing  homes  and  work  for 
children.  Two  Industrial  Schools  organized  the  same 
year. 

By  September  1st,  1867,  another  Home  was  in  full  operation 
at  139  Van  Brunt  street.  South  Brooklyn. 

Within  another  year,  the  Newsboys'  Home  proved  too 
small,  and  the  adjoining  house  and  lot,  57  Poplar  street, 
were  bought  and  fitted  up.  During  the  same  year — October 
31,  1868 — the  Sewing-machine  School  for  girls  was  organized, 
and  has  been  in  successful  operation  ever  since. 


CHARITABLE  INSTITUTIONS. 


981 


The  departments  of  work  conducted  up  to  1872  were  :  Two 
Newsboys'  Homes;  a  Special  Relief  Department;  Sewing- 
Machine  Scliool,  two  Industrial  Schools,  and  two  Night- 
Schools  for  Boys.  In  the  summer  of  1873,  Mr.  Lawrence  or- 
ganized and  carried  out  a  series  of  excursions  for  mothers 
and  children  to  the  sea-shore. 

On  April  1st,  1873,  Mr.  Lawrence  resigned  the  general 
superintendence  of  the  Society,  and  Richard  D.  Douglass 
was  appointed  to  the  position. 

The  picnics  for  mothers  and  children  were  continued  dur- 
ing the  summer  of  1873,  under  the  care  of  Mr.  Wm.  Kirkby, 
the  work  having  largely  increased.  Mr.  Douglass  assumed 
the  conduct  of  the  "Fresh  Air  Fund  Excursions"  in  1874, 
and  carried  them  on  each  summer,  until,  in  1876,  by  the 
munificence  of  Alfred  T.  White,  who  presented  a  new  build- 
ing, fully  furnished,  to  the  Society,  the  Seaside  Home  for 
Children  was  opened  at  Coney  Island.  From  the  small  be- 
ginnings of  two  or  three  mothers,  sent  to  the  sea-shore  to 
board  for  a  few  days  for  the  benefit  of  their  babies'  health, 
the  work  has  assumed  the  proportions  indicated  by  the  fol- 
lowing statistics :    (See,  also,  page  197). 


1876.... 

1877 

1878 

1879 

1880 

1881 

1882 

1883 

Total 


NO. 

NO. 

NO. 

WEEKS 

CHILDREN 

MOTHERS 

OPEN. 

RECEIVED. 

RECEIVED. 

10 

619 

2U 

l.S 

1,601 

565 

13 

1,921 

648 

13 

2,433 

805 

13 

2,821 

1,051 

13J^ 

3.1.52 

1,083 

13 

3,168 

1,202 

13 

3  383 

1,218 

19,088 

6,786 

2,166 
2,569 

3,228 
3,872 
4,235 
4,370 
4,601 

25,-74 


On  January  1st,  1881,  the  Societj',  in  addition  to  its  other 
work,  established  a  Day  Nursery  for  young  children,  in  con- 
nection with  the  Industrial  School,  in  Van  Brunt  street. 
This  Society  owes  much  of  its  success  to  the  untiring  efforts 
of  William  A.  Lawrence,  general  superintendent  for  the  first 
seven  jears  of  its  life,  and  William  Kirkby,  who  was  super- 
intendent of  the  Newsboys'  Home  from  its  foundation  till 
July  4th,  1880,  when  the  Master  called  him  to  a  higher  ser- 
vice. 

The  following  gentlemen  have  served  as  Presidents  of  the 
Society  : — Hon.  S.  B.  Chittenden,  James  R.  Taylor,  Dwiglit 
Johnson,  Henry  R.  Jones,  Charles  A.  Denny,  James  P.  Wal- 
lace and  Michael  Snow.  General  Superintendents:  Wm. 
Appleton  Lawrence,  from  1866,  for  seven  years;  Richard  D. 
Douglass,  from  1873  to  the  present  time,  ten  years.  Super- 
intendent of  Newsboys'  Home,  Wm.  Kirkby,  from  September 
1st,  1866,  to  his  <lecease,  July  4th,  1880  ;  since  which  time 
Mrs.  Wm.  Kirkby  has  been  in  charge. 

The  Van  Brunt  Street  Home  was  maintained  for  boys  un- 
til 1867,  when  it  was  found  best  to  concentrate  work  at  Pop- 
lar street,  and  at  the  same  time  enlarge  tlie  Industrial 
School.  E.  Whitney  conducted  this  Home  as  Superintend- 
ent up  to  the  date  of  closing  the  Home,  as  a  lodging  house 
for  boys.  Miss  M.  H.  Robinson  continues  to  serve  as  Princi- 
pal of  the  Industrial  School. 

The  breadth  and  scope  of  the  work  of  this  Society  is  best 
shown  by  the  following  statistics,  which  represents  only  a 
part  of  the  work  done  by  the  Brooklyn  Children's  Aid  So- 
ciety, from  the  commencement  of  its  work,  September  1st, 
1866,  to  November  1, 1883,  a  period  of  17  years  and  3  months  : 
2,194  children  sent  to  good  homes  in  the  country;  6,100  chil- 
dren sent  to  good  homes  in  the  city;  7,581  girls  taught  on 
the  sewing  machine  ;  10,334  boys  taken  in  from  the  streets  ; 
26,011  mothers  and  children  sent  to  the  Seaside  Home;  37,018 
articles  of  clothing  distributed  to  children;  558,593  lodgings 


furnished  to  street  boys;  1,611,036  meals  furnished  to  the 
hungry;  .$60,129.93  received  from  the  boys,  in  part  payment 
for  their  food  and  shelter. 

The  Society  has  erected  a  new  Newsboys'  Home  during  the 
past  year,  and  it  is  regarded  by  many  as  the  model  Home  for 
this  kind  of  work.  A  cut  of  this  building  appears  at  the  head 
of  this  notice. 

The  Convent  of  the  Sisters  of  Mercy  was  founded  by 
the  Order  of  the  Sisters  of  Mercy,  and  incorporated  March 
8th,  1865.  It  is  located  on  Willoughby  avenue,  between 
Classon  and  Graham  avenues.  The  objects  of  the  Order  of 
tlie  Sisters  of  Mercy  are  to  provide  for  and  educate  orphan 
and  destitute  children  ;  to  visit  the  sick  in  their  homes,  and 
convicts  in  prisons  and  jails  ;  and  to  establish  and  maintain 
hospitals,  infirmaries  and  other  charities. 

This  convent  was  commenced  in  1862,  and  completed  in 
1863.  It  was  built  of  brick,  with  a  height  of  four  stories,  a 
front  of  160  and  a  depth  of  26  feet ;  with  wings  from  either 
end  extending  to  the  rear,  each  135  feet.  The  rooms  are 
large  and  airy,  and  the  building  is  well  suited  to  its  pur- 
poses, having  a  capacity  for  200  inmates,  and  school  accom- 
modations for  more  than  600  pupils.  The  institution  is  sup- 
ported by  receipts  from  a  select  school,  by  the  labor  of  its 
inmates,  by  donations,  and  by  aid  from  the  city.  Its  prop- 
erty is  estimated  to  be  worth  about  $140,000. 

Home  for  the  Aged,  in  charge  of  Tlie  Little  Sisters  of  the 
Poor. — This  order  was  founded  at  St.  Servan,  in  Brittany,  in 
1840,  by  Abbe  le  Pailleur,  a  young  priest.  The  work  was 
commenced  by  two  laboring  girls,  aged  respectively  18  and 
16,  who  devoted  themselves  to  the  care  of  the  aged  and  in- 
firm poor.  From  this  modest  beginning  the  order  spread 
till,  in  1880,  it  numbered  188  houses,  23  of  which  were  in 
America.  The  first  house  in  this  country  was  opened  in 
Brooklyn. 

In  1868,  Rev.  Ernst  M.  Lelievre  made  the  necessary  arrange- 
ments for  the  establishment  of  an  institution  here,  and  on  the 
13th  of  September,  seven  Little  Sisters  took  possession 
of  three  adjoining  houses  at  608  DeKalb  avenue,  capable  of 
sheltering  about  forty  old  people.  In  about  eighteen  months 
they  secured  a  plot  of  ground  on  the  corner  of  Bushwick 
and  DeKalb  avenues,  and  commenced  the  erection  of  one 
wing  of  the  present  Home.  By  the  aid  of  an  appropriation 
from  the  Legislature  in  1870,  they  were  enabled  to  build  the 
central  part,  containing  the  chapel,  and  afterwards  the  east- 
ern wing. 

The  building  is  of  brick,  three  stories  in  height,  180  feet 
long  by  73  deep;  well  supplied  with  cooking  and  laundry 
fixtures,  with  accommodations  for  375  old  persons,  which 
number  is  kept  quite  full. 

Every  day  two  Sisters  call  at  the  various  hotels,  restau- 
rants, and  private  houses,  collecting  broken  victuals,  coffee 
grounds,  tea,  old  clothing,  etc.  The  butchers,  grocers  and 
pro^"ision  dealers  contribute  largely  to  the  support  of  the 
Home. 

A  branch  Home  has  been  established  on  Fifth  avenue,  at 
the  corner  of  21st  street,  where  a  new  building  is  in  process 
of  construction,  similar  to  the  one  on  DeKalb  avenue. 

Convent  of  the  Good  Shepherd  (the  Order  of  the  Sisters 
of  the  Good  Shepherd).  The  Order  was  first  established  in 
1561  at  Angers,  in  France,  by  the  venerable  John  Eudes,  and 
was  introduced  into  the  United  States  in  1843.  The  object  of 
the  order  is  the  reformation  of  fallen  women  and  the  pre_ 
servation  of  young  girls  in  habits  of  virtue.  After  reclama. 
tion,  if  they  desire,  they  are  admitted  to  the  Order  of  the 
Sisters  of  St.  Mai-y  Magdalen,  and  live  in  retirement.  The 
institution  also  jirovides  for  unmanageable,  vicious  children^ 
and  for  orphans.      The  house  was  established  in  Brooklyn, 


982 


BISTORT  01  KINGS  COUNTY. 


May  8th,  1868,  in  a  brick  building  on  Henry  street,  near 
Atlantic.  In  May,  1872,  they  removed  to  the  corner  of 
Atlantic  and  Ekist  New  York  avenues.  In  1872,  a  new  and 
larger  building  was  commenced  at  the  corner  of  Dean  street 
and  Roc-kaway  avenue,  which  is  now  occupied  by  the  Sisters 
and  a  largo  number  of  inmates.  The  grounds  occupied  by 
the  e-stablishment  comprise  an  entire  square.  At  this  house, 
many  who  desire  to  reform  present  themselves;  others  are 
placed  In  it  by  friends,  or  by  the  authorities.  Schools  for  the 
younger  iimiates  are  const.anlly  maintained.  Fifty  sisters 
are  here  at  jiresoiit  ongagi'd  in  this  good  work. 

The  Female  Employment  Society. — This  beneficent  organ- 
ization was  originated  in  Marcli,  and  incorporated  A])ril  19,  in 
1854,  for  the  purpose  of  giving  remunerative  employment  to 
poor  women.  It  originally  numbered  six  officers  and  thirty- 
four  managers,  which  number  has  since  been  retained.  The 
first  Board  op  Officers  was  composed  of  Mrs.  LiKjueer,  Jlrs. 
A.  A.  Ix)w,  Mrs.  Catlin,  Mrs.  M.  F.  Odell,  Mrs.  P.  Romeyn, 
and  Miss  M.  Lord.  Sirs.  Low  has  been  the  President  from 
the  first. 

The  Society  owns  tlie  building.  No.  93  Court  street  (its 
head-quarters),  and  gives  employment  to  many  poor  women 
at  more  remunerative  rates  than  they  would  obtain  else- 
where. Aside  from  the  sale  of  the  work  manufactured  by 
these  poor  women,  the  association  is  supported  by  charity. 
Free  instruction  is  given  in  needle- work  and  in  the  use  of  the 
sewing  macliine.  Cases  of  sickness  and  destitution  among 
the  employees  receive  prompt  attention.  The  Officf.rs  for 
1883-'84  are:  IMrs.  A.  A.  Low,  Pres.;  Miss  Peet,  Vice-Pres.; 
Mrs.  William  Brooks,  Sec;  Miss  Star,  Asst.  Sec;  Miss  A.  A. 
Bidell,  Treas.;  Miss  Baltzell,  Asst.  Treas. 

The  Good  Samaritan. — Wliile  travelling  in  Norway,  in 
1873,  Mr.  M.  S.  Beach  observed  the  practical  working  of  an 
association  for  supplying  food,  ready  cooked,  to  the  poor,  at 
the  lowest  possible  price,  and  conceived  the  idea  of  establish- 
ing a  similar  enterprise  here.  After  liis  return,  the  matter  was 
considered  by  Mr.  Beach  and  several  other  benevolent  citi- 
zens, among  whom  were:  A.  S.  Barnes,  F.  A.  Schroeder,  D.  D. 
Wickes,  Alexander  Ager,  Alanson  Ti-ask,  John  S.Ward,  Tas- 
ker  H.  Marvin,  S.  V.  White,  A.  P.  Strout,  James  E.  Kelsey, 
Robert  Foster  and  S.  N.  Stebbins.  Tlie  result  was  the  organi- 
zation on  the  25th  of  January,  1877,  of  an  association  under 
the  above  name.  The  object,  as  set  forth  in  the  original 
articles  of  Association,  was  to  furnish  food  and  lodging  to 
the  needy  at  the  lowest  possible  price. 

The  house  was  first  opened  at  35  WUloughby  street,  and  in 
the  following  May  was  removed  to  45,  in  the  same  street.  In 
1880  the  present  building  was  erected,  by  the  subscribers  to 
the  Samaritan,  on  the  corner  of  Willoughby  and  Jay  streets. 

The  Association  is  now  established  on  a  sound  financial 
basis,  and  during  the  year  1881,  the  Nassau  Branch  was  es- 
tablished on  the  corner  of  Nassau  and  Washington  streets. 

This  institution  supplies  a  great  desideratum.  The  poor 
are  here  furnished  with  food  and  shelter,  at  prices  barely  re- 
munerative, without  feeling  that  they  are  the  recipients  of 
charity.  It  is  a  significant  fact  that  the  example  of  the  found- 
ers of  this  establishment  is  being  followed  elsewhere.  A.  S. 
Banies  is  President  of  the  Association.  The  other  Officers  for 
1883-81  arc:  S.  N.  Stebbins,  Vice-Pres.;  F.  D.  Blake,  Secy; 
Moses  S.  Beach,  Treas. 

The  Greenpoint  Home  for  the  Aged  was  incorporated  Nov. 
20, 1882,  with  the  following  Manaoeks:  Mrs.  S.  E.  Dougherty, 
Mrs.  E.  A.  Clarke,  Mrs.  A.  F.  Cornell,  Mrs.  H.  V.  Church, 
Mrs.  M.  E.  Shaffer,  Mrs.  C.  Broad,  Mrs.  M.  R.  Barnhart,  Mrs. 
L.  R.  Broad,  Mrs.  E.  H.  Corwith,  Mrs.  J.  E.  VanWoert,  Mrs. 
J.  G.  Manson,  Mrs.  S.  Clarke,  Miss  A.  Anderson,  Mrs.  S.  C. 
Fiakel,  Mrs.   E.    M.  Tiylor,   Mrs.  S.  A.  Calkin,  Mrs.  E,  F. 


Briggs,  Mrs.  M.  A.  Bradley,  Mrs.  L.  E.  Jenkins  and  Mrs.  A. 
S.  Nutting.  Of  these,  Mrs.  E.  Finkel  was  President ;  Mrs.  S. 
E.  Dougherty  and  Mrs.  J.  H.  Broad,  Vice-Presidents ;  Mrs.  G. 

E.  Bradley,  Mrs.  J.  S.  Ogilvie,  Secretaries;  Mrs.  E.  D.  Church, 
Treasurer ;  and  this  board  of  officers  has  since  been  re-elected. 
Tlie  organization  originally  numl)ered  23,  which  has  since 
been  increased  to  40.  May  1st,  1882,  the  house  at  69  Dupont 
street  was  rented,  and  formally  opened  June  15th;  it  now 
contains  9  inmates  with  accommodations  for  as  many  more. 

German  Ladies'  Association, — The  German  element  of  our 
p(>]>ulati(>n  is  mostly  self-supporting,  but  occasionally  a  case 
deserving  of  charitj'  is  foimd.  In  1874,  an  association  was 
formed  among  the  German  ladies  of  tlie  Western  District,  ft)r 
the  purpose  of  aiding  poor  Germans.     Its  President  was  Mrs. 

F.  A.  Dreyer,  and  '\^ice-President  Mrs.  H.  Strybing.  The  as- 
sociation added  to  its  numbers  until  it  now  has  l.jO  memliers. 
In  1877,  it  was  incorporated.  It  is  entirelj-  a  voluntary  work, 
and  dejiends  upon  contributions  for  support.  It  aims  to  help 
the  needy  only  until  they  can  help  themselves.  Its  members 
visit  personally  the  families  in  their  respective  districts,  and 
give  help  as  needed.  Over  5,000  cases  have  been  reached 
since  the  association  began  its  work.  The  present  Officers 
are:  Mrs.  H.  Stryljing.  Pres. ;  Mrs.  B.Westermann,T7ec-Pres.; 
Mrs.  W.  Polmayder,  Pec.  Sec;  Mrs.  P.  Lichtenstein,  Sec 

The  Helping  Hand. — In  the  winter  of  1871,  several  ladies, 
mostly  of  the  Clinton  Avenue  Congregational  Church, 
formed  a  relief  association  to  aid  temi)orarily  the  wortliy 
poor. 

An  investigating  committee  was  appointed,  and,  after 
several  efforts,  an  organization  i^eifected  July  24,  1871.  Its 
objects  were:  1st.  To  establish  a  charity  foundation.  2d.  To 
improve  the  condition  of  the  poor.  3d.  To  instruct  women 
in  useful  employment.  4th.  To  give  temporary  relief  in 
cases  of  need.  5th.  To  establish  evening  and  industrial 
schools.  6tli.  To  distribute  contributions.  The  first  Trustees 
were:  Stephen  Ballard,  Colin  Campbell,  J.  T.  Duryea,  Richard 
B.  Duane,  James  W.  Elwell,  H.  H.  Lamport,  Curtis  L.  North, 
E.  B.  RoUins,  J.  S.  Stearns,  Edmund  Titus,  Wm.  H.  Smith, 
Henry  G.  Richardson,  James  Willson.  The  first  Board  of 
Officers  were:  Jas.  W.  Elwell,  Pres.;  H.  B.  Spelman,  John 
French,  Mrs.  H.  M.  Soudder,  Mrs.  H.  Dickinson,  Mrs.  H. 
Dollner, Fice-Pres. ;  Andrew  Smith,  iJec.  Sec;  MissMeacham, 
Cor.  Sec;  H.  H.  Lamport,  Treas.  In  1874,  the  Helping 
Hand  added  a  Dispensary  to  its  other  aids,  with  Dr.  Scudder 
as  the  first  physician  in  charge.  Since  his  decease,  Dr. 
Archibald  Campbell  has  held  the  position.  The  Officers 
for  1883-84 are:  Jas.  W.  Elwell,  Pres.;  A.  S.  Barnes,  Rev.  T. 
B.  McLeod,  Hon.  J.  F.  Pierce,  Vice-Pres.;  J.  F.  Anderson, 
Jr.,  Pec.  Sec;  Miss  M.  A.  Berry,  Cor.  Sec;  Mrs.  A.  P.  Strout, 
Treas.  The  Trustees  are:  J.  W.  Elwell,  A.  S.  Barnes,  J.  F. 
Anderson,  Jr.,  J.  F.  Pierce,  D.  D.  Ives,  F.  G.  Smith,  A.  P. 
Strout,  W.  T.  Gregg,  J.  Mix,  C.  D.  Wood,  Rev.  E.  J.  Haynes. 

The  Officers  of  the  Board  of  Managers  for  1883-84  are: 
Mrs.  J.  F.  Pierce,  Pres.;  Mrs.  W.  T.  Hemmen way, Fiee-Pres. 
Mrs.  W.  F.  Swalm,  Mrs.  I.  N.  Thatcher,  Secretaries;  Mrs.  A 
Strout,  Treas. 

The  Home  for  Friendless  Women  and  Children  of 
Brooklyn.  In  1868,  Mrs.  Catharine  Duryea  ElweU  became 
interested  in  three  poor  women  in  the  Raymond  Street  Jad, 
who  had  been  punished  for  crimes  growing  out  of  intem- 
perate habits  ;  and,  on  their  discharge,  for  the  sake  of  pre- 
serving them  from  a  relapse  into  intemperance  and  from  idle 
habits,  she,  with  three  of  her  friends,  determined  to  main- 
tain them  until  occupation  and  liomes  could  be  found  for 
them.  Finally,  rooms  were  taken  on  Canton  street,  near  the 
Jail,  Mr.  James  ElweU  paying  the  rent  for  six  months,  and 
the  four  friends  contributing  the  necessary  furniture.     This 


CHARITABLE  INSTITUTIONS. 


TEMP(iI;AI:\     lliiMi:   FOR   FlilENDLESS   WOMEN   AND 
CHILDllEN. 

experiment  proved  so  encouraging  that,  before  long,  eiglit 
women  and  two  children  were  added  to  the  little  family  on 
Canton  street.  In  May,  1869,  the  infant  Society  rented  a 
small  frame  house  on  Bergen  street,  to  "establish  a  refuge 
for  all  who  desired  to  reform,  and  offer  them  opportunities 
to  lead  a  better  life."  b'SG  women  and  69  little  children  were 
sheltered  in  1869.  A  few  months  later,  the  Society  was  in- 
formally organized:  Mrs.  J.  P.  El  well,  Pres.;  ^liss  Meacham, 
See.  The  first  annual  meeting  was  held  April  4.  1870,  in 
Dr.  Cuyler's  church.  That  same  month,  a  larger  house  on 
Bergen  street  was  taken  and  rapidly  filled.  In  that  year,  400 
women  and  children  were  admitted,  and  more  than  48,000 
meals  furnished,  but  the  pecuniary  condition  of  the  Society 
was  discouraging.  It  was  sustained  solely  by  the  bounty  of 
friends.  The  need  of  more  system  became  apparent.  Accord- 
ingly the  Society  was  incorporated  April  28,  1870,  by  tlie 
following  corporators  :  Elvira  C.  Jackson,  Catharine  Duryea 
Elwell,  Carrie  E.  Brett,  Sarah  M.  Trask,  Martha  B.  Cutting, 
Carrie  McDonald,  Lizzie  G.  Meacham,  Elizabeth  L.  Rosman, 
Maria  W.  Heaton,  Stella  Mitchell,  Sarah  S.  C^ooper,  Adriana 
Genung,  Ann  E.  Martin,  Sarah  B.  Baylis,  Urania  B.  Hum- 
phrey, Laura  C.  Douglass,  Elizabeth  W.  Wyckoff,  Letitia  W. 
AUis,  Mary  E.  Hartt,  Allitta  Duryea,  Ellen  Woolsey,  Abigail 
Bulkeley,  Mary  S.  Delamater,  Janet  Tiney,  Ella  C.  Knowl- 
ton,  Ann  Brown,  Sara  A.  Pryor,  A.  J.  Eaton,  Harriet  L. 
Packer,  Mary  White,  Frances  M.  Allen,  Margaret  S.  Barnes, 
Harriet  Sheldon,  Mary  L.  Stone,  and  Caroline  O.  Bogart. 
$10,000  was  appropriated  by  the  State,  |19,000  more  col- 
lected, and  the  present  home  on   Concord  street  was  pur- 


chased for  $30,000,  and  was  furnished  and  occupied  May,  1871. 
Since  that  time  it  has  been  filled  to  its  utmost  capacity,  with 
an  annual  average  of  about  600  inmates.  More  than  10,000 
different  women  and  children  have  been  sheltered  by  the 
home  since  its  organization. 

The  Officers  for  1883-84  are  as  follows:  Mrs.  W.  S.  Packer, 
Pres.;  Sirs.  D.  S.  Landon,  First  Vice-Pres.;  Mrs.  S.  V.  White, 
Seeond  Vice-Pres.  :  Mrs.  D.  G.  Eaton,  Treas.;  Mrs.  J.  S.  T. 
Stranahan,  Mrs.  John  D.  Rushmore. 

The  Brooklyn  Howard  Colored  Orphan  Asylum. — This 
charity  grew  out  of  the  need  that  was  felt,  by  the  freed 
women  who  came  North,  of  homes  for  their  children.  By 
the  advice  of  Gens.  O.  O.  Howard  and  C.  H.  Howard,  an  as- 
sociation was  formed  in  186G,  in  New  York,  which  was  after- 
wards removed  to  Brooklyn,  and  incorporated,  September  7, 
1 868,  under  the  above  name.  The  buildings  are  situated  on 
Dean  street,  near  Troy  avenue,  where  the  Society  owns  sev- 
eral lots.  There  are  accommodations  for  about  100  children. 
.V  day-school  and  a  Sunday-school  are  maintained.  The 
Officers  for  1883-84  are:  Mrs.  L.  A.  Cooper,  First  Directress ; 
Mrs.  A.  Gladiator,  Second  Directress ;  Mrs.  M.  Augusta 
Jolinson,  Treas.;  Mis3  F.  Richards,  Miss  G.  Cooper,  Secre- 
taries; Rev.  W.  F.  Johnson,  Supt.  and  Gen.  Agent. 

The  Home  Association  for  Working  Women  and  Girls 
was  first  organized,  in  1879,  as  a  voluntary  society,  mainly 
through  the  efforts  of  Miss  Mary  Lewis,  Mrs.  John  McLeod, 
Mrs.  Helen  B.  Partridge,  Mrs.  C.  Benson,  Mrs.  Geo.  Stannard, 
and  Miss  Carrie  Pratt.  The  object  of  the  association  is  the 
furnishing  of  a  homelike  boarding-place  for  working  women 
and  girls  at  a  price  proportioned  to  their  wages.  The  associa- 
tion was  incorporated  in  1879,  and  in  its  work  it  has  been 
very  successful.  Its  location  has  been  several  times  re- 
moved to  enlarge  its  accommodations.  It  is  now  (1884) 
located  at  No.  175  Hall  street.  Mrs.  Helen  D.  Parsons  was 
President  from  the  incorporation  of  the  association  until 
1883,  when  Mrs.  H.  D.  Partridge  was  elected;  the  other  Offi- 
cers for  1883-'84  are:  Mrs.  Geo.  Stannard,  Vice-Pres.;  Mrs. 
Jas.  H.  Taft,  Jr.,  and  Miss  Etta  Adams,  Secretaries;  Miss 
Mary  E.  Lewis,  Treas.;  Miss  C.  A.  Pratt,  Auditor. 

Sheltering  Arms  Nursery. — In  April,  1870,  Mrs.  Rev.  J.  A. 
Paddock  conceived  the  idea  of  affording  to  the  poor  mothers 
of  St.  Peter's  (P.  E.)  congregation,  facilities  for  pursuing 
their  daily  labor  by  providing  a  place  where  their  infants 
could  be  cared  for  during  the  day.  The  experiment  was 
made,  and  it  gave  promise  of  success.  In  October  of  the 
same  year,  ladies  from  the  different  parishes  met  and  or- 
ganized, at  first,  a  day  nursery.  A  house  in  Pacific  street,  was 
rented,  and  the  nursery  established  there.  During  the  next 
year  the  society  was  incorporated  under  the  above  title,  and 
permanent  inmates  were  received.  In  the  same  year,  larger 
quarters  were  procured  in  Warren  street.  Thence  the 
nursery  was  removed,  successively,  to  Atlantic  avenue,  Lex- 
ington avenue;  and,  in  1877,  to  its  present  quarters,  157  Dean 
street,  near  Hoyt.  A  building  was  purchased  here,  at  a  cost 
of  $13,000.  In  1880,  this  was  burned  out,  but  at  once  rebuilt. 
In  1878,  it  became  a  diocesan  charity.  It  has  passed  through 
many  vicissitudes  and  discouragements,  but  its  permanence 
and  usefulness  have  become  well  assured.  The  object  of  this 
charity  is,  not  to  encourage  idleness,  but  to  aid  those  who 
are  willing  to  labor  for  their  support.  The  first  Officers 
were:  Mrs.  Rev.  Dr.  John  A.  Paddock,  Pres.,  1870-'81;  Mrs. 
D.  L.  Dodge,  Vice-Pres.;  Mrs.  C.  L.  Caswell,  Sec' y;  Mrs.  A. 
Hallett,  Treas.  Present  Officers  :  Mrs.  John  A.  Nichols, 
Pres.  Lady  Managers:  Mrs.  William  B.  Kendall,  Vice-Pres.; 
Mrs.  Henry  C.  Hardy,  Sec'y;  Mrs.  John  Norton,  Treas.  About 
fifty  infants  and  small  children  are  now  in  the  institution, 
which  has  a  permanent  fund  of  $50,000  for  its  support. 


984 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


HEBREW    ORPHAN    ASYLUM. 


The  Hebrew  Orphan  Society  of  Brooklyn  originated  from 
a  gathering  of  charitable  Hebrews  to  provide  a  home  for  or- 
phans from  Brooklyn.  An  organization  was  perfected  and 
the  society  incorporated  in  August,  1878.  A  house  was 
rented  on  the  corner  of  Stuy  vesant  avenue  and  McDonough 
street.  The  asylum  was  opened  for  the  reception  of  orphans 
January  7,  1879,  and  sixteen  children  received.  Before  the 
expiration  of  two  years  the  need  of  larger  accommodations 
was  felt,  and  at  a  meeting  April  17,  1881,  it  was  resolved  to 
purchase  grounds  on  McDonough  street,  near  Stuyvesant  av- 
enue, 120  by  200  feet,  for  the  sum  of  $12,500.  The  trustees 
resolved  to  erect  a  new  building,  70  by  100  feet,  of  which  the 
corner-stone  was  laid  June  26,  1883.  It  is  of  brick,  with  stone 
trimmings,  and  three  stories  in  height.  The  managers  have 
deemed  it  a  wise  policy  to  educate  the  children  in  the  neigh- 
boring public  school.  The  asylum  owes  much  to  the  efforts 
of  Ernst  Nathan,  who  has  been  its  President  from  the  first. 
The  other  Officers  for  1883-'4  are:  S.  Goodstein,  Vice- 
President;  G.  Jlerzbach,  Secretary,  and  M.  Bruckheimer, 
Treasurer. 

The  Hebrew  Benevolent  Society  of  Brooklyn,  E.  D.,  was 
organized  June  24,  1868,  with  36  members,  and  was  designed 
to  assist  the  poor  and  needy  through  a  well-regulated  system 
of  relief.  All  applications  are  investigated  by  a  committee, 
and  the  worthy  are  assisted  with  food,  clothing  and  fuel.  Its 
first  Officers  were :  M.  Kessel,  Pres. ;  Jloses  May,  Vice-Pres. ; 
Isaac  Strauss,  ,S'cc. ,-  Philip  Strauss,  Cash.:  S.  Kaufman,  A. 
Nova,  M.  Benjamin,  N.  Bernstein,  S.  Moog,  A.  H.  Sonn, 
Directors.  The  society  has  meetings  semi-annually;  the 
committee  on  relief  and  charity  meets  every  month.  The 
society  derives  its  income  from  the  dues  of  members  and 
voluntary  contributions  from  the  charitable.  The  Officers 
for  1884  are  as  follows:    M.  Kessel,  Pres.;  M.  May,    Vice- 


Pres.;  H.  Stettheimer,  Sec;  Philip' Sti-auss,  Cash.:  N.  Bern- 
stein, I.  Igelheimer,  D.  Urlach,  D.  Wollmar,  I.  Weinberg, 
Directors. 

The  Brooklyn  Industrial  School  Association  and  Home 
for  Destitute  Children  (No.  217  Sterling  place,  between  Flat- 
bush  and  Vanderbilt  avenues),  was  organized  in  1854,  and 
incorporated  in  1857.  Its  object  is  to  form  and  support  in- 
dustrial schools,  and  to  establish  and  maintain  a  home  for 
destitute  children  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn.  The  small  house 
in  Concord  street,  in  which  the  children  were  first  gathered 
by  the  Association,  afforded  too  limited  accommodation,  and 
fourteen  lots  of  ground  were  purchased  on  what  is  now  Ster- 
ling place,  although  at  time  of  purchase  there  were  no  paved 
sti-eets  and  no  buildings  in  that  immediate  vicinity. 

In  1861  the  Home  for  Destitute  Children  vcas  erected  at  a 
cost  of  about  115,000.  In  1874  a  wing  was  added  to  this 
building  to  be  used  for  hospital  purposes.  In  1880  the  work 
had  so  far  outgrown  the  utmost  capacity  of  this  Home,  for 
the  accommodation  of  applicants,  as  to  render  it  necessary 
to  remodel  the  entire  building.  This  was  done,  and  a  new 
wing  was  added;  the  whole  being  ready  for  occupation  in  1883. 

In  accordance  with  the  plans  of  the  architect,  it  is  pro- 
posed at  some  future  time  to  erect  a  new  westerly  wing  in 
place  of  the  old  one,  which  was  allowed  to  remain  for  want 
of  funds.  When  this  change  shall  have  been  made  the  com- 
pleted building  will  appear  as  one  of  the  finest  in  the  city  of 
Brooklyn.  As  it  stands  on  an  eminence  commanding  a  view 
of  Prospect  Park,  and  also  of  the  Bay  of  New  York,  it  is  a 
prominent  object.  The  situation  is  both  airy  and  healthful, 
and  peculiarly  suitable  as  a  home  for  the  little  ones  who  need 
the  pure,  fresh  air  which  this  site  furnishes. 

Six  Industrial  Schools  have  been  established  and  supjiorted 
by  this  association.     They  are,  at  present  date,  in  the  locaU- 


CSARITABLE  INSTITUTION'S. 


985 


1.  raaaa^:3=TifcC;>,^-^;g*=  ->^':i-S<6i.fa,r.  i^ 


BKOOKLYN    INDUSTRIAL    SIIIOOL   AND  HOME  FOIi  DESTITUTE   CHILDREN. 

ties  here  given,  and  their  order  of  establishment  is  as  follows: 
No.  1,  Concord  street,  opposite  junction  of  Prince  street;  No. 
2,  Fourth  street,  near  Smith  street:  No.  3,  in  the  Home,  Ster- 
ling place,  between  Flatbush  and  Vanderbilt  avenues;  No.  4, 
No.  391  Van  Brunt  street;  No.  5,  Throop  avenue,  between 
Myrtle  and  Flusliing  avenues;  No.  6,  Franklin  avenue,  near 
Myrtle  avenue. 

In  these  schools  the  children  receive  an  elementar}'  course 
of  instruction  and  good  moral  and  religious  training.  A 
suit  of  new  clothing  is  provided  for  every  child,  and 
dinner  is  given  daily  in  their  respective  schools.  This  pro- 
vision is  made  so  as  to  enable  the  children  to  attend,  for  none 
are  admitted  who  have  sufficient  clothing  and  food  prepared 
by  their  parents;  and  no  child  who  can  attend  the  public 
school  is  allowed  to  remain  here.  The  children  are  taught 
to  sew  by  ladies  who  visit  the  schools  for  that  purpose:  every 
school  is  under  the  supervision  of  a  committee  from  the 
board  of  managers.  The  cliildren  in  the  Home  building  are 
those  whose  parents  cannot,  for  various  reasons,  provide  a 
shelter  for  them.  In  some  cases  their  relations  j)ay  a  nom- 
inal board  toward  their  support.  Some  of  the  children  are 
surrendered  to  the  association,  and  others  are  taken  entirely 
on  charity.  The  older  children  assist  in  the  light  work  of  the 
house,  and  thus  become  familiar  with  the  ordinary  routine 
of  household  labor.  The  girls  are  taught  to  sew;  and 
"  kitchen  garden  "  instruction  has  been  introduced,  so  as  to 
prepare  them  to  take  places  for  domestic  service. 

The  work  is  supported  liy  the  voluntary  contributions  of 
benevolent  persons.  Managers  are  appointed  from  the  vari- 
ous churches,  and  contributions  are  taken  up  by  the  man- 
agers in  their  respective  chiu-ches.  Nearly  every  Protestant 
church  in  Brooklyn  is  represented  by  one  or  more  managers 
in  the  Home.  The  board  at  present  consists  of  about  one 
hundred  and  fifty  ladies.  An  annual  fair  adds  to  the  rev- 
enues of  the  association.  The  Presidents  have  been,  in  suc- 
cession: Mrs.  Fisher  Howe,  Mrs.  Jesse  Smith  and  Mrs.  J. 
Merwin;  the  latter  is  still  the  President  of  the  Board. 

Orphans  and  half-orphans  are  not  received  in  the  Home 
for  Destitute  Children,  but  are  referred  to  the  Orphan  Asy- 
lum, this  being  an  arrangement  made  to  distinguish  the 
work  of  the  two  institutions.  The  Industrial  School  work, 
however,  is  the  distinctive  feature  of  this  charity,  and  its 
benevolence  is  distributed  throughout  the  whole  city  by  the 
schools,  which  are,  as  to  locality,  widely  separated  from  each 
other.  This  has  always  been  a  favorite  charity  in  the  city, 
and  its  growth  has  been  very  rapid. 


The  Industrial  School  and  Home  of  Brook- 
lyn, E.  D.* — Previous  to  1854,  a  voluntary  asso- 
ciation for  the  care  of  poor  children  existed 
among  the  local  churches  in  Williamsburgh. 
In  February,  1854,  Mrs.  Harriet  Brown,  im- 
pressed by  the  degraded  condition  of  poor  chil- 
dren, and  anxious  for  their  reformation,  per- 
sonally solicited  the  sum  of  |600,  and  called  a 
meeting  of  friends  in  the  parlors  of  the  New 
England  Congregational  Church,  Feb.  20th. 

The  organization  of  the  society  was   per- 
fected, with  Mrs.  Brown  as  chairman.     It  was 
determined  to  have  a  school  in  the  old  North 
American  Hotel,  on  North  Second  street,  be- 
tween Fourth  and   Fifth  streets.     The  session 
rommenced    March    7th,    1855,    with    eleven 
upils,   Mrs.   Fister  being  the  teacher.     Mrs. 
in  Houghton  was  the  first  matron. 
In  1860,  the  association  was  incorporated  for 
the  following  purposes:     "  To  cause  the  chil- 
dren   of    the    school    to    receive    elementary 
EngUsh  instruction;  to  teach  habits  of  neatness  and  order; 
to  instruct  in  domestic  duties;  to  provide  food  and  clothing, 
and  procure  places  of   employment  for  the  children  when 
they  arrive  at  a  suitable  age." 

The  nine  Trustees  for  the  first  year  were:  James  Hall,  Rob- 
ert Dunken,  George  Ricard,  John  Broach,  Isaac  M.  Haly, 
Richard  B.  Hunt,  John  A.  Brady,  M.  D.,  Joseph  H.  Van  De 
Water,  and  George  W.  Edwards.  Some  years  later,  the 
Home  was  removed  to  the  old  public  school  building,  corner 
of  Fifth  and  South  Third  streets. 

In  1866,  an  apjieal  was  made  to  the  Legislature  for  aid. 
The  first  directress,  Mrs.  Lyons,  fought  a  brave  battle  in  the 
interest  of  the  school.  She  was  a  leading  spirit;  not  only  in 
this  institution,  but  in  all  works  of  charity  and  public 
spirit,  her  sympathies  were  quickest  and  her  hand  strongest. 
She  asked  others  for  nothing  which  she  herself  was  not 
willing  to  give.  She  led  where  she  desired  others  to  follow. 
During  the  war  for  the  Union,  she  gave  to  the  stricken 
soldier  the  same  systematic  and  vigorous  aid  as  here  to  the 
child  of  poverty  and  want.  She  had  taken  this  institution 
into  her  heart  of  hearts,  and  voluntarily  went  to  Albany 
to    secure    the  needed  appropriation    for   this   institution. 


INDUSTRIAL    SCHOOL   AND    HOME,  E.  D. 

While  she  used  no  artifice,  no  unworthy  or  undignified 
methods,  she  omitted  no  proper  effort  that  could  con- 
tribute to  her  success.  She  knew  the  members  personally, 
and  literally  sat  down  before  and  in  the  Capitol  until  the 
bill    was    passed  and  signed  by  the  Governor,   giving  the 

*  By  Geo.  H.  Fisher,  Esq. 


986 


HISTORY  OF  KHSTGS  COUl^TT. 


school  110,000,  upon  condition  that  an  equal  sum  be  raised 
by  private  subscription,  which  was  duly  fulfilled.  Mr. 
Greorge  Ricard  present«d  four  lots  in  North  Second  street,  on 
which  to  erect  a  new  liuilding;  but,  in  1869,  the  plan  was 
changed ;  the  Pease  estate,  in  South  Tliird  street,  was  pur- 
chased, and  the  large  substantial  building  occupied.  In 
1877-78,  a  wing,  costing  $32,000,  was  added  to  the  Home,  the 
funds  for  which  were  raised  principally  through  the  efforts 
of  the  lady  managers. 

The  association  now  numbers  about  4o0  life  members.  Tlie 
first  Board  of  Officers  was:  Richard  B.  Hunt,  Pres.\  Geo. 
W.  Edwards,  Sec;  John  Broach,  Treas.  The  succeeding 
presidents  have  been  :  Nicholas  Wyckoff  and  Benjamin  Wil- 
son. The  first  directresses  have  been:  Mrs.  Robert  Duncan, 
Mrs.  E.  Lyon,  and  Jlrs.  B.  H.  Howell. 

The  Officers  for  18--3-'84  are:  Board  of  Trustees— Ben- 
jamin  W.  "Wilson,  Pres.;  Lewis  P.  Nostrand,  Vice-Pres.; 
George  H.  Fisher,  .Sec;  John  Broach,  Treas.;  Benjamin  H. 
Howell,  Cornelius  L.  Johnson,  G«orge  B.  Cole,  John  T.  Wood- 
ruff, Edward  S.  Seeley.  Board  of  Managers — Mrs.  B.  H. 
Howell,  First  Directress;  Sliss  S.  F.  Snow,  Second  Direct- 
ress: Miss  J.  A.  S.  Schapps,  Rec.  Sec;  Mrs.  L.  L.  Kortright, 
Cor.  Sec;  Mrs.  J.  D.  Wade,  Treas. 

The  Industrial  Restaurant  and  Training  School  was  or- 
ganized in  1878,  inaialy  througii  the  efforts  of  Mrs.  A.  Ten- 
ney.  The  aim  of  its  managers  was  to  provide  a  remedy  for 
street  begging,  by  furnishing  work  to  be  done  on  the  prem- 
ises, to  men,  women  and  children,  for  meals,  cooked  food  to 
carry  home,  groceries,  clothing  and  coal. 

The  work  furnished  for  men  has  been:  sawing,  splitting 
and  delivering  wood.  The  work  for  women  and  children 
lias  been:  house  cleaning,  laundry  work,  sewing  and  rug- 
making. 

A  fair  amount  of  labor  only  has  been  required,  and  people 
have  been  urged  and  aided  to  find  work  outside.  An  appli- 
cant to  the  institution  is  allowed  to  work  three  hours  per 
day,  for  which  he  receives  payment  at  the  rate  of  ten  cents 
per  hour  in  meals,  or  food  to  carry  home. 

A  weekly  visitor  is  sent  to  poor  families  to  relieve  their 
wants,  provide  them  with  work,  and  see  that  the  children 
attend  some  school. 

The  restaurant  cares  for  children  during  the  day  while  the 
mother  goes  out  to  work;  loans  money  on  furniture;  pur- 
chases coal  at  reduced  rates  for  the  poor;  lodges  men  at  10 
cents  per  night;  a  free  evening  reading-room,  free  baths, 
and  washing,  in  exchange  for  work.  It  also  teaches  the 
proper  way  to  perform  work. 

In  1882,  the  Industrial  Restaurant  moved  to  its  present 
site,  No.  112  Lexington  avenue.  It  is  supported  entirely  by 
charity;  any  person  paying  5  cents  per  week  becomes  a  mem- 
ber of  the  association,  and  is  entitled  to  send  all  applicants 
for  aid  to  the  restaurant. 

The  Officers  for  1883-'84  are:  Mrs.  A.  Tenney,  Pres.;  Mrs. 
H.  W.  St.  John,  Vice-Pres.;  Mrs.  George  L.  Carrington, 
Sec;  Mrs.  !M.  B.  Ross,  Treas. 

The  Orphan  Home  of  the  Church  of  the  Holy  Trinity 
was  established  in  1861,  and  soon  afterwards  incorporated,  for 
the  purpose  of  maintaining  and  educating  orphans,  from 
tlie  congregation  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  of  the 
Holy  Trinity.  There  are  about  30  inmates  at  the  present 
time.  The  first  Officers  were:  Very  Rev.  M.  May,  J.  Bert- 
ges,  J.  Zimmer,  and  J.  Raber. 

The  Board  is  the  same  for  1883-"84,  with  the  addition  of  F. 
J.  Berlenbeauer  and  L.  Groeser. 

St.  Phebe's  Mission,  at  No.  10  Lafayette  street,  was  or- 
ganized in  the  spring  of  1882,  and  adopted  a  constitution 
May  30th.     Its  object  is  to  minister  to  the  necessities  of  the 


sick  and  the  destitute;  especially  to  the  inmates  of  the  County 
buildings  at  Flatbush,  of  the  Penitentiary,  the  City  JaU,  and 
the  Naval  and  City  Hospitals.  To  this  end,  women  workers 
and  trained  nurses  are  engaged,  who  are  known  as  St.  Pliebe 
Associates.  During  the  past  year,  over  1,000  visits  were 
made  to  these  various  institutions  by  the  .Sisters.  The  Mis- 
sion is  supported  entirely  by  charity.  The  first  BOARD  OF 
Managers  was  as  follows  :  Miss  Harriette  Low,  Mrs.  A.  A. 
Seaman,  Miss  C.  King,  Mrs.  Hugh  Allen,  Mrs.  Augustus 
Ivins,  Miss  Peck,  Mrs.  Samuel  Cox,  Mrs.  F.  B.  Carter, 
Mrs.  Alexander  Hutchins,  Mrs.  Washburne.  The  Officers 
have  been  and  are  as  follows:  Miss  Harriette  Low,  Pres.; 
Jlrs.  Augustus  Ivins,  Sec;  Miss  Cornelia  King,  Treas.  The 
present  Board  of  Managers  is  as  follows  :  Miss  Harriette 
Low,  Miss  King,  Mrs.  Seaman,  Mrs.  Ivins,  Mrs.  A.  Hutchins, 
Mrs.  S.  Cox,  Mrs.  Peck,  Mrs.  Stoddard,  Mrs.  Van  Nostrand 
Mrs.  Jenkins,  Mrs.  Snively,  Mrs.  Conklin  and  Mrs.  Wood- 
ard. 

The  Christian  Union  for  Chinese  Work. — This  organiza- 
tion has  for  its  object  the  education,  elevation  and  protection 
of  the  Chinese  residents  in  our  city.  The  rooms  of  the  so- 
ciety are  located  at  991  and  993  Fulton  street,  and  are  open 
every  week-day  afternoon  and  evening,  with  religious  ser- 
vices on  Sunday  evening.  On  Monday  afternoon,  there  is  a 
Union  school  session  at  the  Moravian  Church,  Jay  street,  near 
Myrtle  avenue.  The  President  of  the  society  is  Mr.  Andrew 
A.  Smith,  who  has  been  very  active  in  assisting  the  Chinese  in 
their  business  affairs;  seeking  redress  for  them  when  robbed 
and  abused  by  civilized  Americans,  and  in  many  other 
ways  endeavoring  to  impress  them  with  the  idea  that  Chris- 
tianity means  something.  The  other  Officers  of  the  so- 
ciety are  :  H.  E.  Pease,  Vice-Pres.;  Rev.  E.  S.  Walle,  Sec; 
W.  D.  Gleason,  Treas.  The  Trustees  are:  Messrs.  A.  S. 
Barnes,  S.  L.  Parsons,  A.  D.  Matthews,  Charles  Tremaine, 
Miss  Shirley,  Mrs.  Wyman,  Miss  Pleier,  Mrs.  Relph,  Mrs.  Dr. 
Sizer,  Mrs.  Simmons,  Mrs.  Culbertson,  and  Mrs.  Harris. 

The  First  Brooklyn  Woman's  Christian  Temperance 
Union  was  organized  early  in  1874,  and  incorporated  in 
1880.  It  is  connected  with  the  New  York  State  organization 
as  well  as  the  Woman's  National  C^hristian  Temperance  Union. 
Its  Officers  are  as  follows:  K.  E.  Cleveland,  Pres.;  Miss  M. 
E.  Winslow,  Cor.  Sec;  Mrs.  Myra  J.  Denley,  Bee.  Sec;  Mrs. 
Mary  L.  Jacobs,  Treas. 

A  hall  seating  400,  at  the  corner  of  Fulton  and  Jay  streets, 
is  the  headquarters  of  the  Union,  with  branches  in  different 
parts  of  the  city.  The  Union  provides  pleasant  and  attractive 
reading  rooms,  where  meetings  are  held  every  evening  and 
on  Sunday  afternoons.  Sunday  evening  temperance  meet- 
ings are  held  in  the  theatres  and  places  of  amusement.  The 
work  of  the  Union  includes  the  visitation  of  families,  reliev- 
ing distress,  circulating  temperance  literature,  and  gathering 
children  into  schools.  Regular  visits  are  paid  to  the  Ray- 
mond street  Jail  and  to  the  Kings  County  Penitentiary,  and 
the  families  of  prisoners  are  cared  for  when  necessary.  Work 
among  children  is  carried  on  by  means  of  two  flourishing 
schools,  numbering  about  300  pupils.  The  Union  has  expended 
in  its  work,  since  March,  1874,  $21,252.  Mrs.  Mary  C.  Johnson 
was  its  President  for  the  first  eight  years. 

The  Christian  Rescue  Temperance  Union  originated  in 
the  weekly  meetings  of  a  few  children  to  promote  the  cause 
of  temperance,  and  assist  poor  families  in  the  neighborhood. 
An  organization  was  formed  June  15,  1879,  at  196  15th  street. 
South  Brooklyn,  with  six  members.  The  membership  in- 
creased so  raiudly,  and  the  society  did  so  much  good,  that  it 
was  incorporated  in  August,  1882,  with  a  view  to  erect  a  hall 
and  reading-room.  It  now  consists  of  about  80  adult  mem- 
bers and  1,500  youths  and  children.     Weekly  meetings  are 


CHARITABLE  INSTITUTIONS. 


987 


held  for  business  and  instruction.  They  are  carefully  trained 
in  vocal  and  instrumental  music,  and  give  occasional  con- 
certs to  raise  funds  for  current  expenses  and  charity.  Some 
fifteen  families  have  been  supported  each  winter,  and  large 
quantities  of  provisions  distributed  at  Christmas.  The  so- 
ciety publishes  a  weekly  paper — "Our  Banner."  A  gospel 
temperance  prayer  meeting  is  held  every  Sunday  by  the  mem- 
bers. The  first  Bo.uiD  of  Officers  comprise  the  following 
names:  Mrs.  J.  Duer,  Mrs.  Updegrove,  Mrs.  Seabury,  Mrs. 
Sim|i3on,  Mrs.  Cleverley,  Mrs.  Stevens,  Mr.  C.  G.  Johnston, 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Duncome.  The  Officers  first  chosen  have  been 
retained  in  office  and  are  as  follows:  Adult  Department — C. 
G.  Johnston,  Pres.;  William  Cleverley  and  G.  P.  Spooner, 
Secretaries ;  William  Whitehead,  Treas.  Young  People's  De- 
partment—Mrs. J.  Duer,  Pres.;  Mrs.  J.  Johnston,  Sec  ;  C.  G. 
Johnston,  Treas. 

The  Sailors'  Coffee-House  Company.— This  is  an  association 
which  grew  out  of  a  desire  to  benefit  sailors  by  establishing 
a  cheap  and  good  hotel,  conducted  on  temperance  principles, 
for  the  accommodation  of  sea-faring  men  when  on  shore 
The  following  philanthropic  citizens  procured  its  incorpora- 
tion January  21st,  1880:  George  L.  Pease,  Ferdinand  Van 
Sicklen,  Edward  H.  Litchfield,  Wm.  G.  Low,  Thomas  D. 
Williams,  H.  E.  Pierrepont,  Jr.  A  stock  company  was" 
formed  with  a  capital  of  $20,000.  The  buildings  241  and  243 
York  street,  adjoining  the  Navy  Yard,  were  rented,  and  an 
eating  and  lodging  house  opened.  Prices  were  fixed  as  low 
as  expenses  would  warrant,  and  still  the  work  is  partly  car- 
ried on  by  voluntary  aid.  The  Officers  for  1883-'«4  are: 
William G.  Low,  Pres.;  George  L.  Pease,  Sec'y.;  H.  E.  Pierre- 
pont. Jr.,  Treas. 

The  Woman's  Work  Exchange  and  Decorative  Art  So- 
ciety of  Brooklyn  (formerly  known  as  The  South  Brooklyn 
Emj)loi/ment .Society) ongma,tedin eSortsma.de  in  1872-73,  by 
a  philanthropic  gentleman  connected  with  the  Sunday-school 
of  Christ  Church,  in  Clinton  street,  near  Harrison,  to  find  work 
for  his  Bible  class;  particularly  for  a  cripi)led  girl  who  had 
no  means  of  livelihood.  At  first  a  small  circle  were  interested 
in  his  projects,  but  afterward  many  of  the  ladies  connected 
with  Christ  Church  promoted  and  sustained  the  endeavor. 
Later  in  the  movement,  other  churches  in  South  Brooklyn 
assisted  it  under  this  name  with  contributions,  until  there 
was  an  organization  which  had  rooms  at  the  corner  of  Clinton 
and  Warren  streets,  and  gave  employment  to  seamstresses 
and  also  trained  classes  of  girls  in  needle-work. 

The  first  Board  of  Officers  consisted  of  Mrs.  Nehemiah 
Knight,  Pres.;  Miss  R.  Da  Costa,  Vice-Pres.;  Miss.  I.  E. 
Buckmaster,  Treas.;  Miss  M.  I.  Adams,  Sec;  Mrs.  A.  Thomp- 
son, Directress. 

In  1878-'79,  the  Woman's  Work  Exchange,  for  the  sale  of 
articles  of  use  or  beauty,  wliich  should  be  made  by  women 
who  wished  to  dispose  of  them,  was  established  and  united 
with  the  S.  B.  E.  Society;  and  the  two  societies,  under  the 
same  Board  of  Management,  took  up  their  abode  at  122  At- 
lantic street,  where  they  still  remain. 

The  first  Board  of  Officers,  after  the  union  of  the  two  so- 
cieties, was  as  follows:  Mrs.  Mary  L.  Clapp,  Pres.;  Miss  Re- 
becca Da  Costa,  Vice-Pres.;  Miss  M.  I.  Adams,  Treas.;  Mrs. 
Gordon,  L.  Ford,  Cor.  Sec;  Miss  M.  H.  Post,  Rec  Sec. 

In  1883,  the  South  Brooklyn  Employment  .Society  passed  out 
of  existence,  and  the  name  of  the  association  was  changed  to 
The  Woman's  Work  E.xchangeand  Decorative  Art  Society  of 
Brooklyn,  which  represents  its  present  aim  and  function. 
The  Society  has  grown  from  a  handful  of  members  to  a  large 
and  devoted  fellowship;  and  paintings,  decorated  china, 
needle-work,  embroidery,  pickles,  preserves  and  cake,  are 
placed  in  their  rooms,  and  sold  for  the  advantage  of  the  con- 


signors. These  articles  cover  a  wide  range  of  ingenuity,  in- 
dustry and  Eesthetic  taste,  and  the  intentions  of  the  Society 
seem  to  meet  the  public  ai)proval  and  patronage.  There  are 
also  painting  and  drawing  classes  under  the  wing  of  the 
Decorative  Art  Society,  which  foster  talent  and  encourage 
good  work. 

The  Business  Women's  Union  was  organized  by  the 
Brooklyn  Women's  Club,  and  incorporated  Nov.  7,  1871.  Its 
object  was  to  provide  a  home  for  self-supporting  women  of 
good  character,  at  the  lowest  possible  rates,  and  to  establish  a 
bureau  of  information.  The  first  Officers  and  Managers 
were:  Mrs.  Annie  C.  Field,  Pres.;  Mi-s.  Charlotte  A.  Clarke, 
Vice-PrM.;  Miss  Kate  Hillard  and  Miss  Laura  F.  Beeoher, 
Secretaries;  Mrs.  Mary  H.  HoUey,  Treas.  Mrs.  S.  M.  Parsons, 
Mrs.  L.  A.  Potts,  Miss  A.  Coleman.  Miss  S.  M.  Glover,  Mrs. 
H.  Brigham,  Mrs.  R.  Bunker,  Mrs.  C.  E.  Chambers,  Mrs.  S. 
Eppendorf,  Mrs,  M.  A.  Howland,  Mrs.  M.  E.  Rowley,  Mrs. 
J.  M.  Wilson,  Mrs.  M.  F.  Hines,  Mrs.  C.  C.  Dike,  Managers. 
The  first  Board  of  Advi.'iors  was:  Rev.  A.  P.  Putnam,  H.  B. 
Claflin,  J.  Willetts,  F.  Woodruff,  M.  S.  Beach.  A  boarding 
house  was  opened  at  No.  80  Willoughby  street  in  1871,  as  a 
home  for  self-supporting  women.  The  demand  for  larger 
accommodations  determined  the  society  to  purchase  the 
property,  which  was  done  for  |15,000.  $32,000  more  was 
spent  in  alterations,  which  fitted  the  house  to  receive  about 
50  boarders. 

From  the  beginning,  the  house  has  paid  its  current  ex- 
penses. The  rate  for  permanent  boarders  is  from  $3.75  to 
$5.25  per  week.  A  Women's  Employment  Bureau  laaa  also 
been  established  in  connection  with  the  Home.  The  present 
board  (1883-84)  consists  of  Mrs.  A.  C.  Field,  Pres.;  Mrs.  C.  A. 
Clarke,  Vice-Pres.;  Mrs.  W.  V.  Tupper,  Cor.  Sec;  Mrs.  S.  M. 
Glover,  Rec.  Sec;  Mrs.  A.  Fornian,  Treas.  Mrs.  S.  M.  Par- 
sons, Mrs.  M.  E.  Rowley,  Mrs.  J.  Sterns,  Auditors.  Mrs.  R. 
H.  Manning,  Mrs.  M.  A.  Howland,  Mrs.  R.  Bunker,  Mrs.  M. 
U.  Lewis,  Mrs.  S.  Ellinwood,  Mrs.  A.  Coggeshall,  Mrs.  M. 
Chapman,  Mrs.  L.  Fisk,  Mrs.  T.  E.  Jewell.  Mrs.  M.  H.  Holley, 
Mrs.  L.  F.  Beecher,  Miss  J.  Keese,  Mrs.  C.  Wood,  Managers; 
The  Advisory  Board  is  as  follows:  C.  A.  Field,  H.  B.  Claflin, 
R.  H.  Manning,  C.  C.  Dike,  A.  Forman. 

The  Society  for  the  Prevention  of  Cruelty  to  Animals  — 
Through  the  efforts  of  Henry  Bergh,  the  New  York  Society 
for  P.  C.  T.  A,  was  incorporated  April  10,  1866,  by  a  number 
of  the  best  citizens  of  that  city.  Its  ol)jects  were  stated  "  to 
be  the  providing  of  eff'ective  means  for  the  prevention  of 
cruelty  to  animals  throughout  the  United  States,  the  enforc- 
ing of  all  laws  for  the  protection  tif  animals,  and  the  procur- 
ing the  punishment  of  all  persons  violating  such  laws." 
From  this  l>eginning,  branch  organiz.itions  have  been  estab- 
lished in  37  states  and  territories,  and  Canada.  The  Society 
now  numbers  over  500  members.  The  first  Officers  were  : 
Henry  Bergh,  Pres.;  J.  T.  Hoffman,  Peter  Cooper,  D.  D. 
Hicks,  W.  H.  Aspinwall,  Marshall  O.  Roberts,  H.  W.  Bel- 
lows, James  Brown,  George  T.  Trimble,  Moses  Taylor,  and 
H.  B.  Claflin,  Vice-Pres'ts.  The  Society  was  vested  with  full 
power  to  carry  out  its  specific  objects,  and  has  been  most 
successful  in  securing  humane  treatment  to  animals,  not 
alone  in  our  large  cities,  but  throughout  the  country.  Hos- 
pitals for  diseased  animals,  and  an  ambulance  service  for 
disabled  ones,  are  now  numbered  among  our  city  institu- 
tions. The  Brooklyn  Agency  of  above  Society  was  started 
October  31,  1881,  with  J.  R.  Pye,  Superintendent.  During 
the  first  year,  301  arrests  were  made,  271  convictions  secured, 
871  disabled  animals  relieved  from  labor,  and  429  humanely 
destroyed. 

The  Society  for  the  Prevention  of  Cruelty  to  Children. 
—On  December  13,  1880,  a  number  of  gentlemen  met  at  the 


HISTORY  Ot  KINGS  COUNTY. 


residence  of  Mr.  U.  B.  Clalliii.  for  the  jiurpase  of  organizing 
a  society  for  the  care  of  helpless  children.  Within  two 
weeks  an  office  was  opened  at  199  Montague  street,  the 
above  name  given  to  tlie  Society,  and  active  operations  were 
begun.  In  the  first  ten  months,  361  complaints  were  lodged 
at  the  office,  and  160  children  rescued  from  misery.  The  first 
Officers  were:  Henry  R.  Jones,  Pres.:  H.  B.  Claflin  and  W. 
B.  Leonard,  Vice-Pres'ts.;  Alexander  Munn,  Sec;  and  Geo. 
S.  Pease,  Trcas.  The  same  board  of  officers  have  been  con- 
tinued to  tlie  present  time.  During  the  year  ending  October, 
1883,  653  complaints  were  lodged  at  the  Society's  office,  by 
citizens,  or  the  police,  and  344  cliildren  removed  from  brutaj 
parents  or  guardians,  and  placed  in  homes  or  institutions  ; 
189  cases  were  prosecuted,  and  177  convictions  obtained.  The 
aim  of  the  Society  is  to  prosecute  those  who  abuse  little  ones; 
who  send  children  into  the  street  to  beg;  who  would  force 
girls  into  lives  of  degradation;  who  would  place  their  offspring 
in  situations  dangerous  to  health;  who  maliciously  commit 
friendless  waifs  to  jail,  or  who  attempt  to  debauch,  dissipate, 
or  in  any  way  wrong  the  most  helpless  of  our  race. 

Zion  Relief  Association  (Home  for  Aged  and  Infirm  of 
Zion  Church). — This  organization  was  perfected  December  7, 
1869,  to  afford  a  free  home  to  the  aged  poor  of  Zion  A.  M. 
E.  Church  of  New  York,  and  to  others,  upon  such  terms  as 
the  trustees  should  recommend.  September  20,  1873,  the 
trustees  of  Zion  Church  were  authorized  to  purchase  prop- 
erty for  the  erection  of  such  a  home,  and  soon  after  liought 
the  propertj'  on  Dean  street,  between  Albany  and  Troy  av- 
enues, for  $4,800,  and  expended  $3,350  for  alterations  and 
repairs.  Accommodations  were  provided  for  fifteen  inmates, 
which  number  has  since  increased  to  twenty-one. 

Visiting  Committee  of  the  State  Charities'  Aid  Associa- 
tion for  the  Kings  County  Institutions. — A  central  organiza- 
tion, known  as  the  State  Charities'  Aid  Association,  formed 
in  May,  1873,  having  its  office  in  New  York  City,  has  for  its 
objects — 1.  To  promote  an  active  public  interest  in  the  New 
York  State  Charities.  3.  To  make  the  present  pauper  system 
more  efficient,  and  introduce  reforms.  In  connection  with 
this  organization,  local  visiting  committees  are  formed  in  the 
various  counties  in  the  State.  In  June,  1873,  a  preliminary 
meeting  was  held  at  the  Mercantile  Library,  in  Brooklyn,  to 
organize  a  local  visiting  committee  for  the  public  institutions 
of  Kings  county,  at  which  Mrs.  Stranahan  presided.  At  an 
adjourned  meeting,  October  14,  a  constitution  and  by-laws 
were  adopted.  The  first  Officers  were:  Mrs.  J.  S.  T.  Stran- 
ahan, Pres.;  Sirs.  Wra.  Ives  Buddington,  First  Viee-Pres.; 
Mrs.  A.  C.  Field,  Second  Vice-Pres.;  Mrs.  Gordon  L.  Ford, 
Cor.  Sec. ;  Mrs.  Elliston  L.  Perot,  Rec.  Sec. 

Committees  were  appointed  on  Infants'  Wards,  on  Hospi- 
tals, and  on  Alms-houses.  The  work  of  the  committee  has 
been  productive  of  much  good  since  the  year  of  its  organiza- 
tion. Public  attention  has  been  directed  to  the  unfortunate 
condition  of  the  public  wards,  and  abuses  corrected.  The 
Board  of  State  Charities  is  supported  entirely  by  volunteer 
contribution,  and  the  arduous  duty  devolving  upon  the  vari- 
ous committees  in  Kings  county  have  been  performed  as  a 
labor  of  love.  Mrs.  Stranahan  has  been  the  President  since 
1873.  Officers,  1883-'4,  are  as  follows:  Mrs.  J.  S.  T.  Stran- 
ahan, Pres.;  Mrs.  Fisher  Howe,  First  Vice-Pres.;  Mrs.  D.  C. 
Robbins,  Second  Vice-Pres.;  Mrs.  John  Vanderbilt,  Cor.  Sec; 
Miss  Dora  Robinson,  Pee.  Sec;  Mrs.  David  Morrison,  Asst. 
Sec;  Miss  Lillie  Brown,  Treas. 

Protestant  Episcopal  Mission  to  the  Public  Institutions. — 
In  1860,  Mrs.  Fellows,  the  wife  of  a  disabled  presbyter  of  the 
church,  began  to  visit  the  city  jail,  hospitals,  etc.,  with  her 
husband,  wlio  performed  such  duties  as  required  a  clergy- 
man.    April  1,  1869,  Mrs.  Fellows  was  appointed  by  the  Mis- 


sionary Committee  of  the  new  Diocese  of  Long  Island  to  be 
"  Missionary  in  Charge  and  to  the  prisons  and  public  institu- 
tions in  Kings  county,"  with  a  stipend  of  $400.  A  month 
before,  she  had  been  appointed  Missionary  to  the  City  Hospi- 
tal and  jail,  with  a  salary  of  $150.  May  23,  1871,  she  was  re- 
appointed. At  the  same  time,  Jliss  Eliza  J.  Coakley  was  ap- 
pomted  "  Missionary  to  the  public  institutions  at  Flatbush." 
After  1872,  Mrs.  Fellows  continued  her  work,  though  her 
salary  was  no  longer  paid  Testimony  to  her  faithful  ser- 
vices can  be  found  in  the  reports  of  the  Missionary  Commit- 
tee. Since  1872,  the  Missionary  Committee  has  devoted  $400 
annually  to  this  work  among  the  puV)lic  institutions. 

Th'e  Hospital  Saturday  and  Sunday  Association. — It  was 
the  custom  in  New  York  and  London  to  take  collections  on 
the  last  Saturday  and  Sunday  of  the  year,  in  public  places, 
in  behalf  of  the  hospitals.  In  December,  1881,  Messrs.  Wm. 
G.  Low,  I.  H.  Frothingham,  and  Wm.  M.  Richards,  wei'e 
appointed  a  committee  by  the  City  Hospital,  to  introduce  the 
custom  into  Brooklyn.  An  organization  was  formed,  and  a 
constitution  adopted  May  16,  1882,  having  for  its  object  "  to 
draw  out  benevolent  gifts  for  hospital  purposes,  by  bringing 
the  claims  of  these  charities  simultaneously  before  the  public; 
to  stimulate  personal  donations  and  church  collections  on 
appointed  days  ;  to  obtain  and  distribute  the  gifts  of  those 
who  aid  the  general  object  of  hospital  charity."  It  com- 
prised the  following  gentlemen,  viz.:  Mr.  William  G.  Low, 
Mr.  Isaac  H.  Frothingham,  and  Mr.  William  M.  Richards, 
for  the  Brooklyn  Citij  Hospital;  Mr.  Thomas  H.  Rodman,  for 
the  Long  Island  College  Hospital;  Mr.  Charles  A.  Townsend, 
Mr.  David  M.  Stone,  and  Hon.  William  W.  Goodrich,  for  the 
Homoeopathic  Hospital ;  Dr.  R.  C.  Moffat,  for  the  Homceo- 
pathi.G  Maternity  ;  Mr.  Aaron  Field,  for  the  Brooklyn  Home 
for  Consumptives ;  Mr.  William  H.  Fleeman,  Mr.  Alexander 
E.  Orr,  and  Mr.  Carlos  A.  Butler,  for  St.  John's  Hospital ; 
Mr.  J.  W.  Vandewater,  Hon.  Geo.  H.  Fisher,  and  Hon.  Sigis- 
mund  Kauf mann,  for  the  Eastern  District  Hospital ;  Hon. 
Samuel  Booth,  Mr.  Alfred  T.  White,  Mr.  Demas  Strong,  Mr. 
John  N.  Stearns,  and  Mr.  Thomas  W.  Hynes,  for  the  Bureau 
of  Charities;  together  with  the  following:  Mr.  Lorin  Palmer, 
Mr.  Bernard  Peters,  the  Rev.  William  A.  Snively,  D.  D.,  the 
Rev.  Charles  A.  Tibballs,  the  Rev.  J.  C.  Ager,  the  Rev.  C. 
Cuthbert  Hall,  his  Honor,  the  Mayor  of  the  City  of  Brooklyn, 
the  Postmaster  of  the  City  of  Brooklyn,  and  the  Resident 
Member  of  the  State  Board  of  Charities  ;  and  such  other 
gentlemen  as  may  hereafter  be  elected  by  a  two-thirds  vote. 

First  Officers:  William  G.  Low,  Pres.;  Alfred  T.  White, 
Vice-Pres.;  C.  Cuthbert  Hall,  Sec;  William  M.  Ricliards, 
Treas.  William  G.  Low  (ex-offlcio),  Alexander  E.  Orr, 
Thomas  H.  Rodman,  William  W.  Goodrich,  George  H.  Fisher, 
E.ircutive  Committee.  The  Mayor  of  the  City  of  Bi-ooklyn 
{e.v-offl.cio),  the  Postmaster  of  the  City  of  Brooklyn  (e.i'-q^e/o), 
the  Resident  Member  of  the  State  Board  of  Charities  {ex- 
officio),  Bernard  Peters,  Charles  A.  Townsend,  Carlos  A. 
Butler,  Aaron  Field,  Distributing  Committee. 

The  first  collection,  December,  1883,  amounted  to  $4,351.22; 
in  1883,  it  reached  nearly  $6,000.  Officers  for  1 884  :  Wil- 
liam G.  Low,  Pres.;  William  H.  Fleeman,  Vice-Pres.;  C. 
Cuthbert  Hall,  Sec;  W.  M.  Richards,  Treas.  Executive 
Committee :  William  G.  Low,  A.  E.  Orr,  Thomas  H.  Rod- 
man, William  W.  Goodrich,  and  John  W.  Vandewater. 
Distributing  Committee:  The  Mayor  of  the  city,  the  Post- 
master, the  Resident  Member  of  the  State  Board  of  Charities, 
and  Messrs.  Bernard  Peters,  Charles  A.  Townsend,  Carlos  A. 
Butler,  and  Aaron  Field. 

The  Brooklyn  Indian  Association  was  organized  Decem- 
ber 4,  1883,  in  the  Lafayette  avenue  Presbyterian  church. 
Its  object  is  :  1st,  to  awaken  Christian  public  sentiment  to 


CITARITABLE  INSTITUTIONS. 


the  abolition  of  all  oppression  of  Indians  within  our  national 
limits,  and  to  the  granting  them  the  same  protection  of  law 
that  other  races  enjoy  among  us  ;  2d,  to  aid  educational 
and  mission  work  for  and  among  Indians. 

The  general  lines  of  work  pursued  are,  as  in  the  parent 
society,  the  circulation  of  literature  adapted  to  the  Asso- 
ciation's object;  the  circulation  of  memorials  to  Congress  on 
behalf  of  Indians  ;  the  securing  popular  meetings  and  arti- 
cles in  the  press  which  shall  promote  the  growth  of  right 
sentiment  concerning  our  national  and  individual  duty  to 
Indians,  and  the  adoption  of  such  other  measures  as  seem 
fitted  to  further  the  ends  desired. 

Tlie  number  of  members  has  increased  from  17  to  GO.  The 
names  of  the  tirst  Officers  are:  Mrs.  A.  B.  Smith,  Pres.; 
Mrs.  M.  W.  Huntington,  .S'cc;  Mrs.  L.  H.  Conklin,  Treas.; 
Mrs.  F.  A.  Iderstiue,  Mrs.  J.  Hamblet,  Mrs.  C.  C.  Woolworth, 
Mrs.  William  Moses,  Mrs.  J.  H.  Burtis,  Vice- Presets.  A  num- 
ber of  public  meetings  have  been  held,  under  the  auspices  of 
the  society,  which  have  been  addressed  by  those  who  thor- 
oughly understand  the  present  condition  and  means  of  the 


The  Inebriates'  Home  for  Kings  County,  office  401  Pearl 
street  (see  page  563a),  was  incorporated  by  an  act  of  the 
legislature,  on  May  9,  1867. 

The  object  was  to  devise  means  for  the  saving  and  redemp- 
tion of  those  addicted  to  the  use  of  intoxicating  liquors;  and 
to  afford  an  asylum  for  them,  where  tliey  would  be  removed 
from  the  ordinary  temptations  of  life,  and  receive  medical 
and  humane  treatment.  It  was  found  by  experience  that  the 
commitment  of  inebriates  to  jail  not  only  did  no  good,  but 
great  harm  both  to  the  drunkard  himself,  and  ultimately  to 
society.  The  degradation  of  the  prison  seemed  to  dispel 
all  hopes  of  a  reformation.  These  facts  being  laid  before 
the  legislature,  the  act  of  incoriioration  was  secured,  and 
twelve  per  cent,  of  tlie  excise  tax,  and  all  of  the  fines  paid 
in  the  county  for  infringement  of  the  excise  law,  were  set 
apart  for  its  use. 

A  block  lyinff  between  Fourth  and  Fifth  avenues,  and  54th 
and  55th  streets,  was  purchased  ;  a  temporary  home  secured 
at  the  corner  of  Bushwick  avenue  and  Chestnut  street,  and 
operations  were  commenced  on  the  10th  of  October,  1867. 


OCEAN     VIEW    OF    "THE    I N  HliKl  ATiv"! 


FOKT    HAMILTON. 


Western  Indians.  The  result  has  been  manifested  in  an  in- 
creasing public  opinion  favoring  a  change  in  the  Indian  ques- 
tion. The  present  Officers  are:  Mrs.  George  Stannard,  Pres.; 
Mrs.  M.  W.  Huntington,  Sec;  Mrs.  J.  B.  Gilbert,  Treas.; 
Mrs.  M.  A.  Berry,  Mrs.  S.  L.  M.  Prentice,  Mrs.  Geo.  Watson, 
Mrs.  Annie  C.  Field,  Mrs.  D.  R.  James,  Mrs.  W.  H.  Smith, 
Sirs.  Woodbridge  Nearing,  Vice-Pres'ts. 

The  Wayside  Home  is  an  association  formed  March  5, 
1880,  by  a  number  of  benevolent  ladies,  for  the  purpose  of 
providing  a  home  for  homeless  women,  and  for  helping  them 
to  procure  employment.  It  commenced  with  15  members, 
and  now  numbers  35.  The  first  Officers  were  as  follows: 
Mrs.  E.  F.  Pettengill,  Pres.;  Mrs.  Annie  C.  Field,  Vice-Pres.; 
Miss  C.  E.  Cothn.  ,s'ec.;  Mrs.  C.  W.  Shepherd,  Asst.  Sec;  Mrs. 
E.  F.  Lawson,  Treas. 

The  Association  was  duly  incorporated,  and  secured  a  com- 
fortable house  at  No.  353  Bridge  street.  The  accommoda- 
tions are  hardly  sufficient,  and  efforts  have  already  been  be- 
gun to  secure  more  commodious  quarters.  The  officers  for 
1883-'84  are  the  same  as  given  above. 


During  the  first  two  years,  there  were  received  261  patients, 
including  41  re-admissions,  and  27  patients  so  re-admitted. 
Of  these,  160  were  men,  and  101  women.  Of  the  whole 
number,  25  were  boarders,  the  others  being  admitted  to  the 
benefits  of  the  institution  free;  though  some  have  contributed 
by  labor  to  defray  the  cost  of  their  support.  The  total  cost 
of  maintenance,  including  all  house  expenses  and  salaries  of 
officers,  was  |47.77  for  each  person. 

By  an  amended  charter,  the  grant  of  twelve  per  cent,  of 
the  excise  money  was  withdrawn,  and  an  annual  grant  of 
$10,000  substituted.  The  want  of  a  new  and  improved  build- 
ing was  severely  felt.  The  sum  of  $200,000  was  provided  out 
of  the  receipts  under  the  excise  law,  for  the  construction  of 
such  a  building,  which  was  converted  into  U.  S.  bonds.  The 
site  was  removed,  from  the  position  previously  indicated,  to  a 
place  near  Fort  Hamilton,  known  as  "  Beautiful  View,"  on 
the  Bidgeside  road,  where  far  superior  advantages  and  accom- 
modations could  be  obtained.  First  Preside7its  :  Son.  Geo. 
Hall,  Hon.  Jas.  S.  T.  Stranahan,  Theodore  L.  Mason,  M.  D., 
Geo.  G.  Herman,  Esq.    Officers,  1884,  are  as  follows  :  Geo, 


990 


SISTORT  01  KINGS   COUNTY. 


G.  Herman,  Esq.,  Pres.;  Hon.Wm.  M,  Thomas,  Treas.;  Capt. 
Joseph  W.  Richardson,  Sec.  Hon.  Wm.  M.  Thomas  and  Geo. 
G.  Herman,  Esq.,  Trustees. 

The  Truant  Home  of  the  City  of  Brooklyn  (Juvenile 
House  of  Industry)  was  established  in  1854,  under  "  an  Act 
to  provide  for  the  care  and  instruction  of  idle  and  truant 
children,"  passed  in  April,  1853.  It  vras  at  one  time  located 
in  the  old  Penitentiary,  on  the  Clove  road;  but  the  J.  T. 
Snediker  Hotel  property,  on  the  Jamaica  plank  road,  near 
Jamaica  village  (eleven  acres),  was  purchased  at  a  cost  of 
$25,000,  and  in  the  rear  of  this,  a  large  brick  building,  three 
stories  in  height,  was  erected  for  school  purposes  and  dormi- 
tories. The  hotel  was  used  as  a  cooking  and  dining  place,  and 
residence  of  the  0]ieratives.  On  two  sidesof  the  school  building, 
was  erected  a  high  fence,  enclosing  a  play-ground  of  about  an 
acre.     No  changes  have  since  been  made  in  these  buildings. 

This  Home  was  established  for  the  purpose  of  restraining, 
educating,  and,  if  possible,  reclaiming  idle  and  vagrant  chil- 
dren. To  this  Home  vagrant  children  were  committed  by 
magistrates,  on  complaints  by  parents  or  others.  Here  they 
were  kept  during  periods,  varying  from  one  to  five  or  more 
years. 

After  the  passage,  by  the  Legislature,  of  the  Compulsory 
Education  Law  in  1874,  the  Board  of  Education  in  Brooklyn 
organized  the  Bureau  of  Attendance,  which  consists  of  a 
superintendent  and  six  agents,  whose  duty  it  is  to  see  that 
the  provisions  of  the  law  are  carried  out.  The  children 
found  by  these  officers  in  the  condition  of  vagrants,  or  non- 
attendants  at  school,  are  committed  to  the  Home,  where 
their  education  and  well-being  are  looked  after.  Since  the 
establishment  by  this  Bureau  of  Attendance  of  schools,  one  in 
the  eastern  and  one  in  the  western  district  of  the  city,  where 
a  portion  of  the  non-attendants  at  other  schools  are  sent,  the 
commitments  to  the  Home  by  this  Bureau  have  been  fewer 
than  before.  The  average  number,  through  this  Bureau  and 
by  the  police,  is  more  than  two  hundred  annually.  The  super- 
intendent and  teacher  for  1883-'4  is  Joseph  Wagner. 

The  St.  Joseph's  Institute  for  the  Improved  Instruction  of 
Deaf-Mutes  was  established  at  Fordham  in  the  fall  of  1869. 
During  the  first  years  of  its  existence  the  institution  was  sup- 
ported mainly  by  the  exertions  of  its  lady  directresses;  for, 
as  is  generally  the  case,  the  ijarents  of  the  pupils  were,  for 
the  most  part,  poor,  and  could  contribute  but  little  toward 
their  support. 

In  the  spring  of  1874  was  opened  in  Brooklyn  a  branch 
house,  for  the  purpose  of  offering  to  the  numei-ous  deaf-mutes 
of  that  city  the  advantages  of  a  daj-  school.  As  the  house  at 
Fordham  was  at  that  time  considerably  crowded  (the  addi- 
tion not  having  yet  been  built),  some  of  the  larger  girls  were 
removed  to  the  branch  house  at  Brooklyn.  Others,  who  had 
entered  the  school  as  day  pupils,  now  asked  to  be  admitted 
as  permanent  inmates,  and  the  house  (a  rented  one)  was  soon 
found  to  be  too  small.  After  mature  deliberation,  it  was 
deemed  advisable  to  purchase  one  which  should  be  sufficiently 
large  to  accommodate  some  50  or  60  inmates.  The  large 
and  elegant  residence  of  Mrs.  Christina  Jones,  No.  510  Henry 
street,  was,  about  this  time,  purchased.  A  few  weeks  after 
this,  an  act  was  passed  by  which  the  institution  was  empow- 
ered to  receive  county  pupils  ;  two  years  later  the  institution 
was  placed  upon  the  same  footing  with  similar  institutions 
in  the  state. 

Roman  Catholic  Orphan  Asylum  Society  of  the  City  of 
Brooklyn  was  founded  in  1830.  Mr.  Peter  Turner,  to  whose 
zeal  the  Society  was  deeply  indebted  for  its  success,  was 
chosen  first  President,  holding  the  position  for  three  years 
(the  longest  term  allowed  by  the  constitution),  and  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Dr.  J.  S.  Thorn.     On  May  6,  1834,  the  Society  was 


incorporated  by  the  Legislature,  under  the  title  of  The  Ro- 
man Catholic  Orphan  Society  in  the  Village  of  Brooklyn; 
the  names  mentioned  in  the  act  being  those  of  J.  Sullivan 
Thorne,  Thomas  Mooney,  John  Sweeney,  Peter  Turner  and 
Charles  Brady.  The  charter  was  applied  for,  at  this  time,  in 
order  that  the  Society  might  receive  a  legal  transfer  of  a 
house  and  lot  offered  to  the  Society  by  the  Rev.  John  Walsh; 
and  in  this  house,  188  Jay  street,  the  first  asylum  was  opened 
and  placed  in  charge  of  the  Sisters  of  Charity.  Some  years 
after,  Mr.  Cornelius  Heeney  generously  donated  to  this  So- 
ciet_v  ten  lots  of  ground  on  Congress  street;  and,  at  his  death, 
in  1848,  bequeathed  the  income  of  the  greater  portion  of  his 
large  estate  for  the  support  of  the  orphans.  The  donation  of 
lots  enabled  tiie  Society  to  build  their  first  asylum,  that 
fronting  on  Congress  street  (now  known  as  St.  Paul's  Indus- 
trial School),  for  male  children,  and  the  one  fronting  on 
Clinton,  on  the  same  lots,  for  females.  In  1851,  an  addition 
was  made  to  the  Female  Asylum,  doubling  its  size,  at  a  cost 
of  |5,000;  and,  in  1858,  a  further  addition  of  a  building,  155 
by  25  feet,  and  five  stories  high,  at  a  cost  of  |15,000,  con- 
necting with  the  Male  Asylum  on  Clinton  street.  In  1858,  a 
new  building  was  erected  for  males,  corner  Willoughby  and 
Bedford  avenues,  at  a  cost  of  about  $37,000,  and  accommo- 
dating 350  children.  The  building  had  a  front  of  120  feet, 
and  two  wings,  73  feet  deep,  and  the  grounds  attached  com- 
prised 14  acres.  This  building  was  destroyed  by  fire,  Nov.  9, 
1862,  248  children  being  asleep  within  its  walls  when  the  fire 
broke  out,  and  a  snow  storm  raging  without.  Three  children 
perished  in  the  flames.  The  children  were  immediately  re- 
moved; the  girls  to  the  building  on  Clinton  and  Congress 
streets,  and  the  boys  to  a  house  on  the  corner  of  Jay  and 
Chapel  streets,  which  had  been  previously  occupied  by  the 
Sisters  of  Mercy. 

The  Board  of  Managers,  though  their  means  and  sources  of 
income  were  at  this  time  very  limited,  then  purchased  the 
grounds  bounded  by  St.  Mark's  place,  Albanj-  and  Troy  ave- 
nues, and  Warren  street,  one  of  the  most  elevated  and 
healthy  locations  in  the  city.  On  these  grounds,  in  1868, 
they  commenced  the  erection  of  the  present  Asylum,  now 
known  as  "St.  John's  Home  for  Boys."  It  is  a  massive  struc- 
ture, four  stories  high,  and  solidly  built  of  blue-stone.  It 
is  170  feet  front,  with  wings  each  170  feet  deep,  and  three 
stories  above  the  basement  in  height.  St.  John's  Home  was 
opened  in  1870,  under  the  charge  of  the  Sisters  of  St.  Joseph. 
There  are  now  in  this  institution  over  700  orphan  boys,  who 
are,  in  a  great  measure,  dependent  upon  the  charitably 
disposed  public  for  maintenance  and  support.  It  has  accom- 
modation for  800  boys,  and  is  valued  at  $200,000. 

Cornelius  Heeney,  a  native  of  Queens  County,  Ireland, 
came  to  America,  in  1784,  being  then  about  20  years  old.  The 
vessel  in  which  he  sailed  was  wrecked  on  the  Delaware 
coast,  and  passengers  and  crew  were  rescued  by  oyster  boats 
plying  their  vocation  in  the  bay.  The  oyster-men  however, 
demanded  a  dollar  a  head  for  their  services,  which  amount 
Heeney  did  not  have.  It  was  promptly  given  him  by  a 
Quaker  fellow-passenger,  who  would  not  give  his  name  (which 
young  Heeney  enquired,  with  a  view  to  ultimate  repayment), 
simply  saying,  "whenever  thou  seest  a  fellow  creature  in 
want  of  a  dollar,  as  thou  art  now,  give  it  to  him,  and  thou 
wilt  have  repaid  me,"  a  circumstance  which  made  a  lasting 
impression  upon  Mr.  H.'s  mind.  Mr.  Heeney  first  found  em- 
ployment in  Philadelphia,  and  then  in  New  York,  where  he 
entered  the  store  of  a  Mr.  Backhouse,  where  John  Jacob  Astor 
then  served  as  a  porter.  In  course  of  time,  Mr.  B.  retired 
from  business,  and  sold  out  to  Messrs.  Heeney  and  Astor. 
This  partnership  was  dissolved  after  a  few  years,  and  Mr. 


CHARITABLE  INSTITUTION'S. 


991 


Heeney  entered  the  fur  business  on  his  own  account,  and 
amassed  a  considerable  fortune.  In  order  to  secure  a  debt  of 
$30,000,  he  took  a  large  property  in  South  Brooklyn,  which 
rose  on  his  hands  to  a  value,  at  the  time  of  his  death,  of  over 
$300,000.  This  he  subsecpiently  made  his  summer  residence. 
He  lived  and  died  a  bachelor,  yet,  by  his  disposition,  was 
peculiarly  adapted  for  domestic  enjoyment,  affable  in  dis- 
position, fond  of  joke  and  repartee,  warm-hearted  and  social. 
His  doors  were  ever  open  to  a  friend  and  acquaintance,  and 
never  closed  on  the  needy  and  unfortunate.  His  house  was 
ever  filled  with  orphan  children,  whom  he  educated  and 
provided  for;  and  many  of  his  female  proteges  married  into 
most  respectable  families  in  New  York  and  Brooklyn,  where 
their  descendants  now  occupy  enviable  positions  in  society. 
His  Brooklyn  property  contained  a  fine  orchard,  and  during 


mas,  also,  he  used  to  collect  all  the  poor  children  in  the 
vicinity,  and  give  to  each  a  cake  and  piece  of  silver.  Though 
rarely  mingling  in  politics,  he  onced  served  a  term  as  mem- 
ber of  the  Assembly  of  the  State,  and  many  anecdotes  are 
related  concerning  his  shrewdness  and  good  nature.  To  the 
Brooklyn  Roman  Catholic  Orphan  Asylum,  he  gave,  in  1829, 
an  endowment  of  |18,000;  about  the  same  time  he  generously 
extended  a  helping  hand  to  St.  Paul's  Cathedral  in  New  York; 
donated  the  ground  for  St.  James's  and  St.  Paul's  churches, 
Brooklyn;  was  one  of  the  founders  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
Half  Orphan  Asylum  of  New  York,  and  contributed  largely 
to  several  of  the  charitable  associations  of  that  city.  Al- 
though his  Brooklyn  property  increased  in  value  with  almost 
fabulous  rapidity;  yet,  at  his  death,  3d  of  May,  1848  (at  the 
age  of j  ninety-four  years),  his  estate  was  worth  little  more 


ST.   JOHNS    MALE    ORPHAN    ASYLUM. 


the  active  years  of  his  life,  he  was  in  the  habit,  every  summer, 
of  marshaling  the  little  orphan  children  of  the  New  York 
Orphan  Asylum,  and  marching  with  tliem  through  Broad- 
way aud  across  the  river  to  the  orchard,  where  he  had  men 
employed  to  shake  the  trees  and  pull  cherries,  apples  and 
each  kind  of  fruit  in  its  season,  while  the  children  ate  and 
l>layed  on  the  grass.  He  also  purchased  wood  and  distributed 
it  to  the  poor,  gratuitously  giving  to  each  what  they  could 
carry;  and  he  took  a  humorous  delight  in  seeing  the  loads  they 
would  assume,  it  being  their  custom  to  divest  themselves 
of  a  portion  of  the  burden  as  soon  as  some  intervening  fence 
or  other  obstruction  concealed  them  from  his  view,  in  order 
to  return  for  more ;  his  enjoyment  of  the  artifice  being  in- 
creased by  the  knowledge  he  had  of  its  performance,  and  the 
eiforts  to  hide  what  he  instantly  connived  at.      At  Christ- 


than  $15,000.  It  is  estimated,  however,  that  his  donations 
and  expenditures  for  benevolent  purposes,  during  his  life- 
time, was  not  far  short  of  $100,000.  His  residuary  estate 
(after  proper  provision  made  for  relatives  and  friends),  was 
devised  as  follows:  The  annual  income  of  one-Jifth,  to  be  ap- 
propriated every  year  towards  supplying  the  poor  of  Brook- 
lyn with  fuel  during  winter.  The  annual  income  of  one-tenth , 
to  be  appropriated  towards  supplsing  poorcbildren  in  Brook- 
lyn, who  go  to  school,  with  shoes,  and  with  such  other 
articles  of  clothing  as  are  absolutely  necessary  for  their 
health  and  comfort  during  the  winter.  The  sum  of  $250 
annually  for  employment  of  a  teacher  to  instruct  poor  chil- 
dren in  Brooklyn  in  the  elements  of  an  English  education. 
The  residue  to  the  Brooklyn  Catholic  Half  Orphan  Asylum;  a 
portion  to  be  expended  in  erecting  additional  buildings.     If 


992 


HISTORY  OF  KIJSTGS    COUNTY. 


inything  intervLMiu,!  to  prevent  the  fulfillment  of  this  be- 
juest,  it  was  to  go  to  tlie  New  York  Catholic  Orphan  Asy- 
lum. By  a  codicil  to  this  will,  after  tlie  incorporation  of  the 
Brooklyn  Benevolent  Society,  all  ilie  residuary  estate  teas 
given  to  that  association.  Some  lots  in  New  York,  adjoining 
the  New  Y'ork  Catholic  Orphan  Asylum,  were  given  to  that 
institution,  after  the  death  of  parties  to  whom  he  devised 
them  as  legatees. 

St.  Joseph's  Female  Orphan  Asylum,  located  at  the  corner 
of  WilloughUy  and  Sumner  avenues,  is  also  under  control  of 
the  Orphan  Asylum  Society,  and  in  the  immediate  charge  of 
the  Sisters  of  Charity.  In  tlie  summer  of  ISGi)  the  corner- 
stone was  laid,  and  it  was  fully  completed  in  October,  1873, 
wlicn  280  children  were  transferred  to  it  from  St.  Paul's  Fe- 
male Orphan  iVsylum,  in  Congress  street.  The  present  num- 
ber is  about  'i'i'>.  It  is  a  very  commodious  and  handsome 
building,  five  stories  in  height,  with  a  front  on  Willoughby 
avenue  of  224  feet,  and  a  width  of  62  feet.  It  is  constructed 
of  Philadelphia  brick  and  brown-stone  trimmings.  In  the  rear 
is  a  cliai)el,  102  by  43  feet.  The  building  is  heated  by  steam, 
and  has  all  the  modern  improvements  for  institutions  of  this 
kind.  This  Asylum  is  under  the  care  of  the  Sisters  of  Char- 
ity. It  has  ample  play-grounds  for  the  cliildren,  who  now 
number  about  000.  A  day-school,  for  the  children  of  the 
neighborhood,  has  a  daily  attendance  of  about  200.  The 
asylum  is  valued  at  $150,000 

St.  Paul's  Industrial  School. — This  institution  is  self-sus- 
taining, and  ciintains  at  the  present  time  about  300  inmates, 
who  are  educated  in  all  household  duties,  and  in  needle-work 
of  every  kind.  Estimated  value  of  Imilding  and  grounds, 
.$150,000. 

Tlie  Right  Reverend  Bishop  of  the  Diocese  is  President 
of  the  Society,  and  is  well  and  ably  assisted  by  Mr.  J.  M. 
Shanahan,  First  Vice-President,  and  Mr.  Theophilus  Olena, 
Second  Vice-President ;  Andrew  Walsh,  Treas.;  M.  E.Moore, 
Sec.;  P.  J.  O'Connor,  Asst.  Sec.  The  present  Board  of  Direc- 
tors consists  of  Messrs.  L.  P.  Bodkin,  Arthur  E.  Marsh,  John 
Cunningham,  John  ]\IcDerm<)tt,  J.  H.  Newman,  Daniel 
Bradley,  James  Cassidy,  Wm.  Murtha,  Bernard  McCaffrey, 
Arthur  McGerald,  Tlios.  Horan,  Chris.  Greay,  Wm.  Bishop, 
Thos.  Green,  Jas.  McDonnell. 

St.  Vincent's  Home,  of  the  city  of  Brooklyn,  for  the  care 
and  instruction  of  poor  and  friendless  boys,  was  incorpo- 
rated in  July,  1869,  by  the  following  gentlemen,  who  were 
also  the  first  managers:  Right  Rev.  Jolm  Loughlin,  Very 
Rev.  John  F.  Turner,  Rev.  Francis  J.  Friel,  Richard  Ternan, 
John  Lane,  Maurice  Fitzgerald,  Thomas  Code,  Thomas 
Johnson,  Francis  Curran,  Tliomas  Horan,  Matthew 
Boylan,  Charles  J.  O'Reilly,  Patrick  H.  Quinn,  Thomas 
O'Brien,  Jr.,  Bernard  Bogen.  James  K.  O'Mahony,  Charles 
McCi)nnell,  Thomas  Halpiu,  Michael  Lowry,  James  Ormond, 
Michael  Pliilbin,  Michael  Kirwin,  John  M.  Farrell,  William 
Orr,  William  Brown  and  Thomas  Farrell. 

Tlie  object  of  the  society  is  to  provide  a  home  for  the  care, 
and  Christian,  moral  and  mental  in.struction,  of  friendless 
and  destitute  boys;  to  rescue  them  from  evil  associations; 
provide  a  home  and  lodging-house  for  them;  establish  an 
evening  and  Sunday  school,  and  to  provide  teachers  for  their 
benefit  and  instruction;  and  to  lodge  and  instruct  as  many 
boys  as  possible,  in  order  that  they  may  bo  protected  and 
shielded  from  the  vices  of  evil  associations,  qualified  to  dis- 
cliarge  the  duties  of  useful  and  resiiectable  citizens,  and  en- 
able them  to  earn  an  honest  and  honorable  livelihood. 

In  1869,  the  present  house,  No.  7  Poplar  street,  and  that  in 
its  rear.  No.  10  Vine  street,  with  the  space  between  the  two 
fur  a  i)Iay-ground,  were  purchased  at  a  cost  of  !|15,000,  and 


the  buildings  altered  and  adapted  to  the  society's  purpose. 
The  institution  is  under  the  care  of  a  Board  of  Managers, 
composed  of  prominent  Roman  Catholic  clergymen  and  lay- 
men, and  the  work  of  the  institution  is  largely  done  by  the 
St.  Vincent's  Home  Ladies'  Society,  whose  Officeks  (1884) 
are:  Mrs.  Hugh  McLaughlin,  Pres.;  Mrs.  E.  Brophy,  Mrs.  J. 

E.  Dallon,  Secretaries;  Miss  M.  A.  Strain,  Treas.  The  Home 
is  under  the  direct  superintendence  of  B.ev.  Maurice  Hickey, 
and  nearly  3,000  boys  have,  thus  far,  enjoyed  its  benefits. 

Rooms  for  Voluntary  Relief  Work  (No.  59  Smith  street, 
near  Schermerhorn).— This  is  a  ])rivate  charity,  organized 
and  mainly  carried  on  by  Mr.  Geo.  T.  Clark.  In  his  efforts  to 
aid  the  deserving  poor,  Sir.  Clark  investigated  their  condition 
thoroughly,  so  that  he  soon  found  himself  asked  to  distribute 
the  benefactions  of  others.  Therefore,  about  the  year  1868, 
he  established  rooms  where  contributions  of  food,  clothing 
and  furniture  might  be  received  and  whence  they  might  be 
distributed.  He  also  opened  a  shop  where  repairs  are  made 
to  cast-off  shoes  and  clothing  by  those  who  would  otherwise 
be  out  of  employment  and  earning  nothing.  The  shop  pro- 
fits pay  the  expenses  of  the  charity;  so  that  money  contribu- 
tions go  wholly  to  the  poor.  Mr.  Clark  also  maintains  an 
Employment  Bureau. 

The  Williamsburgh  Benevolent  Society  meets  every  Sat- 
urday at  the  school-house  of  the  Williamsburgh  Turn  Verein, 
61  Meserole  street,  for  the  purpose  of  helping  the  worthy 
poor.  After  investigation,  money,  groceries,  shoes,  meat, 
etc.,  are  given  to  the  deserving  poor,  averaging  about  40 
cases  per  week.  A  large  Christmas  celebration  in  gifts  is 
made  annually  for  700  children.  The  Society  was  organized 
in  1874  by  eight  gentlemen  of  Brooklyn,  who  had  previously 
maintained  several  orphans  by  the  proceeds  of  cigar  tips  sent 
to  Europe  to  be  manufactured  into  snuff.  The  number  of 
members  has  increased  to  132,  with  the  following  Officers  : 

F.  V.  Voigt,  Pres.;  M.  Lindhorn,  Vice-Pres.;  J.  Amthor,  Rec. 
Sec;  F.  Huene,  Cor.  Sec.;  M.  Grossarth,  Treas. 

The  Emerald  Association  was  organized  in  January,  1839, 
in  the  Second  Ward  Hotel,  on  the  corner  of  York  and  Pearl 
streets.  The  first  Officers  were  :  J.  Colgan,  Pres.;  J.  How- 
ard, Secy.;  and  W.  Hughes,  Treas.  The  chief  object  of  this 
association  is  to  aid  in  the  support  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
Orphan  Asylum;  the  total  amount  thus  far  raised  and  pre- 
sented by  this  society  to  that  worthy  charity  is  |40,000.  The 
present  Officers  are:  J.  C.  Kelly,  Pres.;  B  .Leary  and  J.  S. 
Donovan,  Vice-Presidents;  T.  F.  Skelley  and  W.  H.  Kiernan, 
Secretaries  ;  and  J.  Hanley,  Treas.  The  annual  ball  given  by 
this  association  is  the  recognized  event  of  the  season  among 
socially-inclined  Roman  Catholics. 

The  German  Roman  Catholic  "Orphan  Home"  (of  Holy 
Trinit}'),  Graham  avenue,  near  Montrose,  was  started,  in  1861. 
by  Rev.  M.  May,  for  the  maintenance  and  education  of  or- 
phans connected  with  the  German  Church  of  the  Holy  Trinity. 
Father  May  was  the  first  President,  and  still  holds  the  office. 
The  other  Officers  were:  John  Bertger,  Vice-Pres.;  Jacob 
Timer,  Sec. ;  John  Raber,  Cashier;  John  Maerr,  Asst.  Sec.  The 
same  Board  continued  until  1883,  when  F.  J.  Berlcalath  be- 
came Vice-Pres.,  and  Louis  Gfiaeren,  Asst.  Sec.  The  number 
of  members  of  the  Society  is  twenty-five.  The  ori)hans  were 
first  cared  for  in  a  dwelling-house  procured  for  the  purpose  ; 
afterwards  tlie  present  brick  structure,  50  by  50,  was  erected, 
at  a  cost  of  $15,000.  About  50  children  are  supported  in  the 
Home,  and  150  in  all  have  been  maintained  since  the  institu- 
tion was  opened.  The  county  of  Kings  now  pays  for  the 
support  of  340  orphan  wards,  who  are  distributed  in  the  dif- 
ferent houses  maintained  by  the  Sisters  of  St.  Dominic — 
one  in  Amityville,  SufE.  Co.,  one  in  the  18th  Ward,and  one  in 
Astoria,  L.  I, — there  being  no  room  in  the  main  Home. 


I 


THE 

ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS 

OF  THE 

CITY    OF    BROOKLYN. 


THE    (DUTCH)    REFORMED    CHURCH. 


THE  FIRST  CHURCH  OF  BROOKLYN,  as  has 
lieen  stated  iu  the  Ecclesiastical  History  of  the 
County  of  Kings  (page  337),  termmated  its  collegiate 
relations  with  the  other  congregations  of  the  Dutch 
Town,  iu  the  year  1803;  and  Rev.  John  Barent  Johnson,  of 
Albany,  was  called  to  its  pastorate,  but  died  iu  March,  1803, 
at  the  age  of  thirty-four.  He  was  one  of  the  most  eloquent 
and  popular  preachers  of  the  Dutch  Church  at  that  time.  Of 


I'lH.sr    lil-.l oltMKD    CHUKCH    (,)F    lUiOUKI.V 


courteous  manners,  an  amiable  and  generous  sphit.  he 
mingled  freely  with  all  class -s  of  people,  and  was  an  admira- 
ble pastor.  "  He  left  an  excellent  name  behind  him,  and  his 
gifts  and  graces  were  gratefully  remembered  " 

March  4th,  1807,  the  consistory  determined  to  erect  a  new 
stone  edifice,  and  the  coroer-stoQe  was  laid  about  the  lotli  of 
Slay,  by  the  Rev.  Peter  Lowe.  The  building  was  completed 
(at  a  cost  of  |13,74o.53)  and  dedicated  December  23d,  1807; 


it  stood  on  the  south  side  of  the  lane  now  known  as  Jorale- 
mon  sti-eet,  somewhat  back  from  the  site  of  the  present 
church,  and  was  a  very  substantial  and  heavy  looking 
building. 

The  next  Pastor  was  Rev.  Selah  Strong  Woodhull,  D.  D. 
During  his  charge,  the  trustees  of  this  church  secured  its 
incorporation  December  18th,  1814,  with  the  following 
officiary  :     Elders,    Fernandus   Suydam,  Walter  Berry,  Jere- 

miah  Johnson,  John  Lefferts.     Deacons, 

Jeremiah  Brower,  Lambert  Schenck, 
Abraham  De  Bevoise,  Abraham  Rem'^en. 
Mr.  Woodhull  in  ISS.'),  became  a  professor 
in  the  Theological  Seminary  at  New 
Brunswick,  and  also  in  Rutger's  College, 
but  died  Feb.  27,  1826. 

His  successors  were:  Revs.  Ebenezer 
Mason,  1826;  Peter  P.  Rouse,  Oct.  13, 
1828;  Ilaurice  W.  Dwight,  1833.  The 
congregation  had  then  so  increased  that 
the  consistory  resolved  to  erect  the 
present  building.  It  was  built  by  Lafever 
&  Gallard,  architects,  under  the  following 
building  committee:  Jeremiah  Johnson, 
Leffeit  Lefferts,  Samuel  Smith,  John  S. 
Bergen,  John  Skillman,  Garret  Bergen, 
Theodonis  Polhemus  and  John  Schenck. 
The  corner-stone  was  laid  on  the  22d  of 
May,  1834,  by  the  senior  elder,  Abraham 
A.  Remsen,  and  the  edifice  was  finished 
and  consecrated  on  the  7th  of  May,  1835. 
When  bO  far  completed  that  the  congre- 
gation could  worship  in  it,  the  old  one 
was  taken  down.  The  pew  owners  in 
the  old  church  were  allowed  the  cost  of 
their  pens  in  sittings  in  the  new  building. 
It  is  an  elegant  and  spacious  building, 
with  an  imposing  colonnade  of  eight 
columns  on  both  front  and  rear. 

In  May,  1843,  Gen.  Jeremiah  Johnson 
Iresigned  the  secretaryship  of  the  church, 
which  office  he  had  held  for  the  space  of  fifty  years.  May 
1st,  1855,  Mr.  Dwight  resigned  the  pastorship  of  the  church, 
although  he  remained  in  the  congregation,  preaching  a  part 
of  the  time  for  them,  until  his  death. 

The  subsequent  Pastors  were:  Revs.  Acmon  P.  Van  Giesen, 
installed  Nov.  4,  18.55;  Alphonso  A.  Willetts,  D.  D.,  June, 
1860;  Josejih  Kimball,  D.  D..  installed  Nov.  21,  1865,  died 
December,   1874;    Henry  R.   Dickson,   October,    1875,   died 


994 


HISTORY  OT  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Marcli.  l-^;;;    Ihiiid  A.    1  ;i,.a\;iicr,  September,  l'-:^',  to  the 
present  time. 

A  few  years  ago  this  church  established  a  mission  in 
WyckofT  street,  near  Tliird  avenue.  Lots  were  purchased, 
and  a  chapel  was  erected  at  an  expense  of  about  $18,000. 
The  mission  and  the  school  have,  from  the  first,  been  pros- 
perous. 

It  is  noteworthy  that  this  church  has  still  in  use  a  por- 
tion of  a  communion  service,  which  was  presented  by  Maria 
Baddia,  in  16S4.  The  original  Dutch  records  of  the  church, 
made  b\'  Dominie  Selyns  in  16C0,  are  still  preserved. 

The  Ref.  Prot.  Dutch  Church  of  Bushwick,  was  organ- 
ized in  10")4;  part  of  the  communion  service  bears  the  date 
1708,  and  there  is  also  a  receipt  for  a  church  bell,  dated  1711. 
The  first  edifice  was  of  octagonal  form,  with  a  very  steep 
roof  terminating  in  an  open  belfry,  the  whole  resembling  a 
hay-stack  (see  page  387).  The  congregation  furnished  them- 
selves with  benches  and  chairs  until  170.'),  when  a  gallery  wa,s 
erected  and  the  ground  floor  furnished  with  pews. 

The  people  of  Bushwick  constituted  a  part  of  the  col- 
legiate church,  and  were  ministered  to  by  the  Pastors  of  the 
five  Dutch  towns.  Revs.  Freeman  and  Antonides  being  the 
first,  and  preaching  here  alternately  every  third  Sabbath. 
Rev.  Peter  Low  was  installed  in  1787  as  a  collegiate  Pastor, 
with  Rev.  Martinus  Sclioonmaker  of  Flatbush.  Rev.  Dr. 
John  Bassett  succeeded  hini  in  1811.  The  present  church 
edifice  was  erected  in  1829;  remodeled  in  1876.  In  1878,  a  new 
Sabbath-school  building  was  erected,  seating  1,200  scholars. 

Rev.  Stephen  H.  Meeker  was  installed  Pastor  in  1824,  and 
served  until  1876.  He  was  the  son  of  Benj.  Meeker;  was 
born  in  Elizabethtown,  N.  J.,  Oct.  17,  1799,  grad.  Columbia 
Coll.,  1821;  licensed  to  preach  in  1824.  He  was  succeeded 
by  Rev.  Henry  A.  Powell,  1876-'83,  and  Rev.  Robert  H.  Ban-, 
1883-'84.  The  present  membership  of  the  church  is  464,  and 
the  Sabbath-school  numbers  1,200. 

The  Second  or  Central  Reformed  Church  (Church  on  the 
Heights),  commenced  in  1836  as  a  mission  in  the  Lyceum,  un- 
der Rev.  John  Garretson.  March  3d,  1837,  by  the  authority 
of  the  Classis  of  Long  Island,  a  church  of  eleven  members 
was  organized;  its  first  consistory  being  Jacob  Talbnan  and 
Walter  Bicker,  elders,  and  Cornelius  C.  Stryker  and  Joseph 
Hegeman,  deacons.  In  November,  1837,  Mr.  Garretson  re- 
signed. 

In  February,  1838,  a  call  was  extended  to  Mr.  Hem'y  P.  Tap- 
pan,  which  was  aceei)ted;  but  bis  examination  not  being  sus- 
tained in  the  unanimous  opinion  of  the  Classis,  a  schism  oc- 
curred, from  which  originated  the  Fifth  Presbyterian  chui-ch. 
In  June,  1839,  the  consistory  purchased  lots  for  $9,750,  on 
Henry  street,  near  Clark,  on  which  they  proceeded  to  erect 
an  edifice  (now  occujiied  by  the  (Zion)  German  Evangelical 
Lutheran  congregation),  tlie  corner-stone  of  which  was  laid 
Sejjtember  16th,  1839.  The  building  was  completed  in  May 
following,  at  a  cost  of  $14,740,  and  dedicated  June  3d,  1840, 
the  sermon  being  preached  by  the  Rev.  Jacob  Brodhead, 
D.  D.,  who,  the  same  month,  was  called  to  the  pastorate,  the 
duties  of  which  he  accepted  in  April,  1841.  He  resigned  Ln 
October,  1846,  at  wliich  time  the  congregation  nmnberedone 
hundred  and  thirty  families  and  two  hundred  and  thirty 
communicants,  and  the  church  debt  had  been  reduced  from 
$23,000  to  about  $9,000.  On  the  19th  of  January,  1847,  the 
Rev.  Mr.  (afterwards  Dr.)  Malcolm  N.  McLaren  was  called, 
but  resigned  in  July,  1849,  and  was  followed  by  the  cele- 
brated iJeu.  Dr.  Oeorge  W.  Bethune. 

Novemljer  24th,  1850,  the  corner-stone  of  a  larger  and 
more  imposing  house  of  worship  was  laid,  on  Pierrepont 
street,  near  Monroe  place.  This  edifice  was  afterward  known 
as  the  Church  on  the  Heights,  and  the  church  was  reorgan- 


ized under  that  name.  Dr.  Bethune's  ministry  was  a  period 
of  great  prosperity  and  activity  in  tliis  church,  there  being 
200  families  in  attendance  and  445  members  in  communion, 
wlio.se  contributions  during  his  pastorate  amounted  to  nearly 
$155,000,  in  addition  to  which  were  three  mission-school 
enterprises  (viz. ,  the  Bethe.sda  and  Myrtle  avenue  schools, 
and  Summit  street  chapel  and  school),  besides  a  flourishing 
home  school  and  Bible  class. 

Ministry:  Revs.  John  Oarretson,  1836-37;  Jacob  Brodhead, 
1840-'46;  Geo.  W.  Bethune,  D.  D.,  1847-60:  James  Eells, 
D.  D.,  1800-'67;  Zachary  Eddy,  D.  D.,  1867-73;  Jas.  Inglis, 
D.  D.,  1872-77;  S.  S.  Mitchell,  D.  D.  1877-80;  Rev.  Alfred 
J.  Hutton,  1881-'84. 

The  church  was  renovated  and  refitted  in  1875. 

The  Bedford  Avenue  Reformed  Church,  formerly  the 
Fourth  Street  Reformed  Dutch  Church,  near  Soutli  Second, 
was  the  first  of  that  denomination  erected  in  the  village  of 
Williamsburgh,  and  the  third  within  the  limits  of  the  present 
city  of  Brooklj'n.  The  village  was  then  confured  mostly  to 
the  lower  parts  of  Grand  and  North  Second  streets;  its  only 
house  of  worship  was  a  Methodist  chapel  on  North  Second; 
the  old  Reformed  Church  in  Bushwick  accommodated  the  de- 
nomination for  many  years.  At  length  the  immediate  and 
prospective  necessity  for  a  new  church  was  felt,  and  meas- 
ures were  taken  to  erect  a  cliapel  on  Fourth  street,  near 
Soutli  Second,  the  comer-stone  of  which  was  laid  September 
28,  1828,  by  John  A.  Meserole  (a  imtriot  of  the  Revolution, 
and  a  most  generous  donor  to  the  enteiijrise),  with  appropri- 
ate exercises  by  Dr.  Brodlie.n.d,  of  New  York,  and  the  Revs. 
Jacob  Sclioonmaker,  of  Jamaica,  and  S.  H.  Meeker,  Pastor 
of  the  congregation. 

The  house  was  dedicated  July  26,  1829;  sermon  by  Dr. 
Brodhead,  from  II  Cor.,  vii,  16.  Peter  Wyckoff,  Peter  Mese- 
role, Abraham  Meserole,  Abraham  Boerum  and  James  M. 
Halsey  were  cliosen  trustees.  Immediately  upon  its  organi- 
zation, the  church  obtained  the  services  of  Rev.  James  Dem- 
arest,  who  served  for  the  first  six  months  as  a  missionary, 
and  partly  at  the  charge  of  tlie  Board  of  Domestic  Missions. 
His  congregations  were  small  at  first,  as  the  churcli  edifice 
was  remote  from  the  village;  Fourth  street  being  then  but  a 
farmers'  lane,  rough,  uneven,  and  studded  here  and  there 
with  stumjis  and  trees  of  the  original  forest.  Mr.  Demarest 
labored  with  great  fidelity  and  success  for  nearly  ten  years, 
resigning  in  May,  1839,  and  was  followed  in  October  by  Rev. 
William  Howard  Van  Dorn. 

In  the  winter  of  1848-'9  the  church  was  enlarged,  rei^aired 
and  modernized,  largely  at  the  expense  of  Messrs.  Abraham 
Meserole,  Abraham  Boerum,  Nicholas  Wyckoff,  and  others. 
In  1849,  Mr.  Van  Dorn  resigned,  and  Rev.  Job  Halsey  served 
as  stated  supply.  November  13,  1849,  Rev.  Elbert  S.  Porter 
was  called  to  the  pastorate  which  he  resigned  in  1883,  after  a 
long  and  useful  service  of  thirty-four  years. 

In  July,  1865,  the  old  church  edifice  on  Fourth  street  was 
sold  and  a  number  of  lots  bought  on  Bedford  avenue,  corner 
of  Clymer  street,  on  which  was  erected  a  large  and  elegant 
edifice  of  brick,  with  stone  facings.  It  is  in  some  respects 
tlie  most  complete  and  perfect  in  its  appointments  of  any  in 
the  city,  and  was  dedicated  October  17,  1869. 

Dr.  Elbert  S.  Porter  has  been  identified  with  the  later 
gi-owth  of  the  Eastern  District  as  much  as  any  other  one 
man.  He  is  a  native  of  Hillsboro,  Somerset  county,  N.  J., 
and  was  at  school  at  Ovid,  N.  Y. ;  at  a  grammar  school  in 
Broome  street,  New  York,  and  at  Somerville  Academy,  N.  J. ; 
grad.  from  Princeton  Coll.,  in  1839,  and  from  the  New  Bnms- 
wick  Tlieol.  Sem.  three  years  later.  His  first  charge  was  at 
Chatham,  Columbia  Co.,  N.  Y.,  where  he  gathered  a  congre- 
gation, organized  a  church,  and  a  handsome  edifice  was  built. 


ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


In  the  autumn  of  1849,  Dr.  Porter  accepted  a  call  to  the 
First  Reformed  Church  of  Williamsburgh,  and  commenced 
his  long,  active  and  useful  pastorate.  In  addition  to  his 
church  work,  he  was  editor  of  the  Christian  Intelligencer  for 
sixteen  years,  and  always  a  prolific  writer  for  the  press;  he 
wrote  voluminous  letters  from  Europe,  in  1879,  for  publica- 
tion, and  on  his  return  delivered  an  interesting  series  of  lec- 
tures. A  contemporary  said  of  him:  "Dr.  Porter  is  emi- 
nently a  prophetic  writer,  exerting  a  great  influence.  All 
his  faculties  are  under  good  disciiiline  and  control.  He 
knows  just  wliere  and  when  to  strike  to  annihilate  an  adver- 
sary." He  has  also  written  numerous  poems  and  h3'mns  of 
high  literary  quality. 

"Dr.  Porter's  intellect  is  both  compreliensive  and  subtle, 
logical  and  poetical;  he  is  broad  in  his  views,  and  outspoken, 
yet  cautious  and  politic;  doctrinal,  yet  rhetorical;  a  conserva- 
tive progressive,  and  a  progressive  conservative.  The  value 
of  his  words  is  seen  in  the  frequency  witli  which  he  has  lieen 
called  upon  to  speak  upon  public,  educational,  religitnis  or 
charitable  topics." 
He  resigned  his  charge  in  October,  1883. 
The  Third  or  South  Reformed  Dutch  Church  (atGowanus), 
fonnerly  located  on  the  corner  of  Forty-thii'd  street  and  Third 
avenue,  had  its  inception  at  a  meeting  held  June  27,  1838. 
Tlie  building,  situated  about  a  mile  south  of  the  village,  was 
completed  and  dedicated  on  the  34th  of  June,  1840.  Miuis- 
ti-y  :  Rev.  C.  C.  Van  Arsdale  (supply),  1840;  Rev.  Samuel  M. 
Woodbridge,  1841-51;  Rev.  J.  M.  Rowland,  18.52-3;  Rev.  John 
II.  Manning,  1854-73. 

From  May,  1843,  to  January,  18.50,  services  were  held  by 
the  Pastor,  Rev.  S.  M.  Woodbridge,  alternately  in  this  church 
and  in  tlie  North  Church  of  Gowanus,  on  Third  avenue,  be- 
tween Twentieth  and  Twenty-first  streets,  and  which  had 
been  purcliased  by  the  consistory,  in  May,  1842,  from  the 
Fourth  Presbyterian  Churcli  of  Brooklyn.  (See  sketch  of 
North  Dutch  Reformed  Church.) 

The  South  Refoi-med  Dutch  Church  lost  a  large  portion  of 
its  members  and  supporters  during  the  yellow  fever  of  1856, 
and  it  seemed  at  one  time  as  if  its  very  existence  must  be 
abandoned,  but  the  few  who  were  left  rallied  to  its  support, 
and  it  became  again  prosperous.  Subsequent  Pastors  :  Rev. 
Henry  V.  S.  Meyers,  1874-'81;  Rev.  A.  D.  W.  Mason,  1881-'4. 
The  church  building  was  destroyed  by  fire  in  1863,  and  a  new 
edifice  commenced  at  the  corner  of  Third  avenue  and  Thirty- 
second  street,  tlie  chapel  of  which  was  used  for  worship  the 
same  year.  The  church  was  completed  in  1875.  It  is  a 
brick  structure,  with  a  seating  capacity  of  350,  and  has  a 
chapel  and  Sundaj'-school  room  in  the  rear.  The  Society 
has  a  parsonage  on  Third  avenue,  between  Forty-second  and 
Forty-third  streets. 

The  Fourth  Reformed  Dutch  Church  was  organized  Nov. 
11,  1840,  at  the  Wallabout.  Rev.  Peter  S.  Williamson  was 
Pastor,  from  April  to  October,  1841.  The  congregation  being 
feeble,  and  enjoying  only  occasional  supplies,  the  enterprise 
was  abandoned  about  tlie  close  of  1842,  but  the  church  was 
not  regularly  dissolved  by  Classis  until  October  13, 1844,  wlien 
the  only  member  (and  he  an  elder)  was  dismissed  by  the 
Classis,  on  his  own  request,  and  joined  the  Wallabout  Church, 
and  the  North  Dutch  Reformed  Church  became  extinct. 

The  Middle  Reformed  Protestant  Dutch  Church,  corner 
of  Harrison  street  and  Tompkins  place,  was  org.  in  1846, 
with  sixteen  members,  in  a  room  on  the  corner  of  Smith  and 
Butler  streets.  John  V.  N.  Talmage  served  as  a  stated 
preacher  until  the  first  regular  Pastor,  Rev.  Peter  D.  Oakey, 
commenced  his  labors  in  March,  1847.  During  that  year  the 
congregation  erected  a  church  edifice  on  the  corner  of  Court 
and  Butler  streets,   a  plain  brick  structure,  costing  about 


$10,000.  Subsequent  Pastors:  Rev.  Jas.  R.  Talmage,  1850-'2; 
Rev.  Nicholas  E.  Smith,  D.  D.,  1853-69.  In  1853,  lots  were 
purchased,  and  the  present  church  edifice  commenced,  the 
corner-stone  of  which  was  laid  July  30,  1855.  The  structure 
is  of  brick,  in  the  Norman  style  of  architecture,  witli  two 
towers  in  front,  the  principal  one  being  180  feet  in  height. 
The  building  has  70  feet  front  on  Harrison  street,  and  ex- 
tends 96  feet  on  Tompkins  place,  the  audience-room  having 
a  clear  space  of  64  feet  in  width.  It  has  galleries,  and  its 
estimated  capacity  is  1,.500  persons.  The  exterior  is  trimmed 
with  brown  stone,  the  lecture-room  adjoining  being  fronted 
with  blue  marble;  cost,  about  $32,000.  Other  pastors  :  Rev. 
Edward  P.  Ingersoll,  D.  D.,  1869-83;  Rev.  Wm.  H.  Ford, 
1888-'4.  The  church  buildings  were  renovated  and  refitted 
between  tlie  years  1872  and  1875,  at  an  expense  of  about 
•f  10,000.  The  Sunday-scliool  rooms  were  wholly  changed, 
and  they  are  now  as  convenient  and  pleasant  as  any  in  the 
city. 

A  mission  was  established  in  October,  1847,  in  the  vicinity 
of  Clinton  and  Washington  avenues.  A  division  soon  oc- 
curred, and  two  small  bviildings  were  erected,  one  on  Wash- 
ington avenue,  near  Fulton,  and  the  other  on  Clinton  ave- 
nue.    Their  cost  was  about  .$ l,.30O. 

Rev.  EdwakdP.  Ingersoll.  D.D.  (Williams Coll..  1877).  was 
born  in  Lee,  Mass.,  May  6,  1834— a  descendant  of  Rev.  Jona- 
than Edwards.  In  1837,  his  parents  removed  to  Oberlin, 
Ohio,  where  he  resided  until  he  had  partially  passed  tlirougli 
college,  when  he  returned  to  MassachuEetIs  and  completed 
his  college  course  at  Williams.  After  graduating  at  the 
Law  College  at  Cleveland,  he  was  admitted  to  the  Bar,  and 
practiced  three  years.  Desirous  of  entering  the  ministry,  he 
entered  Andover  Theological  Seminary,  and,  in  Dec,  1863, 
was  ordained  and  installed  over  the  First  Congregational 
Church,  Sandusky,  Ohio.  In  1868  he  accepted  a  call  to  In- 
dianapolis. The  Middle  Reformed  Church,  of  this  city,  ex- 
tended a  call  to  him  in  Dec,  1869.  His  labors  in  this  field 
have  been  crowned  with  abundant  success.  Dr.  Ingersoll 
has  a  very  attractive  delivery,  and,  though  his  pulpit  utter- 
ances are  mainly  extempore,  they  show  pure  thought 
and  earnest  Christian  spirit.  His  genial,  whole-souled  man- 
ners make  him  a  welcome  guest  in  the  homes  of  his  people. 

Washington  Avenue  Protestant  Reformed  Dutch  Church, 
on  the  corner  of  Washington  and  Gates  avenues,  was  organ- 
ized about  1848,  and  a  building,  30  by  46  feet  in  size,  and 
costing  some  .$14,000,  was  erected.  The  first  Pastor  was  Rev. 
A.  Elmendorf,  who  was  called  in  1848.  In  1850,  a  Mr.  Good- 
man was  called,  and  the  corner-stone  of  a  new  edifice  was 
laid  in  18.50;  but,  in  1851,  the  church  broke  up,  and  the  edifice 
was  sold  to  the  Baptists  for  an  amount  suflicient  to  pay  all 
debts  and  leave  a  handsome  surplus. 

The  Greenpoint  Reformed  Church  was  organized  May, 
1848,  with  eight  members,  by  a  committee  from  the  North 
Classis,  of  Long  Island.  Its  first  Consistory  comprised 
David  Swalm  and  William  H.  Guest,  elders,  and  Dr.  Isaac 
K.  Snell,  deacon.  It  held  its  first  services  in  a  small  room, 
over  the  grocery  store  of  Elder  Swalm.  The  first  church 
was  built  in  1850,  in  Java  street,  on  land  given  for  the  pur- 
pose by  Mrs.  Magdalena  Meserole,  the  foster-mother  of  the 
church.  The  growth  of  the  church  was  such  that  the  edifice 
erected  was  not  large  enough  to  meet  the  wants  of  the  con- 
gregation; and,  after  a  few  years,  a  new  church  edifice,  63 
by  95  feet,  was  built  on  Kent  street,  in  1869,  and  dedicated 
January  30,  1870.  The  front  is  of  Philadelphia  pressed  brick, 
trimmed  with  Ohio  and  Connecticut  stone,  and  is  of  the 
Rheno-Romanesque  architecture,  of  the  sixteenth  century. 
The  westerly  tower  is  55  feet  high,  surmounted  by  a  mansard 
roof,  with  crestings.   The  easterly  tower  is  75  feet  high,  with 


996 


niSTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


GREE.NPOINT    KEl'ORMED    CHUKCH. 

l>elfry,  at  present  surmounted  by  an  octagonal  mansard  roof. 
The  tower  is  intended  for  a  spire  175  feet  higb.  Tlie  church 
lias  a  seating  capacity  of  800  persons,  and  cost,  with  land, 
about  160,000. 

In  1880,  a  chapel,  45  by  100  feet,  seating  1,000  persons,  was 
erected,  on  land  adjoining  the  church,  for  Sunday-school 
and  prayer-meeting  purposes.  It  has  lecture-room,  church 
parlor,  and  six  class-rooms,  with  a  gallery  divided  to  accom- 
modate eight  bible-classes,  and  an  infant-school  departmeot, 
capable  of  eeating  200  cliildren  ;  also  kitchen,  &c.  It  cost, 
with  furniture,  not  including  the  ground  on  which  it  stands, 
$17,000. 

The  church  has  had  six  Pastors  :  Rev.  John  W.  Ward,  1849 
-'54;  Rev.  Goyn  Talmage,  D.  D.,  1855-'62  ;  Rev.  George  H. 
Peeke,  1863-'65 ;  Rev.  A.  P.  Van  Giesen.  D.  D.,  1866-67;  and 
Rev.  Alexander  McKelvey,  1867-72;  Rev.  Lewis  Francis, 
1873-'84. 

The  membership  of  the  church  is  882;  communicants,  436; 
scholars  on  the  roll  of  the  church  and  mission  schools,  1,022. 
The  entire  cost  of  the  churches  and  chapel  has  been  paid, 
save  a  bonded  debt  of  |5,000  on  tlie  chapel. 

Reformed  Dutch  Church  (of  North  Gowanus). — The  proj)- 
erty  of  this  church  was  first  jjurchased  from  the  Fourth 
Presbyterian  Church  of  Brooklyn,  by  the  consistory  of  the 
South  Reformed  Dutch  Church,  in  May,  1842.  The  congre- 
gations of  the  South  and  North  Reformed  Churches  were 
under  the  charge  of  the  same  Pastor  till  Janviary,  1850,  when 
the  union  was  dissohed  by  the  Classis,  and  the  North  Church 
congregation  was  organized,  and  purchased  the  property 
from  the  South  Church. 

In  May,  1851,  the  Rev.  N.  P.  Pierce,  D.  D.,  was  installed 
as  Pastor. 

Early  in  1869,  the  property  owned  by  the  church  on  Third 
avenue,  near  Twenty-first  street,  was  sold,  and  a  new  church 
edifice  erected  on  Twelfth  street,  between  Fourth  and  Fifth 
avenues.  It  is  a  brick  building,  55  by  85  feet  in  size,  and  its 
cost  was  about  $65,000. 

At  that  time  the  corporate  title  was  changed  to  "Tlie 
Twelfth  Street  Reformed  Church  of  Brooklyn."  Mr.  Pierce 
resigned,  on  account  of  ill  health,  in  1874,  and  the  present 
Pastor,  Rev.  Uriah  D.  Gulick,  was  installed  Sept.  30,  1875. 


The  North  Reformed  Church  (Clermont  avenue),  organ- 
ized May  15,  1851,  owes  its  origin  to  the  efforts  of  its  first 
pastor,  Rev.  Anthony  Elmendorf,  D.  D.,  who  was  installed 
July  11th,  1852.  Four  lots  of  ground  were  presented  to  the 
church  by  the  heirs  of  Jeremiah  V.  Spader,  and  a  church 
edifice  was  erected  in  1855,  at  a  cost  of  $20,000.  Pastors, 
Revs.  A.  Elmendorf,  D.  D.,  1853-'65;  W.  Tillotson  Enj-ard, 
186,5-73;  Alex.  R.  Thompson,  D.  D.,  1873-84. 

Tlie  church  has  been  prosperous.  It  has  a  large  member- 
ship and  a  flourishing  Sunday  school. 

Reformed  Protestant  Dutch  Church  of  South  Bushwick. 
— Nov.  6th,  1851,  a  petition  was  jiresented  to  the  North  Classis 
<if  L.  I.,  from  the  inhabitants  of  Bowronvllle  and  vicinity, 
praying  for  the  organization  of  a  Dutch  church  in  that  lo- 
cality. 

Messrs.  Andrew  J.  Johnson  and  William  Ten  Eyck,  received 
on  their  certificates  of  dismission  from  the  Reformed  Church 
of  Bushwick,  were  constituted  a  consistory  for  the  new 
organization. 

Soon  after,  nine  persons  were  received,  mostly  from  the  Re- 
formed Church  of  Bushwick,  and  the  Rev.  J.  S.  Hinirod 
was  appointed  missionary  to  take  charge  of  the  new  enterprise. 

Tlie  organizing  membership  all  came  from  the  old  BiLsh- 
wick  Church;  but  the  organization  came  about  through  the 
efforts,  jirincipally,  of  the  Rev.  E.  S.  Porter,  D.  D. 

Steps  were  at  once  taken  to  obtain  a  suitable  house  of  wor- 
ship. Land  for  this  jiurpose  was  given,  at  the  intersection 
of  their  farms  on  the  old  Bushwick  Road,  by  the  brothers, 
Andrew  and  Abrani  Stockholm,  Nov.  19,  1851.  This,  when 
the  town  of  Bushwick  was  consolidated  with  Brooklyn, 
came  at  the  corner  of  Bushwick  avenue  and  Himrod  street. 
Money  for  the  purpose  of  buildmg  was  raised  among  the 
residents  in  the  vicinity,  and  a  sum  presented  by  the  Col- 
legiate Dutch  Church  of  New  York.  The  corner-stone  of 
the  church  was  laid  by  James  De  Bevoise,  Sei)t.  6.  1852.  and 
the  building  consecrated  February,  1853.  Tliis  building  then 
erected  is  the  one  in  use  now.  It  is  a  frame  structure,  45  by 
65  feet. 

The  Rev.  J.  S.  Himrod,  who,  up  to  this  time,  had  been 
acting  as  the  missionary  of  Classis,  was,  in  February,  1854, 
installed  as  the  Pastor  of  the  church.  He  remained  in  that 
capacity  until  October,  1859.  The  other  Pastors  have  been 
as  follows:  Rev.  Denis  Wortraan.  D.  D.,  June  16,  1860,  to 
Oct.  19,  1863;  Rev.  Chester  Hartranft,  D.  D.,  July  10,  1864, 
to  Oct.  2,  1866;  Rev.  Hy.  V.  Voorhees,  Aug.  11,  1867,  to 
April  21,  1869;  Rev.  Geo.  D.  Hulst,  July  4,  1869,  who  is  still 
Pastor. 

During  the  early  part  of  the  year  1881,  a  very  beautiful 
and  commodious  Sunday-school  building,  40  by  80  feet,  was 
erected.     It  was  dedicated  on  the  17th  of  July,  1881. 

The  Sunday-school  was  organized  soon  after  the  church 
(Mr.  James  De  Bevoise,  superintendent),  and,  till  the  church 
building  was  completed,  met  in  a  private  house  in  Ralph 
street,  near  Bushwick  avenue.  Since  then  the  following 
have  been  superintendents:  Silas  Tuttle,  Daniel  Eklredge, 
Richard  Hamilton,  James  H.  Hart,  Peter  Kinsey  and  Geo. 
F.  Booth. 

Rev.  George  D.  Hclst,  born  in  Brooklyn,  1846;  grad.  Rut- 
gers Coll.  1866;  Rutgers  Tlieo.  Sem.  1869;  located  B'klyn 
1869-'84;  Pres.  L.  I.  and  B'kljai  Entomological  Societies, 
1876-'83;  contrib.  to  entomo.  journals;  author  of  Monograph 
on  Genus  Catocola,  1«83. 

The  German  Reformed  Protestant  Dutch  Church  of  New 
Brooklyn,  Herkimer,  near  Howard  avenue,  was  organized 
October,  1852,  by  twenty-eight  persons.  They  were  supplied 
by  Ernest  Schrepfer  till  January  1st,  1853.  Pastors:  Revs. 
Mr.  Pflster,   1853-'55;  C.  Dickhaut,  1855-'67;  H.  C.   Heyser, 


ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS 


997 


1867-69;  C.  F.  C.  Snekow,  1870-'79;  Jacob  Weber,  1879-'84. 
November  32d,  1854,  a  church  edifice  (costing  about  $5,500), 
of  Gothic  style,  was  dedicated,  and,  in  1868,  a  parsonage 
was  erected  and  repairs  made  upon  the  church. 

A  parochial  school,  in  connection  with  the  church,  has 
been  maintained  since  the  latter's  organization.  Instruction 
is  given  in  both  English  and  German. 

This  church  has  a  flourishing  Sunday-school,  and  the  ser- 
vices in  both  church  and  Sunday-school  are  conducted  in 
the  German  language.  This  church  is  not  only  free  fioni 
debt,  but  it  has  a  bank  account  to  its  credit. 

East  Reformed  Dutch  Church  (situated  on  Bedford  avenue, 
near  Jefferson  street)  was  organized  Feb.  15,  1853;  Rev. 
John  W.  Schenck  was  installed  as  pastor;  the  church  edifice 
was  raised  in  Marcli,  1854,  and  dedicated  July  16.  Ministrij: 
Revs.  Jacob  West,  1856-68;  S.  F.  Farmer,  1868-'72;  J.  H. 
Carroll,  1873-76;  P.  E.  Kipp,  1877-'79. 

In  1879,  it  was  reorganized  under  the  name  of  Bedford 
Reformed  (Dutch)  Church.  Rev.  Walter  T.  Griffin  became 
pastor  in  1881. 

A  new  church  edifice  was  erected  in  1875,  on  the  corner  of 
Bedford  avenue  and  Madison  street,  two  blocks  north  from 
the  original  building.     Its  cost  was  |140,000. 

The  Lee  Avenue  Reformed  Dutch  Church. — The  first  ser- 
vices in  connection  with  the  enterprise,  which  afterwards 
became  known  as  the  Lee  Avenue  Reformed  Dutch  Church, 
were  held  in  1852,  in  a  small  frame  cottage  belonging  to 
Barnet  Johnson,  situated  on  the  corner  of  Bedford  ave.  and 
Hewes  st. 


COTTAGE    WHICH    WAS    THE     BIUTHPLACE    OF     THE    LEE 
AVENUE    REFOR.MED    CHUKCH. 

Near  the  close  of  his  life.  General  Jeremiah  Johnson  had 
expressed  a  desire  that  a  church,  of  the  denomination  to 
which  he  had  always  been  attached,  should  be  built  on 
his  homestead  farm.  His  sons,  in  connection  with  several 
families  in  the  neighborhood,  sought  the  co-operation  of  the 
Board  of  Domestic  Missions  of  the  Reformed  Dutch  Church, 
in  organizing  the  new  enterprise. 

In  May.  1853,  it  was  determined  to  erect  a  chapel,  and  the 
building  now  standing  on  Lee  ave.  was  commenced  on  land 
generously  donated  by  Barnet  Johnson  and  the  heirs  of  the 
late  James  Scholes.  The  corner-stone  was  laid  with  appro- 
priate services,  August  3,  1853,  by  the  Hon.  Benjamin  D. 
Silliman;  and,  on  April  9, 1854,  the  beautiful  chapel  was  ded- 
icated by  the  Rev.  George  W.  Bethune,  D.  D. 

On  May  2,  1854,  the  church  was  organized  with  thirteen 
members  by  the  North  Classis  of  Long  Island,  and  the  Rev. 
W.  W.  Halloway  was  its  Pastor  until  1859.  His  ministry 
was  very  successful,  and  during  his  pastorate,  the  chapel 


LEE   AVENUE    HEFORMED    (DUTCH)    CHURCH. 

was  enlarged  to  double  its  original  size.  Rev.  John  McClel- 
lan  Holmes  was  installed  Pastor  November  6,  1859.  New 
life  and  vigor  was  immediately  infused  throughout  the  en- 
tire enterprise,  the  building  was  crowded  to  excess,  and  the 
erection  of  a  large  and  commodious  church  became  a 
necessity. 

Barnet  Johnson  and  the  heirs  of  the  late  James  Scholes 
having  made  another  large  gift  of  land  for  the  site,  the  work 
was  commenced  on  the  first  of  March,  1860,  and  the  corner- 
stone was  laid  on  the  11th  day  of  the  following  June,  by  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Van  Franken,  of  New  Brunswick,  N.  J.  The 
church  auditorium  was  dedicated  Dec.  10,  1860,  the  Rev. 
George  W.  Bethune,  D.  D.,  preaching  a  memorable  dis- 
course. Rev.  Mr.  Holmes  was  compelled,  by  impaired 
health,  to  relinquish  his  charge  in  1864. 

The  subsequent  Pastors  were:  Rev.  A.  A.  Willits,  D.  D., 
1.S6.5--67;  Rev.  W.  W.  Hicks,  1867-69;  Rev.  J.  H.  Carroll, 
D.  D.,  1869-71;  at  the  close  of  his  pastorate,  the  church 
leached  a  very  low  ebb;  it  was  torn  by  dissensions  and  re- 
duced by  withdrawals;  and  the  hopes  and  plans  of  the  gen- 
erous donors  of  the  land  on  which  the  buildings  stood  were 
entirely  defeated  by  the  church  changing  its  denominational 
relation  and  becoming  the  Lee  Avenue  Congregational 
Church. 

The  Lee  Avenue  Sunday-school,  which  afterwards  became 
famous  throughout  the  land  and  the  world,  was  organized 
in  1853,  with  John  N.  Stearns  as  its  Supt.  for  18  months;  suc- 
ceeded by  Jeremiah  Johnson,  Jr.,  soon  after  the  new  church 
was  occupied.  The  prosppcts  were  not  encouraging;  the 
neighborhood  was  sparsely  populated;  there  were  no  dwell- 
ings in  the  vicinity;  the  land  was  cultivated  by  market 
gardeners;  open  fields  everywhere  met  the  eye.  The  average 
attendance  in  January,  1855,  was  50;  in  January,  18.56,  700 
scholars  and  70  teachers  were  enrolled  on  the  Sabbath-school 
registers.  In  January,  1857,  the  school  had  1,000  scholars 
and  90  teachers;  on  the  7th  of  October,  1860,  when  the  new 
Sabbath-school  was  opened,  2,000  children  and  180  teachers. 

In  May,  1866,  Jeremiah  Johnson,  Jr.,  who  had  been  the 
superintendent  of  the  school  almost  from  its  inception,  in 
consequence  of  removal  to  Railway,  New  Jersey,  resigned 
his  position;  and  was  succeeded  by  Franklin  H.  Lummus, 
who  successfully  performed  its  duties,  and  was  continued  as 
superintendent  until  nearly  the  time  when  the  church 
changed  its  denominational  relationship. 

Bethany  Chapel,  on  Hudson  avenue,  near  Myrtle,  first 
established  as  Myrtle  Avenue  Mission,  in  Myrtle  Hall,  in 
1853,  was  soon  removed  to  a  larger  room,  on  the  corner  of 
Myrtle  avenue  and  Navy  street.     It  was  maintained  by  the 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Chuich  ..u  lliL-  lleighls  till  1SG8,  when  it  was  united  with 
Bethesda  Mission,  and  tlie  name,  Bethany,  was  given  to 
the  united  missions.  The  jiresent  chapel  was  dedicated,  May 
29,  1870.  It  is  a  brick  structure,  50  by  80  feet  in  size,  with  a 
seatmg  capacity  of  400.     Its  total  cost  was  $26,000. 

The  ]>astors  of  this  Slission  have  been  :  Rev.  Alfred  Myers: 
and  Rev.  Jacob  Whitehurst,  who  was  born  at  Macclesfield, 
Eng.;  grad.  Brooklyn  High  School,  1876;  studied  Bklyn. 
Lay  College,  1871-75;  Missionary  with  Ch.  of  Our  Saviour, 
1873-'75;  located  at  Brooklyn,  July,  1876. 

The  chief  interest  of  tliis  Mission  has  centred  in  its  Sunday- 
school,  which  now  numbers  350.  At  one  time  it  published  a 
periodical  called  The  Bethaiuj  Tidings. 

The  German  Evangelical  St.  Peter's  Church  (Reformed), 
Union  ave.  and  Scholes  st.  This  church  was  commenced  by 
the  Rev.  C.  A.  J.  Pohle,  of  Bautzen,  Saxony,  in  October, 
1853,  in  the  lecture-room  of  the  Old  Bush  wick  Reformed 
Dutch  Church.  On  Christmas  of  the  same  year,  he  cele- 
brated the  Lord's  Supper  with  21  communicants. 

During  the  winter,  they  bought  the  old  church,  a  small 
frame  building,  together  with  two  lots  on  the  corner  of  Union 
ave.  and  Scholes  St.,  from  the  So.  3d.  St.  Methodist  Ep.  Con- 
gregation, for  $2,300.  The  date  of  the  dedication  of  this 
church  is  not  given;  but,  on  Easter  Sunday,  1854,  they  cele- 
brated the  Lord's  Supper  in  this  building,  with  54  persons, 
among  these  being  six  children,  who  had  been  confirmed  the 
Sabbath  previous.  ^Mr.  Pohle  died,  Nov.  22,  1859,  and  the 
Rev.  J.  A.  Ph.  Zapf  succeeded  him,  and  was  pastor  of  this 
church  till  March,  1863.  Rev.  Henry  Hennick  was  called  to 
the  pastorate,  in  June,  1863,  and  left  in  March,  1865.  The 
congregation  divided  on  the  calling  of  a  minister,  and  when 
the  majority  called  the  Rev.  J.  A.  Reidenbach,  in  April,  the 
minority  left  the  church. 

The  church  was  now  in  a  deplorable  condition,  weak  and 
distracted;  a  mortgage  of  $2,400,  a  floating  debt  of  $1,500, 
the  members  poor,  and  the  pastor  inexperienced  and  helpless. 
Seeing  that  it  must  unite  with  some  ecclesiastical  body 
which  could  assist  it,  or  succumb,  the  congregation  resolved, 
unanimously,  to  join  the  Ref.  Dutch  Church.  The  North 
Classis  of  L.  I.  was  convened  on  the  22d  of  January,  1866; 
received  it  formally  as  a  member  of  its  body ;  and  at 
once  assisted  it  in  its  pecuniary  trouble.  Mr.  Reidenbach, 
the  Pastor,  was  not  received,  but  the  Classis  permitted  him 
to  continue  his  labors,  and  assisted  him,  through  the  Board 
of  Domestic  Missions. 

By  the  advice  of  Classis,  the  present  Pastor,  Rev.  John 
Martin  Wagner,  of  Honheim,  in  the  Palatinate,  a  graduate 
of  Rutgers  College,  and  the  Seminary  of  New  Brunswick, 
N.  J.,  was  installed  by  the  North  Classis  of  L.  I.,  on  Decem- 
ber 30,  1860,  and  is  thus  the  first  regularly  installed  pastor  of 
this  church.  A  fund  was  started  for  a  new  church,  and,  in 
1880,  the  present  commodious  church  building  was  erected. 
This  structure,  a  mixture  of  ancient  and  modern  architec- 
ture, has  a  front  of  52  feet  on  Union  ave.,  and  100  feet 
length  on  Scholes  St.,  of  Phila.  brick  and  Ohio  stone,  with  a 
tower  on  the  corner,  150  feet  high,  with  two  bells. 

The  audience-room  has  a  raised  floor  and  circular  seats  ; 
the  organ  loft,  with  the  choir,  is  above  and  behind  the  pulpit; 
with  a  gallery  in  front  of  the  church,  seating  about  900 
persons. 


The  cost  of  the  building  was  near  $25,000.  The  church 
was  dedicated  on  the  2d  of  January,  1881.  The  basement  is 
high  and  pleasant,  with  a  large  hall  for  Sunday-school,  &c., 
a  room  for  the  parochial  school,  and  large  parlor  for  meet- 
ings and  social  gatherings. 

The  church  has  460  members,  the  two  Sabbath-schools  have 
about  700  children  on  their  rolls,  and  the  parochial  school 
averages  100  scholars. 

Centennial  Chapel  First  R.  D.  Church— Feby.  21,  1869, 
a  Mission  S.  S.  was  org.  on  the  cor.  of  Fulton  and  Adams 
sts.,  and  continued  for  two  years;  out  of  it  grew  the  present 
Centennial  Chapel.  The  originators  were  the  late  Dr.  T.  L. 
Mason  and  Sam'l  Stewart ;  also,  A.  J.  Beekman,  Henry  M. 
Curtis,  J.  R.  Lott,  A.  R.  Gray,  L.  V.  D.  Hardenbergh,  and  a 
number  of  others.  The  corner-stone  of  the  present  chapel 
was  laid,  Nov.  10,  1871,  and  the  first  service  was  held  in  De- 
cember of  the  same  year.  The  Rev.  J.  G.  Bass  held  evening 
service  there  during  that  year.  Ministry:  Revs.  A,  N.  Wyck- 
offi,  1873-'6;  D.  N.  Westveer,  1877:  J.  H.  Colton,  D.  D., 
1878-'84.  At  the  present  time,  the  church  has  a  membership 
of  about  200;  the  S.  S.  numbers  600,  including  officers  and 
teachers ;  the  whole  a  growing  work  and  in  a  prosperous 
condition.  The  Sups,  of  the  S.  S.  have  been  Messrs.  Geo.  E. 
Brinkerhoff,  Abram  J.  Beekman,  Henry  W.  Brewer,  deceased, 
and  C.  C.  Shelley.  The  building  is  of  brick  and  stone,  and 
was  Ijuilt  at  a  cost  of  $19,000,  including  lots. 

The  following  clergymen  of  the  Reformed  Church  are  resi- 
dents of  the  city  or  county  : 

Rev.  Jacob  West,  D.D.,  born  1818,  at  Berne,  N.  Y.;  grad. 
Rutgers  CoU.,  1842;  Rutgers  Tlieol.  Sem.,  1845;  Cor.  Sec. 
Board  Dom.  Missions,  since  1868;  previous  locations.  Middle- 
burgh,  N.Y.,  1845-'52;  Piermont,  N.  Y.,  1852-'6;  frequent  con- 
tributor to  press:  settled  in  B'klyn.,  April,  1856. 

Rev.  Alfred  De  W.  Mason,  born  in  Brooklyn,  1855;  grad. 
Amherst  Coll.,  1877;  andTheol.  Sem.,  New  Bnmswick,  N.  J., 
1880;  located  Locust  Valley,  L.  I.,  1880-'82;  Brooklyn,  1883-'4. 

Rev.  John  M.  Wagner,  born  in  Flonheim,  Germany,  1826; 
grad.  Rutgers  Coll.,  1853,  and  New  Brunswick  Theol.  Sem., 
1856;  located  Silver  Creek,  111.,  1856-'61;  WestLeyden,  N.  Y., 
1862-68;  Melrose,  N.  Y.,  1863-'6;  B'klyn.,  1866-'84,  Pres. 
Germ.  Evang.  Home  for  Aged,  1879-84. 

Rev.  John  A.  Lansing,  born  in  Watervliet,  N.  Y. ;  grad. 
Union  Coll.,  1842,  and  New  Brunswick  Theo.  Sem.,  1845;  was 
Pres.  Phi  Beta  Kappa  Soc,  and  Vice-Pres.  Union  Coll. 
Alumni  Ass'n;  located  at  Saratoga,  1845-'48;  Bethlehem,  N. 
Y.,  1848-'60;  Catskill,  1860-'66;  Sec.  Board  of  Publication, 
1866-75;  Chaplain  Amer.  Union  Chapel,  Rome,  1878 ; 
author  of  Ministerial  Support,  1854. 

Rev.  R.  G.  Strong  is  Pastor  of  the  Reformed  Church  in 
Flatbush,  and  was  born  in  Flatbush,  1837;  grad.  Univ.  City 
of  New  York,  1855,  and  New  Brunswick,  N.  J.,  Theol.  Sem., 
1858;  ord.  1860;  located  at  Flatbush,  1858-'61;New  Baltimore, 
N.  Y.,  1861-'9;  select  school,  Flatbush,  1870-9;  Prin.  Eras- 
mus Hall  Academy,  1879-'84. 

Rev.  A.  P.  Stockwell  is  Pastor  of  the  Reformed  Church  in 
Gravesend,  and  was  born  in  Hadley,  Mass.,  1837;  grad.  Am- 
herst, 1863,  and  Union  Theol.  Sem.,  1865;  located  Pleasant 
Plains,  N.  Y.,  1865-69;  MiUbrook,  1869-'73;  Gravesend, 
1873-'84. 


ECCLESIASTICAL  ORGANIZATIONS. 


PROTESTANT    EPISCOPAL    CHURCHES. 


Episcopal  Churches.  —  During  one 
hundred  and  twenty-five  years,  the  Re- 
formed Dutch  Church  maintained  un- 
disputed sway  in  the  town  of  Brooklyn. 
When  the  Episcopal  Church  first  made 
a  beginning  here  is  not  certain.  Tradi- 
tion asserts  that  it  was  established  here 
as  early  as  1766;  but  the  statement  is  not 
substantiated  by  any  reliable  data. 
Probably  Episcopal  services  were  occa- 
sionally conducted  here  according  to 
circumstances  or  convenience,  but  no 
records  of  these  remain.  As  early  as 
1774,  a  proposition  was  made  to  erect 
a  church  by  lottery,  ' '  conformable  to 
the  doctrines  of  the  church  of  England. " 
The  project  probably  failed.  It  is 
known  that,  from  about  1778  to  the 
close  of  the  Revolution,  the  Rev.  James 
Sayer  was  stationed  here;  and,  that,  in 
the  8])ring  of  1784,  Rev.  George  Wright 
held  regular  services  in  the  house  of 
Garret  Rapelje  on  Fulton  street,  a  short 
distance  above  Front;  and  that,  in  the 
same  year,  the  congregation  removed  to 
the  barn  of  John  Middagh,  at  the  corner 
of  Henry,  Fulton  and  Pojilar  streets  (see 
engraving  on  p.  Ill),  and  subsequently 

to  an  old  British  barrack  at  the  corner  of  Middagh  and  Fulton 
streets.  Not  long  afterward,  a  house  that  had  been  erected 
for  Mr.  Mattuck,  an  independent  preacher,  came  into  the 
hands  of  some  of  Mr.  Wright's  parishioners,  and  was  conse- 
crated by  Bishop  Provost,  April  23d,  1787.  The  parish  was,  by 
act  of  the  legislature,  incorporated  as  "  The  Episcopal  church 
of  Brooklyn,"  with  the  following  trustees  :  John  Cornell, 
Matthew  Gleaves,  Joshua  Sands,  Joseph  Sealey,  John  Van 
Notsrand,  Aquila  Giles  and  Henry  Stanton.  Mr.  Wright  was 
succeeded,  in  1789,  by  Rev.  Elijah  D.  Rattoone,  and  he  by 
Rev.  Ambrose  Hull.  Next  came  Rev.  Samuel  Nesbitt  in 
1793. 

On  the  23d  of  June,  179.5,  the  church  was  reorganized  and 
incorporated  by  the  name  of  .S'(.  Ami's  Church,  a  title  which 
it  is  said  to  have  "tacitly  received  some  years  before,"  in 
compliment  to  Mrs.  Ann  Sands,  who,  with  her  husband  (Mr. 
Joshua  Sands),  had  been  its  most  liberal  donor. 

In  1798,  the  Rev.  John  Ireland  succeeded  to  the  rectorship, 
and  during  his  charge,  the  stone  clmrch  was  built  on  the 
ground  given  by  Mr.  and  Mr.  Sands,  at  the  corner  of  Sands 
and  Washington  streets.  It  was  consecrated  by  Bishop  Ben- 
jamin Moore,  on  the  30th  of  May,  1805. 

Subsequent  Rectors:  Revs.  Henry  James  Feltus,  1807-'14, 
John  Prentiss  Kenley  Henshaw,  1814-'17  ;  Hugh  Smith, 
1817-18. 

Rev.  Henry  Ustick  Onderdonk  became  Rector  in  November, 
1819,  and  continued  in  the  discharge  of  his  duties,  until  his 
election  and  consecration  as  Assistant  Bishop  of  Pennsylvania, 
in  October,  1827.  The  church  edifice  being  considered  unsafe 
for  further  use,  in  consequence  of  the  damages  done  to  its 
walls  by  the  powder-mill  explosion  of  1808,  measures  were 
taken  for  the  erection  of  a  new  building.  March  31st,  1824,  the 
corner-stone  of  a  new  church  was  laid,  and  the  church  was 
consecrated,   July  30,  1825. 


THE    SECOND  ST.    ANN'S   CllUliClI    EUIFICE. 

In  1826,  a  new  parsonage  was  built,  where  Clark  street 
now  enters  Fulton  street,  and  nearly  opposite  to  the  old  Epis- 
copal burying  ground. 

Other  Rectors  were:  Rev.  Charles  Pettit  Mcllvaine,  from 
1828  to  1833,  when  he  was  elected  Bishop  of  Ohio;  Rev.  Ben- 
jamin Clark  Cutler,  1853  till  his  death  in  1863. 

Among  the  first  acts  under  his  rectorship,  was  the  estab- 
lishment of  a  Secotul  Sabbath-School,  from  the  overflow  of  the 
original  one.  In  August,  1833,  with  a  small  number  of  chil- 
dren, it  was  held  for  a  time  in  the  gallery  of  the  church;  then 
in  several  other  places,  until  it  was  finally  established,  in 
1837,  in  a  second  story  which  was  added  for  the  purpose,  to 
the  building  occupied  bj*  School  No.  1.  In  1839.  was  built  the 
third  rectory,  a  substantial  brick  house,  located  in  the  church 
yard,  fronting  Sands  street,  and  first  occupied  in  the  spring 
of  1840.  In  September,  1841,  a  parish  library  was  opened  to 
the  free  use  of  the  congregation.  In  the  year  1838,  the  mem- 
bers of  St.  Ann's  inaugurated  an  orphan  asylum,  which  has 
since  efiiciently  but  noiselessly  performed  its  appropriate 
work;  and  also  an  education  society,  which  had  many  years 
of  usefulness. 

Mr.  Charles  Bancroft  became  Assistant  Pastor  in  May,  1844. 
Rev.  Lawrence  H.  Mills  became  Rector,  in  March,  1864,  a  year 
after  the  death  of  Mr.  Cutler.  Steps  were  soon  afterward 
taken  toward  the  erection  of  a  new  church  and  chape],  on 
the  corner  of  Clinton  and  Livingston  streets.  The  chapel 
was  opened  April  7th,  1867.  On  the  30th  of  May,  1867,  the 
present  Rector,  Noah  Hunt  Schenck,D.  D.,  was  inducted  into 
the  rectorship,  and  on  the  5th  of  June,  in  the  same  year,  the 
corner-stone  of  the  present  church  edifice  was  laid.  The 
house  was  opened  for  worship,  October  20th,  1869.  A  chime 
of  nine  bells,  each  with  an  appropriate  inscription,  was  pre- 
sented as  an  Easter  offering,  in  1869,  by  the  Senior  Warden, 
Thomas  Messenger,  Esq. 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


r    ST.    A-NWS    (lUltcIl     KIUHI'];. 


The  church  was  consecrated,  free  from  debt,  on  Ascension 
Day,  1879.  Sittings  were  made  perpetually  free  by  the  con- 
dition which  Mr.  R.  Fulton  Cutting  imposed,  when,  in  1878, 
he  donated  |70,000  to  complete  the  extinction  of  the  church 
debt. 

The  total  cost  of  the  church  was  1375,000.  Additional  ex- 
penditures, interest,  etc.,  have  swelled  the  amount  to  half  a 
million.     The  seating  capacity  of  the  church  is  1,700. 

On  Ascension  Day,  1881,  a  memorial  window  was  placed 
in  the  chancel,  by  the  ladies  of  the  congregation,  to  the 
memory  of  Mrs.  Cutting. 

A  mission,  called  .St.  Ann's  House,  has  been  established  in 
Prospect  St.,  near  the  site  of  the  old  St.  Ann's  Church.  It  is 
conducted  by  the  Brotherhood  of  St.  Ann's  ;  connected  with 
this  is  a  day  nursery,  conducted  by  the  parish  guild.  Its 
work  is  the  care  of  infants  while  their  mothers  are  at  labor 
for  their  support. 

St.  Ann's  has  (July,  1883)  676  communicants,  and  365  Sun- 
day-school scholars. 

Rev.  Noah  Hunt  Schenck,  D.D.,  born  in  Pennington,  N.  J., 
1825;  grad.  Princeton  Coll.,  1844.  Admitted  to  the  bar,  1847; 
practiced  Trenton,  1848,  and  Cincinnati,  1849-"51;  grad.  Gam- 
bier  (O.)  Theol.  Sem.,  1853;  ord.,  1853;  located  Troy  and 
Hillsborough,  O.,  1853-'55;  Gambler,  O.,  1855-'57:  Chicago, 
18a7-'60;  Baltimore,  1860-'67;  St.  Ann's,  Bklyn,  1867-'84;  was 
Chaplain,  Kenyon  Coll.,  185.V67;  of  St.  Nicholas  Soc,  1871 
-'84;  author  of  pub.  sermons,  addresses,  and  lectures. 

St.  John's  Church,  corner  of  Washington  and  Johnston 
streets,  was  erected  in  1826.  This  parish  owes  its  origin 
and  maintenance,  during  many  of  its  earlier  years,  to  the 
foresight  and  liberality  of  its  first  Rector,  the  Rev.  Evan  M. 
Jolinson.  The  edifice,  built  by  him  at  liis  own  expense,  on  his 
own  land,  and  for  several  years  generously  furnished  to  the 
congregation  free  of  cost,  was  first  opened  for  divine  service 
September  24th,  1826;  and  for  a  few  months  he  was  assisted 
in  the  services  by  the  Rev.  John  A.  Hicks.      On  Easter  day, 


1827,  there  were  nineteen  communicants.  On  the  16th  of 
July  following,  the  church  was  consecrated  by  Bishop  Hobart. 
The  attendance  continuing  to  increase,  it  was  considerably 
enlarged  and  improved  in  1832,  and  purchased  by  the  con- 
gregation. In  183."),  Rev.  Jacob  W.  Diller  became  Assistant 
Minister;  and,  in  1841,  the  Rev.  Stephen  Patterson  officiated  in 
the  same  relation,  followed  by  the  Rev.  Caleb  S.  Henry,  D.D., 
in  1842.  A  few  years  later,  quite  extensive  repairs  and  im- 
provements were  made  in  the  church.  In  July,  1847,  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Johnson  withdrew,  after  more  than  twenty  years  of 
faithful  service  without  remuneration.  His  successors  were 
Rev.  Samuel  R.  Johnson,  D.  D..  1847-'50;  Rev.  N.  A.  Oke- 
son,  D.D.,  1851-53;  Rev.  Thomas  T.  Guion,  D.  D.,  1853-62. 

The  renovation  and  re-fitting  of  the  church  edifice  was 
completed  in  1862.  Other  Rectors  :  Rev.  George  F.  Seymour, 
D.D.,  1863-67,  aided  by  Rev.  Henry  A.  Spaffard,  Assist- 
ant Minister  of  the  parish,  and  Rev.  Alexander  Surges, 
D.D.,  1867-69. 

In  1868,  the  old  building,  on  the  corner  of  Washington  and 
Johnson  sts.,  was  sold  and  the  corner-stone  of  a  new  chapel 
was  laid  at  the  corner  of  Seventh  ave.  and  St.  John's  place, 
on  the  15th  of  June,  1869.  This  chapel  is  of  red  sandstone, 
and  has  about  four  hundred  sittings.  A  rectory  of  the  same 
material  adjoins  it.     The  cost  of  both  was  about  $40,000. 

Rev.  R.  E.  Terry  was  Rector,  1869-74,  when  the  present 
Rector,  Rev.  Thomas  S.  Pycott,  was  called.  The  parish  is 
cjuite  prosperous.  St.  John's  has  (July,  1883)  350  communi- 
cants and  193  Sunday-school  scholars. 

St.  Paul's  Free  Church  was  the  offspring  of  St.  Ann's. 
Rev.  Thomas  Pyne  (who  was  mainly  instrumental  in  com- 
mencing and  forwarding  this  woi-k)  was  engaged  as  mission- 
ary. Durmg  the  first  year  of  its  existence,  services  were 
held  in  the  public  school-room  in  Middagh  street,  under  the 
direction  of  a  committee  of  gentlemen  who,  with  but  a  sin- 
gle exception,  were  connected  with  St.  Ann's  Church.  The 
Sabbath-school,  also,  was  conducted  by  teachers  drawn 
mostly  from  St.  Ann's  congregation.  In  1834,  a  building  in 
Pearl  street,  now  Concord,  was  purchased  and  refitted  for 
this  church.  The  Rev.  T.  S.  Brittain  became  Rector  in  June, 
1835.  The  enterprise  was  maintained  wholly  by  voluntary 
contributions,  and  it  languished  until,  in  1839  or  '40,  the  edi- 
fice was  sold,  and  services  were  suspended  till  a  reorganiza- 
tion was  effected,  under  the  name  of  Calvary  Church,  with 
Rev.  W.  H.  Lewis,  Rector.  During  some  years  the  parish 
was  prosperous.  Jolin  J.  Fish,  D.  D.,  succeeded  Mr.  Lewis, 
but  left  in  1849.  The  parish  was  not  prosperous  after  Mr. 
Fish  resigned,  and,  in  1861,  it  ceased  to  exist.  • 

Trinity  Church  was  organized  in  March,  1835.  Eight  lots 
were  donated  on  Clinton  avenue,  between  Atlantic  and  Ful- 
ton avenues,  by  George  W.  Pine,  and  a  stone  edifice,  60  by 
45,  erected.  The  Rectors  of  the  church  were,  in  suc- 
cession. Revs.  D.  V.  M.  Johnson,  Dr.  Thos.  W.  Coit  and  R. 
C.  ShimeaU.  In  1841,  the  jjarish  having  become  embarrassed, 
public  worship  was  discontinued,  and  the  church  was  sold; 
but  was  purchased,  and  the  services  were  revived  by  the  con- 
gregation of  St.  Luke's. 

Christ  Church,  corner  of  Clinton  and  Harrison  streets,  had 
its  inception  in  the  labors  principally  of  the  members  of  St. 
Ann's  parish.  The  i)arish  was  organized  and  recognized  in 
the  diocese,  May  18,  1835.  Services  were  first  held  in  1837, 
in  a  chapel  on  the  corner  of  Court  and  Pacific  streets,  where 
the  pulpit  was  temporarily  supplied  by  Rev.  C.  S.  Henry, 
Fred.  C.  Goodwin,  Prof.  Tin-ner  and  Kingston  Goddard.  Mr. 
Goddard  became  Rector  in  1838,  and  was  succeeded  by  the 
Rev.  Dr.  John  Seely  Stone  in  1841. 

The  corner-stone  of  the  new  church,  on  the  corner  of  Clin- 
ton and  Harrison  streets,  was  laid  June  26,  1841,  and  the 


MCCLESIASTtCAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1001 


chiirch  was  consecrated  July  28th,   1842.    The  cost  of  the 
structure  alone  was  $33,000. 

Rectors:— Rev.  E.  H.  Canfield,  D.  D.,  1853-'68  ;  Rev.  Lucius 
W.  Bancroft,  D.  D.,  in  1869-'84.  In  1856,  the  chapel  and 
Sundaj'-school  accommodations  were  enlarged  to  nearly 
double  their  previous  capacity,  at  a  cost  of  about  $25,000. 

In  1861,  a  Mission  Chapel  was  built  on  the  corner  of  Clinton 
and  Luqueer  streets,  and  organized  as  the  Church  of  Our 
Saviour  in  1867.  Another  very  successful  mission,  Christ 
Church  Chapel,  on  Red  Hook  Point,  is  now  supported  by 
Christ  Church,  under  the  charge,  successively,  of  Revs.  Wil- 
liam Hyde,  Carlos  E.  Butler,  Charles  H.  Tucker,  and  William 
Hyde  again.  It  has  (July,  1883)  177  communicants  and  560 
Sunday-school  scholars.  Revs.  Wm.  B.  Bodine,  E.  L.  Stod- 
dard, C.  H.  Nicholson,  A.  B.  Carver  and  Bishop  Falkner 
liave  been  Assistant  Ministers  under  Dr.  Bancroft. 

The  church  not  only  has  no  debt,  but  has  a  surplus  in  its 
treasury.  It  has  (July,  1888)  519  communicants  and  852 
Sunday-school  scholars. 

St.  Mary's  Church  commenced  as  a  Sunday-school,  on 
Classon  avenue,  at  the  Wallabout,  in  1836.  Here  Rev.  D.  V. 
M.  Johnson  held  afternoon  services  during  about  6  months. 
In  1837,  Mr.  Joseph  Hunter  became  Superintendent  of  the 
school,  and  lay-reader  to  a  small  congi-egation.  In  that  year 
a  small  edifice  was  erected,  and  the  church  called  St.  Mary's 
was  organized.  The  church  was  consecrated  Feb.  1,  1840, 
and  enlarged  in  1841.  During  the  first  six  years,  Revs.  John 
Messenger,  Mr.  Hunter  (who  had  taken  deacon's  orders), 
Thomas  T.  Guion  and  John  A.  Spooner  had  charge.  Rev. 
John  W.  Shackleford  became  Rector  in  Nov.,  1849.  In 
1856,  Rev.  Mr.  Johnson,  the  father  of  the  church,  became 
Rector,  and  ground  for  a  new  church  edifice  was  pur- 
chased on  Classon  avenue  near  Myrtle.  The  corner-stone  was 
laid  in  1858,  and  the  church  was  opened  the  next  year.  The 
cost  of  church  and  grounds  was  $32,000,  and  the  sittings  were 
made  free.     A  rectory  was  soon  added. 

In  1864,  the  church  debt  was  extinguished,  and  the  building 

was  consecrated.    Ground  was  purchased,  and  a  rectory  was 

built  neai-  the  church,  and  the  entire  property  is  free  from  debt. 

In  1873,  a  chapel  was  erected  at  the  corner  of  Park  avenue 

and  Skillman  street,  and  this  was  enlarged  in  1881. 

Two  day-schools  are  maintained  in  the  parish;  one  at  the 
school-room  of  the  church,  the  other  at  the  branch.  The  be- 
nevolent work  of  this  parish  is  efficienth'  sustained  by  its 
members.  Rev.  Dr.  Johnson  is  still  the  Rector;  Rev.  Alonzo 
E.  Diller,  Asst.  Min.  St.  Mary's  has  (July,  1883)  506  com- 
municants and  681  Sunday-school  scholars. 

Emmanuel  Church,  In  Sidney  place,  was  incorporated  in 
1841,  and  a  neat  brick  edifice  was  finished  and  consecrated  in 
1^843.  Rev.  Kingston  Goddard  was  the  first  Pastor,  followed 
in  1844  by  Rev.  Francis  Vinton,  D.  D.  A  large  and  costly 
church  was  built  a  few  years  later.  A  new  organization 
under  the  name  of  Grace  Church,  was  effected  in  1847;  the 
building  was  sold,  and  another  edifice  was  erected  on  the  cor- 
ner of  Hicks  street  and  Grace  Court. 

Calvary  Free  Church,  on  Pearl  st.,  near  Concord,  was 
purchased  by  Mr.  Edgar  J.  Bartow,  on  the  dissolution  of  St. 
Paul's  congregation,  about  1840.  Mr.  Barlow  refitted  and 
furnished  the  church  at  his  own  expense,  and  invited  Rev. 
Wm.  II.  Lewis  to  take  the  pastoral  charge,  which  he  held 
until  June,  ISiT.  Subsequently,  the  accommodations  were 
enlarged  by  Mr.  Barlow,  at  his  own  expense.  Rev.  John 
Fish,  D.  D.,  became  Rector  after  Mr.  Lewis;  but,  in  1849,  he 
resigned,  and  in  1861  the  parish  ceased  to  exist. 

Calvary  Church  may  be  well  considered  the  parent  church 
of  the  Holy  Trinity,  as  not  only  a  large  portion  of  the  con- 
gregation, but  its  founder.  Rector,  organist,  choir  and  sexton, 


all  became  connected  with  the  latter,  in  the  same  rela- 
tions. 

St.  Luke's  Church,  on  Clinton  avenue,  was  a  reorganization, 
Dec.  14, 1841  (and  incorporated  27th  same  month),  from  the  ele- 
ments of  Trinity  Church,  and  occupied  the  eame  edifice.  It  was 
in  charge  of  Rev.  D.  V.  M.  Johnson,  of  St.  JIary's  Church, 
until  April,  1842,  when  the  Rev.  Jacob  W.  Diller  was  called 
to  the  rectorship,  the  church  then  having  26  communicants. 
The  church  edifice  was  enlarged  by  the  extension  of  the  nave 
and  the  addition  of  two  transepts,  in  18.53,  at  an  outlay  of 
$15,000.  In  the  spring  of  1869,  the  pew  system  was  abolished, 
and  St.  Luke's  began  its  career  as  a  free  church. 

In  1878,  Rev.  Jas.  W.  Sparks  was  called  as  Assistant  Minis- 
ter. In  December,  1379,  on  account  of  the  infirmities  of  the 
Rector,  who  had  ministered  to  the  congregation  during 
thirty-eight  years,  his  resignation  was  accepted,  and  he  was 
retired  as  Rector  emeritus,  with  a  suitable  competency.  A 
call  was  at  once  extended  to  Rev.  George  R.  Vandewater, 
and  he  entered  on  his  pastoral  duties,  Feb.  1,  1880.  Easter  of 
that  year  was  signalized  by  the  cancellation  of  the  bonded 
debt  of  the  church,  and  the  inception  of  a  firna  resolve  that 
from  thenceforth  its  ground  and  structures  should  be  free, 
in  every  sense  of  the  word.  On  June  28.  of  that  year,  the 
steamer  Seawanhaka,  on  which  the  Rev.  Dr.  Diller  was  a 
passenger,  was  destroyed  by  fire  in  New  York  harbor,  and 
the  venerable  Rector  emeritus  perished  in  the  flames. 

During  the  years  1880  and  1881  a  chancel  extension  was 
erected — solid,  substantial  and  impressing— having  five  hand- 
some stained-glass  windows,  and  covering  a  beautiful  marble 
altar  and  reredos,  as  well  as  a  fine  tablet  "in  memoriam"  of 
the  late  Rev.  Father  Diller.  A  new  organ  chamber  and  a 
new  organ  (the  third  largest  in  the  city)  have  been  added  ; 
also,  a  new  bell  of  2,000  poimds  weight.  A  new  chapel  has 
been  erected,  and  the  Parish  Hall,  on  Vanderbilt  avenue,  has 
been  repaired  and  improved.  The  total  expense  of  these  im- 
provements was  $43,500.     The  church  is  free  from  debt. 

Rev.  Joseph  Reynolds,  Jr.,  is  Assistant  Minister,  and  the 
church  has  (July,  1883)  812  communicants  and  394  Sunday- 
school  scholars.  

Rev.  Jacob  W.  Diller,  D.  D.,  born  in  Lancaster,  Pa.,  Sept. 
9,  1810,  was  educated  at  the  Flushing  Institute,  and  was  or- 
dained deacon  April,  1834,  at  St.  George's  Church,  Flushing. 
A  year  later,  he  was  advanced  to  the  priesthood,  and  served 
as  assistant  in  St.  John's,  Brooklyn,  for  three  years.  He 
then  went  to  Middlebury,  Vt.,  remaining  four  years.  In 
1842,  he  was  called  to  St.  Luke's  Parish,  Brooklyn,  at  its  or- 
ganization. St.  Luke's  was  then  a  little  chapel,  standing  in 
a  cornfield,  on  the  extreme  outskirts  of  Brooklyn.  Dr.  Diller 
worked  hard  and  spared  not  himself  in  the  cause  <  f  his  Mas- 
ter. Through  liis  labors  the  church  was  greatly  increased 
and  a  new  edifice  erected.  His  life  was  suddenly  terminated 
July  2,  1880,  by  the  burning  of  the  Seatcanhaka,  on  which 
he  was  a  passenger.  His  life  was  a  pure  exemplification  of 
piety,  charity,  doctrine  and  devotion.  His  profound  earnest- 
ness for  the  temporal  and  spiritual  good  of  his  people  en- 
deared him  to  them  m  a  wonderful  way. 

Rev.  George  R.  Van  De  Water,  born  in  Flushing,  L.  I., 
1854  ;  grad.  Cornell  Univ.  1874,  and  Gen.  Theol.  Sem  ,  N.  Y., 
1877;  is  a  trustee  of  Theo.  Sem.;  located  at  Oyster  Bay,  L.  I., 
1876-'80;  Brooklyn,  1880-84. 

St.  Thomas'  Church  was  organized  in  1843  as  a  free  church, 
by  Rev.  John  F.  Messenger.  He  was  followed  by  Rev.  R.  H. 
Bourne,  1846-'51,  and  he,  by  Rev.  Wm.  F.  Walker,  1851-'52; 
Rev.  John  Frederic  Schroeder,  1853.  In  1853,  the  church 
edifice  was  sold  to  a  German  CathoUc  society  for  $4,500. 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


THE   CHURCH    OF   THE   HOLY   TRINITY. 


I 


ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1003 


The  congregation  of  St.  Thomas  removed  to  Bridge  street 
for  a  time,  but  eventually  separated. 

The  Church  of  the  Holy  Trinity.— The  erection  of  this 
noble  and  expensive  edifice  was  wholh'  the  work  of  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Edgar  J.  Bartow.  He  not  only  supervised  the  design, 
but  hired  much  of  the  labor  by  the  day.  It  is  believed  that 
the  cost  of  the  church  and  chapel  was  about  $17.5,000.  The 
chapel  was  opened  June  7,  1846,  and  the  church,  April  25, 
1847,  by  Rev.  W.  H.  Lewis,  D.  D.,  who  was  invited  to  take 
charge  of  the  church  b}^  Mr.  Bartow.  The  parish  was  duly 
organized  Nov.  27,  1851.  Dr.  Lewis  was  called  to  the  rector- 
ship, and  Rev.  T.  Stafford  Drowne  elected  Assistant  Minister, 
having  served  in  that  capacity  since  Nov.  1,  1848.  In  1856, 
the  congregation  purchased  the  chvirch  (not  completed)  for 
$100,000.  It  was  consecrated  September  33d  of  the  same 
year. 

Dr.  Lewis  resigned  the  rectorship  in  1800,  and  was  suc- 
ceeded by  the  Rev.  A.  N.  Littlejohn.  The  debt  of  the  con- 
gregation was  nearly  extinguished;  the  tower  and  spire  were 
completed  at  a  cost  of  .f65,000;  the  rectory  was  repurchased, 
and  very  large  sums  were  annually  contributed  for  benevo- 
lent puq)0seB. 

Upon  being  consecrated  Bishop  of  Long  Island,  January 
27,  1869,  Dr.  Littlejohn  retired  from  the  rectorship;  and  was 
succeeded,  March  Ist,  1869,  by  the  present  Rector,  Charles  H. 
Hall,  D.  D. ;  Rev.  Harry  O.  Lacey,  Assist.  Min.  The  clergy 
connected  with  the  church  as  assistant  ministers  during  the 
first  rectorship  were:  Rev.  T.  Stafford  Drowne,  November 
16th,  1848,  to  May  7th,  1858;  Rev.  Henry  T.  Gregory  for  a 
short  time,  followed  by  Rev.  Cornelius  B.  Smith,  who  con- 
tinued to  February  1st,  1860.  When  Dr.  Littlejohn  assumed 
the  rectorate,  the  Rev.  N.  W.  Taylor  Root  w^is  assistant  for 
a  few  months,  succeeded  by  Rev.  John  C.  Middleton  from 
October  21st,  1860,  to  Easter  1863.  In  the  following  October, 
Rev.  John  H.  Rogers  became  assistant,  after  whose  with- 
drawal in  1865,  temporary  services  were  rendered  by  the  Revs. 
J.  D.  Philip  and  Charles  H.  Van  Dyne  in  1866.  Early  in 
1867,  the  Rev.  Benjamin  B.  Newton  was  appointed  Assistant 
Minister.  The  church  has  (July,  1883)  750  communicants 
and  231  Sunday-school  scholars. 

In  1871,  a  mission  was  established  by  this  church  in  Myrtle 
avenue.  In  1875,  this  was  transferred  to  the  old  St.  Ann's 
church  building  in  Wasliington  street;  and,  when  this  was 
demolished  by  the  Bridge  Company,  in  1879,  the  church  edi- 
fice of  the  First  Reformed  Presbyterian  Society  in  Duffield 
street,  between  Myrtle  and  WiUoughby  avenues,  was  pur- 
chased and  refitted  at  an  expense  of  |25,000,  and  it  is  now  the 
Chapel  of  the  Holy  Trinity,  imder  the  charge  of  Rev.  William 
Short.  It  has  (July,  1883)  190  communicants  and  306  Sunday- 
school  scholars. 

Edgar  John  Bartow,  bom  on  the  29th  of  April,  1809,  at 
FishkUl,  N.  Y.,  was  a  son  of  Augustus  Bartow,  of  Pelham 
Manor,  Westchester  Co.,  N.  Y.,  and  a  descendant  of  Gen. 
Bertaut,  of  Brittany,  a  French  Protestant,  who  fled  to  Eng- 
land some  tune  before  1672.  The  different  branches  of  liis 
famUy  in  England  and  this  country  were  early  distinguished 
for  their  attachment  to  the  Episcopal  Church,  and  their  efforts 
to  extend  it;  and  many  of  the  name  have  been  connected 
with  its  niiuistry. 

On  the  death  of  his  father,  Mr.  Bartow's  family,  in  1816, 
removed  to  New  York  city;  and,  in  1830,  took  up  their  resi- 
dence in  Brooklyn,  and  were  members  of  St.  Ann's  parish, 
Mr.  Bartow  filling,  at  different  timss,  the  position  of  teacher, 
librarian  and  secretary  of  the  Sunday-school.  On  the  13th 
of  November,  1838,  he  was  married  to  Harriet  Constable,  a 
daughter  of  Mr.  Hezekiah  B.  Pierrepont,  of  Brooklyn,  a  per- 


son of  kindred  tastes,  who  shared  in  a  remarkable  degree 
his  imostentatious  and  liberal  spirit. 

Mr.  Bartow's  business,  from  youth,  was  the  manufacture 
of  paper;  and,  during  his  more  prosperous  days,  he  devoted 
his  means  and  influence  with  Christian  fidelity  to  all  the  in- 
terests of  the  church,  and  especially  to  every  local  organiza- 
tion or  object  in  which  he  could  be  useful.  For  years  after  the 
Church  of  the  Holy  Trinity  was  opened,  he  liberally  aided  the 
congregation  of  Calvary  Church  in  maintaining  their  services, 
presenting  the  use  of  the  building;  and  no  one  in  this  com- 
munity contributed  more  towards  relieving  the  necessities  of 
the  poor.  In  secular  matters  he  was  also  identified  with 
every  movement  that  concerned  the  progress  and  improve- 
ment of  Brooklyn. 

He  took  a  warm  interest  in  the  laying  out  of  streets,  in 
the  erection  of  houses  and  public  buildings,  and  was  instru- 
mental in  establisliing  the  Montague  Street  Ferry,  having 
built,  at  an  outlay  of  over  $45,000,  the  stone  archways  and 
incMned  plane  from  the  Heights  to  the  river. 

In  politics,  although  not  an  active  participator,  he  was  in 
his  sj-mpathies  a  Democrat,  and  in  1846  was  chosen  by  tliat 
pai-ty  as  its  candidate  for  Mayor;  but  he  declined  the  honor, 
although  he  would,  beyond  a  doubt,  have  been  elected. 
Thoroughly  retired  and  domestic  in  his  tastes  and  habits, 
fond  of  the  congenial  society  of  a  few,  whom  he  knew  in- 
timately and  loved,  he  shrank  as  far  as  possible  from  public 
notice  and  commendation. 

His  wife  died  in  1855  ;  ani,  in  1860,  Mr.  Bartow  married 
Caroline,  daughter  of  Col.  John  M.  Gamble,  U.  S.  M.,  of 
Morristo^vn,  N.  J.  He  continued  to  reside  in  Brooklyn  (al- 
though his  business  avocations  called  him  frequently  to  Nor- 
wich, Conn.,  to  superintend  the  operations  of  the  Chelsea 
Manufacturing  Company,  of  which  he  was  president),  imtil 
his  death,  on  the  6th  of  September,  1804. 


Rev.  Charles  H.  Hall,  D.D.,  born  1820,  at  Augusta,  Ga.; 
grad.  Yale,  1842,  and  gen.  Theol.  Sem.,  1844;  Rector  at  Hunt- 
ington, L.  I.,  West  Point,  N.  Y.,  Johnisland,  So.  Ca.,  Wash- 
ington, D.  C. ;  located  Brooklyn,  March  1,  1869;  author  of 
Notes  on  the  Gospels,  2  vols.  '  Protestant  Ritualism,  Church 
of  tJie  Household,  Spina  Christi,  Valley  of  the  Shadow,  and 
published  sermons. 

Grace  Church,  Brooklyn  Heights,  was  organized  (See  Em- 
manuel Church)  May  3d,  1847,  with  Rev.  Dr.  Francis  Vinton, 
first  Rector.  The  corner-stone  of  the  new  edifice  on  Hicks 
street  and  Grace  court  was  laid  June  29th,  1848,  and  on 
Christmas  Day,  1848,  it  was  opened  free  from  debt.  It  was 
consecrated  June  29th,  1849.  Dr.  Vinton  wassucceeded  on  his 
resignation  (to  become  Assistant  Minister  in  Trinity  Church, 
New  York)  in  1855,  by  Rev.  Jared  B.  Flagg,  and  he  by 
Rev.  Eugene  Hoffman,  in  Feb.,  1864;  followed  by  Rev.  Ben- 
jamin H.  Paddock,  D.  D.,  in  May,  1869.  The  present  Rec- 
tor William  A.  Snively,  S.  T.  D.,  succeeded  Dr.  Paddock  in 
1874.  Rev.  Henry  T.  Scudder  is  Assistant  Minister.  Grace 
Church  has  (July,  1883)  360  communicants  and  300  Sunday- 
school  scholars.  It  has  a  parish  school,  and  also  supports 
Gh'ace  Chapel,  in  High  street,  near  the  Navy  Yard. 


Rev.  William  A.  Snively,  S.  T.  D.,  born  in  Greencastle, 
Pa.,  1833;  grad.  Dickinson  Coll.  Pa.,  1852;  tutor  Dick.  Coll., 
1853-5;  S.  T.  D.,  Columbia,  1875;  located  Pittsburgh,  Cincin- 
nati, Albany,  Brooklyn,  1874-'84;  author  of  Oberammergau 
Passion  Play,  1881;  Cathedral  System,  1879;  Genealogical 
Memoranda,  1883;  Active  in  the  U.  S.  Sanitary  Com. 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


GRACE   CHURCH,    BROOKLYN    HEIGHT8.      (See  previous  page.) 

Protestant  Episcopal  Church  of  the  Reformation.— A 
parisli  under  tliis  uaim^  was  organized  Sfpti'mber  20,  1847, 
by  the  lalicirs,  and  under  the  pastoral  charge,  of  the  Rev. 
Thomas  S.  Britton,  in  the  vicinity  of  Atlantic  street,  in 
South  Broolclyn.  Services  were  first  held  in  a  school-room 
on  the  corner  of  Henry  and  Atlantic  streets.  Mr.  Britton, 
liowever,  abjured  Episcopacy,  in  1848,  and  united  himself 
with  the  Brooklyn  Presbytery,  and  the  church  became  extiuct. 

Grace  Church  Chapel  (St.  Michael's  Church),  was  com- 
menced in  1847  by  the  Rev.  Evan  M.  Johnson,  in  a  room  in 
Marshall  street,  near  the  Jackson  ferry,  where  meetings  were 
first  held  in  September  of  that  year.  He  was  successful,  and 
soon  leased  from  the  city,  for  ten  years,  the  "  Eastern 
Market,'"  in  High  street,  and  first  held  services  there  in  Feb- 
ruary, 1848.  Soon  an  addition  of  40  by  50  feet  was  built. 
Rev.  Wm.  F.  Webbe  was  Assistant  Rector  from  1849  to  1809. 
The  church  was  incorporated,  and  a  parsonage  worth  about 
^3,500,  was  erected.  A  new  church  edifice  and  rectory,  of 
brick,  were  erected  in  1866,  on  High  street,  near  Gold;  the 
same  that  is  now  occupied  as  Grace  Church  Chapel. 

In  1870,  the  property  was  purchased  by  Bishop  Littlejohn, 
and  placed  under  the  pastoral  charge  of  Rev.  William  M. 
Willian.  In  March,  1871,  Grace  Church,  Brooklyn  Heights, 
purchased  this  church  property,  continuing  the  services  of 
Rev.  Mr.  Willian  till  his  resignation,  June  15,  1875.  He  was 
succeeded,  in  September,  by  Rev.  H.  L.  Tighe,  as  Assistant 
Minister  of  Grace  Church,  Brooklyn  Heights,  in  charge  of 
Grace  Church  Chapel. 

Under  the  administration  of  Mr.  Tighe,  a  very  large  amount 
of  work  has  been  accomplished,  and  the  wisdom  of  the 
founder  in  planting  the  church  in  this  locality  has  been 
demonstrated.  Grace  Chapel  has  (July,  1883)  108  communi- 
cants and  301  Sundaj-school  scholars. 

St.  Peter's. — This  parish  was  commenced  about  the  year 
1847,  by  a  few  individuals  who  worshiped  at  first  in  a  large 
brick  building  in  Powers  street,  under  the  pastoral  charge  of 
Rev.  William  Staunton.  The  parish  was  regularly  organized 
May  18,  1848,  and  the  congregation,  which  subsequently  wor- 
shiped in  a  brick  building,  in  Atlantic  street,  near  Kevins 
street,  graduallj'  increased  in  numbers  and  strength. 


In  1849,  Rev.  John  Stearns  became  Rector  ;  and,  in  June, 
1850,  the  cornerstone  of  a  church  wa-s  laidat  the  junction  of 
Atlantic  and  Bond  streets.  Mr.  Stearns  resigned  in  the  spring 
of  1855,  and  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  John  A.  Paddock;  and,  in 
1850,  the  congregation  requiring  a  laiger  house,  a  new  struc- 
ture was  erected  on  State  street,  near  Bond.  It  was  opened 
in  Jany.,  1857.  and  contecrated,  after  the  extinguishment  of 
the  debt,  in  1865.     Its  total  cost  was  about  |45,000. 

Rev.  Mr.  Paddock,  in  1880,  was  consecrated  a  Bishop,  and 
the  present  Rector,  Rev.  Charles  A.  Tibbals,  was  called  early 
in  1881.  An  elegant  and  commodious  rectory,  the  gift  of  a 
single  parishioner,  was  built  in  1874.  St.  Peter's  Church  has 
(July,  1883)  356  communicants,  and  382  Sunday-school 
scholars. 

A  Mission  School  was  commenced  by  members  of  the 
parish,  in  March,  1859,  and  a  chapel  was  afterward  erected 
in  Wyckoff  street,  near  Bond,  where  the  school  has  since 
been  held. 

Rev.  Charles  A.  Tibbals,  born  at  Suffield,  Ct.,  1853;  grad. 
Yale  College,  1872;  Theo.  Sem.,  1874;  located  Red  Pank,  N. 
J.,  1878-81;  Bklyn.,  1881. 

St.  Paul's  Church,  Clinton,  corner  of  Carroll  street.  This 
parish  was  organized  on  Christmas  Day,  1849,  under  the 
pastoral  charge  of  the  Rev.  Isaac  P.  Labagh.  The  original 
church  edifice,  built  in  1850,  consisted  of  a  nave,  tower  and 
spire.  Transepts  were  added  in  1852,  making  it  cruciform, 
with  a  recessed  chancel.  In  June,  1858,  the  Rev.  T.  Stafford 
Drowne  became  Rector.  The  steady  growth  of  the  congrega- 
tion rendered  necessary  a  second  enlargement  of  the  build- 
ing in  i800. 

The  corner-stone  of  the  present  church  edifice  was  laid 
June  27,  1807,  and  the  church  was  first  occupied.  September, 
1869.  It  is  of  Greenwich  blue-stone,  with  Ohio  and  Jersey 
free-stone  trimmings.  It  is  145  by  72  feet,  and  00  feet  in 
height.  It  has  a  seating  capacity  of  1,000,  and  the  cost,  with 
the  site,  was  $150,000.  A  stone  cliapel  stands  in  the  rear  of 
the  church,  85  by  34  feet  in  size.     Its  cost  was  |4.000. 

This  church  was  the  first  in  Brooklyn  to  introduce  a  sur- 
pliced  chon-.  Dr.  Drowne  resigned  his  rectorship  on  the  28th 
of  September,  1875,  to  become  the  Secretary  of  the  Diocese 
of  Long  Island;  and  was  succeeded,  February  1,  1877,  by  the 
present  Rector,  Rev.  Warren  C.  Hubbiid.  Rev.  C.  Ellis 
Stevens  is  Assistant  Minister.  St.  Paul's  Church  has  (July, 
1883)  335  communicants  and  225  Sunday-school  scholars. 

Rev.  Warren  C.  Hubbard,  born  in  Brooklyn,  1847;  grad. 
Syracuse  Univ.,  1871:  and  in  Theol.,  Seneca  Falls,  N.  Y., 
1873:  located  Seneca  Falls,  1873-77;  BrTOklyn,  1877-84. 

St.  Mark's  Church,  formerly  in  Fleet  street,  was  the  re- 
sult of  a  missionary  effort  undertaken  by  the  Church  of  the 
Holy  Trinity  in  the  year  1850,  aided  and  encouraged  by  the 
hearty  sympathy  and  liberality  of  the  other  Episcopalian 
congregations  of  the  city. 

A  plain  substantial  edifice  was  erected,  the  expense  of 
which  was  defrayed  wholly  by  free-will  offerings.  It  was 
opened  October  0th,  1850,  Rev.  Francis  Peck  becoming  its 
first  Rector. 

Originally  established  as  a  free  church,  and  sustained 
chiefly  by  the  parish  of  the  Holy  Trinity,  it  was,  in  1850, 
thrown  upon  its  own  resources,  and  resorted  to  the  renting  of 
the  pews  for  its  necessary  support. 

Rectors: — Revs.  Edmund  Embury,  1859;  Thomas  G.  Carver, 
1859-61;  F.  Cornell,  1861-'9.  In  1859,  the  congregation  .sold 
their  church  edifice  and  erected  a  new  building  on  DeKalb 
avenue,  opposite  Fort  Greene.  This  they  sokl,  in  1865,  and 
purchased  the  church  previously  occupied  by  the  congre- 
gation of  the  Messiah,  in  Adelphi  street,  near  DeKalb 
avenue. 


ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1005 


Rev.  William  T.  Fitch  was  Rector  from  1869-75,  and  Rev. 
Spencer  S.  Roche,  1875-'84.  St.  Mark's  Church  has  (July,  1883) 
390  communicants  and  309  Sunday-school  scholars. 

Church  of  the  Redeemer. — This  parish  was  org.  April  14, 
1853,  and  incorporated  in  the  following  December.  The 
original  board  of  trustees  were:  Messrs.  F.  A.  Huntington, 
Wm.  H.  Beare,  John  D.  Cocks,  W.  Cooper,  A.  H.  Washburne, 
J.  C.  Pelham,  Frederick  Lacey  and  William  Poole.  These 
also  constituted  the  first  vestry,  with  the  addition  of  Messrs. 
R.  Ford,  Jr.,  and  Thomas  Rawlings. 

Having  leased  a  hall  over  the  old  butcher's  shop,  on  the 
corner  of  Fulton  avenue  and  Elm  place  (since  destroyed  by 
fire),  the  congregation,  which  was  largely  drawn  from  St. 
Peter's  parish,  began  its  work  under  the  pastoral  care  of 
the  Rev.  D.  W.  Tolford.  Shortly  after  this  the  Rev.  D.  P. 
Sanford  assumed  the  rectorship,  Nov.  13,  1853.  He  wrote  in 
the  jiarish  records  :  "  At  this  time  the  number  of  communi- 
cants was  about  thirtj'-flve.  The  attendance  had  been 
fluctuating,  owing  to  the  want  of  a  settled  pastor,  and  to  the 
uncertainty  of  the  permanence  of  the  congregation."  At  the 
first  celebration  of  the  Holy  Communion  there  was  forty-four 
communicants,  and  just  one  year  from  that  time  there  were 
seventy-four,  with  a  congregation  numbering  over  two 
hundred.  On  May  20,  1854,  a  receipt  was  given  for  the  first 
payment  on  the  lots  of  gi'ound  purchased  by  the  parish,  on 
the  corner  of  Fourth  ave.  and  Pacific  st.  The  price  was 
$9,500,  but  Mr.  W.  B.  I^oyd  deducted  $3,500  as  his  subscrip- 
tion. On  this  ground  a  brick  chapel,  35  by  80  feet,  was 
erected,  also  a  bell  tower,  9  by  9  feet,  and  about  60  feet  high. 
The  builders  were  Messrs.  Walton  and  F.  D.  Norris,  the 
architect  being  Mr.  G.  Wheeler.  The  contract  price  was  $8,- 
700,  and  ground  was  broken  about  Sept.  1,  1854.  On  Sept. 
27,  1854,  the  parish  was  admitted  to  union  with  the  Diocesan 
Convention  of  New  York.  The  chapel  was  first  opened  for 
divine  service  on  Easter  Eve,  1855,  the  sermon  being  jtreached 
by  the  Rt.  Rev.  H.  J.  Whitehouse,  Bishop  of  Illinois;  and  the 
next  day  being  Easter,  the  Rt.  Rev.  Horatio  Potter,  Bishop  of 
New  York,  administered  the  rite  of  Holy  Confirmation  to 
eleven  persons.  The  Rev.  Mr.  Sanford  resigned  his  position 
on  the  first  Simday  after  Easter,  1858.  The  Rev.  Charles  S. 
Putnam  succeeded  him  on  the  first  Sunday  of  July  following, 
but,  from  illness,  he  resigned  the  rectorship  May  24,  1859. 
The  parish  has  placed,  through  the  generosity  of  Mr.  C.  P. 
Burdett,  a  beautiful  memorial  window  to  record  his  faithful 
ministry.  The  Rev.  Edward  Jessup  succeeded  in  August, 
1859.  He  labored  for  a  number  of  years,  extinguishing  the 
old  indebtedness  of  neaiiy  $14,000,  and  continually  accumu. 
lating  money  for  the  erection  of  a  new  church  edifice. 

On  April  21,  1865,  the  corner-stone  of  anew  stone  church 
was  laid  by  the  Rev.  Bishop  of  the  Diocese,  Horatio  Potter, 
D.D.,  LL.D.  On  the  third  Sunday  in  October,  the  old  brick 
building  was  temporary  abandoned,  and,  on  Christmas  day, 

1865,  the  main  body  of  the  new  church  was  opened  for  ser- 
vice; the  unfinished  choir  and  chancel  being  partitioned  off. 
On  the  fifth  Sunday  after  Trinity,  being  the  6th  day  of  July, 

1866,  all  things  beingat  length  in  readiness,  and  the  screen  re- 
moved, the  entire  structure  was  formally  opened  for  worship 
and  service  of  Almighty  God.  The  Rt.  Rev.  Bishop  Quintard, 
of  Tennessee,  officiated  and  preached. 

The  contract  price  for  the  new  church  was  $23,000,  the 
total  amount  expended  for  furniture  and  building  was  $31,- 
500,  and  the  arcliitect  was  Mr.  P.  C.  Keeley,  of  Brooklyn. 
The  edifice  is  of  blue  gneiss  stone,  in  the  early  English  style, 
with  lateral  porches,  and  buttresses  of  stone.  The  interior  is 
exquisitely  polychromed,  at  a  cost  of  $1,700,  and  is  a  work  of 
the  choicest  decorative  art.  The  altar  and  font  are  of  white 
Caen  stone,  beautifully  carved;  and  the  organ  was  built  by 


Johnson,  of  Westfield,  Mass.    The  seating  capacity  is  from 
050  to  700,  there  being  154  pewB. 

Rev.  Ferris  Tiipp  was  associated  with  Mr.  Jessup  as  Assist- 
ant Minister,  from  1869  to  1872.  Mr.  Jessup  was  buried  from 
the  church  on  the  8d  of  May,  1872;  and  in  October,  1872,  a 
mural  tablet  was  placed  in  the  church,  to  Iris  memory. 
Rev.  Wm.  A.  Leonard  was  his  successor;  and  he  entered  on 
his  duties  May  5,  1873. 

In  the  summer  of  1874,  the  old  brick  building,  being  the 
original  church  built  in  1855,  was  torn  down;  and  a  new 
stone  chapel  and  bell-tower  erected,  at  a  cost  of  $15,000,  in- 
cluding furniture  and  a  fine  chapel  organ.  This  building 
seats  500.  It  has  also  a  beautiful  study  for  the  Rector,  a 
vestry  and  a  music  room.  There  are  five  memorial  windows 
of  stained  glass  placed  in  its  walls;  and  it  opens  into  the 
church  proper  by  glass  doors.  The  present  income  from  the 
pew  rental  of  the  parish  is  $8,000,  which  more  than  meets  all 
current  expenses. 

The  Parish  Working  organizations  are  the  following :  In- 
dustrial School  for  Girls;  Mission  School  for  Boys:  Mothers' 
Meetings;  Parish  Guild,  for  all  ladies  of  the  parish;  Benevo- 
lent Association,  an  organization  which  receives,  on  the 
first  Sunday  of  the  winter  months,  money  pledged  for  assist- 
ing the  worthy  poor. 

The  Rev.  Wm.  A.  Leonard  resigned  the  rectorship  in  Feb- 
ruary, 1881,  and  the  Rev.  Geo.  Williamson  Smith,  S.  T.  D., 
officiated  as  Rector,  Sept.  1,  1881,  to  July  1,  1883;  and  Rev. 
Charles  R.  Ti-eat,  from  Sept.  1,  1883,  to  the  present  time.  Rev. 
Ferris  Tiipp  is  Assistant  Minister.  The  church  has  (July, 
1883)  635  communicants  and  538  Sunday-school  scholars. 

Tlie  Brotherhood  of  the  Church  of  the  Redeemer  maintains 
a  library  and  free-reading  room,  on  Atlantic  avenue,  between 
4th  and  5th  avenues;  and  assists  the  Rector  in  Parish  work. 

Day  Nursery,  500  Warren  st.  Owing  to  the  removal  of  the 
Sister  in  charge,  on  account  of  ill  health,  the  Day  Nursery 
susiiended  operations  in  November,  1881,  until  a  sviitable  per- 
son can  be  obtained  to  take  charge  of  it. 

A  summary  of  items  for  the  past  38  years  gives  the  follow- 
ing result  :  Baptisms,  960;  Confirmations,  636;  Marriages, 
353;  Burials,  573.  As  near  as  can  be  calculated,  the  money 
raised  in  the  Parish  for  all  purposes,  amounts  to  $300,000. 

The  Church  of  the  Messiah,  Greene  ave.,  cor.  Clermont, 
was  org.  August  22d,  1850,  under  the  rectorship  of  the  Rev. 
William  H.  Newman,  with  twenty  communicants. 

Rev.  Robert  J.  Walker  was  Rector,  from  June,  1851,  till 
June,  1858;  Rev.  Octavius  Perinchief,  1858-'59;  Rev.  George 
E.  ThraU,  1859-'69:  Rev.  Richard  B.  Duane,  D.D.,  1869-'72; 
Rev.  Charles  R.  Baker,  1873-'84. 

The  first  edifice  was  erected  in  1852,  and  was  enlarged  in 
1859,  at  a  total  expense  of  more  than  $8,000.  In  1863,  the 
edifice  being  found  too  small  for  the  congregation,  the 
vestry  pm'chased  a  large,  unfinished  brick  structure,  upon 
the  corner  of  Greene  and  Clermont  avenues,  originally 
erected  for  the  Presbyterians,  and  capable  of  seating  a  thou- 
sand persons.  The  sum  paid  was  $35,000,  and  the  comple- 
tion of  the  edifice  cost  $64,000  additional.  It  has  a  seating 
capacity  of  1,130.  In  1878,  all  indebtedness  was  extinguished. 
The  Church  of  the  Messiah  has  (July,  1883)  790  communicants, 
and  280  Sunday-school  scholars. 

Rev.  Charles  R.  Baker,  born  in  Medford,  Mass.,  1842; 
grad.  Fi-iedrich  Wilhelm  Univ.,  Berlin,  and  Epis.  Theol. 
School,  Cambridge,  1873;  located  Brooklyn,  1873-84. 

Emmanuel  Church  originated  in  Ascension  Church,  in  1858. 
Rev.  William  O.  Lamson,  Rector.  The  corner  stone  of  a 
building  was  laid  at  the  corner  of  Third  place  and  Smith  st., 
in  1853,  the  congregation  worshiping  in  a  hall  at  the  corner 
of  Court  and  Sackett  sts.     On  November  27, 1864,  the  organi- 


mSTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


zation -was  changed  to  the  >       '  '  /  ilic  Good  Angels, 

and  the  Rev.  John  H.  Hobart  Brown  was  elected  Rector.  In 
IS.")?,  tlie  diUTch  was  organized  under  its  present  name,  and 
occupies  an  elegant  Gothic  structure  of  brown  stone  on  the 
comer  of  Smith  and  President  sts.,  seating  700,  and  costing 
over  $30,000. 

Rectors :  Rev.  Wm.  O.  Lamson,  1853-'7;  Rev.  Edward  De 
Zeng,  1857-60:  Rev.  Thos.  Powell,  with  Rev.  Edmund  Em- 
bury as  associate,  1860-'l;  Rev.  Henry  Greenleaf,  D.  D.,  who 
died  in  1862;  Rev.  Henry  B.  Wallbridge.  D.  D.,  1869-'84. 

In  1870,  the  church  was  enlarged  by  the  addition  of  tran- 
septs. In  1874,  an  addition  was  made  in  front,  and  in  1878, 
a  recess  chancel  was  added  in  the  rear.  The  seating  capacity 
is  now  about  950. 

In  1874,  pew  rents  were  abolished,  and  the  seats  have  since 
continued  free.  Rev.  Geo.  F.  Cushman,  D.  D.,  is  Assistant 
Minister. 

Emmanuel  Church  has  (July,  1883)  241  communicants  and 
214  Sunday-school  scholars.     It  has  also  a  Parish  school. 

The  Church  of  Our  Saviour,  as  a  mission  chapel  from 
Christ  Church,  held  its  first  service,  Nov.  22,  1857,  in  a  car- 
penter's shop  on  Nelson  St. ,  west  of  Court,  with  five  mem- 
bers. Rev.  James  S.  Barnes  was  appointed  minister,  and 
served  till  1865 ;  a  Sunday-school  was  started,  which  soon 
increased  to  150  scholars.  After  a  few  months,  some  of  the 
members  of  Christ  Church,  seeing  the  importance  of  the 
work,  opened  a  subscription  list,  which,  with  generous  help 
from  the  parent  church,  soon  amounted  to  $14,000.  The  lot 
at  the  comer  of  Clinton  and  Luqueer  streets  was  given  by 
Mrs.  Luqueer,  and  the  present  building  was  soon  erected, 
with  seats  to  be  forever  free. 

Rev.  Wm.  M.  Postlethwaite  was  the  next  Minister  in 
charge,  and,  during  his  term  of  over  four  years,  the  chapel 
became  an  independent  church.  Rev.  Mr.  Booth  succeeded 
as  Rector,  and  was  in  charge  for  over  eight  years.  The  pres- 
ent Minister,  Rev.  H.  M.  Stuart,  took  charge  in  May,  1880. 
The  Church  of  Our  Saviour  is  (July,  1883)  without  a  Rector  ; 
has  260  communicants  and  400  Sunday-school  scholars. 

St.  Andrew's  Church,  New  York  ave.,  corner  of  Herkimer 
St.,  commenced  services  in  a  temporary  building,  under  the 
pastoral  care  of  Rev.  Richard  S.  Adams,  who  subsequently 
became  Rector.  The  corner-stone  of  the  church  edifice  was 
laid  March  33,  1859,  and  the  parish  organized  in  the  fol- 
lowing September.  In  March,  1869,  Rev.  Charles  Higbee  be- 
came Rector.     The  parish  has  since  ceased  to  exist. 

St.  Matthew's  Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  Throop  ave., 
corner  Pulaski  st.,  was  org.  as  the  "Free  Church  of  St. 
Matthew,"  May  25,  1859.  Services  had  occasionally  been 
held  in  a  school-room  on  the  south-west  coi-ner  of  De  Kalb 
and  Marcyaves. ;  and  a  Sunday -.school  had  been  organized, 
with  some  25  children,  under  the  supervision  of  Mr.  Bailey 
J.  Hathaway.  It  was  not,  however,  until  the  spring  of  1859 
that  services  were  regularly  conducted,  and  then  by  Rev.  D. 
V.  M.  Johnson,  D.  D.,  Rector  of  St.  Mary's  Church,  in  the 
house  of  Mr.  Frank  Chichester,  on  Lafayette  ave.,  near 
Tompkins.  Soon  after,  a  church  organization  was  perfected. 
On  the  7th  of  June,  1859,  Mr.  J.  J.  Rapelye  gave  four  lots, 
together  100  feet  square,  on  the  south-east  corner  of  Throop 
ave.  and  Pulaski  st.,  as  a  building  site  for  a  new  church. 
The  corner-stone  was  laid  July  2,  1859,  and  on  Feb.  10,  1861, 
the  completed  edifice  was  opened  for  worship.  Its  cost  was 
about  $10,000.  The  Rectors  in  charge  were  :  Rev.  Isaac  Ful- 
lerton  Cox,  1860;  Rev.  James  Thomson,  1861-8;  Rev.  C.  S. 
Williams,  1868-'76;  Rev.  Charles  Wm.  Turner,  1876-'84.  A 
flourishing  Sunday-school  of  300  members  is  maintained.  Its 
first  sui>erintendent  was  Rev.  J.  Hoyt  Smith,  who  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Alex.  Hutcluns,M.  D.,  the  present  superintendent. 


In  May,  1868,  the  free  system  was  abandoned,  and  the  pews 
were  rented.  In  consequence,  the  name  of  the  parish  was 
changed  to  St.  Matthew's  Protestant  Episcopal  Church;  and 
has  (July,  1883)  175  communicants  and  292  Sunday-school 
scholars. 

Rev.  Chas.  WnxiAM  Tueneb,  bom  in  London,  Eng.,  1844; 
grad.  St.  Mark's  Coll.,  Lond.,  1864;  located  at  Anglican  Mis- 
sion, Hawaii,  1866;  San  Francisco,  1869;  Oakland,  1871;  L.  L 
City,  1874;  Brooklyn,  1870. 

Church  of  the  Atonement,  5th  ave.,  cor.  17th  st.,  was  in- 
corp.  Feb.  1st,  1864.  A  church  edifice  was  erected  on  the 
comer  of  5th  ave.  and  17th  st.,  and  opened  Sept.  7th,  1865. 
Rev.  Joseph  D.  Phillip  was  at  first  in  pastoral  charge.  Sub- 
sequent Rectors:  Rev.  Lea  Luqueer,  1865-66;  Rev.  E.  F. 
Remington,  1866-'68;  Rev.  William  Hyde,  1868-76;  Rev. 
James  Chrystal,  1876-'77;  Rev.  Alfred  J.  Barrow,  1877-'79; 
Rev.  Wm.  M.  WOlian,  1879-'81;  and  Rev.  Albert  C.  Bunn, 
M.  D.,  1881-'84. 

In  1878,  the  interior  of  the  church  was  altered  and  re- 
arranged. The  Church  of  the  Atonement  has  (July,  1883) 
345  communicants,  and  330  Sunday-school  scholars. 

Rev.  Albert  C.  Bunn,  M.  D.,  bom  1845,  at  Cape  Vincent, 
N.  Y.;  grad.  Hobart  Coll.  and  Med.  Dept.  Univ.  of  Buffalo; 
five  years  Med.  Missionary  of  Amer.  P.  E.  Mission  at  Wu- 
chang, China.  Studied  theol.  with  Rev.  Geo.  Williamson 
Smith,  S.  T.  D.,  Pres.  Trinity  Coll.;  ordained  1882;  Pastor 
at  Queens,  L.  I.;  located  at  Brooklyn,  September,  1881. 

The  Church  of  the  Reformation  was  founded  by  Rev. 
Darius  Brewer,  an  independent  missionary,  who  held  re- 
ligious services  Dec.  2,  1866,  in  a  smaU  upper  hall,  at  the 
corner  of  Classon  and  Fulton  aves. ;  and,  on  the  18th  of  Feb- 
ruary following,  a  church  was  organized,  with  Rev.  Mr. 
Brewer  as  Pastor.  In  1874,  Mr.  Brewer  was  succeeded  by 
the  present  Rector,  Rev.  J.  Bacchus. 

In  April,  1867,  lots  on  Gates  ave.,  near  Classon,  were 
purchased  at  a  cost  of  $8,280;  and  by  July  14th,  the  church 
edifice  was  so  far  completed  that  services  were  held  in  it. 
It  was  a  wooden  structure,  40  by  80  feet,  and  finished  in 
every  respect  in  a  most  tasteful  and  thorough  manner,  at  a 
cist,  exclusive  of  site,  of  $8,964.11. 

During  the  past  eight  years  the  church  building  has  been 
improved  by  the  addition  of  two  transejits,  two  parlors,  and 
a  robing-room,  and  the  enlargement  of  the  chancel  and 
lecture-room.  A  rectory,  adjoining  the  church,  has  also 
been  purchased. 

The  Church  of  the  Reformation  has  (July,  1883)  420  com- 
municants, and  364  Sunday-school  scholars. 

All  Saints'  Church,  worshiping  in  Military  Hall,  5th  ave., 
near  9th  street,  was  organized  Aug.  4th,  1867;  and,  until  the 
following  Christmas  Day,  carried  on  by  lay  effort.  At  that 
time  the  Rev.  Wm.  D'Orville  Doty,  began  his  labors.  Seven 
lots  of  land,  at  the  corner  of  7th  ave.  and  7th  st.  were  pur- 
chased of  Isaac  Henderson,  Esq.  The  corner-stone  of  a 
chapel  was  laid  by  Bishop  Littlejohn,  May  30th,  1869.  It 
was  a  brick  structure,  35  by  30  feet,  with  868  sittings. 

This  chapel  was  enlarged  in  1880;  its  seating  capacity  in- 
creased to  450,  and  the  interior  wholly  changed.  Mr-.  Doty 
was  succeeded  in  the  rectorship  in  1871,  by  Rev.  Joseph  S. 
Jenckes,  Jr.;  and  he,  in  1872,  by  Rev.  Charles  H.  Bixby. 
The  present  Rector,  Rev.  Melville  Boyd,  succeeded  Mr.  Bixby 
in  June,  1876.  During  the  rectorship  of  Mr.  Boyd  the 
chui'oh  debt  has  been  nearly  extinguished. 

AU  Saints'  Church  has  (Jidy,  1883)  325  communicants  and 
350  Sunday-school  scholars. 

St.  James'  Church,  Lafayette  ave.,  comer  of  St.  James 
place.  This  parish  was  originated  by  some  naembers  of  St. 
Luke's  congregation,  living  in  its  more  immediate  vicinity. 


EC CLESIASTIGAL    OR  GANIZA TIONS. 


100^ 


and  ■was  organized  on  the  25th  of  May,  1868,  and  admitted 
into  union  with  convention  on  tlie  29th  of  September,  1869. 
Tlie  present  Rector,  Rev.  Charles  W.  Homer,  previously  As- 
sistant Minister  of  St.  Luke's,  was  called  to  the  rectorship 
on  the  29th  of  May,  1868. 

A  handsome  chapel  was  erected,  and  twice  enlarged,  dur- 
ing the  year  1868.  It  was  also  twice  enlarged  between  1870 
and  1875,  and  it  has  now  a  seating  capacity  of  1,200.  St. 
James'  Church  has  (July,  1883)  751  communicants  and  767 
Sunday-school  scholars. 

St.  Stephens'  Church  was  first  a  mission  of  St.  Andrews, 
formed,  in  August,  1867,  for  the  greater  convenience  of  resi- 
dents in  the  eastern  part  of  St.  Andrew's  parish.  The  parish 
of  St.  Stei)hens  was  erected  in  1868,  with  a  promise  on  the 
part  of  its  otticers  that  they  would  ' '  oppose  the  erection  of  a 
churcli  west  of  Rochester  avenue." 

A  church  edifice  was  built  in  1868,  and  opened  for  worship 
Feb.  21,  1869,  on  the  corner  of  Patchen  avenue  and  Jefferson 
street.  It  is  a  wooden  structure,  with  300  sittings,  which, 
from  the  first,  have  been  free.  The  expenses  of  the  church 
have  been  defrayed  from  weekly  voluntary  offerings. 

Rev.  William  Schouler,  Jr.,  became  Rector  in  May,  1868  ; 
Rev.  James  A.  Bradin,  in  June,  1872  ;  Rev.  Joseph  A.  Nock, 
in  February,  1875;  and  the  present  Rector,  Rev.  Thos.  J.  Cor- 
nell, M.  D.,  in  April,  1881.  St.  Stephens' Church  has  (July. 
1883)  120  communicants  and  170  Sunday-school  scholars. 

St.  George's  Church  was  organized  October  24th,  1869. 
The  church  edifice  is  of  wood,  40  by  80  feet,  and  located 
on  Greene  .avenue,  betw.  Marcy  and  Tompkins  avenues, 
fronting  on  Tompkins  Park,  and  its  cost,  with  the  site,  was 
127,000.  The  church  owes  its  existence  largely  to  the  labors 
of  Rev.  Alvah  Guion  (deceased),  who  was  its  first  Rector. 
He  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  Charles  H.  Babcock,  who  was  fol- 
lowed by  the  present  Rector,  Rev.  Frederick  B.  Carter.  The 
church  maintains  a  Ladies'  Parish  Aid  and  Missionaiy  So- 
ciety, an  Industrial  School,  St.  George's  Brotherhood,  a 
Parish  Missionary  Committee,  and  an  association  called 
"  Friends  of  the  Sick."  St.  George's  Church  has  (July,  1883) 
290  communicants  and  343  Sunday-school  scholars. 

Rev.  FREDERICK  B.  Carter,  born  in  Brooklyn,  1850;  studied 
Col.  Coll.  ;  grad.  Gen.  Theol.  Sem.,  1873  ;  located  W.  Islip, 
L.  I.,  1873-'75;  Brooklyn,  1875-84. 

The  Church  of  the  Good  Shepherd  was  first  a  mission  of 
the  Church  of  the  Holy  Trinity.  It  was  organized  as  a  sep- 
arate parish  in  1870.  The  present  church  edifice,  on 
McDonough  st.,  near  Stuyvesant  ave.,  was  erected  in  1871, 
with  a  seating  capacity  of  300.  In  1874,  it  was  enlarged,  and 
transepts  were  added,  and  it  has  now  600  sittings.  The  total 
cost  of  the  building  and  site  was  about  $24,000.  The  parish 
is  verj- prosperous.  Rev.  Henry  Betts  Cornwall,  D.  D..  has 
been  Rector  since  1871.  The  Church  of  the  Good  Shepherd 
has  (July,  1883)  325  communicants  and  238  Sunday-school 
scholars. 

The  Chapel  of  the  Church  Charity  Foundation,  under  the 
charge  of  Rev.  Thos.  W.  Brown,  Chaplain,  has  (July,  1883) 
80  communicants  and  76  Sunday-school  scholars. 

Church  of  the  Mediator. — A  few  friends  of  Rev.  Wm.  H. 
Reid  rented  tlie  Juvenile  Academy  in  Washington  street, 
transfi)rmed  it  into  a  church,  which  was  opened  in  April, 
1869,  and  org.  with  E.  S.  Blomfield  and  Chas.  Selden, 
Church  Wardens.  It  afterwards  occupied  the  old  St.  Ann's 
Church  building,  which  has  since  been  taken  down  to  make 
way  for  the  East  River  Bridge.  In  1873,  the  congregation 
purchased  from  the  Central  Congregational  Society,  for 
130,000,  their  church  edifice  on  the  corner  of  Ormond  place 
and  Jefferson  st.  In  May,  1875,  services  were  discontinued, 
and  the  iirojierty  was  transferred  to  the  former  owners.     In 


November  of  the  same  year  the  building  was  rented,  and 
services  were  resumed.  In  May,  1876,  they  were  again  dis- 
continued, and  were  not  resumed  till  February,  1880,  when 
the  present  Rector,  Rev.  J.  W.  Sparks,  was  called.  In  No- 
vember, 1881,  the  building  was  again  purchased  from  the 
Central  Congregational  Society,  for  $15,000.  It  is  a  brick 
structure,  with  a  seating  capacity  of  800. 

Rev.  William  H.  Reid  became  Rector  at  the  organization 
of  the  Society,  and  resigned  in  February,  1874.  In  March  of 
the  same  year,  Rev.  L.  Van  Bokkelen  was  called,  but  within 
a  month  left  the  parish  in  an  embarrassed  condition.  In 
July,  1874,  Rev.  T.  F.  Cornell,  M.  D.,  was  called.  He  re- 
signed in  May,  1875,  and  was  succeeded  in  the  following  Oc- 
tober by  T.  Stafford  Drowne,  D.  D.  He  resigned  in  May, 
1876,  and  the  church  was  closed  till  February,  1880.  The 
present  condition  of  the  parish  is  prosperous. 

St.  Mark's  P.  E.  Church,  4th  st.,  cor.  South  5th,  the  old- 
est Episcopal  parish  in  Williamsburgh,  was  org.  1837,  with 
four  communicants,  by  Rev.  Wm.  Morris,  afterwards  Rector 
of  Trinity  school.  N.  Y.  At  Easter,  1838,  Rev.  Samuel  C. 
Davis  succeeded,  the  communicants  then  numbering  twelve; 
and  during  his  ministry,  a  brick  chapel  was  erected  at  the 
rear  of  the  present  church  edifice. 

In  October,  1839,  there  being  then  18  communicants,  and  a 
Sunday-school  of  30  scholars  and  6  teachers,  the  Rev.  Sam- 
uel M.  Haskins  became  the  Rector;  and,  by  May,  1841,  a  stone 
church,  45  by  90  feet,  was  completed  and  consecrated.  It  is 
in  the  Tudor  Gothic  style,  and  seats  550  people.  The  con- 
gregation steadily  increased  with  the  growth  of  the  city. 
In  1846,  it  colonized  Christ  Chuvrh,  and  the  Rector  of  St. 
Mark's  inaugurated  (with  help  from  Trinity  Church,  New 
York)  missionary  efforts  at  Williamsburgh,  and  at  Maspeth, 
resulting  finally  in  the  establishment  of  a  church  at  the  lat- 
ter place,  under  care  of  Rev.  Wm.  Walsh;  and  at  Williams- 
burgh, in  1848,  of  St.  PauVs,  under  the  rectorship  of  Rev. 
Geo.  W.  Fash. 

In  1846,  also.  Dr.  Haskins  organized  St.  James'  (colored) 
congregation,  which  was  aided  by  St.  Mark's  congregation, 
until  they  could  do  for  themselves.  AsceTision  Church, 
Greenpoint,  in  1847;  Calvary  Church,  in  1848,  were  all  es- 
tablished by  Dr.  Haskins'  labors  and  the  aid  of  Trinity 
Chmch;  the  debt  of  his  own  church  cancelled,  and  its  size 
and  adornment  greatly  increased  in  1854.  Communicants 
(July,  1883),  452;  Sunday-school  numbered  308. 


Rev.  Samuel  M.  Haskins,  D.  D.,  was  born  at  Water- 
ford,  Oxford  county,  Maine,  on  the  29th  of  May,  1813. 
He  graduated  at  Union  College  in  1836,  and  at  the 
General  Episcopal  Theological  Seminary,  New  York, 
in  1839.  He  was  ordained  deacon  in  the  Episcopal 
Church  in  June,  1839,  and  priest  at  the  chapel  of  St. 
Mark's,  WilliamsLurgh,  in  July,  1840,  by  Bishop 
Onderdonk.  He  was  called  to  the  rectorship  of  St. 
Mark's  in  October,  1839,  and  has  held  his  high  office 
there  for  forty-four  years.  This  church,  which  was 
nursed  into  strength  and  usefulness  by  the  patient, 
earnest  efforts  of  Dr.  Haskins,  has  enjoyed  the  ad- 
vantage of  his  care  and  love  throughout  its  whole 
interesting  history.  It  is  the  parent  of  all  the  other 
Episcopal  Churches  in  this  section  of  Brooklyn,  which 
now  number  six  flourishing  parishes. 

St.  Mark's  Churcli  was  organized  as  a  missionary 
enterprise  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Davis,  in  October,  1837,  on 


1008 


BISTORT  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


'^£.-^k^^(:9^-t^^^ 


the  outskirts  of  what  was  then  the  village  of  Williams- 
burgh.  He  was  the  first  Rector,  but  left  the  parish 
in  May  or  June,  1839.  When  Dr.  Haskins  was  called, 
services  were  held  in  a  small  white-washed  brick  build- 
ing, in  the  midst  of  a  cornfield.  His  first  sermon  was 
preached  on  the  twenty-first  Sunday  after  Trinity, 
1839,  to  a  congregation  of  fourteen  families  and 
eighteen  communicants.  There  was  no  other  parish 
between  Astoria  and  Brooklyn;  yet  the  population  was 
small,  and  sparse  fields  and  orchards  covering  a  large 
portion  of  the  present  populous  city.  The  steady  in- 
crease of  the  congregation  made  a  larger  church  neces- 
sary. Three  lots  were  obtained  on  the  corner  of 
Fourth  and  South  Fifth  streets,  and  a  stone  building 
erected,  all  at  a  cost  of  nearly  seventeen  thousand 
dollars — a  large  sum  for  a  feeble  congregation  in  those 
days — leaving  a  debt  of  six  thousand. 

In  May,  1841,  the  church  was  consecrated.  The 
congregation  steadily  increased,  until  in  1846,  a  new 
organization,  under  the  name  of  Christ  Church,  was 
formed  and  entirely  made  up  of  families  from  St.  Mark's. 

A  series  of  missionary  services,  commenced  by  Dr. 
Haskins  in  the  same  year,  in  the  eastern  portion  of  the 


town,  resulted  in  the  organization  of^St.  Paul's  Church, 
which  was  received  into  the  convention  in  1848.  These 
were  followed  by  others,  until  six  parishes  now  attest 
the  zeal  and  liberality  of  the  mother  church,  and  the 
faithful  labors  of  Dr.  Haskins.  The  original  debt  was 
paid  in  1853;  at  the  same  date  the  church  was  enlarged 
by  the  addition  of  a  proper  chancel  and  choir,  and  an 
increase  to  the  nave  of  about  two  hundred  sittings. 
It  was  also  beautified  by  several  memorial  windows. 
A  Sunday-school  room  was  added  in  1855. 

In  1860,  further  important  additions  were  made  to 
the  church,  and  other  memorial  windows  added.  The 
site  of  the  church  is  now  in  the  older  portion  of  the 
city,  and  with  its  plain  substantial  exterior,  and  the  im- 
provements made  in  the  interior,  it  has  a  very  neat  and 
tasteful  appearance,  and  looks  as  should  the  venerable 
cradle  of  so  many  rich  and  powerful  parishes.  Six 
ministers,  now  preaching  from  Christian  pulpits,  were 
originally  connected  with  the  Sunday-school.  In  forty- 
four  years  the  church  has  been  closed  but  two  Sundays, 
and  during  the  same  time,  Dr.  Haskins  has  seldom 
been  absent,  except  for  his  summer  vacation  of  four  or 
five  Sundays. 


ECCLESIASTICAL    OR  GANIZA TIONS. 


1009 


Dr.  Haskins  received  his  degree  of  D.  D.  from  Union 
College  in  1862.  His  publications  consist  of  a  num- 
ber of  occasional  sermons.  He  is  of  the  average 
height,  and  well  proportioned,  and  walks  with  an  erect 
figure  and  an  active  step.  His  head  is  large,  with  a 
face  of  marked  intellectuality  and  amiability;  the 
features  are  large,  but  regular;  the  face  shows  decision 
and  force  of  character;  there  is  a  kindness  in  the  eye 
and  a  good-natured  smile  about  the  mouth,  which 
are  expressive  of  gentle  and  noble  traits  of  character. 
His  manners  are  those  of  the  true  gentleman,  tender, 
considerate  and  kind,  that  always  win  the  heart.  With 
cheerfulness  and  smiles,  kind  words  and  genial  actions, 
he  has  thus  made  himself  popular,  not  only  among  his 
own  people,  but  in  social  and  public  life  generally.  He 
is  well  described  in  those  words  in  which  Cowper  por- 
trays the  model  preacher. 

"  In  doctrme  uncorrupt;  in  language  plam, 
And  plain  m  manner;  decent,  solemn,  chaste, 
And  natural  in  gesture;  much  impress'd 
Himself,  as  conscious  of  his  awful  charge, 
And  anxious  mainly  that  tlie  flock  he  feeds 
May  feel  it  too;  affectionate  in  look 
And  tender  in  address,  as  well  becomes 
A  messenger  of  grace  to  guilty  men." 

Seeing  him  in  the  pulpit,  the  living  impersonation 
of  this  portrait  is  brought  vividly  before  you.  His 
clear,  positive  faith  in  the  doctrines  he  proclaims,  and 
his  equally  clear  and  positive  language;  his  unpretend- 
ing, circumspect  and  solemn  manner;  his  ease  and 
grace  of  delivery  and  gesture;  his  evident  sense  of 
the  obligations  of  his  position;  his  tender  appeals  to 
the  unconverted;  his  affectionate  looking  from  face  to 
face  of  those  who  are  his  sheep,  all  appear  in  most 
striking  reality.  He  is  not  looking  for  popular  ap- 
plause, but  he  is  anxious  to  do  his  whole  duty  as  a 
preacher  of  the  glad  tidings  of  salvation. 

He  is  not  seeking  to  exalt  himself  and  his  talents; 
but  he  is  pleading  with  his  whole  mind  and  heart  to 
save  those  in  guilt  and  peril.  He  is  eloquent;  his 
words  flow  with  fluency  and  beauty;  he  is  strong  in 
argument,  and  inspired  with  faith;  but  none  of  this 
is  intended  to  awaken  an  emotion  personal  to  himself. 
His  language,  tone  and  manners  will  not  allow  you  to 
escape  from  a  knowledge  of  this  fact,  and  it  gives 
great  additional  power  and  effectiveness  to  his  preach- 
ing. 

In  this  day  of  worldly  ambition  and  of  selfishness  in 
the  pulpit,  as  well  as  out  of  it,  you  can  but  be  drawn 
nearer  to  the  man  who  shows  himself  entirely  free 
from  them,  and  thoroughly  devoted,  with  humility  and 
seriousness  of  spirit,  to  the  work  of  the  Master. 

Dr.  Haskins  has  labored,  from  early  manhood  to  the 
decline  of  life,  in  one  parish.  In  that  time  he  has  seen 
a  great  city  grow  up  about  him,  with  the  manifold 
changes  and  trials  it  has  brought  to  his  parish.  He 
has  seen  the  little   seed   of  his  nursing  and  watering 


grow  into  the  tall  tree  of  religious  power,  and  he  has 
seen  its  goodly  boughs  severed  one  after  another,  until 
the  ancient  trunk  is  all  that  remains.  Venerable  with 
age,  hoary,  but  not  decayed,  it  still  stands  where  it 
was  first  planted  in  the  vineyard  of  the  Lord,  and  its 
faithful  husbandman  will  guard  it  until  he,  too,  falls 
to  his  rest  beneath  its  holy  shade. 


Christ  Church,  E.  D. — This  parish,  originally  organized  as 
"  Christ  Church,  Williamsburgh,"  in  the  summer  of  184(5, 
maintained  services  for  nearly  a  year  in  the  Reformed  Dutch 
consistory  room,  Fourtli  st.  In  September,  1840,  Rev.  Chas. 
Reynolds  accepted  a  unanimous  call  to  the  parish,  which  at 
that  time  numbered  only  thirteen  communicants.  Within 
four  months,  a  small  but  neat  edifice  was  erected  on  the 
south-east  corner  of  Soutli  Sixth  and  Fifth  sts.  This  proved 
too  small  for  the  congregation,  and  an  eligible  plot  of 
ground  on  Bedford  ave.,  a  few  rods  outside  of  the  Williams- 
burgh limits,  being  proffered  to  the  vestry  by  i\Iessrs.  Jacob 
and  B.  B.  Boerum,  in  the  spring  of  1844,  the  parisli  of  Christ 
Church,  Williamsburgh,  was  dissolved,  and  at  the  same 
meeting,  that  of  Christ  Church,  North  Brooklyn,  organized. 
Tlie  corner-stone  of  a  church  edifice  was  laid  on  Ascension 
Day,  1849,  and  the  edifice  opened  for  divine  service  in  the 
followmg  September.  A  subsequent  enlargement  was  made 
in  the  summer  of  1851,  at  which  time  the  number  of  com- 
municants was  ninety,  and  the  Sabbath-school,  under  the 
superintendency  of  Samuel  Reynolds,  in  a  very  flourishing 
condition.  Mr.  Reynolds'  ministry  here  closed.  May  6,  1855, 
and  on  the  following  Sabbath,  Rev.  A.  H.  Partridge  assumed 
the  rectorship.  He  found  the  congregation  occupying  a 
poor  building,  and  about  $6,000  in  debt.  Through  his  exer- 
tions the  debt  was  paid,  and  a  commodious  chapel  erected 
on  the  rear  of  the  lot  at  a  cost  of  about  |7,500,  with  a  capa- 
city of  seating  350  to  400  persons.  The  old  building  was 
then  taken  down  and  sold;  and,  by  the  first  of  January, 
1863,  a  new  and  elegant  brown-stone  church,  in  the  geomet- 
rical decorated  Gothic  style,  was  erected  and  occupied  by 
the  congregation.  This  edifice,  which  is  125  feet  long  by  75 
feet  wide,  with  two  towers  in  front,  will  seat  1,200  persons  ; 
with  stained-glass  windows,  organ,  and  of  elegant  internal 
finish  and  decoration.  It  cost  $35,000,  and  is  an  ornament 
to  the  city. 

In  1868,  this  parish  purchased  a  suitable  and  commodious 
house  for  a  rectory. 

After  a  long  and  useful  pastorate,  Dr.  Partridge  died  April 
8th,  1883,  and  was  succeeded  by  the  present  Rector,  Rev. 
James  H.  Darlington.  There  were  400  communicants  and 
450  Sabbath-school  scholars  (July,  1883). 

Rev.  Alfred  Hinsdale  Pabtridqe  was  born  at  Hatfield, 
Mass.,  Dec.  14,  1811.  He  belonged  to  the  celebrated  Dwight 
family  of  Hatfield,  and  was  a  descendant  in  the  eighth  gen- 
eration from  Deacon  Cotton  Partridge.  He  first  studied  in 
the  Academy  at  Hadley,  and  then  entered  the  General  Theo- 
logical Seminary,  New  York,  and  grad.  in  June,  1838.  He 
was  made  a  deacon  at  St.  Mark's  Church,  New  York,  July 
1st,  1838,  and  a  presbyter  at  St.  Matthew's  Church,  Bedford, 
N.  Y.,  July  20,  1839. 

At  the  latter  church,  he  was  assistant  to  the  Rev.  Samuel 
Nichols  for  one  year,  but  at  the  end  of  that  time  was  him- 
self called  to  the  rectorship,  and  held  that  position  for  16 
years.  While  there,  his  great  activity  is  shown  by  the  fact 
of  his  organizing  three  new  churches  in  as  many  different 
neighboring  villages,  holding  the  initiatory  services  under 
the  trees.     In  May,  1855,  he  was  called  as  Rector  of  Christ 


1010 


HISTORY  OF  KIKOS  COUNTY. 


Church,  North  Brooklyn.  The  church  had  been  organized 
in  1S46,  being  an  offshoot  of  St.  Mark's;  and,  when  Dr. 
Partridge  came,  worship  was  held  in  a  small  frame  build- 
ing moved  from  South  Sixth  st.  to  its  present  site,  and 
called  Christ  Church  in  the  Fields.  This  was  afterwards 
sold  for  just  §100. 

Twenty-eight  years  seem  a  long  time  to  remain  in  the 
rectorship  of  one  church,  but  it  is  a  short  time  in  which  to 
accomplish  such  great  results  as  Dr.  Partridge  accom- 
plished. 

The  rapid  settlement  of  the  neighborhood,  and  its  selec- 
twn  as  a  place  of  residence  by  a  superior  class  of  people,  the 
general  esteem  in  which  the  Rector  was  held,  and  his  liberal 
and  evungehcal  views  with  regard  to  church  matters,  drew 
many  who  had  formerly  been  members  of  other  congrega- 
tions to  unite  with  Christ  Church.  After  28  years'  faithful 
service.  Dr.  Partridge  died  April  8,  1883. 

Rev.  James  H.  Darlington,  born  in  Brooklyn,  1856;  grad. 
Univ.  New  York,  A.  B.,  1877;  A.  M.,  Princeton,  1879;  and 
Princeton  Theol.  Sem.,  1880;  memb.  N.  Y.  Acad,  of  Sciences, 
1877;  located  in  Brooklyn,  1881;  author  ol  lectures  on  Amer. 
Liteiature,  pamphlet  on  Cliurch  Oovernment,  etc.;  Rector 
Christ  Ch.  since  May  1st,  1883. 

St.  Paul's,  E.  D.— In  the  year  1846,  the  Rev.  S.  M.  Haskins, 
Rector  of  St.  Mark's,  having  obtained  assistance  from  Tiin- 
ity  Church,  New  York,  and  other  sources,  conceived  the 
project  of  commencing  Sunday-schools  and  regular  church 
services,  once  a  Sabbath,  in  the  upper  part  of  Grand  sti'eet, 
Williamsburgh,  and  in  the  neighboring  village  of  Maspeth. 
From  this  beginning,  both  this  church  and  St.  Saviour's, 
Maspeth,  date  their  existence.  The  Rev.  Wm.  Walsh,  for  a 
time,  took  charge  of  both  stations,  but  subsequently  devoted 
himself  to  the  church  at  Maspeth,  wliich  was  first  built.  He 
was  succeeded  in  Williamsburgh  by  the  late  Rev.  George  W. 
Fash,  at  that  time  associated  with  Mr.  Haskins  in  the  man- 
agement of  St.  Mark's  parochial  school.  On  the  8th  of  May, 
1848,  St.  Paul's  Parish,  Williamsburgh,  was  duly  organized, 
and  Mr.  Fash  elected  its  first  pastor.  Services  until  May, 
1850,  were  held  in  a  school-room  over  a  drug  store  in  Grand 
street,  one  door  from  the  corner  of  Graham  ave.  In  1849, 
two  lots  of  ground  were  purchased  by  the  parish,  on  the  cor- 
ner of  South  2d  and  13th  streets  and  Union  ave.  In  May, 
1850,  the  congregation  removed  to  more  commodious  quar- 
ters in  Franklin  Hall,  corner  of  Graham  ave.  and  Remsen  st  , 
and  contracted  for  the  erection  of  a  house  of  worship.  Bvit, 
becoming  financially  embarrassed,  and  compelled  to  vacate 
their  previous  quarters,  they  met  in  the  basement  of  the  Lu- 
theran Church,  corner  of  Graham  ave.  and  Wyckoff  st., 
where  their  wants  were  supplied  from  Sabbath  to  Sabbath 
by  various  clergymen.  April  30th,  1851,  the  Rev.  Henry 
Floy  Roberts  was  elected  Rector,  and,  by  his  exertions,  the 
building  project  was  revived,  the  edifice  completed  at  a  cost  of 
|1,200,  and  opened  for  public  worship  on  Thanksgiving  Day, 
Nov.  22,  1851,  although  it  remained  during  the  winter  un- 
plastered;  and,  not  until  Christmas  was  it  warmed  and  made 
comparatively  comfortable  by  a  $20  stove.  In  1852,  by  the 
help  of  Trinity  Church,  New  York,  St.  Paul's  was  free  from 
debt,  and  the  building  completed.  In  July,  1854,  Mr. 
Roberts  resigned  his  charge,  and  the  Rev.  Edmund  Emburj^ 
entered  upon  the  rectorship,  Sept.  Ist,  but,  in  consequence 
of  ill-health,  resigned  in  April,  1856.  He  was  succeeded, 
October,  1856,  by  Rev.  Wm.  A.  Maybin.  Meanwhile  the 
church  had  been  enlarged  by  the  addition  of  a  chancel,  and 
had  been  newly  and  tastefully  furnished.  The  parish  now 
received  from  Mr.  Barnet  Johnson  a  gift  of  five  lots,  valued 
at  near  $5,000,  on  the  corner  of  Penn  and  Marcy  aves.,  on 
which  the  corner-stone  of  a  new  edifice  was  laid  Sept.  5th, 


1860,  and  the  church  opened  for  divine  service  on  Advent 
Sunday,  Nov.  23d.  1861.     Its  cost  was  $24,760. 

The  Rectors  since  1862  are  as  follows  :  Revs.  John  W. 
Clark,  1862-3;  David F.  Lumsden,  1863-5;  F.  C.  Wainwright, 
1865;  Ed.  R.  Atwill,  1865-'7;  Wm.  A.  Maybin,  1867-70;  Dr. 
Fox,  1870-1;  Newland  Maynard,  1871-4. 

In  1866,  tlie  floating  debt  was  paid  off  through  the  liberal- 
ity of  sister  churches  in  New  York  and  Brooklyn;  and  the 
free-seat  system,  which  had  been  in  force  since  1853,  was 
abolished.  In  July,  1883,  there  were  225  communicants  and 
294  children. 

Rev.  Newland  Maynard,  D.  D.,  born  1839,  in  Toronto, 
Ont. ;  grad.  Upper  Canada  Coll.  and  Berkeley  Theol.  Inst. 
Ct.,  1869;  located  Staten  Island,  1871;  author  of  25  LccfMJrs 
on  Foreign  Lands;  elected  1879  Fellow  of  Royal  Hist.  Soc.  of 
Gt.  Britain;  rec'd  gold  medal  for  lectures  on  Sacred  Art  and 
Mediceval  Architecture. 

St.  James'  Church,  E.  D.  (colored),  was  commenced  in 
1846,  and  worshiped  first  in  a  small  building  in  South  Third 
st  ,  near  Ninth  st. ;  later  (about  1855),  they  moved  to  Fourth 
St.,  near  South  Eighth,  at  which  time  the  Rev.  S  muel  V. 
Berry  (colored)  was  their  Rector.  Afterwards  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Monroe  (colored)  became  Rector,  who  resigned,  however,  in 
May,  1859,  and  went  to  Africa.  During  this  year,  the  frame 
building  in  Remsen  st. ,  latterly  used  by  this  congregation, 
was  purchased  for  them  by  the  Convocation  for  Church  Ex- 
tension in  Kings  County.  For  a  time,  the  services  were  kept 
up  by  the  neighboring  clergy,  and  by  lay  reading.  The 
church  was  afterwards  sold,  the  congregation  disbanded, 
and  the  money  appropriated,  by  order  of  the  Bishop,  to  a 
colored  church  in  South  Brooklyn. 

Calvary  P.  E.  Church,  E.  D.,  South  Ninth  and  Eighth 
streets,  organized  Jan.  23,  1849,  owed  its  existence  in  a  great 
measure  to  the  Rev.  Charles  Reynolds  (at  that  time  Rector  of 
Christ  Church),  and  to  Mr.  William  G.  Dunn,  the  senior  war- 
den. To  meet  the  spiritual  destitution  of  the  northern  part 
of  Williamsburgh,  the  use  of  Lexington  Hall,  corner  of  Grand 
and  Third  streets  was  secured,  services  were  held,  and  a 
church  established  in  that  part  of  the  village.  After  a  time 
Rev.  Mr.  Paj-ne's  services  were  engaged,  and  Odd  Fellows' 
Hall,  corner  of  North  First  and  Third  streets,  was  secured  as 
the  place  of  assembling.  Rev.  Robert  J.  Walker  was  his  suc- 
cessor, followed  by  the  Rev.  B.  F.  Taylor,  and  he  by  Rev. 
George  Timlow.  In  1851,  lots  were  purchased  on  North 
Fifth  street,  and  in  the  following  year  a  small  church  edifice 
erected,  which  was  consecrated  on  April,  16,  1853,  by  Bishop 
Wainwright.  Rev.  Samuel  W.  Say  res  was  Rector  from  Sept. 
1852,  to  October  15,  1856.  His  successor  was  the  Rev.  John 
P.  Bansman;  he  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  Henry  F.  Roberts, 
who  resigned  on  May  1,  1860,  after  a  service  of  two  years.  In 
Jul}-,  1800,  the  Rev.  Francis  Peck  entered  upon  his  duties  as 
Rector;  and  during  the  early  part  of  his  administration  a  step 
vital  to  the  welfare  of  the  parish,  was  its  removal  from  North 
Fifth  street  to  its  present  location,  where  a  commodious 
church  edifice  and  a  better  neighborhood  laid  the  foundation 
of  future  success.  Mr.  Peck  resigned  the  Rectorship  in  Feb- 
ruary, 1882,  after  nearly  twenty-two  years  faithful  service, 
and  was  succeeded  by  the  Rev.  H.  R.  Harris,  in  April  of  the 
same  year.  The  church  had  (July,  1883)  300  communi- 
cants. 

The  Sunday-school,  which  was  established  in  the  early  his- 
tory of  this  church,  had  for  its  first  superintendent,  Mr.Wm. 
G.  Dunn.  Present  number  of  scholars,  460;  volumes  in  li- 
brary, 075. 

Rev.  Francis  Peck  was  succeeded  in  1882,  by  the  present 
Rector,  Rev.  H.  Richard  Harris.  In  July,  1883,  there  were 
30  communicants  and  460  Sunday-school  scholars. 


ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1011 


Church  of  the  Ascension  (Greenpoint).  In  the  fall  of  1846, 
Rev.  John  W.  Brown,  of  Astoria,  Rev.  Chas.  Reynolds,  of 
Christ  Cliurch,  North  Brooklyn,  and  Rev.  JolinC.  Brown,  ar- 
ranged for  the  holding  of  divine  service  in  Greenpoint,  ac- 
cording to  the  ritual  of  tlie  Protestant  Episcopal  church.  In 
October,  tlie  first  service  was  celebrated  by  Rev.  John  C. 
Brown,  in  the  parlor  of  Mr.  David  Provost's  residence.  Under 
Mr.  Brown's  guidance  as  a  missionary,  a  room  was  forthwith 
hired,  supplied  witli  furniture  from  Astoria,  and  services 
were  regularly  commenced.  Deceml)er  30,  1846,  the  parish 
was  organized,  and  incorporated  Sept.  28,  1847.  In  the  sum- 
mer of  1847,  the  services  were  conducted  by  Rev.  Michael 
Schofield,  who  had  recently  become  associated  with  Rev.  J. 
W.  Brown  of  Astoria,  and  a  flourishing  Sabbath-school  was 
also  gathered  under  Mr.  Wm.  Mulligan,  a  layman  of  Astoria. 
After  a  few  nionths,  Mr.  Schofield  was  succeeded  by  the  Rev. 
Henry  Bartow,  who  resigned  in  1848.  The  Rev.  Robert  J. 
Walker,  was  next  appointed,  in  November,  1848,  resigning  in 
March,  1850,  in  order  to  devote  his  whole  attention  to  Cal- 
vary church,  Williamsburgh,  where  he  had  already  been  of- 
ficiating in  addition  to  his  Greenpoint  duties.  In  May,  1850, 
the  Rov.  Thomas  Clark  was  called  to  the  rectorshi])  at  Green- 
point, which  ho  filled  until  his  death  in  August,  1853.  Dur- 
ing his  time,  the  congregation  worshiped  in  the  Sabbath- 
school  room  of  the  Dutch  Reformed  Church  in  Java  sti'eet,  and 
in  the  house  of  Mr.  Charles  Cartlidge,  Franklin  street.  The 
Rev.  Edward  C.  Babcock,  A.  B.,  deacon,  entered  on  his  duties 
as  Rector  on  the  31st  of  October,  1853,  the  services  being  at  that 
time  held  at  Mr.  Cartlidge's  house,  and  the  congregation 
numbering  about  thirty  persons.  A  Sabbath-school  was  com- 
menced; and  the  first  communion  was  administered  on  Sun- 
day, November  28,  1853,  by  the  Rev.  C.  Reynolds,  to  thirteen 
persons. 

About  this  time,  also,  thi-ee  lots  of  gi-ound,  eighty- 
five  feet  front  by  one  hundred  feet  deep,  on  the  north  side  of 
K  Street,  midway  between  Franklin  and  Union  avenues, 
were  secured  at  a  cost  of  |1,500.  On  the  30th  of  January,  1853, 
the  congregation  met  for  the  first  time  in  Odd  Fellows'  Hall, 
in  K  street,  east  of  Union  avenue,  where  they  continued  to 
worship  until  October  following.  On  the  5th  of  July,  1853, 
the  corner-stone  of  a  lecture  and  Sabbath-school  room  was 
laid.  It  was  opened  for  worship  on  Sunday,  Octolier  23,  1853, 
at  a  cost,  for  land,  building  and  furniture  of  about  $4,500.  The 
pews  in  the  early  part  of  1855,  were  voted  free  by  the  vestry. 
Mr.  Babcock  resigned  November  1st.  and  died  in  December 
of  the  same  year.  The  Rev.  Merrit  H.  Wellman,  entered 
upon  his  duties  as  Rector  January  Ist,  1857;  his  salary  being 
assumed  by  the  joint  action  of  the  vestry,  the  missionary 
committee  of  the  diocese,  and  the  New  York  Pastoral  Aid 
Society. 

In  the  fall  of  1858,  through  efforts  of  the  parish  and 
the  liberality  of  outside  friends,  an  excellent  organ  was  pro- 
cured, the  building  was  ornamented  and  furnished,  and  a  small 
balance  of  debt  cancelled.  With  the  close  of  18G0,  the  church 
ceased  to  receive  assistance  from  the  Pastoral  Aid  Society, 
and  that  derived  from  the  Missionary  Society  was  also  much 
reduced,  the  vestry  being  now  able  to  assume  a  larger  pro- 
portion of  the  debt.  The  parish  made  a  steady  and  healthful 
progress,  during  the  rectorsliip  of  Mr.  Welhnan,  who  re- 
signed on  May  1st,  1863.  Rev.  Francis  Mansfield,  was  the 
next  Rector,  oflBciating  first  on  the  38th  of  June,  1863.  The 
congi-egation  having  largely  increased,  a  new  edifice  became 
necessary,  and  the  corner-stone  of  a  permanent  church  was 
laid  on  the  north  side  of  the  chapel,  on  the  23d  of  March, 
1865.  The  church  was  completed  at  a  cost  of  |20,000,  and 
ojjened  for  divine  service  on  the  16th  of  September,  1860.  It 
is  a  Gothic  structure  of  correct  proportions  and  pleasmg  ef- 


fect, with  open  roof,  and  organ  chamber  adjoining  the  chan- 
cel, designed  by  Mr.  Henry  Dudley;  and  is  filled  with  a  large 
and  flourishing  congregation.  Rev.  Thos.  W.  Haskins  suc- 
ceeded Mr.  Mansfield;  and  Rev.  C.  EUis  Stevens  subse- 
quently became  Rector;  followed  by  the  present  incumbent. 
Rev.  A.  Whittaker.  In  July,  1883,  there  were  168  communi- 
cants and  345  Sunday-school  scholars. 

Rev.  C.  Ellis  Stevens,  born  1853,  in  Boston,  Mass. ;  grad. 
Univ.  Penn.,  and  Berkeley  Divin.  Sch.,  Ct.,  1875;  located 
Bklyn.,  1876;  is  a  Miss.  Sec'y.  of  P.  E.  Ch.,  in  U.  S.;  was  as- 
soc.  Ed.  of  Living  Church. 

St.  John's  Church,  E.  D.,  was  incorporated  in  1851,  and 
admitted  into  union  with  convention  on  the  24th  of  Septem- 
ber of  the  same  year.  The  Rev.  Benj.  F.  Taylor,  then  a 
missionary  in  Williamsburgh,  was  called  to  the  rector- 
ship. This  parish  did  not  succeed  in  erecting  a  church  edi- 
fice, and  the  congregation,  never  numerous,  becoming  scat- 
tered, the  Rev.  Sir.  Taylor  withdrew  in  1854,  and  further  ef- 
forts under  this  organization  were  abandoned. 

Grace  Church,  E.  D. — At  the  urgent  request  of  several 
friends,  the  Rev.  Alvah  Guion,  in  April,  1853,  visited  the 
Third  Ward  of  Williamsburgh,  one  and  a  half  miles  back 
from  the  ferries,  having  an  industrious  population  of  about 
1,800  souls,  among  whom  no  Episcopal  church  had  been  es- 
tablished, and  no  place  for  public  worship  except  a  small 
temporary  building  put  up  by  the  Baptists.  Mr.  Guion  de- 
termined, in  reliance  upon  Divine  favor,  that  a  free  Episco- 
pal church  should  be  established  in  this  section,  amid  this 
growing  population.  He  established  his  residence  in  their 
midst,  hired  two  rooms  with  folding-doors  on  the  first  floor 
of  No.  243  Lorimer  street,  and  on  Sunday,  May  15,  1853, 
preached  a  sermon  to  a  congregation  of  five  souls;  and  on  the 
following  Sabbath  a  Sunday-school  was  commenced  with 
one  scholar.  After  a  year's  hard  labor  he  had  secured  a  valu- 
able plot  of  land  on  Conselyea  St.,  near  Lorimer,  on  which 
to  erect  a  church,  as  a  free  gift  from  Messrs.  Charles  M. 
Church,  John  SkUlman  and  Joseph  H.  Skillman,  on  the  con- 
dition that  a  church  worth  |5,000  should  be  erected  thereon 
within  two  years.  He  had  also  collected  a  little  over  a  fifth 
of  the  above  amount.  The  plans  for  the  church  edifice  were 
prepared  under  his  own  direction;  and  he  also,  singlj^  and 
alone  (every  member  of  the  vestry,  from  inability,  indiffer- 
ence, or  want  of  faith  in  its  ultimate  success,  having  refused), 
assumed  the  entire  responsibility  of  the  enterprise.  His  zeal, 
faith  and  labors  were  finally  rewarded  with  success.  On  the 
8th  of  January,  1856,  the  chvirch  was  fully  completed;  and, 
on  the  10th  of  April,  1850,  formally  consecrated  as  a  free 
Eiiiscopal  church.  Grace  Church  is  92  feet  by  44,  being  cal- 
culated to  seat  500  persons;  and,  with  all  its  accessories,  fix- 
tures, etc.,  is  an  example  of  how  neat,  comfortable  and  com- 
modious a  chm'ch  may  be  built,  even  in  a  city,  for  a  compar- 
atively small  sum.  Mr.  Guion  continued  the  Rector  of  this 
parish  until  the  spring  of  1868,  when  he  was  succeeded  by  the 
Rev.  William  S.  Chadwell.  The  vestry,  at  the  time  of  the 
consecration  of  the  edifice,  were  Messrs.  Jonathan  James 
and  James  S.  Guion,  Wardens;  Dwight  Woodbury,  Henry  S. 
Samuels,  Edward  W.  Townsend,  Richard  Sealey,  Erasmus  D. 
Brown,  DaA-id  B.  Cunningham,  Geo.  K.  Brooks  and  Wm.  T. 
Anderson,  Vestrymen.  Mr.  Chadwell  was  succeeded  by  Rev. 
Joseph  Beers;  and  he  l)y  Mr.  Coan. 
St.  Barnabas  Chapel,  E.  D. — Services  were  commenced 
.  early  in  1869,  by  the  Rev.  Henry  A.  Dows,  now  in  charge  of 
this  mission,  in  a  building  rented  for  the  purpose  on  the 
north-west  corner  of  Evergreen  ave.  and  Jefferson  st.  Church 
on  Evergreen  ave.,  between  Chestnut  and  Stockholm  sts., 
opened  for  Divine  service,  Dec.  13,  1869.  Afterwards  dis- 
continued. 


1012 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Tlie  following  Clergymen  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Cluirdi  are  residents  of  the  city: 

Rev.  Robert  Bayard  Snowden,  born  in  New  York,  1833; 
grad.  Williams  Coll.  1854,  and  Union  Theol.  Sem.,  1859;  lo- 
cated in  California,  1865-'70;  in  Conn..  1870-75;  Fort  Ham- 
ilton, 1876;  was  editor  of  The  Church  Magazine,  1876-'77;  is 
contributor  to  papers. 

Rev.  Henry  H.  Loring,  A.  M.  (Hobart),  bom  in  Berkshire 
Co.,  Mass.;  admitted  to  the  bar,  1855;  grad.  Gen.  Theol. 
Sem.,  New  York.  1858;  trustee  of  same,  18G7-'76;  Prof.  He- 
brew and  Bib.  Interp.  Kansas  Theol.  School,  Topeka;  editor 
church  paper:  is  on  staff  of  The  Churchman,  N.  Y.;  located 
Fayetteville,  N.  Y. ;  Olean,  N.  Y.,  Brownsville,  Pa.,  and 
Topeka,  Kan. ;  translator  and  editor  of  Germ.  Theol.  mono- 
graphs: came  to  B'klyn,  1879. 

Rev.  John  Greenwood  Bacchus,  born  in  Chestertown, 
Md.,  1846;  grad.  Kenyon  Coll.,  1870;  Cambridge  Theol.  Sem., 
1873;  alumnus  lecturer  at  Theol.  Sem.;  located  B'klyn,  1873. 

Rev.  I.  Barnwell  Campbell,  born  in  Beaufort,  S.  C, 
1815;  grad.  Nassau  Hall,  Princeton,  1835;  and  Prot.  Epis. 
Gen.  Theol.  Sem.,  1839;  located  Charleston,  S.  C,  1840-'58; 
New  York,  1867-"68;  B'klyn,  1868-84;  did  missionary  service 
in  late  war,  at  Williamston,  S.  C. 


Rev.  J.  A.  ASPINWALL,  born  in  New  York,  1&40;  studied  in 
France  and  Germany;  grad.  Theol.  Gambier  (O.)  Coll.,  1864; 
located  Bay  Ridge,  L.  I.,  1864-'84. 

Rev.  W.  G.  McKlNNEY,  born  in  Charleston,  S.  C.  1836;  lo- 
cated Buffalo,  Brooklyn,  Charleston  and  Cleveland;  did 
missionary  work  in  La.  and  N.  C. ;  author  of  My  Early  Re- 
ligious Impressions;  Walter  and  the  Prize  Lottery;  Archi- 
bald and  Elvira:  The  Commandments  Kept;  Faith  and 
Works,  etc. 

Rev.  Dan  Marvin,  Jr.,  born  in  New  York,  1843;  grad. 
Columbia  Coll.,  1863;  studied  P.  E.  Gen.  Theol.  Sem.,  N.  Y.; 
was  adjunct  Prof.  Greek,  Racine  Coll.,  Wis.;  located  St. 
Peter's  Chapel,  B'klyn,  1876-77;  Asst.  Min.  Ch.  of  Messiah, 
1877-79;  Ch.  of  Holy  Communion,  Norwood,  N.  J.,  1883-84 
and  Prin.  Lafayette  Acad.,  B'klyn. 

Rev.  Joseph  Reynolds,  born  in  Baltimore,  1854;  studied  at 
Univ.  of  Va. :  grad.  Gen.  Theol.  Sem.,  1877;  is  chaplain  Mon- 
tauk  Lodge,  F.  A.  M.;  chap.  5th  Md.  N.  G.:  located  Balti- 
more, 1878-79;  Harford  Co.,  1879-80;  B'klyn,  1880-'84. 

Rev.  Paulus  Moort,  born  in  St.  Croix,  1850;  grad.  St. 
Augustine  Inst.,  Raleigh,  N.  C,  and  P.  E.  Theol.  Sem., 
Phlla.,  1882;  located  New  York;  destined  to  work  in  Liberia, 
A  f  rica. 


RT.   REV.   ABRAM    NEWKIRK    LITTLEJOHN,   D.  D. 

Bishop  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Diocese  of  Long  Island. 


Bishop  LiTTLBJOHN  is  a  native  of  Central  New  York, 
having  been  born  in  Montgomery  county,  December 
13th,  1824.  His  early  education  was  obtained  in  his 
native  county;  and,  in  1841,  he  entered  Union  College, 
where  he  graduated  with  honor  in  1845.  Entering  at 
once  upon  a  course  of  theological  study,  he  received 
deacon's  orders  from  the  Rt.  Rev.  William  H.  DeLancey, 
Bishop  of  the  Diocese  of  Western  New  York,  at  Au- 
burn, N.  Y.,  on  the  18th  of  March,  1848.  He  entered 
upon  the  clerical  duties  at  St.  Ann's  Church,  Amster- 
dam, immediately;  and,  after  continuing  there  a  year, 
removed  to  Meridcn,  Conn.,  where  he  officiated  for  a 
period  of  ten  months.  On  the  10th  of  April,  1850,  he 
was  called  to  the  rectorship  of  Christ  Church,  Spring- 
field, Mass.,  where  he  was  ordained  priest,  November  10, 
1850,  and  where  he  remained  a  little  more  than  a  year. 
In  July,  1851,  he  succeeded  Rev.  Samuel  E.  Cooke, 
D.D.,  as  Rector  of  St.  Paul's  Church,  New  Haven. 
Though  yet  a  young  man,  not  quite  twenty-seven  years 
of  age,  when  he  entered  upon  this  large  and  important 
field  of  labor,  he  soon  gave  evidence  of  remarkable 
intellectual  abilities.  His  sympathy  with  progress 
and  with  the  friends  of  higher  intellectual  culture,  es- 
pecially among  the  young  men,  was  so  evident  and 
hearty,  that  he  attracted  in  large  numbers  the  young 
men  of  the  city  into  his  congregation;  and,  at  the  same 
time,  his  own  scholarship  was  so  broad  and  thorough, 
and  his  ability  as  a  speaker  and  writer  so  eminent,  that 
he  was  in  great  demand  as  a  lecturer  and  orator.  In 
1853,  he  was  invited  to  give  the  opening  lecture  of  a 


course  in  Philadelphia,  by  bishops  and  clergymen  of 
the  Episcopal  church,  on  topics  connected  with  theo- 
logical science.  The  subject  assigned  him,  and  whicli 
he  discussed  with  masterly  ability,  was,  "  The  Philos- 
ophy of  Religion."  These  discourses  were  subsequently 
published,  with  an  introductory  essay  by  Rt.  Rev. 
Alonzo  Potter,  D.  D.,  LL.  D.,  Bishop  of  Pennsylvania, 
and  constitute  a  valuable  contribution  to  the  literature 
of  the  Church.  He  h;id  ^ready  been  for  several  years 
Lecturer  on  Pastoral  Theology  at  the  Berkeley  Divinity 
School,  Middletown,  Conn.,  and  he  continued  to  sus- 
tain this  relation  to  that  school  of  the  prophets,  in  ad- 
dition to  the  duties  of  his  rectorship,  during  his  resi- 
dence in  New  Haven,  a  period  of  ten  years.  In  1856, 
before  he  had  completed  his  thirty-second  year,  the 
University  of  Pennsylvania  conferred  on  him  the  hon- 
orary degree  of  Doctor  of  Divinity.  In  January,  1858, 
when  yet  but  thirty-three  years  of  age,  he  was  unani- 
mously elected  President  of  Hobart  College,  Geneva, 
N.  Y.  This  lionor  he  respectfully  declined.  In  the 
spring  of  1800  he  was  called  to  the  rectorship  of  the 
Church  of  the  Holy  Tiinity  in  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 

The  position  was  one  of  peculiar  responsibility  and 
anxiety,  and  a  man  of  less  moral  courage  would  have 
declined  to  leave  a  congregation  so  strongly  attached 
to  him  as  that  of  St.  Paul's,  and  one  in  every  respect  so 
pleasant,  for  the  trials  and  severe  labors  which  he  well 
knew  would  be  inevitable  in  his  new  position.  The 
Church  of  the  Holy  Trinity,  originally  erected  in  large 
part  through  the  munificence  of  one  of  its  constituent 


ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1013 


members,  and  through  his  subsequent  misfortune  in 
business  so  heavily  mortgaged  that,  in  1850,  it  was 
with  the  greatest  difficulty  rescued  from  falling  into 
the  hands  of  the  Roman  Catholics,  on  a  foreclosure  sale 
for  a  mortgage  debt  of  $100,000,  was  still  staggering 
under  an  incumbrance  of  $65,000,  and  was  as  yet  in- 
complete. It  was  a  magnificent  edifice,  well  worthy  to 
become  eventually,  when  completed,  the  cathedral 
church  of  a  future  diocese;  but  the  congregation  which 
worshiped  in  it  were,  neither  in  wealth  or  numbers, 
quite  strong  enough  to  bear  so  heavy  a  burden. 

But  the  young  and  brave-hearted  New  Haven  Rector 
saw  in  this  persistent  determination  to  "  fight  it  out  on 
that  line  "  which  actuated  the  members  of  the  parish  of 
the  Holy  Trinity,  the  possibilities  of  a  magnificent 
future;  and,  stipulating  that  the  debt  should  be  reduced 
$10,000  before  he  entered  upon  his  duties  among  them, 
he  threw  his  whole  heart  into  the  work  of  building  up 
the  parish.  The  cheerfulness  of  his  spirit,  the  rare 
courage  with  which  he  addressed  himself  to  his  work, 
the  halo  of  enthusiasm  with  which  he  surrounded  it,  as 
a  work  done  for  Christ,  and  the  eloquence  and  fervor  of 
his  preaching,  attracted  a  constantly-increasing  audience 
to  the  services  of  the  church.  There  were  yet  dark  days 
to  be  encountered.  The  financial  depression  of  1861 
and  1862  made  it  a  difficult  matter  to  raise  money  even 
for  the  payment  of  the  interest  on  the  still  heavy  debt; 
but,  when  a  time  of  greater  financial  prosperity  came, 
and  his  congregation  was  strengthened  by  the  addition 
of  numerous  men  of  wealth  and  generous  hearts,  he  re- 
newed his  efforts  to  throw  off  the  burden  of  debt  which 
had  so  long  crippled  the  energies  of  the  church.  In 
January,  1863,  $20,000  of  the  debt  was  paid,  and  the 
income  of  the  church  having  more  than  doubled,  and 
being  in  excess  of  the  amount  necessary  to  defray  the 
current  expenses.  Dr.  Littlejohn  proposed  the  establish- 
ment of  a  sinking  fund,  which  has  already  greatly  di- 
minished, and  will,  ere  long,  completely  obliterate  the 
original  debt.  Meantime,  fully  convinced  that' the  chari- 
ties which  began  at  home  should  not  end  there,  he  incul- 
cated both  by  precept  and  example,  that  wise  liberality, 
in  the  support  of  all  the  benevolent  institutions  of  the 
church,  which  should  demonstrate  that  they  did  not 
live  to  themselves  alone,  but  unto  Him  who  had  re- 
deemed them.  On  the  Western  frontier,  in  Bellevue,  Ne- 
braska, the  parish  of  the  Holy  Trinity  erected  a  church 
edifice  named  after  itself,  where  the  emigrants  from  our 
Eastern  States  could  worship  God  as  they  had  done  in 
the  land  of  their  fathers.  In  the  newer  portion  of  this 
city,  just  where  the  advancing  wave  of  population  has 
reached  its  shores,  on  Fulton  avenue,  near  Schenectady 
avenue,  it  has  established  a  Free  Chapel.  A  Classical  and 
Commercial  School  for  Boys,  with  religious  as  well  as 
secular  instruction,  has  been  established,  and  is  in  a  flour- 
ishing condition.  The  Church  Orphan  Asylum,  the  Home 
for  Aged  Women,  and  the  other  local  church  charities, 
and  the  Missionary,  Educational,  and  Church  Extension 


Societies,  have  received  largely  of  theirbounties  through 
all  these  years. 

Aside  from  the  engrossing  cares  of  his  large  parish, 
and  the  parochial  and  financial  duties  which  have  occu- 
pied him  there,  he  has,  from  his  first  coming  to  Brook- 
lyn, been  prominently  connected  with  the  missionary 
work  of  the  church,  as  a  member  of  the  Domestic  Com- 
mittee of  the  Board  of  Missions;  he  is,  likewise,  a  trus- 
tee of  St.  Stephen's  College,  and  of  the  General  Theo- 
logical Seminary  of  New  York;  a  member  of  the  Execu- 
tive Committee  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Freedmen's 
Commission;  a  director  of  the  Society  for  the  Increase 
of  the  Ministry;  a  member  of  the  Executive  Committee 
of  the  Sunday-school  Union  and  Church  Book  Society; 
a  director  of  the  Long  Island  Historical  Society;  Presi- 
dent of  the  Homes  for  the  Aged  and  Orphan  on  the 
Church  Charity  Foundation,  and  Vice-President  of  the 
Kings  County  Convocation  for  Church  Extension.  He 
has  also  been  a  frequent  contributor  to  the  American 
Quarterly  Church  Review,  and  has  reviewed  with  great 
ability  in  its  pages,  "  Sir  James  Stephens'  Lectures  on 
the  History  of  France,"  "  Cousin's  History  of  Modern 
Philosophy,"  "  The  Character  and  Writings  of  Cole- 
ridge," "  The  Poems  of  George  Herbert,"  and  "  Miss 
Beecher's  Bible  and  the  People."  He  has  also  published 
numerovis  occasional  discourses  and  addresses. 

In  1866,  Dr.  Littlejohn  laid  before  the  parish  his  pur- 
pose to  complete  the  Church  of  the  Holy  Trinity  with 
a  spire.  The  site  of  the  church  (on  the  Heights)  is  ele- 
vated about  64  feet  above  the  surface  of  the  bay.  He 
proposed  to  build  a  spire  of  stone  from  the  summit  of 
the  tower  already  erected,  to  a  height,  including  the 
metal  cross  with  which  it  should  terminate,  of  284  feet 
from  the  ground.  He  was  successful  in  raising  the  sum 
necessary  for  its  completion  ($55,000).  This  spire  is 
the  most  conspicuous  object  which  greets  the  eye  of 
the  voyager  as  he  comes  up  the  lower  bay,  and  is,  by  al- 
most a  hundred  feet,  higher  than  any  other  spire  in 
either  New  York  or  Brooklyn.  On  the  19th  of  Decem- 
ber, 1867,  commemorative  services  were  held  in  the 
Church  of  the  Holy  Trinity  on  the  occasion  of  the  com- 
pletion of  this  great  work.  In  connection  with  this  ser- 
vice, it  was  stated  that  the  contributions  of  the  parish 
to  benevolent  purposes  (including,  of  course,  the  church 
debt  and  the  spire),  during  Dr.  Littlejohn's  rectorship 
(of  somewhat  less  than  eight  years),  had  been  $260,000, 
and  that  there  had  been  in  that  time  680  communicants 
added  to  the  church. 

At  the  General  Convention  of  1869,  the  formation  of 
three  new  dioceses  in  New  York  was  authorized,  and 
they  were  organized  in  the  autumn  of  that  year.  Dr. 
Littlejohn  was  elected  Bishop  by  two  of  these,  that 
of  Central  New  York,  and  tiiat  of  Long  Island; 
but  chose  the  latter,  as  that  with  which  he  was  best  ac- 
quainted, and  in  which  he  could  be  most  useful.  His 
ordination  and  consecration  to  this  office  took  place  on 
the  2Tth  of  January,  1866. 


1014 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY 


In  the  fifteen  years  of  liis  Episcopato,  Bi.shop  Little- 
john  has  admitted  to  the  Communion  of  the  Church  in 
Confirmation,  nearly  20,000  persons;  has  ordained  to 
the  Diaconate  and  Priesthood  about  100  clergymen; 
has  consecrated  a  large  number  of  chifrches,  and  has 
established  throe  Diocesan  schools  of  high  grade,  over 
all  which  he  maintains  an  active  supervision.  Under 
his  administration  as  President  e.f-officio  of  the  Church 
Charity  Foundation,  St.  John's  Hospital  has  been 
built  at  a  cost  of  §120,000,  and  other  departments  of 
the  foundation  have  been  greatly  enlarged,  and  all  of 
them  strengthened  by  substantial  additions  to  the  per- 
manent endowments.  In  1872,  Bishop  Littlejohn  was 
appointed  Bishop  in  Charge  of  all  Protestant  Episcopal 
Churches  on  the  Continent  of  Europe.  This  appoint- 
ment he  has  held  ever  since,  thus  adding  to  his  work  in 
the  Diocese  of  Long  Island,  a  considei-able  jurisdiction 
abroad;  the  latter  requiring  an  official  visitation  every 
two  or  three  years.  In  1878,  he  attended  the  Lambeth 
Conferences,  held  in  Lambeth  Palace,  London.  One 
hundred  bishops,  from  all  parts  of  the  world,  were 
present,  and  the  sessions  were  under  the  Presidency  of 
the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury. 

In  1879-1880,  he  delivered  a  series  of  lectures  to  the 
clergy,  subsequently   published    in  a    volume  entitled 


"  Condones  ad  Clerum,"  which  has  now  reached  its 
third  edition.  In  November,  1880,  he  delivered  before 
the  University  of  Cambridge,  England,  a  series  of  dis- 
courses on  "Individualism,"  published  immediately 
after  at  the  University  Press.  In  acknowledgment  of 
this  service,  the  University  conferred  upon  him  the  de- 
gree of  LL.D.  During  the  spring  of  1  884,  the  Bishop 
delivered  a  course  of  lectures  at  the  General  Theologi- 
cal Seminary  of  New  York,  on  "  the  Cliristian  Ministry 
at  the  Close  of  the  Nineteenth  Century."  These  lec- 
tures are  now  in  the  press.  Besides  these,  the  Bishop 
has,  during  the  last  25  years,  contributed  many  elabor- 
ate articles  to  reviews  and  periodicals,  and  published 
many  addresses  and  charges  delivered  to  the  clergy  at 
the  Annual  Conventions  of  his  Diocese.  He  has,  for 
many  years,  acted  as  Chairman  of  the  Domestic  Com- 
mittee of  the  Board  of  Missions  of  the  P.  E.  Church, 
having  charge  of  Home  Missions  in  all  parts  of  the 
country. 

He  is  an  official  visitor  of  Ilobart  College,  Geneva, 
N.  Y.  ;  Trustee  of  St.  Stephen's  College,  Annandale, 
N.  Y.  ;  also  a  Trustee  of  Columbia  College,  in  the 
city  of  New  York,  and  ex-officio,  a  Trustee  of  the 
General  Theological  Seminary  in  New  York. 


REFORMED    EPISCOPAL    CHURCHES. 


Marcli  1st,  1874,  the  services  of  tlie  Reformed  Episcopal 
Church  were  inaugurated  in  Brooklyn  by  Rev.  W.  H.  Reid; 
Bishop  Geo.  David  Cummins,  D.  D.,  preaching  the  sermon. 
Since  that  time  Mr.  Reid  has  oi'ganized  three  churches  in  the 
cit)-,  all  iif  which  are  in  u  flourisliing  condition. 

The  Church  of  the  Atonement  (R.  E.)  was  organized  on 
the  19th  of  September,  1875,  with  160  members.  Its  first 
place  of  worship  was  a  haU  over  the  Kings  Co.  Bank,  corner 
of  Broadway  and  Fourth  sts.,  E.  D.  In  1878-9,  the  society 
erected  a  cliurch  building  of  brick,  with  Nova  Scotia  stone 
trimmings,  and  in  the  Romanesque  style,  on  the  corner  of 
Keap  st.  and  Marcy  ave. 

Rev.  W.  H.  Reid  was  the  first  Rector,  followed  by  the  Rev. 
Yelverton  Peyton  Morgan;  and,  in  1877.  by  Rev.  Y.  P.  Hunt- 


ington. On  April  Ki,  1882,  the  present  Pastor,  Rev.  William 
Henry  Barnes,  was  installed  as  Rector.  A  large  and  success- 
ful Sunday-school  is  attached  to  the  church. 

The  Church  of  the  Redemption  (R.  E.)  was  organized  at 
Greenpoint  in  1876,  by  Rev.  Mr.  Reid.  The  congregation 
hired  a  church  building  in  Java  st.,  from  a  Reformed  (Dutch) 
clmrch.  Rev.  F.  E.  Dager  became  i-ector.  The  society  are 
preparing  to  build  a  house  of  worshij). 

The  Church  of  the  Reconciliation  (R.  E. )  was  organized 
by  Rev.  W.  H.  Reid,  the  present  Rector,  December  16,  1877. 
Its  first  place  of  worship  was  the  old  South  Brooklyn  church, 
corner  of  Clinton  and  Amity  sts.  In  February.  1881,  the 
congregation  removed  to  a  church  edifice,  on  the  comer  of 
I  Gates  ave.  and  Irving  place. 


THE    SOCIETY    OF    FRIENDS. 


Friends'  Meeting  House. — The  Orthodox  Friends 
in  Brooklyn  have  their  place  of  worship  on  the  north- 
east corner  of  Lafayette  and  Washington  aves.  Their 
"  meeting  house  "  is  a  plain  three-story  brick  building, 
46   feet   in  width  by  77   feet  in  length,   fronting  on 


Lafayette  avenue.  It  was  built  in  1868,  the  ground, 
100  feet  square,  having  been  purchased  two  years 
before. 

The   main    room    of  the  first   story  is  used  by  the 
"  Bible  School,"  and  will  seat  250.     The  main  room  on 


ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1015 


second  floor  is  used  for  the  meetings  for  worship.  This 
room,  including  the  gallery,  will  seat  350,  and  the  par- 
lor on  the  third  floor,  100. 

The  Brooklyn  meeting  is  one  of  several  constituting 
"  New  York  Monthly  Meeting,"  to  which  this  property 
and  that  used  by  those  meetings  belong. 

The  Society  of  Friends  had  its  origin  in  England, 
between  1644  and  1664,  through  the  preaching  of 
George  Fox  and  his  coadjutors.  While  the  funda- 
mental principles  of  Christian  faith  are  held  by  them 
in  common  with  all  evangelical  denominations,   they 


entertain  certain  distinguishing  views.  They  believe 
the  practice  of  war  to  be  inconsistent  with  the  prin- 
ciples of  the  gospel,  and  that  Christ  enjoined  against 
all  oaths.  They  do  not  observe  the  outward  ordinances 
— water-baptism,  and  the  partaking  of  bread  and 
wine — believing  the  one  baptism  and  the  true  com- 
munion of  the  gospel  dispensation  to  be  spiritual. 
They  believe  that  the  Head  of  the  Church  bestows 
spiritual  gifts  freely,  without  distinction  of  sex,  and 
that  such  gifts  should  be  freely  exercised.  Many  of 
their  ministers  are  women. 


CONGREGATIONAL    CHURCHES. 


Independent  Congregational  Church. — ^On  the  18th 
of  Sept.,  1783,  an  "  Independent  Meeting  House"  was 
erected,  and  a  congregation  regularly  incorporated 
with  the  following  officers:  John  Matlock,  Pastor, 
and  George  Wall,  Assistant:  John  CarpcntiT,  Ticas.: 
George  Powers,  .S'ec;  William  Benton.  KN.Iicii  Stcath, 
Barnard  C'onlman,  John  Emer.y,  and  William  lliiisou, 
Trustees.  Tlieir  place  of  worship  stood  on  what  was 
the  old  Episcopal  burying  ground  in  Fulton  st.  Its 
members  disagreed  among  themselves,  and  the  build- 
ing finally  came  into  the  possession  of  some  Episco- 
palians worshiping  in  Brooklyn  under  the  care  of 
Rev.  Geo.  Wright,  and  it  was  consecrated  by  Bishop 
Provost.  Such  was  the  untimely  end  of  what  may  be 
called  the  first  Congregational  Clmrch  of  Brooklyn. 

The  Church  of  the  Pilgrims  (Henry  street,  corner 
of  Remsen)  was  organized  December  22d,  1844,  with 
71  members.  Arrangements  for  this  had  been  in 
progress  during  some  months.  The  corner-stone  of 
the  church  was  laid  July  2,  1844;  its  completion  was 
retarded  by  unforeseen  circumstances,  but  it  was 
dedicated  May  12th,  1846.  Its  cost,  first  estimated 
at  $25,000,  reached  $05,000. 

In  June,  1846,  Rov.  Richard  S.  Storrs,  Jr.,  received 
a  call  to  the  pastorate,  and  was  installed  in  the  fol- 
lowing November.  All  indebtedness  was  removed 
from  the  church  in  1848,  and  a  basis  for  permanent 
prosperity  secured.  In  1869.  an  addition  was  made 
to  the  building,  increasing  the  capacity  of  the  audi- 
ence-room to  1,300;  and  making  ample  arrange- 
ments for  Sunday-school,  committee  rooms,  etc. 

The  Navy  and  Warren  Street  Missions  were  largely 
aided  by  this  church.  The  last  was  removed,  in  1878, 
to  cor.  Henrv"  and  Degraw  sts.,  where  an  elegant 
chapel,  now  known  as  the  Pilgrim  Chapel,  in  the 
Italian  Gothic  style,  w-as  erected,  costing  P5,000,  and 
occupied  for  worship  Dec.  16,  1878.  Its  school  is 
emphatically  a  model  in  organization  and  equipments 
numbering  more  than  1,000. 

In  June,  1847,  nine  members  of  this  church  united 
with  others  m  the  formation  of  Plymouth  Church. 

The  church  has  been  peculiarly  fortunate  in  retain- 
ing Rev.  Dr.  Storrs  as  its  Pastor,  during  all  its  exis- 
tence thus  far. 


CHUllCH  UFIHL  IIK.KIM--    HENRY  bTHEET,  COR    REMSEN 


1016 


aiSTORY  OF  KINGS  COUA'TY. 


REV.    RICHARD    SALTER    STORRS,    D.  D.,    LL.  D. 

Pastor  of  the  Church  of  the  Piltirims. 


The  doctrine  of  Heredity,  as  a  factor  in  the  evolution  of 
Intellect,  and  as  largely  controlling  the  choice  of  a  man's 
profession  or  occupation,  finds  a  signal  example  in  the  ances- 
try of  this  eloquent  divine,  who,  in  his  own  person,  repre- 
sents the  fourth  generation  of  an  unbroken  line  of  Congre- 
gational ministers.  His  father,  the  late  Eev.  Richard  S.  Storrs, 
of  Braintree,  Mass.,  was  for  more  than  half  a  century  the 
honored  and  beloved  Pastor  of  the  Congregational  Church  of 
that  town.  His  grandfather,  also  the  Rev.  Richard  S.  Storrs, 
was  for  nearly  forty  yeai's  the  Pastor  of  the  Congregational 
Church  at  Long  Meadow,  Mass.  His  great-grandfather,  the 
Eev.  John  Ston-s,  was  fc>r  many  years  Pastor  of  the  Congre- 
gational Church  at  Southold,  L.  I.,  and  afterward  returned 
to  his  native  place,  Mansfield,  Conn.,  where  he  died. 

In  the  maternal  line  of  his  fathei's  ancestry.  Dr.  Storrs 
also  derives  from  the  Rev.  Richard  Mather,  the  first  Pastor 
of  the  Dorchester  (Mass.)  Church;  and  is  connected  with  the 
"Williams  and  Edwards  famdies,  both  eminent  in  the  minis- 
terial annals  of  New  England. 

Dr.  Storrs,  therefore,  may  well  claim  that  his  vocation  is 
a  hereditary  diadem. 

Richard  Salter  Storrs  was  born  in  Braintree,  Mass.,  in 
1821.  The  Adams  family  were  neighbors  of  his  parents,  and 
with  the  Quincys  and  John  Hancock,  helped  to  render  the 
historic  township  a  somewhat  famous  locality.  Young 
Storrs'  preliminary  education,  aside  from  that  which  he  re- 
ceived from  his  father's  tuition,  was  obtained  (1834-'5)  in  the 
then  quite  celebrated  Academy  at  Monson,  Mass.  Thence  he 
went  to  Amherst  College,  where  he  graduated  in  1839,  at  the 
age  of  eighteen,  and  the  youngest  member  of  his  class.  His 
first  choice  for  a  profession  was  the  law;  and,  with  that  pur- 
pose, he  studied  for  some  months  in  the  office  of  the  eloquent 
Rufus  Choate.  But  home  associations,  ancestral  bias,  and 
his  own  deepening  religious  convictions,  finally  turned  him 
into  the  paths  of  theological  study;  and,  in  1841,  he  entered 
Andover  Theological  Seminary.  Compelled,  after  a  tinie, 
bj'  ill  health,  to  suspend  his  studies,  he  accepted  a  tutorship 
in  Williston  Sejuinary,  at  East  Hampton,  Mass. ;  but  subse- 
quently resumed  his  course  at  Andover.  In  1845,  he  gradu- 
ated from  the  Seminary,  and  was  ordained  Pastor  over  a 
Congregational  Church  in  Brookline,  Mass.,  where  he  re- 
mained for  a  year.  Meanwhile,  in  1845,  he  married  Miss 
Marj-  Elwell  Jenks,  of  Andover. 

In  November,  1846,  at  the  age  of  twenty-five  years,  he 
came  to  Brooklyn,  and  was  installed  as  Pastor  of  the  Church 
of  the  Pilgrims,  the  pioneer  church  of  that  denomination  in 
this  cit}'.  And  in  this  congi-egation  his  whole  great  life-work 
has  been  accomplished.  Though  often  urged  to  accept  other 
important  charges,  he  has  preferred  to  remain  in  this  city, 
in  the  steady  performance  of  his  duties  towards  the  peojjle 
of  his  early  choice.  His  congregation,  as  is  well  known,  has 
for  many  years  been  numerous,  wealthy,  strongly  attached 
to  its  Pastor,  and  accustomed  to  devise  liberal  things.  Com- 
pri.sitig  a  membership  of  marked  intellectual  ability,  high  so- 
cial influence  and  financial  strength,  it  has— both  by  its  in- 
na  e  impulses,  and  by  the  direction  which  its  Pastor  has  given 
It— developed  the  characteristic  of  systetnativ  benevolence  to 
a  degree  not  often  attained  bj'  congregations.  Its  influence 
upon  the  growth  of  Congregationalism,  of  Missions,  of  Fiee- 


dom,  and  of  every  good  word  and  work,  has  ever  been  de- 
cided and  imquestioned. 

In  this,  the  Church  of  the  Pilgrims  but  reflects  the  wide 
sympathies,  the  catholicity  of  spirit  and  the  judicious  labors 
of  its  Pastor.  For  the  past  thirty-eight  years  he  has  repre- 
sented a  broad  and  unsectarian  Christianity,  and  has  been  to 
many  of  the  oldest  families  on  the  Heights  the  Pastor,  the 
moral  teacher  and  example  of  uudeviating  integrity,  no 
man's  enemy,  but  never  swerving  from  the  right  line  of  duty 
to  be  any  man's  friend.  Many,  baptised  by  him  in  infancy, 
have  been  married  by  him  m  their  days  of  love  and  gladness, 
and  commended  by  him  to  God's  mercy  in  the  hour  of  death. 
He  has  stood  by  the  graves  of  those  whose  cradles  were 
blessed  by  his  ministry.  Gray-headed  men  and  women  be- 
hold him  still  in  the  full  strength  of  his  manhood,  who  wel- 
comed him  when  a  mere  stripling  to  his  wow  famous  pulpit. 
One  can  hardly  conceive  of  a  church  with  such  a  name  hav- 
ing any  but  a  New  England  Pastor  ;  and  Dr.  Storrs  is  still  a 
New  England  man  to  the  backbone;  although  his  thoughts, 
like  other  men's,  have  been  "widened  with  the  process  of 
the  suns."  He  believes  to  this  day  in  the  ideal  of  the  Puri- 
tans, a  Commonwealth  based  on  Christianity,  not  less  than 
he  believes  in  the  distinctive  principle  of  Congx-egationahsm, 
that  "any  body  of  Christians,  associated  together,  and 
statedly  meeting  for  the  worship  of  God  and  the  administra- 
tion of  Christian  ordinances,  constitutes  a  Christian  church, 
is  to  be  regarded  as  such,  and  is  possessed  of  all  the  powers 
and  privileges  incident  thereunto."  Loving  New  England 
as  the  home  of  his  fathers  and  the  scene  of  his  early  life, 
while  others  traverse  the  seas  and  bring  back  the  gods 
of  other  lands  into  the  American  Pantheon,  Dr.  Storrs 
spends  his  summer  holidays  on  the  Island,  or  in  New  Eng- 
land. 

The  record  of  the  thirty-eight  years,  during  which  Dr. 
Storrs  has  filled  the  pulpit  of  this  church,  comprises  the  his- 
tory of  Brooklyn;  the  growth  of  its  churches,  libraries, 
schools  and  hospitals;  the  transformation  of  nearly  a  whole 
county  into  a  populous  city;  the  connecting  of  this  city 
with  the  great  metropolis  across  the  river,  by  a  magnificent 
bridge;  the  passing  away  of  an  old  era,  and  the  grafting  in 
of  new  life,  through  emigration  from  all  lands:  the  ebb  and 
flow  of  old  and  new  enterprises;  the  inception  and  success- 
ful foundation  of  literary,  artistic,  scientific  and  religious 
centres — which  all  go  to  make  up  a  great  city.  No  man  has 
more  thoroughly  inwoven  his  life  with  that  of  the  commu- 
nity in  which  he  dwells  than  Dr.  Storrs;  and  the  rounded 
l^eriods  of  his  golden  eloquence  have  added  the  crowning 
grace  to  most  of  the  events  of  civic  importance  which  have 
signalized  Brooklyn's  growth. 

He  has  been  a  Director  of  the  Long  Island  Historical 
Society  from  its  organization,  and  the  Chairman  of  its  Execu- 
tive Committee  until  his  going  to  Europe  in  1871.  Upon  his 
return,  in  1873,  he  was  elected  its  President,  which  oflice  he 
still  retains.  He  is  also  a  Trustee  of  the  Brooklyn  E^'e  and 
Ear  Hospital. 

His  oratorical  and  public  efforts,  in  spoken  as  well  as  writ- 
ten productions,  are  always  remarkable.  His  words  are 
felicitously  chosen;  his  imagery  grand  in  conception  and 
without  a  flaw;  his  diction  stately  and  polished,  yet  infused 


L-i^cy^  <^.-^    -^  ■ 


^ 


ECCLESIASTICAL    OR  GANIZA TIONS. 


1017 


with  energy  and  warmth.  For  a  peculiar  quality  of  sus- 
tained eloquence,  which  never  for  an  instant  forgets  the 
dignity  of  his  theme,  he  surpasses — in  the  opinion  of  the 
best  judges — any  living  orator.  Wherever  the  English  lan- 
guage is  spoken,  his  speeches  are  treasured  as  pearls  of 
price,  and  his  solid  attainments  in  literature,  as  well  as  his 
broad  sympathy  with  all  that  is  best  in  the  domains  of  Re- 
ligion, Art,  Science  and  Thought,  is  recognized. 

Dr.  Storrs'  contributions  to  literature — in  the  form  of  ser- 
mons, orations,  lectures,  etc.,  have  been  numerous  and  valua- 
ble ;  though  not,  as  yet,  collected  in  permanent  form.* 

That  his  sympathies  are  not  confined  to  the  circle  of  his 
own  denomination,  nor  even  of  Protestantism,  is  well  at- 
tested by  the  fact  that  so  great  a  Catholic  theologian  as  Car- 
dinal Newman  wrote  to  him  a  few  years  since,  in  connection 
with  an  address  on  Roman  Catholicism,  delivered  before  the 
Evangelical  Alliance  in  New  York,  by  Dr.  Storrs,  thanking 
him  for  his  kindly  spirit,  his  wish  to  be  impartial,  and  to  do 
generous  justice  to  Catholics;  and  asking  if  he  could  wonder 
that  so  many,  like  himself,  had  taken  refuge  in  Catholicism 
when  he  looked  at  the  endless  discords  of  Protestantism.  No 
higher  compliment  could  be  i^aid  to  one  of  Ihe  foremost  of 
Protestant  controversialists,  by  the  greatest  living  defender 
of  Roman  Catholicism,  than  such  acknowledgment  of  his 
learning,  candor  and  magnanimity. 

No  greater  evidence  of  the  appreciation  and  affection  in 
which  he  is  held  by  his  people,  and  the  community  in  which 
he  dwells,  could  be  found,  than  in  the  substantial  testimonial 
presented  to  Dr.  Storrs,  on  November  19,  1881,  on  the  com- 
pletitm  of  the  thirty-fifth  year  of  his  pastorate.  This  was  in 
the  form  of  a  certificate  of  deposit  for  $35,000  (being  $1,000 
for  each  successive  j'ear  of  his  ministry  among  them),  pre- 
sented to  him  by  the  members,  and  former  members,  of  his 
flock.  This  magnificent  gift  was  induced  by  no  necessity  in 
the  circumstances  of  the  revered  recipient  (who  has  alwajs 
enjoyed  an  ami>le  salary);  but  by  a  strong  sense,  on  their 
part,  of  the  obligations  under  which  his  parishioners  felt  to 
him,  for  his  life-long  services  to  them. 

In  the  few  pertinent  remarks  with  which  Dr.  Storrs  re- 
ceived this  touching  expression  of  love,  he  said: 

"  A  man  stands  pretty  much  on  his  own  feet  in  this  world, 
and  }'ou  and  I  understand  each  other;  we  have  always 
done  that  remarkably  well,  and  I  believe  we  do  now.  I  un- 
derstand perfectly  that  you  intend  me  to  receive  this  as  a 
means  of  utter  quietness  of  mind,  in  time  to  come,  concern- 
ing worldly  affairs,  as  a  fresh  inspiration  to  the  work  which 
I  have  tried  to  do  before,  and  which  I  shall  try  to  do  better 
and  better  as  long  as  I  live  among  you  ;  and  in  that  spirit 
and  with  that  feeling  I  accept  it,  certainly  with  heartfelt 

*  Among  those  which  have  been  published,  we  may  especially  men- 
tion:—A  Sermon,  delivered  before  his  own  congregation,  December, 
18ij0,  during  the  Fugitive  Slave  Law  agitation,  on  The  Obligation,  uf 
Man  to  Olitij  the  Civil  Law,  its  (Irouml  ami  Kxtcnt;  an  Address,  at  the 
Amherst  College  Commencement,  1852,  on  The  True  Succoss  of  Hninan 
Life;  an  Oration  at  the  Semi-Centeunial  of  Monson  Academy,  18.54,  on 
The  lielatioiin  iif  Commerce  to  Literature;  a  Discourse  before  the  So- 
ciety for  Promoting  Collegiate  Education,  Providence,  K.  I.,  1855,  on 
Colleges  (is  a  I'owcr  in  Cieilizeition;  Character  in  the  Preacher,  Theol. 
Seminary,  Andover,  185(i;  an  Oration  on  The  Puritan  Scheme  of  National 
Orou'th,  before  the  N.  Y.  New  Bng.  Soc,  1857;  Sermon,  The  Law  of 
Growth  in  the  Kingehtm  of  God,  Young  Men's  Chr.  Assoc,  1858;  **Things 
B7i  ich  are  Not  "—the  Imtruments  of  Advancing  Ood's  Kingdnm,  before 
the  Am.  Bd.  Com.  Foreign  Miss.,  1861;  The  Preaching  of  Christ  in 
CHto,  before  the  Y.  M.  Chris.  Assoc,  18M;  Orations  in  Commemora- 
tion of  President  Lincoln,  Brooklyn,  June  1, 1865,  and  at  the  unveiling 
of  the  Line.  In  Statue  In  Prospect  Park,  1869;  Discourse,  The  Aim  of 
Chriatianily,  for  those  who  Accept  it,  Princeton  Theol.  Sem,  1867;  Ser- 
mon before  the  Ancient  and  Hon.  Artillery  Co.  of  Boston.  1868;  Dis- 
course, Union  Theol.  Sem.,  1869,  The  Incarnation,  and  Hie  System  which 
Stands  upon  it;  Address  before  the  Evangelical  Alliance,  New  York, 


gladness  and  gratitude.  I  wiU  treasure  it;  I  will  try  to  use 
it  aright;  I  will  try  to  leave  it  to  those  who  come  after  me, 
that  they  may  also  remember  the  church  to  which  I  have 
ministered  so  long.  I  am  reminded  as  I  stand  in  these  rooms, 
which  have  sacred  and  tender  memories  connected  with 
them,  and  as  I  look  into  the  faces  of  some  here  present,  faces 
which  I  have  seen  wet  with  tears  and  clouded  with  agony, 
that  there  is  an  impulse  here  from  those  whom  we  do  not 
see  but  who  are  still  tenderly  beloved;  I  feel  that  there  is  a 
touch  of  celestial  hands  upon  this  gift.  It  comes  to  me  con- 
secrated by  most  holy  and  tender  memories  of  my  ministry 
among  you  in  the  thirty-live  years  that  have  passed.  I  shall 
speak  of  it  with  you,  by  and  by;  I  shall  speak  of  it  with  you 
again  when  we  reach  that  state  where  all  earthly  possessions 
have  ceased  to  be  of  interest  to  us,  but  where  the  affections 
that  we  have  cherished  toward  each  other  on  earth  shall  be 
consummated  and  made  immortal.  It  comes  to  me  with 
surprise,  when  I  think  of  it,  that,  with  the  single  exception 
of  a  clergyman  of  the  Episcopal  church  in  the  Eastern  Dis- 
trict, I  am  the  oldest  settled  pastor  in  Brooklyn  to-day.  And 
I  think,  with  the  single  exception  of  Dr.  Bellows  in  New 
York,  there  is  none  there  whose  pastoral  term  equals  my 
own.  I  pray  that  the  blessing  of  God  may  rest  upon  these 
clerical  brethren  present,  upon  the  churches  to  which  they 
minister,  upon  all  the  churches  of  our  land,  and  upon  the 
city  of  our  common  regard,  which  sweeps  out  so  widely  from 
year  to  year  that  it  has  grown  in  my  ministry  from  65,000 
to  600,000  inhabitants;  which  never  had  so  bright  a  future 
opening  before  it  as  it  has,  I  think,  at  this  very  hour.  I 
pray  that  God's  blessing  may  abide  upon  it.  I  cannot  hon- 
estly say  that  I  wish  I  was  again  35  years  old,  for  that  would 
be  to  blot  out  an  immense  amount  of  happiness,  at  home 
and  in  public,  and  of  joyful  work  and  service,  and  to  cut  me 
off  from  many  of  the  most  intimate  and  tenderest  attach- 
ments of  my  life;  but  I  can  honestly  say  that  if  I  were  35 
j'ears  old  again,  and  an  opportunity  were  given  me,  there  is 
no  city  in  the  country  to  which  I  would  go  so  soon  as  to 
Brooklyn,  and  there  is  no  church  in  the  country  to  which  I 
would  go  so  soon  as  to  the  Church  of  the  Pilgrims.  I  pray 
that  God's  blessing  may  rest  upon  it,  and  upon  the  city,  and 
upon  you  all,  and  upon  all  associated  with  us." 

As  a  minister  of  Christ,  as  a  citizen,  and  as  a  lover  of  his 
fellow-men,  it  may  be  truly  said  that  Dr.  Storrs,  in  hij  life- 
service  in  Brooklyn,  has  followed  the  injunction  contained 
in  the  verse  selected  by  him  as  the  text  (I  Corinthians,  iv.,  2) 
of  his  first  sermon  to  the  church  over  which  he  still  presides: 
"Moreover,  it  is  required  in  stewards,  that  a  man  be  found 
faithful." 

1873,  on  Tlic  Attractions  of  Eomanism  for  Educated  Protestants; 
Oration  before  the  New  York  Historical  Society,  1875,  The  Early 
American  Spirit,  and  the  Genesis  of  it;  Oration,  July  1, 1876,  in  New  York 
city.  The  iJcclaralion  of  Imli  i>i  ii<lnir, ,  and  tlir  Effect  ejf  it;  Oration  be- 
fore the  Phi  Beta  Kappa  S..<irl>,  Harvard  College,  1S80,  T/lc  AVTO(/ni- 
tionof  theSupcrnnhiral  ill  t.iil.rx  ami  Life;  John  Wiehlifre,  and  tlie 
First  English.  Bible,  New  York  Academy  of  Music,  1880.  Nor  must  we 
overlook  his  brilliant  address  at  the  opening  of  the  New  York  and 
Brooklyn  Bridge,  May,  1883;  or  his  addresses  before  the  Long  Island 
Hist.  Society,  on  Liln-aries  in  Europe  (without  notes),  and  upon  the 
Life  and  Services  of  Oen.  O.  M.  Mitchell,  neither  of  which  have  been 
published. 

Of  lectures.  Dr.  Storrs  has  delivered  several  courses;  in  1855,  one  of 
six,  on  the  Graham  Foundation,  on  The  Constitution  of  tlie  Human 
Soul;  two  on  Russia  and  France,  and  their  Long  Duel,  In  1878,  delivered 
In  Brooklyn,  New  York  and  Boston;  one,  of  eight  lectures,  before 
Princeton  Theol.  Sem.,  in  1879,  on  St.  Bernard.  His  Times  and  His  Work 
(to  be  published);  and  ten  lectures  on  the  Divine  Origin  of  Chris- 
tianity, Indicated  by  its  Historical  Effects,  before  the  Union  Theol. 
Sem.,  New  York,  and  the  Lowell  Institute,  Boston,  1880  (now  In  press). 

Dr.  Storrs  received  the  degree  of  D.  D.  from  Union  College  in  1853; 
from  Harvard  College  in  1859;  and  that  of  LL.  D.  from  Princeton  In 
1871. 


1018 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


The  Free  Congregational  Church  was  ccmstituteii  Juiil- 
16,  1845,  by  a  vote  ot  the  Free  Presbyterian  Church,  worship- 
ing on  the  comer  of  Tillary  and  Lawrence  streets,  by  which 
tliey  rejsolved  to  change  their  platform.  In  the  month  of 
September  they  gave  a  call  to  the  Rev.  Isaac  N.  Sprague,  of 
Hartford,  Conn.,  to  l>ecome  their  Pastor,  which  he  accepted. 
This  church  merged  in  the  organization  from  which  origin- 
ated the  State  Street  Congregational  Church. 

Plymouth  Church. — The  ground  upon  which  Plymouth 
Church  stands  was  purchased  in  1823,  for  tlie  erection  of  an 
edifice  for  the  use  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church.  At 
that  time  Brooklyn  Heights  were  cultivated  fields,  and  the 
church  thus  built  was  remote  from  the  settled  portion  of 
Brooklyn,  the  population  of  wliich  was  less  than  10,000.  A 
lecture-r<M)m,  including  a  Sabbath-school  room  and  stud}-, 
was  attached  to  the  rear  of  the  church,  fronting  Orange 
street,  in  1831. 


of  the  society.  June  14,  1847,  the  church  unanimously 
elected  Henry  Ward  Beecher  as  Pastor;  he  commenced  his 
pastorate  on  Sunday,  Oct.  10,  1847,  and  on  Thursday,  Nov. 
11,  was  imblicly  installed. 

The  church  was  so  damaged  by  fire,  Jan.  13,  1849,  that  it 
was  determined  to  rebuild,  which  was  done;  and  the  new 
edifice  was  first  occupied  in  January,  1850. 

It  is  noteworthy  that  when  the  congregation  were  deprived 
by  fire  of  their  place  of  worship,  the  church  buildings  of 
nearly  all  the  neighboring  societies  were  generously  offered, 
and  these  offers  were  gratefully  accepted  for  a  period  of 
two  months.  A  lot  on  Pierrepont  street  was  offered  for  the 
purpose,  by  Lewis  Tappan,  Esq.,  and  on  this  a  temporary 
liouse  of  worship  was  erected  in  the  short  space  of  thirty 
days.  Here  the  congregation  worshiped  till  the  completion 
of  their  new  edifice. 


PLYMOUTH    CHURCH. 


In  1846,  John  T.  Howard,  then  a  member  of  the  Church 
of  the  Pilgrims,  obtained  the  refusal  of  the  premises,  which 
were  for  sale,  at  the  price  of  .f  30,000,  and  the  contract  was 
completed  on  June  11,  1840.  The  purchase  money  (•1|!9,500, 
the  rest  Ijeing  on  mortgage)  was  furnished  by  Henry  C. 
Bowen,  Seth  B.  Hunt,  John  T.  Howard,  and  David  Hale, 
and  paid  on  Sept.  9, 1846.  The  first  meeting  of  those  interested 
in  the  establisliment  of  this  church,  was  held  at  the  house 
of  Henry  C.  Bowen,  May  9,  18.57,  and  was  attendetl  by  David 
Hale,  of  New  York,  Jira  Payne,  John  T.  Howard,  Charles 
Rowland,  David  Griffin,  and  Heniy  C.  Bowen,  of  Brooklyn. 
On  Sunday  morning.  May  16,  1847,  divine  service  was  com- 
menced by  Rev.  Henry  Ward  Beecher,  then  Pastor  of  the 
Second  Presbyterian  Church  in  Indianapolis. 

On  Friday  evening,  June  11,  1847,  twenty-one  persons 
united  in  the  formation  of  the  new  church.  On  Si^nday 
evening,  June  13,  1847,  the  church  was  publicly  organized, 
and  r/te  Plymouth  Church  was  adopted  as  the  corjMrate  name 


The  church  building  is  105  feet  long,  80  feet  broad,  and  43 
feet  from  floor  to  ceiling;  seating  in  the  pews  and  choir  gallery 
about  3,100  persons;  while,  with  the  seats  by  the  walls  and  in 
the  aisles,  it  accommodates  about  3,800.  There  has  never  been 
the  least  cause  for  regret  that  the  building  was  made  so  large. 

Until  1857,  visitors  were  provided  with  ordinary  chairs  or 
stools  in  the  aisles.  But,  in  that  year,  the  present  fixcil  aisle 
seats,  attached  to  the  pews,  were  invented  and  introduced 
into  the  church. 

The  lecture-room,  built  at  the  same  time,  was  80  by  50  feet 
on  the  outside:  with  a  school-room  above  it,  64  by  34  feet, 
and  parlors  of  the  same  size  for  the  social  circle.  In  1859, 
these  parlors  were  added  to  the  schoolroom  ;  but,  even  then, 
the  accommodations  were  so  deficient  that,  in  1862,  an  en- 
tirely new  lecture-room  and  school-room  were  erected.  A 
new  organ  was  i)urchased  for  the  church  in  1866,  at  an  ex- 
jieuse  of  123,000.  Kev.  Mr.  Beeclier  has  continued  in  the 
pastorate  until  the  present  time. 


ECCLESIASTICAL   ORGANIZATIONS. 


1019 


REV.    HENRY    WARD    BEECHER. 


Rev.  Henuy  Ward  Beecher. — Although  Brooklyn 
ranks  but  third  among  the  cities  of  the  Union  in  point 
of  population,  for  many  years  the  "  City  of  Churches  " 
has  stood  indisputably  first  in  respect  to  pulpit  talent. 
The  fame  of  her  great  preachers  has  spread  over  the 
civilized  world.  Among  her  galaxy  of  brilliant  names, 
one  of  the  first,  brightest  and  farthest-shining  is  that 
of  Rev.  Henry  Ward  Beecher.  For  forty  years, 
Sunday  after  Sunday,  year  after  year,  eager  thousands 
have  crowded  the  streets  leading  to  the  plain  brick  edi- 
fice, Plymouth  Church.  Within,  arose  and  stood 
upon  the  platform  the  imposing  form  of  a  man,  tall 
and  erect,  inclining  to  be  stout;  with  hair  pushed 
plainly  back,  once  dark  brown,  now  silvery- white;  a 
full,  smooth  face  that  is  gentle  and  peaceful  in  repose, 
but  mobile,  varying  with  every  emotion;  a  mild  blue 
eye  that  will  never  grow  old,  that  shines  with  love, 
flashes  with  scorn,  dances  with  merriment  or  dilates 
witfe  feeling,  even  as  the  mountain  lake  mirrors  the 
sunshine,  the  cloud  or  the  storm.  Such  the  figure  of 
Henry  Ward  Beecher,  familiar  to  thousands;  such  the 
face,  now  mellowed  by  the  softening  infiuences  of  time, 
from  which  the  man's  soul  speaks  out  his  love  of 
humanity,  of  justice  and  of  God. 

Litchfield,  Conn.,  the  ancestral  home  of  the  Beechers, 
was  the  place  of  his  birth,  which  occurred  June  24th, 
1813.  He  was  the  third  son  of  Rev.  Lyman  Beecher, 
who  occupied  the  pulpit  of  the  Congregational  Church 
there,  and  was  afterwards  president  of  Lane  Theologi- 
cal Seminary,  near  Cincinnati,  a  famous  man  in  his 
time. 

The  child  of  parents  eminent  for  godliness,  brought  up 
in  a  family  who  were  the  creatures  of  an  atmosphere 
as  unworldly,  as  religious  as  not  often  comes  into  the 
world.  The  fact  of  his  being  a  minister  was  settled 
from  his  birth,  and  under  this  impression  of  destiny  he 
grew  up.  Accordingly,  he  was  sent  to  Amherst 
College,  graduating  in  1834,  and  then  studied  theology 
under  his  father,  in  Lane  Theological  Seminarj'. 

A  sensitive,  blundering,  imaginative,  good-natured, 
mischievous,  unstudious  boy,  he  represents  himself  to 
have  been ;  but  his  sight  must  have  been  quick  for  nature, 
whether  in  the  fields  and  woods,  or  after  birds  and  ani- 
mals, or  among  his  fellows.  His  school  and  college 
days  did  not  seem  to  be  notable  for  anything,  save  that 
at  college  he  paid  especial  attention  to  the  arts  of  elo- 
cution. That  Mr.  Beecher  is  an  easy  master  of  these 
arts  is  patent  to  every  one  who  has  heard  him  speak; 
though  it  may  be  said,  in  passing,  that,  favorite  as  he 
is  on  lecture  platforms  all  over  the  land,  he  is  never 
heard  at  his  best  out  of  Plymouth  Church,  his  own 
pulpit-platform;  and  the  lofty  themes  which  he  there 


treats,  inspire  him  and  fill  him  with  a  power  over  his 
three  thousand  auditors  that  he  gets  and  gives  nowhere 
else. 

His  first  charge  was  a  little  Presbyterian  church  at 
Lawrenceburgh,  Ind.,  where  he  eked  out  the  scant 
salary  by  tilling  a  farm,  remaining  from  1837  to  1839. 
In  the  latter  year,  he  settled  in  Indianapolis.  There 
was  a  more  suitable  field  for  the  abilities  which  had 
already  manifested  themselves  in  the  young  minister, 
so  that  he  came  to  be  heard  of  in  other  States.  Mean- 
while he  had  tried  his  hand  at  editing,  first  a  journal  in 
Cincinnati,  in  1837,  and  a  few  years  later,  an  agricul- 
tural publication  in  Indianapolis;  his  articles  in  the 
latter  were  afterwards  published  as  "  Fruit,  Flowers 
and  Farming." 

In  1847  he  was  in  New  York,  speaking  at  meetings 
in  behalf  of  the  American  Home  Missionary  Society, 
and  was  invited  to  preach.  May  17tli,  for  the  newly  or- 
ganized Plymouth  Church  in  Brooklyn,  which  he  did, 
both  morning  and  evening.  At  the  close  of  the  services, 
the  church  felt  that  their  future  Pastor  had  been  thus 
providentially  sent  them,  and  unanimously  elected  him 
to  that  office  June  14th,  1847.  He  accepted,  and  com- 
menced his  pastorate  Sunday,  October  10th,  1847.  As 
soon  as  he  came  to  Brooklyn,  he  began  to  wi'ite  for  the 
Independent,  and  was  its  editor  from  1861  to  1863. 
His  signature — a  star — made  the  title  for  a  volume 
called  the  "Star  Papers."  From  1870  to  1880,  he  was 
the  editor  of  the  Christian  Union.  For  twenty-five 
years  his  sermons  have  been  printed  in  the  Plymouth 
Pulpit.  He  is  the  author  of  "  Lectures  to  Young 
Men,"  "  Life  Thoughts,"  "  Yale  Lectures  on  Preach- 
ing," "  Industry  and  Idleness,"  "  Sermons  on  Liberty 
and  War,"  "  Eyes  and  Ears,"  "  Norwood,"  "  Plymouth 
Hymns  and  Tunes,"  and  many  fugitive  pieces. 

Mr.  Beecher  is  a  rapid  but  not  easy  writer.  He  com- 
plains that  he  feels  the  bondage  of  the  pen,  and  never 
can  evolve  his  thoughts  so  clearly  or  so  well  on  paper 
as  he  can  when  "  thinking  on  his  legs."  But  he  does  a 
vast  deal  of  writing  for  all  that,  and  there  are  few  men 
who  have  so  large  an  amount  of  current  printed  matter 
constantly  setting  forth  the  labors  of  their  minds.  He 
preaches  every  Sunday  two  sermons,  which,  not  written 
out,  but  thought  out  m  his  study,  come  fresh  and  alive 
from  his  lips,  and  are  phonographically  reported  for 
publication,  week  by  week,  in  Plymouth  Pulpit.  This 
would  be  a  tremendous  test  of  the  fruitfulness  of  any 
man's  mind  in  extempore  talk,  and  yet  the  test  is  tri- 
umphantly borne — witness  the  thousands  who  hear 
him,  and  the  many  other  thousands  who  read  him 
thrmighout  America,  England,  and  the  islands  of  the 
sea.     But  he  also  has  his  Friday  night  prayer-meeting 


1020 


HISTORY  01  KINGS  COUNTY. 


to  lead,  at  which  his  familiar  "  lecture-room  talks  "  on 
themes  of  Christian  experience  bring  immediate  help  to 
man}';  and  these  again  are  taken  down  as  they  issue 
from  his  mouth. 

Such  abundance  can  not  come  from  any  mind  or 
any  genius,  however  great,  unless  it  be  one  stored  with 
great  wealth  of  material  from  without.  This  is  Mr. 
Beecher's  case,  however;  for  in  addition  to  his  constant 
and  careful  study  of  mankind  and  the  affairs  of  the 
world,  he  is  an  omnivorous  reader  of  good  books,  and 
has  an  ever-growing  library  of  the  best  literature  in 
every  possible  direction.  He  is  a  great  lover  of  art, 
and  has,  besides  books  and  histories  in  that  department, 
a  choice  collection  of  paintings  and  engravings.  His 
love  of  flowers  and  out-door  nature  finds  food  on  his 
little  model  farm  at  Peekskill,  N.  Y.  And  indeed, 
whatever  is  the  realm  from  which  he  draws  an  illustra- 
tion, it  will  generally  be  found  that  he  knows  what  he 
is  talking  about,  and  lias  learned  it  by  observation  or 
study.  He  is  not  a  superficial  talker  or  thinker;  he  goes 
to  the  roots  of  things. 

His  early  labors  and  an  experience  of  severe  poverty, 
}irivation,  and  double  work  of  farming  and  preaching 
during  ten  years  in  the  West,  developed  in  him  very 
fully  the  natural  courage,  toughness  of  backbone  (both 
physical  and  moral),  independence  of  opinion  and  free- 
dom of  utterance  that  have  characterised  his  more  emi- 
nent years.  Since  the  day  when,  in  1847,  he  came  to 
be  Pastor  of  the  newly-formed  "  Plymouth  Church  " 
in  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  he  has  been  a  living,  growing 
power  in  the  land.  The  pulpit,  the  press,  the  lecture- 
platform,  the  political  arena,  the  social  gatherings  of 
public  bodies,  the  focal  points  of  all  great  developments 
of  public  sympathy  or  discussion  or  action,  have  been 
made  not  only  brilliant  with  his  genius,  but  hot  with 
the  ardor  of  his  earnestness. 

The  foundation  principle  of  Mr.  Beecher's  public  ca- 
reer seems  to  be  the  worth  of  man,  as  a  beloved  child  of 
God  j  he  believes  that  this  earth,  with  all  its  human  in- 
stitutions, its  civilizations,  its  states,  its  ecclesiastical 
organizations  and  their  forms  of  ordinances,  were  made 
and  developed  by  God /or  man,  to  serve  as  man's  edu- 
cators, as  instruments  of  man's  instruction,  and  eleva- 
tion— not  necessarily  that  man  may  be  "  happy  "  here, 
but  that  he  may  be  fitted  to  live  and  work  for  God  after 
he  had  left  this  little  school-house,  which,  like  the  lesser 
school-house  of  the  boy,  seems  the  all-important  thing 
just  now. 

Seeking  always  the  best  means  of  inspiring  individ- 
ual men  to  train  themselves  toward  the  perfect  man- 
hood set  forth  in  the  example  of  Jesus  Christ,  Mr. 
Beecher  is  peculiar  among  preachers  for  his  eager  fol- 
lowing up  of  the  scientific  developments  of  the  day; 
promptly  accepting  such  portions  or  principles  of 
science  as  seem  to  him  fairly  established  by  investiga- 
tors, and  making  good  use  of  them  in  his  philosophy 
and  teaching.     He  finds  no  danger  in  the  general  line 


of  reasoning  based  on  the  observations  of  believers  in 
the  theories  of  development  of  higher  forms  of  life  out 
of  lower  forms;  because  the  two  gaps  which  the  ma- 
terialists do  not  bridge, — the  change  from  mineral  to 
vegetable,  and  from  vegetable  to  animal  life,  and  still 
more  notably  the  introduction  of  the  soul  into  the  high- 
est type  of  animal,  man, — these  chasms,  impassable 
to  the  careful  foot  of  science,  are  crossed  by  him  with 
the  clear-seeing  eye  of  faith,  which  discerns  the  Creator 
there.  And  so,  using  the  real  advances  of  science  as 
steps  over  which  he  is  constantly  leading  his  people,  he 
devotes  an  unusual  amount  of  attention  to  expounding 
the  intimate  connection  of  the  material  and  spiritual 
realms  as  different  parts  of  the  same  universe.  A  favor- 
ite quotation  of  his  is  the  thirteenth  verse  of  the  fourth 
chapter  of  Ephesians,  which  indeed  seems  a  fair  epito- 
me of  the  aim  of  his  teaching:  "Till  we  all  come  in 
the  unity  of  the  faith,  and  of  the  knowledge  of  the  Son 
of  God,  unto  a  perfect  man,  unto  the  measure  of  the 
stature  of  the  fullness  of  Christ."  To  him,  religion  is 
the  science  ofgroioth  unto  perfect  manhood. 

It  is  apparently  with  this  idea  in  mind  that  Mr. 
Beecher  gives  so  much  time  and  effort  to  preaching 
about  morality,  how  to  live,  how  to  work,  how  to  treat 
one's  neighbors,  how  to  act  in  relation  to  questions  of 
great  public  interest  ("  politics  "  as  it  is  called),  how  to 
regulate  and  use  in  their  proper  way  the  passions 
(which,  he  says,  are  the  steam-power  and  effective- 
ness of  life  if  rightly  and  naturally  made  use 
of),  how  to  get  out  of  bad  habits  and  into  good 
ones — how,  in  short,  to  apply  to  practical  every- 
day life  the  truths  of  God's  word  and  God's  uni- 
verse. These  topics  share  his  attention  with  such 
higher  themes  as  prayer,  "  the  preciousness  of  Christ," 
"  the  hidden  life,"  "the  power  of  love,"  "human  ideas 
of  God,"  "the  way  of  coming  to  Christ" — titles  which 
we  find  in  the  contents  of  the  second  series  of  his  Ply- 
mouth Palpit  sermons;  yet  all,  even  of  these,  embrace 
and  enfold  the  same  characteristic  central  idea,  that 
the  tohole  of  man  is  to  be  trained,  that  from  the  physi- 
cal he  may  grow  to  the  enjoyment  and  use  successively 
of  his  affectional,  social,  intellectual,  moral,  and,  lastly, 
spiritual  manhood. 

The  central  idea  of  his  whole  career  as  a  public 
speaker  and  writer  seems  to  be  the  incitement  of  men 
to  self-government  and  to  the  trainmg  of  their  whole 
nature,  by  the  help  of  faith  and  love  in  Christ  Jesus, 
toward  the  perfect  manhood  of  immortality  with  God. 

On  all  public  questions  Mr.  Beecher's  voice,  through 
his  whole  career,  has  given  forth  no  uncertain  sound; 
it  was  lifted  up  against  the  curse  of  slavery;  in  favor  of 
the  maintenance  of  the  Union;  in  behalf  of  the  home- 
less veterans  of  this  State;  in  support  of  the  temperance 
cause;  to  aid  reform  in  politics  and  governmental 
policy.  From  all  the  land  the  eyes  of  men  have  turned 
to  him  as  to  a  leader,  and  his  influence  has  moulded 
public  opinion  as  perhaps  few  others  has  done. 


Ret.    HENKT  ward   BBBCHEB. 


1 


ECCLESIASTICAL    OR  GANIZA  TIONS. 


1021 


No  sketch  of  Mr.  Beecher's  life  would  be  complete 
without  mention  of  his  visit  to  England  in  1863.  His 
public  addresses  there  enlightened  the  English  people 
as  to  the  real  issues  and  principles  at  stake  in  our  civil 
struggle,  and  helped  powerfully  to  turn  the  tide  of 
popular  feeling  there  against  the  recognition  of  the 
Confederacy  as  a  belligerent  power.  In  so  doing,  he 
incurred  obloquy,  even  danger  of  personal  violence;  but 
his  voice  rang  as  clear  in  defense  of  the  Union  as  it  had 
in  his  own  country.  For  years  he  had  pleaded  from 
pulpit,  platform  and  press  for  the  liberation  of  the 
slave,  in  the  days  when  to  be  an  abolitionist  was  to  be 
an  outcast.  His  denunciations  of  intemperance  and 
the  traffic  in  strong  drink  have  grown  with  his  growth, 
and  strengthened  with  his  strength. 

On  the  celebration  of  his  seventieth  birthday,  June 
25,  1883,  the  love  and  respect  which  his  fellow-citizens 
entertained  for  Mr.  Beecher,  led  to  a  great  popular 
gathering  at  the  Academy  of  Music,  with  addresses 
of  congratulation  from  prominent  citizens,  and  letters 
of  like  tenor  from  eminent  men  in  all  parts  of  the  land. 
No  better  rhum'c  of  his  life  can  be  given  than  from  his 
own  words  on  that  occasion: 

"  The  inspiration  which  has  made  the  force  of  my 
whole  life  I  found  in  a  vision  of  the  love  of  God  in 
Jesus  Christ.  It  has  grown  larger  and  larger  with  the 
sympathy  which  is  natural  to  my  constitution,  compas- 
sion of  God,  manifestations  of  God  in  Jesus  C!hrist,  that 
side  of  God  which  is  great,  holy,  beautiful,  showing 
Him  to  have  compassion  on  the  ignorant,  and  on  them 
that  are  out  of  the  way.  I  have  tried  to  have  compas 
sion  like  Christ.  The  less  worthy  the  object,  the  iik.iv 
it  was  needed.  I  went  right  upon  the  side  of  the  duinii 
and  needy,  without  consideration.  I  think  it  most  he- 
roic for  a  man  with  standing  and  inliuence  and  ability 
to  give  himself  to  them.  I  thank  God  I  had  a  desire 
to  work  for  His  glory,  when  to  do  it  was  to  earn  scoff- 
ings  and  abuse  and  threats.  When  Kossuth  brought 
Hungary  to  us,  my  soul  burned.  The  wrongs  of 
Greece  made  my  heart  kindle.  Nearly  all  the  nations 
of  the  world,  all  under  the  sword  of  the  soldier  or  the 
ban  of  harsh  governments,  have  aroused  my  sympathy 
and  effort.  I  did  not  go  into  these  because  they  were 
humanities  or  specious  philosophies,  but  because  it  was 
Christian,  that's  all.  I  did  it  for  humanity  because  I 
loved  Christ.  In  my  preaching  it  has  been  the  same. 
I  have  attacked  governments,  institutions,  anything; 
never  a  denomination  or  a  body  of  ministers.  I  have 
preached  against  the  principles"  involved  in  all,  and  in 
my  own  denomination  as  much  as  in  others.  I  have 
preached  for  the  deliverance  of  souls,  for  clearer  light, 
for  a  plainer  path,  that  the  stumbling  blocks  might  be 
removed.  These  things  I  have  ciianged  in,  only  to 
grow  more  intense  and  emphatic  :  first,  the  universal 
sinfulness  of  mankind,  so  that  it  is  necessary  every- 
where for  men  to  be  born  again  by  the  Spirit,  necessai-y 
for  a  lift  to  be  given  to  human  nature  above  its  animal 
nature,  and  this  only  by  the  Spirit  of  God  ;  second,  I 
believe  in  conversion  and  the  effectual  influence  of 
the  Spirit  of  God;  third,  I  believe  with  ever-growing 
strength  in  the  love  of  God  in  Jesus  Christ.  I  know 
that  Christ  loves  me,  and  that  I  shall  go  where  He  is. 
By  grace  am  I  saved,  say  I.     Tlie  feeling  has  grown  in 


my  later  years,  and  when  under  great  pressure  and  sor- 
row, that  raised  a  strong  sea,  my  strength  and  courage 
all  came  from  this  view— Christ  loves  me,  He  will  hide 
me  in  His  pavilion  till  the  storm  is  passed.  The  sweet- 
ness of  life  is  as  much  dependent  on  the  love  of  Christ 
as  the  landscape  is  on  the  sun  to  bring  out  its  lights 
and  shadows.  I  never  believed  so  much  in  the  Gospel 
as  to-day.  My  faith  in  it  has  never  been  shaken,  ex- 
cept in  the  ideals.  I  was  never  so  sure  as  now  of  its 
truth." 


Since  1868,  Rev.  S.  B.  Hallidat  has  been  Assistant  Pastor. 
He  was  born  in  Morristown,  N.  J.,  1812  ;  was  Pastor  of 
Cong].  Cb.  at  Lodi,  N.  Y.;  author  of  LittU  Street  Sweeperss, 
Winning  Souls,  etc. 


f  "*  I  ^I^Il^  11  ^ 


lyiiilF^tS^^ 


PLYMOUTH   CHURCH    BETHEL. 

Plymouth  Church  Bethel,  No.  15  Hicks  st.  The  Bethel 
Mission  Sabbalh-SeliOdl  was  started  in  1841  by  Captain  A.  B. 
Clark  and  a  Jlr.  Wadsworth,  on  Main  st.,  near  Catharine 
ferry,  iu  a  former  stable,  which  was  fitted  up  for  mission  pur- 
poses. The  Superintendents  were,  in  succession,  John  P. 
Ehvell,  Albert  Woodruff,  Richard  J.  Thorne,  Mr.  Anderson, 
I.  N.  Judson,  Rev.  G.  W.  Coan,  afterward  Missionary  at 
Cromaish,  Persia,  J.  P.  Montgomery,  Andrew  A.  Smitli,  H. 
W.  Law,  S.  R.  Stone,  M.  T.  Lynch,  R.  S.  Bussing,  Thos.  H. 
Bird,  George  A.  Bell,  Thos.  J.  Tilney,  I.  S.  Signer,^  J.  H. 
Loyd,  L.  W.  Manchester,  and  the  present  Superintendent,  C. 
S.  Van  Wagoner. 

In  1855,  a  room  over  tlie  Market,  on  James  st  ,  was  leased; 
in  1858,  the  Mission  removed  to  Poplar  Hall,  on  Poplar  st., 
and,  in  1859.  to  rooms  on  Fulton  st.,  opposite  Front.  In  July, 
1866.  the  Mission  was  taken  under  the  auspices  of  Plymouth 
Church;  and,  in  1867-68,  the  Bethel  was  erected,  at  a  cost, 
including  ground,  building  and  furniture,  of  about  $75,000. 
Mr.  Geo.  Bell  was  particularly  active  in  the  building  project, 
and  to  him  much  of  its  success  was  due. 

The  new  building  was  first  occupied  in  October,  1808.  It 
is  entirely  fiee  from  incumbrance.     The  Mission  has  a  fine 


1022 


HISTORY  OF  KIN  on  COUNTY. 


reading-room,  well  supplied  witli  the  leading  papers  and 
m.-iKazinos,  and  an  I'XocUent  library. 

Warren  Street  Mission  Church. — In  l,S4i5  or  'AQi,  a  Mission 
Sunday-school  was  commenced  in  Freeman's  Hall,  corner  of 
Amity  and  Columbia  sts.,  South  Brooklyn;  and,  in  18o3,  a  few 
benevolent  and  enterprising  Christian  gentlemen,  prominent 
among  whom  were  Messrs.  Albert  Woodruff,  R.  W.  Ropes, 
and  A.  V.  Wheelock,  purchased  three  lots  of  ground  on 
Warren  st..  between  Hicks  and  Columbia  sts.,  on  which  they 
commenced  the  erection  of  a  neat  and  commodious  chapel, 
capaljle  of  accommodating  from  400  to  500  i)ersons.  In  order 
to  enable  them  to  hold  the  property,  these  gentlemen,  on  the 
1st  of  February,  1853,  effected  a  legal  organization,  assuming 
the  name  of  the  Warren  Street  Mission.  The  building, 
wliich,  together  with  the  lots,  cost  about  $9,000,  was  finished 
in  November,  1S53,  free  of  all  debt.  On  March  20,  1854,  a 
church  of  thirty  persons  was  formed.  Rev.  Samuel  Bayliss 
was  first  Pastor;  followed,  in  1866,  by  Rev.  J.  Emory  Round. 
The  church  prospered;  a  new  church  building  was  erected  at 
thecornev  of  Henry  and  Degraw  sts.,  in  1878.  Rev.  J.  Os- 
trander  is  Pastor. 

The  Clinton  Avenue  Congregational  Church,  Clinton  ave., 
corner  of  Lafayette  ave.,  was  org.  Nov.  18,  1847.  Its  first 
years  were  full  of  discouragement;  but  the  energy  of  its 
founders,  and  of  its  first  Pastor,  Rev.  Dii'ck  C.  Lansing,  D.D. 
(installed  in  March,  1848),  were  crowned  with  success. 
August  4.  1S14.  ground  was  broken  for  the  erection  of  a 
large  and  commodious  edifice  on  the  corner  of  Clinton  and 
Lafayette  aves.  On  the  34th  of  October,  in  that  year,  the 
corner-stone  was  laid,  and  the  main  building  completed  and 
dedicated  in  December,  1855  ;  the  chapel  adjoining  being  fin- 
ished in  September,  1856.  The  cost  of  this  spacious  and 
beautiful  edifice,  which  is  of  the  Romanesque  style  of  archi- 
tecture, including  ground,  was  about  IfGO  000:  and  it  occupies 
a  prominent  position  in  one  of  the  finest  and  best  liuilt 
neighborhoods  of  Brooklyn. 

The  Rev.  Dr.  Lansing  resigned  in  December,  1855;  and  was 
succeeded,  Dec.  19,  1855,  by  Rev.  Wm.  Ives  Budington, 
D.D,  who  had,  for  some  time  previous,  discharged  the 
principal  dvities  of  the  pastorate. 

The  present  Pastor,  Rev.  Thomas  B.  McLeod,  commenced 
his  m'inistry  December  31,  1879,  and  was  installed  January 
20.  1880. 

Tlie  church  has  established  two  Mission  Schools;  one  on  the 
corner  of  Atlantic  and  Grand  aves.,  and  another,  originally 
located  on  Myrtle  ave.,  comer  of  Steuben  st.,  but  afterward 
on  Grand  ave  ,  south  of  Myrtle. 

The  Mount  Prospect  Mission  Sabbath-School  was  org. 
July  4,  1852,  by  Rev.  Harvey  Newconibe,  at  an  open-air 
jueeting  of  children  and  others,  under  a  tree  on  the  corner 
of  Pacific  St.  and  Vanderbilt  ave.  A  small  dilapidated 
garret  room  was  hired,  and  on  the  apjiointed  Sabbath  about 
ninety  children  met  there.  The  next  week,  a  milk  stable 
and  two  lots  of  ground  on  the  north  side  of  Dean  street, 
lietween  Vanderbilt  and  Underbill  aves.,  were  bought  of  Mr. 
S.  B.  Walters.  Silas  Davenport  was  elected  the  first  .super- 
intendent, succeeded  by  A.  S.  Barnes  in  1853,  and  S.  E.  W.ar- 
nerin  1855.  The  school  occupied  the  premises  in  Dean  street 
till  September,  1859,  when  the  uncomfortable  building  became 
too  straitened  for  the  purposes  of  the  school,  and  the  school- 
house  of  the  Hope  Union.  Mission  (commenced  almost  simul- 
taneously with  the  Mt.  Prospect  Mission,  but  located  in  an 
adjoining  neighborhood,  known  as  Jackson's  Hollow),  in 
Van  Buren  st.,  having  been  destroyed  by  fire,  June,  1858,  it 
was  thought  desirable  to  unite  the  two  schools,  for  the  piir- 
pose  of  building  \ip  a  still  more  prosperous  enterprise  in  that 
part  of  the  city.     Accordingly,  a  desirable  lot,  60  by  95  feet. 


was  purchased  on  the  south-west  corner  of  Atlantic  ave.  and 
Grand  ave.,  on  which  a  two-story  building,  40  Ijy  65,  was 
erected,  at  a  cost,  including  the  furniture,  of  .$8,389,  designed 
to  be  occupied  jointly  liy  the  United  Sabbath-school  and  the 
Mount  ProsjM'i-f  Intlustrial  School  (opened  Nov.  10,  1857),  the 
upper  floor  being  fitted  for  a  Sal)bath-school,  and  the- lower 
floor  for  the  week-day  exercises  of  the  Industrial  School. 
The  building  was  dedicated,  with  appropriate  exercises,  Sept. 
18,  18.59. 

The  name  of  the  united  schools  was  changed  to  the  Atlan- 
tic Ave.  Sabbath-School  org.  Sept.  24,  and  Mr.  S.  E,  Warner 
was  elected  superintendent,  and  Alfred  Wicks,  Sec.  A  Miss. 
Soc.  was  org.  Nov.  6  and  Dec.  4,  1859;  preaching  services 
were  commenced  by  different  pastors.  Rev.  Anson  Gleason, 
a  veteran  missionary  among  the  Indians,  Labored  from  May, 
1864,  to  Nov.,  1866,  and  was  followed  by  Rev.  Franklin  Noble, 
son  of  U.  S.  Chaplain  Noble,  of  the  Brooklyn  Navy  Yard. 

Grand  Avenue  Chapel. — This  orig.  1861,  in  a  "  Mothers' 
Meeting,"  estab.  by  some  ladies  of  the  Clinton  Avenue  Con- 
gregational Church,  to  improve  the  condition  of  the  poor  in 
•'  Jackson's  Hollow."  Afterwards  a  room  on  Myrtle  ave.  and 
Steuben  st.  was  hired,  and  a  Sunday-school  started,  known  .as 
the  "Steuben  St.  Mission  School."  The  first  .session  was  held 
Nov.  24,  1861,  attended  by  eight  teachers  and  fifty  scholars. 
Supts.:— Messrs.  A.  Gilbert,  1861-3:  S.  Harris,  1862;  L.  T. 
Smith,  1803-'4;  E.  P.  Maltby,  1865-'9;  S.  L.  Parsons,  1869-'74; 
A,  C.  Barnes,  1874-8;  S.  W.  Johnson,  1878-'9 ;  Jas.  Mitchell, 
1879-"84.  In  1867  a  chapel  was  completed  and  occupied  at  the 
coiner  of  Willoughby  and  Grand  aves. 

Under  the  superintendence  of  Mr.  E.  P.  Maltby,  a  chapel  was 
erected  on  the  west  side  of  Grand  ave.,  near  Myrtle,  and  was 
dedicated  in  March,  1867.  During  two  years,  preaching  was 
sustained  there,  chiefly  by  ministers  from  the  City  Mission. 
P.astors  in  charge  :  Rev.  Dr.  Waterbury  and  Rev.  Moseley  H. 
Williams,  1879-'70.  This  chapel  proving  insufficient  for  the 
wants  of  the  mission,  in  1883,  a  fine  brick  edifice,  with  brown- 
stone  trinniungs,  was  completed,  which  has  a  frontage  of 
56  feet  on  Willoughby  ave.  During  all  these  years  the  school 
has  been  prosperous,  and  it  has  now  an  average  attendance 
of  350  teachers  and  scholars. 

Tlio  Church  of  the  Covenant  was  organized  here  in  1868. 
The  school  is  still  continued  mider  the  superintendence  of 
James  Thorp.     (See  page  1026). 

Rev.  William  Ives  Budinoton,  D.  D.  (Andierst  Coll.),  was 
born  in  New  Haven,  April  21,  1815.  He  entered  Yale  Col- 
lege, where  he  was  known  as  a  painstaking  student,  facile 
and  strong  with  his  pen,  and  ambitious  for  fidelity  and  m.as- 
tery.  He  graduated  in  1834,  and  devoted  three  years  to  the- 
ological study  in  New  Haven,  and  graduated  at  Andover. 
April  23,  1840,  he  was  ordained  and  installed  Pastor  of  the 
First  Congregational  Church,  Charlestown,  Mass.,  where  he 
remained  fourteen  and  one-half  years.  For  a  brief  period 
he  served  the  Western  Presbyterian  Church  of  Philadelphia, 
until  called  to  Brooklyn.  April  22,  18.55,  he  was  installed 
over  the  Clinton  Ave.  Congregational  Church  of  this  city. 
He  brought  the  ripeexjierience,  the  symmetriciil  culture,  and 
the  deep  f-onsecration  which  were  needed  in  the  successor  of 
the  venerated  Dr.  Lansing.  During  the  34  years  of  his  min- 
istry, the  growth  of  the  church  was  slow,  steady  and  sure. 
The  preacher  soiight  to  conserve  everything  substantial,  es- 
sential, central,  in  pure  theology  and  church  polity;  while 
conceding  every  rational  demand  of  science  and  of  the 
changing  time.  He  identified  himself  with  every  movement 
of  real  progress.  His  intellect  was  strong  and  incisive,  and 
his  character  positive.  Though  all  might  not  agree  with  his 
conclusions,  they  confessed  the  honesty  of  his  convictions  and 


ECCLESIASTICAL    OR GANIZA  TIONS. 


1023 


the  vigorous  logic  with  which  he  reached  them.  He  left  an 
impress  not  only  upon  the  intelligent  and  loving  people  of 
his  charge,  in  whose  affection  he  is  enslirined,  but  also  upon 
the  city  of  his  chosen  labors  for  a  quarter  of  a  century.  In 
the  pulpit  he  was  always  serious,  scholarly,  forcible,  intense. 
Upon  the  platform  he  kiudled  and  inspired.  In  social  life  he 
was  exceedingly  genial  and  courteous.  As  a  leader  he  dis- 
played wonderful  tact  and  courage.  As  a  clerical  friend  and 
advisor,  his  kindly  offices  were  prompt  and  grateful,  and  his 
counsels  wise  and  judicious.  His  UDaffected,  fervent  sym- 
pathy with  the  afflicted  made  him  a  rare  comforter  to 
wounded  souls.  In  the  words  of  one  of  his  own  grateful 
flock,  "  he  made  the  sorrows  of  others  so  much  his  own  that 
it  affected  his  health  and  spirits,  as  though  the  son-ow  had 
been  a  personal  one."  Nor  was  he  less  one  with  his  people 
in  their  joys.  Compelled  by  ill  health,  he  resigned  his  pulpit 
in  1878,  and  died  November,  \'&^Si.— Brooklyn  Adcance. 

The  Mayflower  Mission  originated  under  the  name  of 
Navy  Illusion,  and  was  kno^^^l  by  th.it  title  until  after  its 
formal  adojition  by  Plymouth  Church.  Its  name  was  changed 
to  the  "  Plymouth  Misnioii,"  in  Novemlier,  1.S73,  and  to  the 
"Mayjtoirer  Mission  of  Plymouth  Church  "  May  1,1874.  It  was 
established  ia  the  vicinity  of  the  Navy  Yard,  in  1844,  and  until 
June,  1871,  occupied  a  building  in  Front  street,  corner  of 
Green  lane.  In  1867,  it  was  adopted  by  the  Church  of  the 
Pilgrims,  which,  however,  abandoned  it  in  the  sprmg  of  1870. 
PYom  that  time  until  January,  1871,  it  was  sustained  in- 
dependently by  a  few  of  its  faithful  teachei's. 

At  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Society  of  Plymouth  Church 
'in  January,  1871,  the  mission  was  re-adopted  by  this  church. 
In  May  of  the  same  year,  the  building  of  the  Third  Presby- 
terian Church  in  Jay  street  (between  Sands  and  High  streets) 
was  purchased  for  its  use  for  the  sum  of  .f  12,000,  and,  in  June, 
it  was  occujiied  by  the  mission.  During  the  spring  of  1872, 
the  trustees  expended  about  .f  13,000  in  alterations,  which 
made  the  building  one  of  the  best  adapted  and  most  attract- 
ive for  the  purjjose  to  be  found  in  the  city.  This  property  is 
also  wholly  free  from  incumbrance  and  debt. 

The  Superintendents  in  charge  of  the  mission  since  its 
adojition  by  this  church  have  been  :  Messrs.  C.  A.  Van  Wag- 
enor,  S.  F.  Strong,  George  A.  Bell  and  H.  B.  White.  Mr.  Bell 
took  charge  in  February,  1872,  and  Mr.  White  in  April,  1873. 

A  reading-room  has  been  opened,  well  supplied  with  papers 
and  magazines. 

Bedford  Congregational  Church. — December  5th,  1848, 
was  commenced  the  erection  of  a  framed  edifice,  thirty  by 
forty  feet,  on  the  corner  of  Pacific  street  and  Clove  road,  at  a 
cost  of  $2,300.  Augtist  3d,  1849,  the  church  was  organized,  with 
twelve  enrolled  members.  It  was  once  known  as  the  Pacific 
Street  Congregational  Church,  but  its  present  title  is  as  above. 

Among  the  clergymen  who  have  labored  here  the  following 
are  remembered  :  Revs.  Thos.  S.  Brittan,  Dickinson,  Henry 
D.  Parker,  Dr.  B.  R.  Hall,  E.  Carpenter,  H.  B.  Elliot,  Greene, 
R.  G.  Hutchings,  Cyrus  Hamlin  and  (at  present),  Hvigh  Smith 
Carjienter.  Probably  there  have  been  others,  but  definite 
data  for  the  histor}'  of  this  church  could  not  be  obtained. 

The  State  Street  Congregational  Church.— The  persons 
originallj'  vuiiting  in  this  organization,  were  members  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  Brooklyn,  who,  desiring  the 
establishment  of  a  Methodist  church  with  the  Congregational 
form  of  government,  formed  a  new  religious  society,  June 
Sth,  1859,  known  as  the  Firiit  Congregational  Church  of  the 
City  of  Brooklyn. 

The  Second  Congregational  Church,  at  the  corner  of  Law- 
rence and  Tdlary  streets,  was  purchased,  and  regular  reli- 
gious services  held  therein  until  January  1st,  1859. 


In  October,  1858,  the  society  purchased  the  lots  in  State 
street,  near  Hoyt,  and  erected  a  neat  and  commodious  church 
edifice.  The  entire  cost  of  the  enterprise,  gi'ound,  building, 
and  furniture,  was  $30,000.  The  corner-stone  was  laid  No- 
vember 19th,  and  on  the  17th  of  April,  1859,  the  lecture-room 
was  occupied ;  the  church  itself  being  dedicated  on  the  30th 
of  June  following.  At  a  special  meeting  of  the  church  and 
society,  held  January  9th,  1861,  the  name  of  the  State  Street 
Congregational  Church  of  Brooklyn  was  unanimously 
adopted. 

Pastors:  Revs.  John  C.  Green,  1848-'53:  James  T.  Bell, 
1853-'56;  Washington  Gladden,  18()0;  Newton  Heston,  1861- 
'64;  W.  W.  Hicks,  1864-66;  C.  A.  Harvey,  1866-'69;  Maxwell 
P.  Gaddis,  1 869-71;  Isaac  C.  Meserve,  1871-'74. 

October  5tli,  1874,  this  church  was  consolidated  with  the 
Elm  Place  Congregational  Church,  to  form  the  Union  Con- 
gregational Clinrcli  (if  Brooklyn.. 

The  South  Congregational  Church. — Messrs.  Henry  C. 
Bowen,  John  T.  Howard,  and  James  Freeland,  procured  lots 
at  the  corner  of  Court  and  President  streets,  upon  which  they 
erected  an  edifice  for  a  lecture  room.  Sabbath-school  room, 
and  pastor's  study;  which  was  opened  for  public  worship,  in 
Feb.,  1851. 

The  church  having  been  organized  24th  of  March,  1851,  a 
meeting  was  held  on  the  31st,  in  the  chapel,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  organizing  a  religious  society,  and  the  "  South.  Con- 
gregational Church"  was  adopted  as  the  corporate  name 
of  the  society. 

Rev.  William  Marsh  was  installed  as  Pastor  June  10,  1851; 
followed  in  succession  by  Rev.  Daniel  Marsh,  Jan.  16,  1854;  and 
Rev.  Rufus  W.  Clark,  who  was  installed  Aijril  14,  1857,  in  the 
Qew  church  edifice  which  was  then  completed  for  public  wor- 
ship. Mr.  Clark  was  succeeded,  in  1863,  by  Rev.  Edward 
Taylor,  and  he  by  the  Rev.  Henry  M.  Storrs,  D.  D.  In  1874, 
the  present  Pastor,  Rev.  Albert  J.  Lyman,  succeeded  Dr. 
Storrs. 

About  1873,  this  church  established,  and  has  since  main- 
tained, a  mission  scliool  in  Fourth  street,  near  Smith,  in  a 
liired  room.  Supts. :  Charles  A.  Parsons,  S.  S.  Markles,  and 
Andrew  C.  Bain. 

The  Elm  Place  Congregational  Church,  Elm  place,  near 
Fulton  avenue,  was  organized  in  1853,  by  the  members  of  the 
former  Bridge  Street  and  Fulton  Avenue  churches;  the  latter 
church  being  a  short-lived  sectssion  from  the  Bridge  Street 
Church.  At  about  the  same  time  the  parent  church  was  also 
disbanded,  and  from  both  arose  this  organization. 

Early  in  the  history  of  the  society,  four  lots  had  been  pur- 
chased on  Elm  place,  near  Fulton  avenue,  and  a  small  brick 
edifice  erected  thereon.  Soon  the  auditorium  of  the  Poly- 
technic Institute  was  occupied  in  the  winter  and  sprmg  of 
1859.  Meanwhile,  a  building,  called  the  Brooklyn  Tabernacle, 
was  erected  in  the  rear  of  the  corner  of  Hoyt  street  and  Ful- 
ton avenue,  at  an  expense  of  .|9,000;  five  years  later  this 
building  reverted  to  the  owner  of  the  ground,  in  paj-ment  of 
the  rent.  An  edifice  was  therefore  erected  on  the  site  of  the 
chapel,  on  Elm  place,  at  a  cost  of  $50,000;  which  was  con- 
secrated in  May,  1864.  Withm  two  years  after  its  dedication, 
the  debt  was  extinguished. 

Pastors  :  Rev.  Samuel  D.  Cochrane,  1854-'56;  Rev.  Mr. 
Alvin  Bartlett,  1858-'68;  Rev.  Henry  Powers,  1869-71;  Rev. 
Isaac  Clark,  1871-'74. 

October  5th,  1874,  this  church  was  consolidated  with  the 
State  Street  Congregational  Church,  to  form  the  Union  Con- 
gregational Church  of  Brooklyn. 

Union  Congregational  Church  w:is  organized  Oct.  .5th, 
1874,  by  the  cousolidation  of  the  State  Street  and  Elm  Place 
Congregational  Churches.     The  first  place  of  worship  was  the 


1024 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Elm  Place  Church  cililit  u,  ami  tUw  huusc  iu  State  street  was 
rented  toother  congregations.  In  June,  1880,  the  house  in 
Ehu  place  was  burned,  and  the  congregation  removed  to  the 
editicc  in  State  street,  where  tliey  have  since  worshiped. 

In  Ai>ril,  1875,  Joseph  Wild,  D.  D.,  became  pastor  of  Union 
Church.  He  resigned  in  September,  1880,  and  iu  December 
of  the  same  year,  the  present  pa.stor,  N.  Everett  Smith, 
D.  D.,  entereJ  on  liLs  duties. 

Central  Congregational  Church,  Ormond  place,  S.  E.  cor 
Jefferson  st.  The  original  church  edifice,  in  Ormond  iilace, 
occui)ied  by  this  society,  was  erected  in  the  year  1853,  by 
Mr.  R.  L.  Crook,  a  large  holder  of  land  in  this  neighborhood, 
with  the  intention  of  selling  it  below  cost  to  some  Protestant 
religious  association. 

This  house  was,  in  Feb.  1854,  rented  for  two  years  to 
Messrs.  Wm.  T.  Cutter,  Thos.  W.  Abbott,  and  C.  N.  Kinney. 
On  the  37th  Nov.,  1854,  a  church  of  48  members  was  or- 
ganized and  Rev.  Henry  W.  Parker  engaged  to  supply  the 
pulpit,  as  the  Central  Congregational  Church.  At  the  ex- 
piration of  the  lease,  the  congregation,  being  unable  to  com- 
plete the  purchase,  removed  to  the  Van  Buren  Street  Jlission 
School-house,  where  the  attendance  dwindled  to  30  indi- 
viduals. At  length,  however,  being  largely  aided  by  the 
Plymouth  Church,  and  the  Church  of  the  Pilgrims,  the 
society  purchased  the  property;  and,  Nov.  16,  1856,  the  house 
was  re-opened. 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Parker,  having  removed  to  another  field  of 
labor,  the  pulpit  was  occupied  by  temporary  supplies,  until 
the  Rev.  J.  Clement  French  was  installed  as  Pastor,  on  the 
5th  of  March,  1857. 

In  1S63,  the  church  was  thoroughly  renovated,  both  within 
and  without,  and  a  new  organ  placed  in  the  gallery,  all  at  a 
cost  of  about  $6,000.  Two  years  later,  the  house  and  lot. 
No.  13  Ormond  place,  adjoining  the  church,  was  purchased 
for  a  parsonage.  In  May,  1867,  the  building  was  provided 
with  galleries,  and  the  basement  was  extensively  improved, 
at  a  cost  of  several  thousand  dollars. 

The  Sabbath-school,  estab.  May  7,  1853,  under  charge  of 
Mr.  Wm.  T.  Cutter  and  C.  N.  Kinney,  shared,  of  course,  the 
vicissitudes  of  the  church,  and  is  now  strong  and  prosper- 
ous, and  doing  good  missionary  work.  Oct.  19,  1865,  a 
Society  was  formed  in  it,  "The  C.  C.  Ch.,  S.  S.  Miss.  Soc," 
which  prosecuted  its  designs  effectively  for  several  years. 

In  1867,  a  few  members  of  the  ch.  bought  ground  and 
erected  a  building,  cor.  Maroy  ave.  and  Monroe  st.,  and 
opened  it  as  a  Miss.  School.  After  five  years  they  surren- 
dered its  charge,  and  it  has  since  grown  into  the  Washington 
Ave.  Baptist  Church,  one  of  the  most  flourishing  in  the  city. 

In  1872,  the  present  house  on  Hancock  st.,  near  Franklin 
ave.,  was  erected,  at  a  total  cost,  including  site,  organ,  and 
furniture,  of  .$116,000.  It  is  150  by  96  feet,  with  1,850  sit- 
tings. The  church  on  Ormond  place  was  sold,  in  1873,  to  the 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church  of  the  Mediator. 

In  1874,  a  new  building,  60  by  98  feet,  for  Sunday-school, 
lecture-room,  parlors,  etc.,  was  erected  on  ground  adjacent 
to  the  church,  at  a  cost  of  |41,000.  In  1877,  the  Society 
owed  a  debt  of  $64,000,  which  was  extinguished  within  two 


Pastors:  Revs.  Henry  W.  Parker,  1854-'57;  Justus  Clement 
French,  1857-'70  ;  Henry  Martyn  Scudder,  D.  D.,  1871-'82  : 
A.  J.  F.  Behrends,  D.  D.,  1833-'84. 

Rev.  Henry  Mabtyn  Scudder,  M.  D.  (Coll.  of  Phys.  & 
Surg.,  N.  Y.),  D.  D.,  was  born  Feb.  5,  1822,  at  Panditeripo, 
Dist.  Jaffrea,  Ceylon,  where  his  father,  Rev.  Dr.  John  Scud- 
der, was  a  missionary.  He  came  to  the  United  States  in 
1833,  was  prepared  for  college  at  Stamwich,  Conn.,  graduated 


from  Univ.  of  City  of  New  York,  and  from  Union  Theol. 
Sem.  He  wag  ordained  by  the  Third  Presbytery  of  New  York, 
and  wiis  ai)i(ointed  by  the  Ainer.  Board  of  Com.  Foreign 
Missions  a  missionary  to  Madras,  and  soon  after  his  arrival, 
in  addition  to  his  missionary  work,  commenced  the  study  of 
medicine  in  the  Med.  Coll.  of  Madras,  and  after  graduating, 
o))enod  a  hospital  and  dispensary  in  Madras,  which  is  still  in 
successful  operation.  He  attained  so  much  eminence  there  as 
to  receive  the  honorary  degree  of  M.  D.  from  the  N.  Y.  Coll. 
of  Phys.  &  Surg.,  but  made  his  gratuitous  services  there  sub- 
sidiary to  his  missionary  work.  His  health  failing,  he  re- 
turned to  the  United  States  in  1858,  and  after  a  pastorate  of 
some  years  in  New  Jersey,  accepted,  in  1864,  a  call  to  the 
Howard  Presbyterian  Church  in  San  Francisco,  where  he  re- 
mained till  1871,  when  he  was  called  to  the  Central  Cong'l 
Church  in  Brooklyn.  Dr.  Scudder  has  been  through  life  an 
indefatigable  student.  His  attainments  in  natural  and 
physical  science  entitle  him  to  rank  with  the  first  scientists 
of  the  present  time,  his  linguistic  knowledge  including  a 
complete  mastery  of  many  of  the  oriental  languages.  He 
has  published  but  little,  regarding  his  duties  to  his  congrega- 
tion as  paramount;  but  his  few  published  works  show  that 
he  is  one  of  the  ripest  scholars  of  our  time. 

Rev.  A.  J.  F.  Behrends,  D.  D.,  born  in  Holland,  1839;  grad. 
Denison  (O.)  Univ.,  1862,  and  Rochester  (N.  Y.)  Theo.  Sem., 
1866  ;  was  Trustee  of  Denison  Univ. ,  and  Rochester  Theo. 
Sem. ;  is  Commissioner  of  Foreign  Missions,  and  Vice-Pres. 
of  Am.  Miss.  Assn.;  previous  locations  :  Yonkers,  N.  Y., 
1805-73;  Cleveland,  O.,  1873-'76;  Providence,  R.  I.,  187C-'83  : 
author  of  published  sermons;  came  to  Brooklyn,  Jlarch,  1883, 

Rochester  Avenue  Congregational  Church  originated  in 
a  Sunday-school,  cnmnieucing  iu  .August,  1859,  in  a  building 
on  the  corner  of  Patchen  ave,  and  Chauncej' st,,  which  re- 
moved. May  1,  1860,  to  the  basement  of  the  German  Lutheran 
Church,  on  Herkimer  st.  March  31,  1860,  a  society  was  org. 
called  The  Rochester  Avenue  Mission.  Subsequently,  a  chapel 
was  erected  on  the  south-east  corner  of  Rochester  ave.  and 
Herkimer  St.,  and  occupied  March  17,  1861.  This  chapel  was 
enlarged  in  1865.  In  1881,  it  was  again  enlarged.  The  audi- 
torium was  reseated  to  hold  400,  and  newly  furnished. 

A  society  termed  "The  Christian  Brotherhood  of  the  Roches- 
ter Avenue  Mission,'"  was  organized;  but,  in  1866,  was  changed 
to  a  church  of  the  Congregational  order,  and  assumed  the 
name  of  "CInii-ch  of  tiic  Mediator,''  which  was  changed  to  the 
Rochester  Avenue  Congregational  Church,  in  April,  1881. 

During  the  first  two  or  three  years,  the  pulpit  of  the  IMis- 
sion  was  supplied  by  volunteers.  In  Oct.,  1863,  Rev.  Bishop 
Faulkner  became  Pastor,  and  continued  after  the  organiz.a- 
tion  of  the  new  church.  In  November,  1879,  he  was  suc- 
ceeded by  James  G.  Roberts,  D,  D. 

Puritan  Church.— In  Dec,  1863,  several  teachers  of  the 
Wallabout  Pres.  Ch.  commenced  a  new  S.  S.  enterprise  in 
a  store,  712  Myrtle  ave. ;  which,  with  the  preaching  services 
held  there,  resulted  July  17,  1865,  in  the  org.  of  the  East 
Brooklyn  Cong.  Ch.  In  Oct.  following,  land,  cor.  of  De  Kulb 
ave.  and  Walworth  st.,  was  leased  for  ten  years,  and  a  tem- 
porary house  of  worship  erected  thereon.  Rev.  Chas.  Hall 
Everest  was  chosen  pastor,  and  installed  May  23,  1866,  On 
June  29,  1865,  the  present  church  name  was  adopted.  June, 
1868,  the  present  site,  cor.  Lafayette  and  Marcyaves.,  was 
purchased,  and  a  new  building  erected  and  ded.  May  6,  1871. 
The  burden  assumed  in  the  erection  of  this  new  building,  and 
the  financial  panic  of  1873,  greatly  embarrassed  the  society, 
and  retarded  the  development  of  its  original  plans.  Mr.  Ev- 
erest resigned  Feb.,  1877.     His  successors  have  been:  Revs. 


EC  GLESIA  STICAL   OR  GANIZA  TIONS. 


CENTKAL    CONGKEGATIONAL   CHUUCH,    ORMOND    PLACE. 


1026 


HISTORY   01  KINGS    COUNTY. 


PURITAN    CHURCH. 


R.  E.  Field,  187T-'81;  Samuel  Calcord,  18Sl-":3;  Edward  P. 
IngersoU,  1883-'4.  The  S.  S.  is  large  and  flourishing ; 
specially  notable  for  its  large  classes  of  young  ladies.  W.  W. 
Shumway,  Supt. 

Rev.  Edward  P.  Ingersoll  was  born  in  Lee,  Mass., 
18:W;  grad.  Williams,  185.5,  and  Andover  Theol.  Sem.,  1863; 
was  Pres.  General  Synod  Ref.  Ch.,  1883;  previous  locations: 
Sandusky,  O.,  1863-'8;  Indianapolis,  1868-70;  B'klyn,  1870-83. 

Fifth  Avenue  Congregational  Church. — Open  air  preach- 
ing was  (-ommenced  in  1863  by  Rev.  Newton  Heston,  under 
the  patronage  of  Mr.  Lindsay  J.  Wells.  A  Sunday-school 
and  prayer-meeting,  were  at  the  same  time  established  by  Mr. 
Wells,  in  a  store  at  the  corner  of  12tli  st.  and  Fifth  ave.  A 
church  was  org.  June,  1866. 

In  Sept.,  1865,  Mr.  WeUs,  on  his  own  responsibility,  com- 
menced the  erection  of  a  tabernacle  at  the  corner  of  Fifth 
ave.  and  Eighth  st.  This  was  completed  at  a  cost,  including 
the  lots,  of  $3,500,  and  dedicated  in  January,  1866.  In  the 
winter  of  1867-8,  a  portion  of  the  members  withdrew  and 
commenced  worship  on  Third  st. ,  near  >  if  th  ave. ,  under  the 
name  of  Park  Congregational  Church.  In  1869,  the  two 
churches  were  reunited  under  the  latter  name,  and  com- 
menced the  erection  of  a  chapel  at  the  corner  of  Sixth  ave. 
and  Seventh  st.  Tlie  Rev.  H.  H.  SIcFarland  was  engaged  as 
a  supply,  and,  in  April,  1868,  the  Rev.  Frank  Russel  became 
Pastor,  continuing  after  the  reunion. 

The  chapel  was  completed  in  the  latter  part  of  1870,  at  a 
cost,  including  site  for  a  church,  of  about  $40,000.  The  so- 
ciety is  free  from  debt.  Pastors  :  Rev.  Frank  Russell,  18C8- 
'74;  Thos.  R.  Slicer,  1877-'81;  John  W.  Malcolm,  1881-4. 

First  Congregational  Church  (E.  D.)  was  organized  May 
28,  1843,  by  eight  seceding  members  of  the  First  Presbyterian 
Church.  It  happened,  one  Sabbath,  in  the  latter  church, 
that  a  colored  man  took  a  seat  near  the  centre  of  the  house, 
and  was  straightway  requested  by  the  sexton  to  take  a  seat 
back  next  to  the  door.  This  transaction  specially  impressed 
Samuel  Wild,  a  member  of  the  church,  with  the  heinousness 
of  practising  cant  in  the  house  of  God  ;  and  he  forthwith 
procured  two  lots  of  land  at  the  S.  W.  corner  of  11th  and  S. 
3d  sts.,  upon  which  he  erected,  chiefly  with  his  own  means, 
the  chai)el  now  known  as  "Bishop's  Chapel,"  and  occupied,  at 
present,  by  the  African  Methodist  congregation.  The  enter- 
prise, though  not  a  success,  as  the  world  counts  success, 
filled  an  office,  in  its  day,  as  an  exponent  of  the  principles  of 
rigid  anti-slaveryism.     The  Rev.   Samuel  S.  Jocelyn  minis- 


tered to  this  church  imtil  the  close  of  the  War  of  the  Civil  Re- 
bellion. It  was  then  disbanded,  its  white  members  uniting 
with  the  New  England  Congregational  Church ,  its  colored 
members  affiliating  with  the  colored  congregation  that  has 
since  occujiied  its  chajiel. 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Jocelyn  died  Aug.,  1879,  in  the  fulness  of 
years,  honored  by  all,  even  those  who  had  differed  most 
from  his  opmions,  for  the  purity  of  his  life,  the  piety  of 
his  walk  and  conversation,  and  the  coui'ageousness  of  his 
lirincii)les. 

The  New  England  Church.  —  A  meeting  preliminary 
to  the  formation  of  this  church  was  held  at  the  house 
of  Dr.  Edwin  N.  Colt,  No.  41  Fourth  st.,  March  18,  1851. 
April  5th,  public  worship  was  commenced  at  Central  Hall, 
cor.  of  5th  and  So.  1st  sts.,  under  the  ministration  of  Mr. 
Thomas  K.  Beecher;  and,  on  the  21st  of  the  same  month, 
an  ecclesiastical  society  was  org.  The  New  England  Congre- 
gational Church  was  org.  Maj'  26,  1851,  and  Mr.  Beecher,  on 
the  36th  of  June  following,  was  ordained  as  Pastor.  After 
January  7,  1853,  when  the  Central  Hall  was  destroyed  by  fire, 
tlie  church  worshiped  in  "  The  Odeon,"  in  5th,  betw.  So.  3d 
and  So.  4th  sts.,  mitil  the  completion  of  the  lecture-room  of 
the  church  edifice  in  So.  9th  St.,  in  July,  1853.  In  Septem- 
ber, 1852,  the  society  purchased  three  lots,  on  the  north  side 
of  So.  9th  St.,  between  5th  and  6th  sts.,  on  which  the  corner- 
st(jne  of  the  present  church  edifice  was  laid,  January  11, 
1853;  and  the  building,  completed,  was  dedicated  on  the  22d 
of  the  next  December. 

The  years  1858  and  1866  are  thankfully  remembered  as 
years  of  special  divine  favor,  in  which  large  numbers  were 
added  to  the  church. 

The  successive  Pastors  have  been  :  Thomas  K.  Beecher, 
June  25,  1851,  to  May  16,  1854;  Henry  B.  Elliott,  November 
9,  1854,  to  November  19,  1855;  William  R.  Tompkins,  October 
9,  1856;  Leonard  W.  Bacon,  instaUed  Mar.  30,  1865 ;  council, 
Apr.  7,  1870;  John  Henry  Brodt,  installed  Sept.  27,  1870, 
council,  Sept.  37, 1873;  John  H.  Lockwood,  installed  June  18, 
1873 ;  resignation  accepted,  Nov.  15,  1878 ;  council,  Dec.  19., 
1878 ;  Rufus  Piercy  Hibbard,  installed  May  28,  1879. 

The  Church  of  the  Covenant  was  org.  in  1868,  but  the 
real  history  of  the  enterprise  begins  with  the  establishment 
of  a  Sunday-school  in  1853,  held  under  an  apple  tree,  and 
then  in  a  stable.  Mr.  Silas  Davenport  was  among  the  jiio- 
neers  of  the  mission.  The  neighborhood  had  been  visited  by 
Rev.  Harvey  Newcomb,  and  the  first  gathering  was  in  the 
open  air,  Sunday,  July  4,  1853,  not  far  from  tlie  junction  of 
Vanderbilt  and  Atlantic  aves.,  then  an  open  field.  A  garret 
in  a  small  building  was  used  one  Sunday,  and  then  the  barn. 
This  was  the  birthplace  of  Mt.  Prospect  Mission  School. 
(See  page  1033). 

In  1804,  Rev.  Anson  Gleason  began  his  labors  here  by  invi- 
tation of  the  Clinton  Ave.  Church,  and  remained  about  two 
years  and  a  half.  Quite  a  number  were  converted,  some  of 
whom  joined  that  church. 

Mr.  Gleason  was  follo%ved  by  Rev.  Franklin  Noble,  in  con- 
nection with  whose  labors  a  church  was  organized  Jan.  21, 
1868,  of  seven  males  and  ten  females.  A  council,  March  10, 
1868,  recognized  the  new  church.  Worship  was  continued 
at  the  hall,  cor.  of  Atlantic  and  Grand  aves.,  until  1871  ,when 
a  chapel  was  erected  on  the  cor.  of  Baltic  street  and  Ciasson 
avenue.  This  was  occupied  for  four  years,  when  the  congre- 
gation removed  to  their  present  sanctuary.  This,  a  tasteful, 
brown-stone  and  brick  chapel,  was  erected,  at  a  cost,  inclusive 
of  land,  of  over  .fl7,000.  It  has  a  seating  capacity  of  400. 
When,  by  pecuniar}'  embarrassment,  the  society  were  unable 
to  meet  their  liabiUties,  Mr.  A.  S.  Barnes  became  the  owner 
of  the  property,  giving  them  the  use  of  the  building,  and 


ECGLE&IAHTl GAL    OR GAISTIZA TION'S. 


1027 


has  always  been  an  unwearied  helper  of  the  church  and 
Sunday-school;  as  he  has  also  been  of  other  similar  enter- 
prises on  "the  Hill." 

Rev.  Anson  Gleason,  born  in  Manchester,  Conn.,  1797; 
teacher  to  Choctaw  Indians,  Miss.,  1S23-'31;  to  Jlohegans, 
lS32-'48;  was  Dist.  Sec'y  Amer.  Board  of  Com.  for  Foreign 
Missions,  1848-'51;  Missionary  to  Seneca  Indians,  Western 
N.  Y.,  IH.'iil-'ei;  was  City  Missionary,  Rochester,  1S62;  Utica, 
1S63;  Brooklyn,  1864-'83. 

Rev.  Franklin  Noble  has  been  associated  with  Father 
Gleason  in  the  Atlantic  Ave.  Mission,  and  served  the  church 
that  he  was  instrumental  in  forming  until  May  25,  IST^t.  His 
successors  have  been  :  Revs.  E.  S.  Underwood,  from  June, 
1S74,  to  Nov.  28,  1875;  E.  P.  Thwing,  April,  1876,  to  1880; 
Wm.  Mackay,  1880;  and,  at  present, Wra.  II.  Ingersoll. 

Rev.  Ed\v.\rd  Payson  Thwing,  M.  A.  (Harv.),  Ph.  D., 
born  Aug.  35,  1830,  at  Ware,  Mass.  He  grad.  Harvard,  1855: 
at  Andover  Tbeol.  Sem.,  1858;  located  Portland,  Me.,  1858- 
'62;  Quincy,  Mass.,  1862-'7;  has  preached  in  Europe,  and  for 
several  months  at  Tolmer's  Square  Church,  London;  Pastor 
(three  years)  of  the  Church  of  the  Covenant,  Brooklyn;  was 
Prof,  (if  Vocal  Culture,  Gorham  Sem.,  Jle.,  1870-'4;  of  Sacred 
Rlietoric  in  Tabernacle  Free  Coll.,  which  post  he  retained 
four  years — 1874-'8;  lectured  at  Training  College,  Boston,  two 
winters,  and  Bethany  Institute,  New  York;  author  of  "  Drill 
Book  in  Vocal  Culture  and  Gesture;"  "Outdoor  Life  in  Eu- 
rope;" "Bible  Sketches,"  1854;  "Memorial  of  Thomas 
Thvi-ing,"  1867;  "Hand-book  of  Illustrations;"  "Facts  of 
Tobacco;"  "Persian  Queen,"  a  Hymn  Book;  "Standard 
Hymns  ;"  member  of  N.  Y.  Acad,  of  Sciences,  Victoria  In- 
stitute, Philosophical  Society  of  Gt.  Britain;  contributor  to 
magazines  and  the  religious  press  manj-  jears. 

The  present  Pastor,  Rev.  William  H.  Inoersoll,  was  born 
at  Rochester,  1837;  grad.  Columbia  Coll.,  1860;  Att.  Union 
Tbeol.  Sera.;  author  of  Art  Christ,  and  Lore  and  Law  in  Re- 
ligion: located  in  Brooklyn  since  1850. 

Lee  Avenue  Congregational  Church  was  org.  Sept.  30, 
1872,  by  the  memliors  who  had  formerly  composed  the  Lee 
Ave.  Reformed  Dutch  Church,  the  latter  transferring  their 
realty,  personal  property  and  memliersh'p  to  the  former. 
Rev.  Theodore  J.  Holmes  was  installed  as  Pastor  Sept.  30, 
1872,  and  served  two  years.  The  vacant  pulpit  was  then 
supplied  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Edward  Eggleston,  who  liad  been 
a  Methodist  minister  in  the  West,  but  who  was  then  occupied 
with  literary  work.  In  1874,  Dr.  Eggleston  accepted  the 
pastorate  on  condition  that  the  church  became  independent. 
His  creed  was  summed  up  in  the  words  "  Christian  En- 
deavor." He  made  his  church  unique  in  its  independence. 
The  Endeavor  Club  and  the  Shooting  Gallery  in  the  Church 
Parlor  became  famous  throughout  the  land.  Dr.  Eggleston's 
pastorate  was  dissolved  in  1879,  and  after  a  brief  term  of  ser- 
vice by  Mr.  JIcKinlej-,  of  Minnesota.  Rev.  Wilbur  F.  Crafts 
accepted  a  call ;  the  independent  attitude  of  the  church  was 
given  up,  and  it  returned  to  Congregationalism.  Thus,  in 
the  brief  sjiace  of  eight  years,  for  the  third  time,  the  relations 
of  the  church  were  altered.  A  creed  was  adopted,  and  a 
council  was  called  to  install  the  new  pastor,  who  allied  him- 
self with  the  Manhattan  Congregational  Association.  Liber- 
alism and  orthodoxy  did  not,  however,  assimilate  under  Mr. 
Crafts"  p;istorage,  and,  after  many  dissensions,  the  former 
withdrew  and  left  the  latter  in  possession. 

Shortly  after  tlie  withdrawal,  Mr.  Crafts  himself  resigned. 
On  April  2,  1883,  a  call  was  extended  to  Rev.  Henry  A. 
Powell,  of  the  old  Bushwick  Reformed  Church,  which  was 
accepted,  and  Mr.  Powell  was  installed  April  25,  1883. 

With  three  denominational  changes  in  eight  years,  with 
constant  dissensions  and  divisions  in  the  church,  it  is  not  sur- 


prising that  the  great  work  in  the  Sunday-school  was  serious- 
ly interfered  with  ;  whole  classes — teachers  and  scholars  in- 
cluded—left, and  at  one  time  it  seemed  as  if  the  whole 
school  would  be  disbanded.  On  October  29,  1882,  when  all 
was  discord  and  confusion,  Jeremiah  Johnson,  Jr.,  was  again 
elected  to  the  superintendency.  He  has  brought  order  out  of 
chaos,  and  the  prosjiects  for  the  future  are  very  flattering ; 
already  the  school  numbers  1,500  scholars  and  150  teachers, 
and  is  rapidly  increasing.  The  Lee  Ave.  Congregational 
Church  has  good  reasons  for  encouragement,  owning  a  prop- 
erty worth  $150,000,  liut  slightly  encumbered,  and  its  audito- 
rium thronged  at  each  service. 

Rev.  Henry  A.  Powell  was  born  in  Chatham,  N.  Y.,  1851; 
grad.  1873  from  Union  College,  and,  three  years  later,  took 
a  degree  from  the  theological  seminary  connected  with  that 
institution.  Mr.  Powell  has  had  brilliant  success  ;  was 
admitted  to  the  Bar,  but  he  has  no  intention  of  giving  up  the 
ministry.  He  studied  law  while  taking  a  course  in  English 
history  at  the  New  York  University  ;  is  a  practical,  common 
sense  man,  and  a  forcible  speaker.  While  orthodox  in  belief, 
he  is  not  bigoted. 

Lewis  Avenue  Congregational  Church. — In  1873,  Messrs. 
John  H.  Burtis,  James  Williamson,  and  Rev.  Donald  McLaren, 
organized  a  Sunday-school  on  the  corner  of  Yates  ave.  (now 
Sumner)  and  Gates  ave.  Grace  Chajiel  was  erected  and 
opened  in  Nov.,  1874,  on  Lewis  ave.  and  Monroe  st. ;  and 
here,  in  August,  1875,  Grace  Presbyterian  C'hurch  was  org., 
and  Rev.  C.  E.  Lawrence  became  Pastor.  He  was  followed, 
in  1876,  by  Rev.  Mr.  Lucas,  and  he,  in  1877,  by  Rev.  James 
Hall;  during  whose  pastorate  the  church  adopted  the  Con- 
gregational form  of  government,  and  assumed  its  piesent 
name.  Revs.  J.  Chalmers  Easton  ;  Mr.  Boyd,  and  G.  W. 
Plaok,  have  since  been  Pastors. 

Rev.  G.  W.  Plack  was  born  in  Altoona,  Pa.,  1856;  grad. 
Lafayette  Coll.,  1879;  Union  Tbeol.  Sem.,  1883;  settled  in 
B'klyn  May,  1882. 

Nazarene  Congregational  Church  (colored),  was  org.  July 
20th,  1873,  with  twenty  members,  mostly  from  the  South. 
The  first  place  of  worship  was  a  hall  at  Fulton  ave.  and  Cum- 
berland St.  They  afterward  removed  to  a  hall,  at  Fulton  and 
Clermont  aves.  ;then,  in  May,  1880,  to  the  Athenasum  Hall, 
corner  of  Vanderbilt  and  Atlantic  aves.  The  American 
Missionary  Association  sent  supplies  to  this  church  till 
1877,  when  Rev.  Roliert  F.  Wheeler  was  called  ;  and  has, 
since  1878,  lieen  commissioned  by  the  Am.  Home  Miss. 
Society. 

Tompkins  Avenue  Congregational  Church. — The  Tomp- 
kins Avenue  Congregational  Societj'  was  org.,  and  trustees 
chosen,  July  6th,  1875,  and  the  church  established  on  the 
16th  of  the  same  month  by  twenty  members. 

The  Presbyterian  Churcli  edifice,  corner  of  Tompkins  ave. 
and  ]\IcDonough  street,  was  sold  on  foreclosure,  July  9,  1875, 
and  the  trustees  of  the  Tompkins  Avenue  Society  obtained 
possession  from  the  purchasers.  In  April,  1881,  the  church 
and  society  purchased  this  church  property  for  140,100,  which 
was  at  once  paid,  leaving  the  church  free  from  debt. 

January  1st,  1876,  Rev.  Charles  D.  Helmer  became  pastor; 
died  1879  ;  followed  by  Rev.  Samuel  M.  Freeland,  1879;  Rev. 
Geo.  F.  Pentecost,  1880-84.  This  church  has  dismissed 
nearly  100  members  to  other  churches,  and  has  now  a  mem- 
bership of  450.  In  Sept.,  1881,  it  opened  a  mission  in  Ellery 
street,  where  services  have  since  been  regularly  held. 

In  May,  1883,  Mr.  Pentecost  commenced  street  preaching 
in  the  21st  Ward,  and  systematic  visitation,  and  soon  a  mis- 
sion was  established;  lots  were  purchased  on  the  corner  of 
Park  and  Marcy  Aves. ,  and  a  frame  church  erected,  seating 
800,  costing  nearly  $10,000. 


1028 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Rev.  Georoe  F.  Pentj;(  iisT  wms  l>orn  in  Albion,  111.,  Sept. 
23,  1842.  Wiien  he  was  quite  young  his  father  died,  and 
the  lad  was  apprenticed  to  a  printer;  he  emigrated  to  Kan- 
.sa-s,  and  was  appointed  to  a  position  in  the  Governor's  office; 
and  afterwards  to  be  Clerk  of  the  U.  S.  Dis.  Court,  wliicli 
position  he  filled  by  proxy,  being  under  age;  returning  to 
Kentucky  he  was  converted  in  1860,  and  the  following  year 
entered  the  College  of  Georgetown,  Ky.  Soon  after  he  en- 
listed in  a  Kentucky  cavalry  regiment,  as  chai)lain,  with  the 
rank  of  captain.  Desirous  to  devote  his  life  to  the  ministry, 
he  preached  in  Green  Castle,  Evansville,  Ind.,  Covington, 
Ky. 

In  1867,  he  supplied  the  First  Baptist  Church,  during  the 
summer,  and  accepted  a  call  from  the  Hanson  Place  Bap- 
tist Church,  in  Dec,  18(i9;  three  years  later,  he  assumed 
cliarge  of  the  Warren  Avenue  Church  in  Boston.  In  follow- 
ing years  he  held  Bible  readings  and  evangelistic  services  in 
many  of  the  cities  of  New  England. 

In  1880,  he  was  called  to  the  Tompkins  Avenue  Congrega- 
tional Church  in  this  city.  His  profound  study  of  the  bible; 
liis  clear,  concise  expositions  of  biblical  truth;  his  vigor, 
earnestness  and  strength  liave  made  him  .a  very  successful 
Pastor.  His  Sunda.v  afternoon  services  at  the  Academy  of 
Music  were  productive  of  great  good  to  the  thronged  au- 
diences. 

The  East  Congregational  Church  was  org.  1877,  with 
fifty  members,  mostly  from  Puritan  Church.  Their  first 
place  of  worship  was  Liberty  Hall,  corner  of  Gates  and  Nos- 
trand  aves.  In  1878,  a  church  edifice,  seating  400,  was 
erected  at  the  comer  of  Tompkins  ave.  and  Kosciusko  street. 
The  first  Pastor  was  Rev.  George  C.  Miln;  he  was  succeeded 
in  1881,  by  Rev.  W.  C.  Stiles,  who  resigned  in  1883,  leaving 
the  church  at  present  without  a  Pastor.  The  pulpit  is  sup- 
plied by  Rev.  J.  Hyatt  Smith. 

The  Scandinavian  Free  Mission  Church,  org.  1879,  is  a 
Congregational  Society,  and  originated  in  a  mission  that  had 
been  under  the  charge  of  Rev.  John  P.  Swanstrom  during 
many  years.  Its  place  of  worship  is  a  chapel  on  Pacific  st., 
between  Hoyt  and  Smith  sts. 

Rev.  Swanstrom  has  been  the  missionary  in  charge  since 
the  organization  of  the  societj',  assisted  at  times  by  others. 

The  First  Identity  Church. — This  congregation  was  or- 
ganized in  November,  1880.  The  following  preamble  to  the 
resolutions  adopted  by  the  church  at  its  organization,  ex- 
presses the  peculiar  belief  of  its  members  concerning  the 
identity  of  the  lost  tribes  of  Israel  and  the  Anglo-Saxons, 
which  led  to  the  establishment  of  the  societ.y  and  the  adop- 
tion of  the  name : 

"  lV7)ereas,  AVe  are  of  the  firm  conviction  that  the  ])eopIe 
now  known  as  the  Anglo-Saxons  are  the  House  of  Israel  ; 
that,  a-s  such,  the  prophecies  and  other  references  to  the  House 
of  Israel,  in  the  Old  and  New  Testaments,  refer  to  them." 

This  congregation  worships  in  Music  Hall,  Flatbush  ave. 
The  Pastor  is  Rev.  G.  W.  Greenwood. 

Union  Congregational  Church,  East  New  York,  org.  May 
17,  1883,  by  some  from  the  Brownsville  Congregational 
Church,  and  others  who  had  commenced  a  Presbyterian  mis- 
sion. Thirty  members  entered  the  church  by  letter,  and  in 
three  weeks  there  were  eight  conversions.  The  members 
of  the  new  church  unanimously  called  as  their  Pastor  the 
Rev.  Curtis  Graham,  and  he  accepted  the  call.  He  had  been 
a  successful  lawyer,  but,  after  being  conveited,  left  the  bar 
for  the  pulpit.  He  preached  in  Saybrook,  Conn.,  first  in  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  In  1857,  he  was  transferred  to 
Kansas,  where  he  was  sent  to  the  Legislature,  to  represent 
the  Free  Soil  element.  He  had  a  very  exciting  experience, 
but  stoutly  maintained  bis  position;  and,  while  in  the  Legis- 


lature, had  a  bill  passed  founding  the  Highland  University 
and  a  Methodist  University  in  the  southern  part  of  the  State. 
He  became  a  trustee  of  both  institutions.  President  Lincoln 
subsequently  appointed  him  a  chaplain  in  the  army.  After 
the  war,  he  preached  in  Easthampton  and  Narragansett,  but, 
owing  to  a  throat  trouble,  was  compelled  to  retire  for  a  time 
from  the  ministry. 

The  land  has  been  presented  to  them  by  Mr.  Gilbert  S. 
Tliatford.  He  has  also  given  quite  a  sum  of  money  toward 
the  building  fund. 

The  new  church  is  located  on  Orient  ave. ,  near  Liberty. 
It  is  a  frame  structure,  one  and  a  half  stories  high,  very  or- 
namental and  attractive  in  design  and  finish.  It  is  35  feet 
front  and  40  deep.  The  interior  is  finished  in  hard  wood, 
and  supplied  with  tlie  most  modern  church  furniture.  It  is 
one  of  the  neatest  churches  in  the  town,  and  cost  about 
S5,000.  The  Officers  are:  Trustees,  G.  S.  Thatford,  E.  A. 
Wooley,  H.  S.  Stewart,  J.  D.  Glover,  Robert  Dixon,  John 
Paton,  N.  W.  Woolsey,  Edwin  B.  Clayton  and  James 
McCracken;  Clerk,  Chas.  H.  Hay  ward;  Auditor,  Charles 
Schwicker;  Treasurer,  Frederick  Schwicker;  Deacons.  John 
Paton,  William  Bishop,  Hamilton  Van  Sickle,  Alpheus  Lewis, 
Charles  Wanser,  Abraham  De  Graff  and  E.  A.  Stewart. 

First  Congregational  Church  of  Brownsville. — The  church 
is  located  at  Brownsville,  a  small  but  growing  settlement  in 
the  south-western  corner  of  the  town  of  New  Lots.  It  is  the 
only  church  there;  the  next  nearest  church  being  the  new 
one  nearly  two  miles  north-east  of  it.  It  was  started  in 
June,  1866,  when  meetings  were  held  in  members'  houses. 
In  1867,  the  members  decided  to  build  a  church.  At  this 
meeting,  held  at  the  residence  of  Mr.  G.  S.  Thatford,  he  pre- 
sented them  four  lots  on  which  to  build.  City  Missionary, 
M.  H.  5Iovvery,  who  preached  for  them,  raised  $3,000  to 
build  the  church;  the  Congregational  Union  gave  |500  more. 
With  additional  money,  subscribe<l  by  the  members,  the 
church  was  built;  and,  when  dedicated.  May  31,  1869,  it  was 
free  of  debt.  The  Rev.  L.  S.  Davison  was  Pastor  one  year  ; 
Rev.  I.  G.  Lockwood  served  one  year ;  Rev.  C.  H.  Paunell, 
who  followed,  remained  eight  years  ;  Rev.  A.  H.  Kirkland, 
who  was  converted  in  the  Plymouth  Bethel  (became  a  letter- 
carrier,  and  finally  a  minister),  folhiwed,  and  preached  two 
years  ;  he  was  succeeded  by  the  Rev.  Newman  Wright  ;  the 
Rev.  Courtis  Graham  followed.  There  was  trouble  among  the 
members,  and,  although  he  was  a  good  Pastor,  he  could  not 
amicably  hoal  over  the  difficulty.  There  was  finally  a  sepa- 
ration. He  went  with  the  seceders,  who  combined  with  the 
Presbyterians,  and  formed  a  new  church,  which,  under  his 
care,  is  progressing  finely.  The  church,  after  he  left,  in 
searching  for  a  Pastor,  met  the  Rev.  F.  H.  Decker,  who 
preached  for  them  sci  successfully  that  they  called  him. 

Union  Mission  Chapel. — In  1862,  several  persons  in  the 
Eastern  District  estalilisbed  a  Sunday-school  for  poor  chil- 
dren on  the  corner  of  South  Eleventh  and  Second  sts.,  in  an 
unoccupied  store.  The  school  was  afterwards  removed  to 
106  North  Third  st.  Mr.  J.  T.  Dill  has  been  superintendent 
for  twenty  years.  Religious  services  have  been  held,  and 
clothing  distributed  to  needy  children.  In  May,  1883,  the 
brick  building  at  No.  155  North  Second  st.  was  purchased, 
and  an  extension  will  be  built  in  the  rear  for  chapel  and 
school  purposes.  Trustees :  Rev.  J.  J.  White,  Pres.;  John  M. 
Stearns,  Treas.;  Rev.  N.  W.  Wells,  Dr.  Cauldwell,  J.  T.  Dill, 
G.  H.  Codwell,  F.  Roberts,  E.  D.  Forman,  G.  W.  Kelsey. 

The  Central  Congregational  Church,  (see  page  1024),  by  the 
advice  of  Dr.  Scudder,  estab.  a  Mission  in  the  25th  Ward,  on 
Ralph  ave.,  near  Fulton  st. ,  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  on 
missionary  work  among  the  poor  people  in  that  neighbor- 
hood,    George  A.  Bell  took  charge  of  the  Mission,  and  made 


ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1029 


a  grand  success  of  the  work.  The  parent  church  voted  the 
sum  of  $15,000  to  purchase  land  upon  which  to  erect  a 
church  edifice,  as  well  as  the  Sunday-school  Mission.  The 
land  was  secured.  It  is  a  plot  100  feet  square,  on  the 
comer  of  Ralph  ave.  and  Cliauncey  st. 

The  work  of  erecting  the  new  building  was  commenced, 
and  the  new  church  was  ready  for  occupancy  at  the  close 
of  1883.  It  is  a  frame  building  of  the  Gothic  order  of  archi- 
tecture, with  all  the  necessary  accommodations,  and  erected 
of  tlie  best  material ;  finished  in  an  attractive  style,  and 
with  seatings  for  800  people.  Those  who  are  acquainted 
witii  the  field  predict  that  a  magnificent  work  will  be  accom- 
plislied  here;  and  that,  in  the  course  of  five  years,  a  church 
will  be  firmly  establislied  that  will  be  nearly  equal  in  size  to 
the  parent  churcli. 

The  New  York  and  Brooklyn  Congregational  Association 
was  tlie  outgrowtli  of  another  organization,  known  as  the 
Manhattan  Congregational  Association,  wliich  was  formed 
in  November,  1841,  at  the  Study  of  the  Broadway  Tabernacle, 
Rev.  E.  W.  Andrews  then  Pastor. 

This  Ass(jciation  continued  until  the  Spring  of  1846,  when 
the  Netv  York  and  Brooklyn  Association  was  organized  at  the 
Broadway  Tabernacle,  March  16. 1846.  There  were  present  at 
this  meeting  Rev.  Messrs.  Dirk  C.  Lansing,  Joseph  Harrison. 
George  B.  Clieever,  George  Turner,  William  W.  Wallace, 
Richard  S.  Storrs,  John  Marsh,  Isaac  N.  Sprague,  Amzi 
Camp,  Luke  S.  Stoutenburg,  and  Joseph  P.  Thomson. 

No  annual  or  semi-annual  meeting  lias  been  omitted  from 
the  date  of  its  organization  until  the  present  time.  At 
twenty -six  of  the  sessions  of  this  Association,  young  men 
have  been  examined  in  their  preparation  and  fitness  for  the 


ministry,  and  recommendations  have  been  issued  to  one 
hundred  and  sixty-three  persons,  two  have  been  conditioned, 
and  four  rejected. 

The  Association  has  put  upon  its  record  hearty  expressions 
of  active  sympathy  with  the  many  societies  and  causes  of 
benevolence  and  Christian  work  ;  and  obituary  resolutions 
on  the  occasion  of  ihe  death  of  ten  of  its  members. 

Its  meetings  have  been  interesting  and  profitable  ;  many 
times  vmiting  with  a  conference  called  by  the  church  at 
which  they  have  been  held;  and  they  have  ever  been  pro- 
motive of  Christian  fellowship  among  the  churches  and 
fraternal  regard  among  its  members. 

The  following  are  Congregational  clergymen  residing  in 
Brooklyn  : 

Rev.  Edward  Beecher,  D.  D.,  was  born  1803,  at  East 
Hampton,  L.  I.;  grad.  Yale,  1832;  studied  theol.,  New  Haven 
and  Andover,  Mass.;  was  tutor  Yale,  182o-'6;  Pres.  Illinois 
Coll.,  1830-'44;  located  Boston,  1826-'30,  1844-'55;  Galesbury, 
111..  1855-'70;  author  of  pamphlets  and  books:  History  of 
Lovejoy  Mob  at  Alton,  III.,  Conflict  of  Ages,  Pax>al  Conspir- 
acy, Concord  of  Ages,  and  others;  located  in  Brooklyn, 
1870. 

Rev.  Williams  Ho\\t:  Whittemore,  born  in  Bolton,  Ct., 
1800:  grad.  Yale  Coll.,  1825,  and  Yale  Theol.  Sem.,  1839;  lo- 
cated Rye,  N.  Y.,  1829-'32;  Charlton,  Mass.,  1833-'6;  South- 
bury.  Ct.,  1836-'50;  Prio.  Sem.  in  New  Haven,  3  yrs. ;  Agent 
Nat.  Freednien's  Relief  Assn.;  located  Brooklyn,  1868. 

Rev.  Archibald  Ross,  born  in  Prince  Edward's  Island, 
1857:  grad.  Queen's  Coll.,  Kingston,  1874;  located  Wolfe  Isl- 
and, Ont.,  1872-5;  Brooklyn,  1876-84;  author  of  pamphlets 
and  newspaper  articles. 


METHODIST    EPISCOPAL    CHURCHES. 


Sands  Street  Methodist  Episcopal  Church. — The  pioneer 
of  Methodism  liere  was  Thomas  Webb,  a  captain  in  the 
British  army,  who  began  to  preach  "in  his  own  hired 
house,"  near  the  barracks  io  New  York,  as  early  as  1766.  He 
preached  the  first  Methodist  sermon  ever  heard  in  Brooklyn, 
about  1768.  He  was  then  about  44,  and,  because  of  his  in- 
juries, was  retired  on  full  pay;  but  devoted  himself  wholly  to 
the  work  of  the  ministry.  Brooklyn  at  that  time  contained 
fewer  people  than  Jamaica,  and  New  York's  population  nuai- 
bered  20,000.  A  stormy  period  of  twenty  years  followed, 
during  which  the  Revolutionary  war  was  fought.  Nothing 
is  known  of  Methodism  in  Brooklyn  during  tliis  period.  In 
1787,  another  Methodist  preacher  appears — the  Rev.  Wood- 
man Hick-^on.  There  were  only  about  204  Methodists  on 
Long  Island  at  that  time.  Coming  up  to  Sands  street,  in 
front  of  where  the  church  now  stands,  lie  secured  a  table, 
mounted  it  and  preached  the  second  Methodist  sermon  in 
Brooklyn. 

A  class  was  soon  formed,  and  thus,  about  100  years  ago.  the 
foundation  of  Methodism  was  laid  in  this  city.  In  May, 
1794,  the  old  Sands  Street  Church  was  organized  at  the  resi- 
dence of  Peter  Cannon.  The  same  year  the  first  Board  of 
Trustees  was  elected,  viz  :  John  Garrison,  Thomas  Van  Pelt, 
Burdett  Stryker,  Isaac  Moser,  Richard  Everett  and  Stephen 
Hendrickson.  In  September,  they  bought  of  Joshua  Sands 
the  lot  on  which  this  edifice  now  stands,  and  completed  a 
church  the  following  year.  At  that  time  the  only  other 
churches  in  Brooklyn  were  St.  Ann's,  dedicated  1787,  and  the 
old  Dutch  Church,  dedicated,  1666.      In  June,  the  Brooklyn 


Methodists,  who  had  been  under  the  care  of  the  New  York 
Methodists,  became  a  separate  society,  with  a  pastor  of  their 
own.  Tlie  congregation  numbered  twenty-tirree  white  people 
and  twelve  colored.  Joseph  Totten  became  their  Pastor. 
Bishop  Asbury,  tlie  only  Methodist  Bishop  then  in  America, 
ill  October,  occupied  the  pulpit.  In  his  diary  of  1796,  he 
wrote  :  "  I  went  over  to  Brooklyn,  where  we  have  a  small  so- 
ciety. I  had  a  very  few  hearers  except  those  who  came 
from  tlie  city  (New  York).  1  administered  the  sacrament. 
We  liad  some  life."  Under  Mr.  Totten's  ministry  of  one  year 
the  membership  increased  from  35  to  39.  He  was  succeeded 
by  Mr.  Phoebus  who  remained  two  years,  during  which  time 
the  membership  increased  to  81.  Among  the  earliest  Meth- 
odists was  Hannah  Stryker,  wife  of  Bmdett  Stryker,  one  of  tlie 
first  trustees.  She  was  the  first  one  m  the  church  who  died. 
Half  a  dozen  uneventful  years  passed,  save  that  the  congrega- 
tion steadily  increased.  In  1804,  under  the  pastorate  of  Cyrus 
Stebbins,  the  church  was  enlarged.  At  this  time  there  be- 
came associated  with  the  churcli  a  name  destined  to  become 
widely  known,  that  of  Harper — Joseph  Harper,  grandfather 
of  the  original  Harper  Brothers,  who  came  from  England,  in 
1740.  He  was  elected  a  trustee  in  1800.  His  home  literally 
became  the  home  of  the  Sands  street  ministers.  As  he  would 
not  name  a  price  for  their  board,  a  special  committee  of  the 
church  fixed  it  at  .|3.25  a  week.  The  interests  of  the  church 
were  better  looked  after,  when  Joseph  Harper  became  trustee. 
We  find  on  the  records  the  following  resolutions  : 

"  Resolved,  That  there  shaU  be  a  new  set  of  steps  erected  at 
the  front  door. 


niSTORY  OF  KINGS    COUNTY. 


••  Jiesohrd,  Tliat  llie  sextoa  bo  instnioted  to  have  the 
church  open  and  candles  lighted  at  least  a  quarter  of  an  hour 
before  the  meeting  begins,  and  to  see  that  the  boys  make  no 
disturbance:  also,  that  on  dark  nights  when  there  is  a  public 
meeting  to  hglit  the  lamp  at  the  church  door." 

Considering  the  fact  tliat  the  sexton  only  received  |3o  a 
year  and  a  grave-digger's  perquisites,  it  was  hardly  to  be 
wondered  that  he  sometimes  gi-ew  careless.  The  church 
prospered  every  way.  The  membershii)  in  1808  was  250. 
Financially,  they  were  situated  so  as  to  be  able  to  tender  to 
Joshua  Sands  flOO  stUl  due  him  on  the  church  lot.  He  for- 
gave the  debt,  and  they  were  able  to  put  the  money  back  in 
the  treasury.  In  1809,  they  raised  sufficient  money  to  build 
a  parsonage.  Tliey  wished  to  buy  a  strip  of  land  on  High 
street  for  this  purpose  from  Mr.  Sands.  He  surprised  tliem 
by  making  a  present  of  it  to  them.  Though  an  Episcopalian, 
hi-!  name  will  ever  be  connected  with  the  history  of  the 
church  he  so  grandly  befriended.  In  1810,  it  was  resolved  to 
build  a  new  church.  The  edifice  then  was  30x60,  with  an 
end  gallery  for  colored  people.  It  had  been  lengthened  once, 
and  the  brethren  wished  to  lengthen  it  again. 

The  pastor,  Rev.  William  Thatcher,  opposed  this,  saying 
he  could  easier  raise  $3,000  to  build  a  new  church  than  $1,400 
for  enlargement.  His  counsel  prevailed,  and  thus  came  into 
existence  the  "Old  Wliite  Church."  Its  dimensions  were 42x70, 
with  three  galleries.  It  cost  $4,200.  Bishop  Asbury  said  it 
was  an  elegant  house.  The  church  had  not  been  generous  to 
its  pastors,  and  when  Mr.  Thatcher  was  going  away  he  said  : 
"You  are  in  tlie  habit  of  paying  $350  a  year  to  a  married 
preacher.  New  York  pays  $500,  and  let  me  tell  you,  no  man 
has  paid  so  much  to  support  your  preacher  this  year  as  Wil- 
liam Thatcher."  The  brethren  had  evidently  not  intended  to 
be  parsimonious,  for  they  voted  $400  for  their  next  preacher 
and  made  up  a  piu-se  of  $60  for  Mr.  Thatcher.  In  1821,  under 
the  pastorate  of  Lewis  Pease,  the  membership  was  nearly 
doubled,  becoming  401.  In  1829,  when  Noah  Levings  was 
pastor,  agam  there  was  a  notable  work  of  grace  wrought. 
Among  the  converts  were  thirty-five  saUors,  who  requested 
their  grog  to  be  stopped.  In  1837,  during  the  ministry  of  the 
Rev.  W.  H.  Norris,  many  were  converted,  the  membership 
reaching  667.  It  became  necessary  to  erect  a  larger  building. 
January,  1844,  a  brick  church  (00x80)  was  dedicated.  It  was 
a  fine  building  and  elegantly  situated,  for  Sands  street  was 
then  the  thoroughfare  upon  which  resided  the  wealthy  aud 
intellectual  jjeople  of  Brookljn.  Brooklyn  then  had  a  popu- 
lation of  60,000  and  had  been  a  chartered  city  for  ten 
years. 

The  church  continued  to  prosper.  A  new  parsonage  was 
built.  Dark  days  were  approaching;  $18,000  were  expended, 
of  which  $10,000  were  still  due.  Sunday  morning,  August 
11,  1848,  four  years  after  the  dedication,  the  congregation 
assembled,  not  to  worship,  but  to  gaze  saldy  uj)on  the  ruins  of 
their  church,  which  had  been  destroyed  by  fire.  The  fire 
ruined  seven  blocks.  They  were  disheartened,  but  the  Pastor, 
Itev.  iV.  H.  Morris,  said  "Rebuild."  Under  his  zealous 
leadership  the  people  rallied.  A  building  committee  was  im- 
mediately appointed.  Upon  it  were  David  Coope,  Nathaniel 
Bonnell,  Jacob  Brown,  Warren  Richmond,  J.  J.  Studwell. 
The  present  edifice,  the  same  size  as  the  foi-mer,  was  erected. 
From  that  time,  thirty-four  years,  the  church  has  continually 
prospered.  It  is  the  mother  church  of  Brooklyn  Methodism 
and  literal  mother  of  several  Methodist  churches.  In  1819, 
the  olficial  board  assessed  the  colored  jjeople  $10  a  quarter 
for  the  support  of  the  church.  Four  months  after,  it  became 
apparent  they  would  secede.  In  1820,  they  formed  a  church 
of  their  own.  In  1823,  the  York  Street  Church  was  or- 
ganized. 


SANDS  ST.  M.  E.  CUUHCH. 

In  1831,  the  Washington  street  society  was  organized. 
Each  assumed  a  portion  of  the  consolidated  debt  which  was 
$18,500;  Washington  street  taking $10,000;  York  street,  $3,000; 
Sands  street,  $5,500.  Hanson  place  Church  was  also  born 
in  Sands  street — a  committee  being  appointed  in  1836  to  see 
if  ground  suitable  for  a  meeting-house  could  be  obtained. 
Numerous  other  churches  throughout  the  city  owe  much  to 
Sands  street.  During  the  past  twenty-five  years  it  has  con- 
tributed $700  to  the  Tract  Society,  $700  to  the  Sunday-School 
Union,  $300  to  the  Educational  Society,  $700  to  the  Women's 
Foreign  Missionary  Society,  $400  to  the  Freedman's  Aid  So- 
ciety, $1,000  to  the  Church  Extension  Society,  $3,000  to 
the  Bible  Society,  $3,000  to  worn-out  preachers,  $53,000 
to  Parent  Missionary  Societies  —  an  average  of  $7,000  a 
y(  ar. 

Ministry:  1795,  Joseph  Totten;  1790,  David  Buck;  1797, 
Jos.  Totten;  1798,  And.  Nichols;  1799,  Cyrus  Stebbius;  1800-01, 
David  Buck;  1802,  Peter  Jayne;  1803,  Ezekiel  Canfield; 
1804,  Cyrus  Stebbins;  1805,  E.  Cooper;  1806,  E.  Cooper,  S 
Thomas;  1807,  Ehjah  Woolsey,  J.  Wilson;  1808,  Daniel  Os- 
trander;  1809,  Reuben  Hubbard;  1810-'ll,  Wm.  Thatcher; 
t812-'18,  Lewis  Pease;  1814,  Sam.  Merwin;  1815,  Nathan 
Emory;  1816-'17,  Jas.  Crawford;  1818,  Wm.  Rose;  1819-'20, 
Wm.  McCaine;  1821-22,  Lewis  Pease;  1823-24,  Wm.  Ross; 
1825,  T.  Burch;  1826,  T.  Burch,  S.  L.  Stillman;  1827,  S. 
Luckey,  S.  L.  Stillman;  1828,  S.  Luckey,  L.  Landon;  1829, 
Noah  Levings;  1830,  Jas.  Covel,  Jr.;  1831,  John  C.  Greene; 
1832-'34,  Thos.  Birch;  1835-36-"37;  Barth.  Creagh;  1837-'38- 
■39,  W.  H.  Norris;  1839,  Fitch  Reed;  1840-41,  P.  C.  Oakley; 
1842-'43,  L.  W.  M.  Vincent;  1844-45,  H.  F.  Pease;  ]846-'47, 
Nathan  Bangs;  1848-'49,  W.H.  Norris;  1850-51,  J. W.B.Wood; 
1852-'53,  H.  T.  Fox;  1854-'o5,  L.  S.  Weed;  1856-'57,  Jno. 
Miley;  1859,  J.  B.  Hagany;  1860-'61,  B.  H.  Nadel;  1862-'3, 
L.  S.  Weed;  1864-"66,  Chas.  Fletcher;  1867,  E.  G.  Andrews; 
1868,  H.  B.  Elkins;  1868-'70,  Rev.  Geo.  De  La  Matyr;  1871-'3, 
Rev.  Geo.  F.  Kettell;  1874,  Rev.  F.  P.  Tower;  1875-7,  Rev. 
Geo.  Taylor;  1878-'80,  Rev.  Lindsay  Parker;  1881-'3,  Rev. 
J.  S.  Breckenridge;  1883-4,  Rev.  L.  R.  Streeter. 

The  First  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  (E.  D.),  better 
known  as  the  South  Second  Street  Methodist  Eiiiscopal,  the 
first  ecclesiastical  organization  in  the  village  of  WiUiams- 
burgh,  and  the  second  in  the  old  town  of  Bushwick,  was 
formed  about  180(5.  Its  first  house  of  worship  was  erected  in 
1808,  on  the  old  Williamsburgh  and  Jamaica  turnpike  (now 
North  2d,  cor.  5th);  was  repaired  in  1821,  and  occupied  until 
the  present  building  was  completed. 

The  colored  congregation,  now  at  cor.  South  3d  and  11th 
sts.,  worshipped  in  the  old  building  for  some  time,  but  about 
1845  it  was  burned. 

In  1837,  the  foundation  of  the  present  spacious  brick  church 
was  laid,  on  South  2d  st.,  between  5th  and  6th.     This  church 


ECCLESIASTICAL    OR  GAJVIZA  TIOISTS. 


1031 


was  org.  in  August,  1838;  its  first  trustees  were  David  Gar- 
ret, Henry  E.  Bodvvell,  Geo.  W.  Pittman,  John  L.  Gray, 
Simon  Ricliardson,  and  James  Sparkman.  Tlie  building  was 
dedicated  Jan.  8th,  1840,  when  there  were  about  fifty  com- 
municants. 

In  1843,  this  cliurch  first  received  a  regular  appointment 
of  a  preacher  in  charge  from  the  annual  Conference ;  having 
previously  belonged  to  the  Williamsbvirgh  circuit,  consisting, 
with  it,  of  the  Newtown,  the  Cross  Roads  and  the  Wallabout 
churches,  with  one  minister  in  cliarge  of  all  four  churches. 
Such  has  been  the  rapid  increase  of  the  congregation,  that 
all  the  Methodist  churches  of  the  Eastern  District  of  Brook- 
lyn (with  the  exception  of  St.  John's)  liave  since  been  colon- 
ized from  it.  Notwithstanding  this  mother  clmrch  has  sent 
out  so  many  successful  colonies,  it  continues  full.  The  build- 
ing was  unroofed  in  tlie  great  storm  of  1S.53,  but  was  repaired 
and  enlarged,  making  it  one  of  the  largest  Metliodist  clmrches 
in  this  part  of  Brooklyn. 

In  May,  1868,  the  society  purcliased  the  jiresent  parsonage 
adjoining  the  church  for  $6,500.  In  1875,  the  entire  interior 
of  the  church  was  refitted;  and  was,  in  part,  remodeled, 
with  an  entire  change  of  the  front,  making  three  en- 
trances instead  of  one;  also  adding  a  wing  on  the  west,  with 
a  fine,  large  infant-class  room  capable  of  seating  300  scholars. 
Over  this  room  is  situated  a  large  double  parlor  with  folding 
doors.  The  expense  of  this  improvement  was  about  .$12,000. 
In  1883,  the  Sunday-school  room,  infant-class  room,  class 
rooms,  etc.,  were  again  refitted,  newly  painted,  walls  and 
ceiling.^  frescoed,  floors  carpeted,  etc.,  at  an  expen.se  of 
|1,000,  making  it  now  one  of  the  pleasantest  and  most  com- 
modious Sabbath-school  and  lecture  rooms  in  the  Eastern 
District,  with  a  lai'ge  and  prosperous  school.  The  present 
church  membership  is  about  650. 

Ministry:  Rev.  Dr.  Coville,  Wm.  K.  Stopford,  1836-37; 
Ricli  Seaman  and  James  Rawson,  1838;  Wm.  Thatcher  and 
James  Rawson,  1839;  John  LeFevre  and  C.  Ross,  1840-41; 
Henry  F.  Roberts,  1843-'43;  Paul  R.  Brown,  1844-'45;  John 
M.  Pease,  1846;  Edwin  L.  James,  1847-48;  W.  F.  Collins, 
1849-'50;  R.  H.  Loomis,  1851;  Harvey  Husted,  1852-53; 
J.  Miley,  1853-'55;  John  S.  Mitchell,  1856-'57;  M.  L. 
Scudder,  1858-'59;  Rufus  C.  Putney,  1860-'61;  James  W. 
Home,  1862-63;  C.  B.  Sing,  1864-'66;  Wm.  H.  Boole, 
1867-'69;  G.  L.  Taylor,  1870;  J.  A.  Roche,  1871-'73;  J. 
Pegg,  Jr.,  1874-'76;  John  Parker,  2d,  1877-'79;  A.  J.  Wyatt; 
1880-'81 ;  Wm.  H.  Boole,  1883-83.  The  present  Board 
of  Trustees  are:  Chas.  S.  Potts,  Peter  Harkness,  Benj. 
Potter,  Nath'l  Washburn,  John  C.  Wolf,  Dau'l  C.  Driver, 
Chas.  W.  Johnson,  W.  H.  Bradford,  Pliilip  D.  Schaefer, 
with  Rev.  W.  H.  Boole,  President  of  the  Joint  Board  of 
Trustees,  Stewards  and  Leaders,  and  John  R.  Schryver, 
Secretary. 

York  Street  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  is  the  child  of 
Sands  Street  Cliurch,  the  congregation  of  which  had  so  in- 
creased that,  in  1823,  during  the  pastorate  of  the  eloquent 
William  Ross,  it  was  found  necessary  to  erect  another  house 
of  worsliip.  Tliis,  a  neat,  framed  building,  forty-two  by 
fifty-five  feet,  with  a  small  gallery,  was  built  by  Gamaliel 
King  and  Joseph  Moser,  at  a  cost  of  |5,000,  and  was  dedi- 
cated April  6th,  1824,  by  the  venerable  Bishop  George,  who 
was  assisted  in  the  remaining  services  of  the  daj"  by  the 
sainted  Summerfield  and  Rev.  John  Hannah,  a  delegate 
from  the  British  Conference;  thirteen  candidates  for  the 
ministry  being  also  ordaiued  by  the  bishop  on  the  same 
occasion. 

Among  the  original  members  were:  Andrew  Mercein,  Joshua 
Rogers,  John  Cole  and  Benjamin  Prince.  In  1828,  a  par- 
sonage was  erected  near  the  church,  and  the  congregation 


continued  under  the  watchful  eye  and  careful  nursing  of  its 
devoted  parent  until  it  attained  its  twelfth  year,  1885,  when 
it  was  "set  off"  and  "  set  up"  for  itself. 

The  cluirch  building  was  altered  and  enlarged  in  1885;  and, 
in  1851,  a  large  and  substantial  brick  building  was  erected,  at 
a  cost  of  113,000.  In  1853,  the  ground  was  donated  by  Rutson 
Suckley  and  sister,  on  which  a  lecture- room  and  school 
building  were  erected.  The  Sunday-school  was  org.  1832,  in 
a  room  on  the  corner  of  Prospect  and  Charles  streets.  Mrs. 
Charles  Carpenter  (wife  of  the  pastor)  and  Mrs.  Bethnel 
Rogers,  gathered  in  the  children  from  the  neighborhood. 
There  were  70  present  at  the  first  meeting.  The  first  superin- 
tendent was  George  Booth,  popularly  known  as  Fatlier 
Booth.  The  female  superintendent  was  Miss  Catherine 
Nichols. 

Ministry:  1835-'26,  Stephen  L.  Stillman;  1827-'28,  Seymour 
Landon;  1829-30,  James  Covel;  1881-'32,  Charles  Carpenter; 
1833-34.  John  Luckey;  1885-'86,  Raphael  Gilbert;  1837-'38, 
J.  L.  Gilder;  1839-40,  E.  G.  Griswold;  1841-42,  Seymour  Lan- 
don, second  term;  1843,  John  Poisall;  1844-'45,  Buel  Goodsell; 
1846-'47,  Phineas  Rice;  1848-49,  William  C.  Hoyt;  1850-51, 
Joseph  Law;  1852-'53,  J.  L.  Gilder,  second  term;  1854-'55, 
George  Woodruff;  ]856-'57,  Charles  Kelspy;  1858-'59,  John  E. 
Searles;  1860-61,  Elisha  Sands;  1863-'63,  William  H.  Boole; 
1864,  Rufus  Putney;  1865-'66-"67,  Stephen  Rushmore;  1868-'09, 
Charles  Backman;  1870-'71-'72,  James  V.  Saunders;  1873-'74, 
Charles  W.  Fordham;  1875-'76-'77,  J.  L.  Gilder,  third  term; 
1878-79-80,  A  .C.  Stevens;  1881-82,  Duncan  McGregor. 

Washington  Street  M.  E.  Church  (Washington  street,  be- 
tween Concord  and  Tillary  streets)  was  erected  in  1881,  at  a 
cost  of  115,000,  and  was  set  off  as  a  separate  station  in  1885. 
It  was  then  on  the  outskirts  of  the  citv,  which  has  since 
grown  around  it  until  it  has  become  the  centre  of  a  dense 
population,  and  the  parent  of  several  of  the  most  flourishing 
churches  of  the  community. 

Ministry  (since  it  became  a  separate  charge  in  1835):  Revs. 
Stephen  Remington.  183.5-7;  J.  B.  Stratten,  Robert  Seney, 
1837-8  and  1847-48;  James  Floy,  D.  D.,  1841-'2;  James 
Sewell,  1842-'43;  Charles  W.  Carpenter,  1845-'46;  Daniel 
Curry,  D.  D.,  1849-.50;  John  Crawford,  1851-'52;  John  Kenne- 
day,  D.  D.,  1852-54  (two  terms);  Robert  M.  Hatfield,  1854-57; 
Charles  Shelling,  1856-57;  Jno.  Kenneday,  1858-59;  M.  L. 
Scudder,  1860;  F.  S.  De  Hass,  1861-'62;  W.  F.  Watkins,  1868 
-'65;  A.  S.  Hunt,  1866-'68;  1869-70-71,  C.  E.  Harris;  1873- 
'73-'74,  John  E.  Searles;  1875-'76-'77,  Daniel  Goodsell;  1878- 
'79,  D.  O.  Ferris;  1880-'88,  R.  T.  McNichol. 

Tlie  church  and  chapel  are  valued  at  $75,000;  the  parsonage 
(No.  265  Washington  street),  at  ,$10,000. 

African  Wesleyan  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  (colored), 
in  the  village  of  Brooklyn  (Regular  Line).  The  beginnings  of 
this  church  originally  located  on  High  street  near  Bridge, 
have  been  noted  in  the  history  of  the  Sands  Street  Church. 
On  the  18th  of  January,  1818,  it  was  incorporated  under  the  ' 
above  title.  Trustees :  Peter  Cruger,  Israel  Jemison, 
Caesar  Sprong,  Benjamin  Cruger,  John  E.  Jackson,  Min- 
isti~y,  (as  far  as  known):  Rev.  Stephen  Dutton,  in 
charge  1823;  Samuel  Todd,  in  charge  from  1839  to  1837; 
Richard  Williams,  in  1887-38;  Wm.  Moore,  in  1839- 
'40;  John  Spencer,  1841-43;  Edmund  Cosby,  in  1843-'43; 
William  Moore,  in  1844-'45;  Ely  N.  Hall;  1850-'51;  Israel 
Pateison,  1854;  William  Gardner,  1855;  James  Campbell, 
1856;  James  Morris  Williams,  1857;  Abraham  Crippen,  18.58; 
Rev.  Spekes,  1859;  Richard  Cain,  1860;  James  Morris  Wil- 
liams, 1863;  D.  Doyle,  1866;  Nelson  Turpin,  1867;  William 
Winder,  1869;  Mowbray,  1873;  James  Morris  Williams,  1873; 
Theophilus  Stewart,  1875;  John  F.  Thomas,  1877;  John  F. 
Stansberry,  1880-'83. 


1032 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


In  1854,  the  church  property  on  High  street  was  sold,  and 
the  present  house  of  worship  on  Bridge  street,  between  Myrtle 
avenue  and  Jolinson  street,  was  purchased  from  a  Presby- 
terian society  for  $12,000. 

DeKalb  Avenue  M.  E.  Church. — The  first  eflforts  leading 
to  the  formation  of  this  society  and  to  the  building  of  its 
church  were  a  prayer-meeting,  called  by  Mr.  J.  B.  Keyes,  and 
held  at  the  house  of  Mr.  John  Robb,  in  Flushing  avenue,  near 
Classon,  in  the  fall  of  1836.  The  first  sermon  was  preached 
June  18,  1837,  in  the  new  school-house  in  Classon  avenue, 
and,  on  the  same  day,  the  Sabbath-school  was  organized  witli 
eight  members. 

In  the  fall  of  1840  a  church  was  begun  in  Franklui  avenue, 
below  Park,  and  the  society  became  a  part  of  the  Williams- 
burg and  Bushwick  circuit.  In  1841,  the  church"became  a 
separate  station,  with  Rev.  Marvin  Richardson  as  Pastor.  He 
was  followed  by  Rev.  B.  Story,  under  wliose  labors  the  so- 
ciety prospered  ver}-  much. 

In  1846,  the  station  was  called  East  Brooklyn,  and  Ezra 
Whitney  became  Pastor.  The  Pastors  following  were:  David 
Osborne,  William  Gothard,  Joseph  Henson,  S.  W.  King, 
Buel  Goodsell,  Julius  Field  and  Joseph  Law.  Through  the 
labors  of  Mr.  Law  and  the  earnest  co-operation  of  the  mem- 
bership, the  present  church  was  built,  and  dedicated  in  1856. 
In  1884,  part  of  the  membershij)  witlidrew  and  formed  a  mis- 
sion in  Tomjjkins  avenue,  which  afterward  became  a  pros- 
perous church. 

Pastors  since  1856:  Revs.  J.  S.  Inskip,  1857-'S8;  G.  Dunbar, 
1858-'60;  A.  H.  Mead,  l860-'62;  R.  C.  Putney,  1863-'63:  G.  L. 
GObert,  1864;  J.  W.  Leek,  1865-68;  D.  O.  Ferres,  1868-71;  W. 
H.  Warden,  1871-'73;  W.  P.  Corbitt,  1873;  S.  H.  Platts,  1874- 
77;  C.  W.  Millen,  1877-'80;  John  Parker,  1880-'83;  Wm. 
Burt,  1883-'84. 

The  cliurch  is  now  united  and  prosperous;  membership 
about  600,  class-meetings  well  attended,  and  Sabbath-school 
numbers  500. 

The  Johnson  St.  (old  Centenary)  M.  E.  Church  (Johnson, 
cor.  of  Jay)  originated  in  the  dissatisfaction  of  a  large  por- 
tion of  the  Washington  street  congregatif)n  with  the  ap- 
pointment of  a  preacher  to  that  station  in  1838.  In  1839,  a 
new  society  was  organized,  and  a  church  erected  on  Johnson 
St.,  cor.  of  Jay,  80  by  50  feet,  for  S8,000,  which  was  finished 
and  occupied  in  1840.  It  received  its  name  of  The  Centenary 
Club  from  the  date  of  its  commencement,  that  year  being 
the  centenary  of  Methodism.  In  1868,  the  corporate  name 
was  changed  to  Johnson  St.  M.  E.  Church. 

Ministry :  1840,  Benjamin  Griffen;  1841,  Jarvis  Z.  Nichols; 
1843-'3,  James  Young;  1844-'5,  John  M.  Pease;  1846,  J.  C. 
Green;  1847,  B.  Griffen  ;  1848-9,  J.  Law;  18.50-'51,  J.  G. 
Smith;  1852,  Geo.  Brown;  1853-'4,  C.  H.  Whitecar;  185.5-6,  J. 
S.  Inskip;  1857-8,  Heman  Bangs;  1859,  J.  Law;  1860-'61,  T. 
D.  Stevenson;  1862-'3,  Chas.  E.  Glover;  1864-'5-'6,  William 
McAllister;  1867-'8-"9,  J.  E.  Searles;  1870-1,  F.  W.  Ware; 
1872-'3-'4,  Francis  C.  Hill;  1875-'6,  James  L.  Hall;  1877-'8, 
Wm.  H.  Russell;  1879-'80,  Geo,  Lansing  Taylor;  1883,  Barna- 
bas F.  Reeve. 

Rev.  Barnabas  F.  Reeve,  bom  at  Southampton,  N.  Y. ; 
grad.  Concord  (N.  H.)  Biblical  Institute;  Prin.  FranklinvLlle 
(L.  I.)  Academy,  1860-6;  preached  at  Orient,  L.  I.,  1866-9; 
CUnton,  Ct.,  1869-'71;  Amityville,  1871-'4;  Patchogue,  1874-'7; 
Brooklyn,  1877-'9;  East  New  York,  1879-'81;  Johnson  street, 
B'klyn,  18Hl-'4. 

Mount  Zion  African  Protestant  Methodist  Church  was 
org.  June  18,  1842,  and  incorporated  in  1844,  under  \\  illiam 
Harden,  a  blind  colored  preacher,  who  supplied  it  till  his 
death,  in  1847.  The  organization  then  broke  up,  its  member- 
ship mostly  uniting  with  the  African  M.  E.  Ch.  in  High  st. 


The  first  place  of  worship  was  a  rope-walk,  and  after  that 
was  burned  they  met  in  private  houses. 

Eighteenth  St.  (Sixth)  M,  E.  Church.— The  first  M.  E, 
services  in  this  part  of  the  city  were  held,  in  1836,  by  local 
preachers  in  a  private  house;  the  use  of  an  unoccupied  Re- 
formed Church  on  Third  ave.  was  offered  them,  and  a  class 
was  formed,  in  wliich  were  Hamilton  Reeves,  David  Downs, 
their  wives,  and  others.  After  the  use  of  the  churcli  was  de- 
nied them,  they  met  in  the  kitchen  of  a  Mr.  Parker,  near  the 
junction  of  Hamilton  and  Prospect  aves.  Here  the  church 
was  organized  in  the  fall  of  1840.  Rev.  William  McAllister 
organized  a  Sunday-school,  with  six  scholars  and  one  teacher. 
A  small  chapel  was  built  on  18th  st.,  near  3d  ave.,  in  1842, 
which  was  supplied  by  local  preachers  until  1845,  when  the 
Conference  placed  Rev.  L.  Saulsbury  in  charge.  In  1850, 
three  lots  on  the  south-west  corner  of  18th  st.  and  5th  ave. 
were  purchased,  and  the  little  church  was  removed  to  the 
new  site.  In  June,  1855,  two  additional  lots  were  purchased 
on  18th  St.,  and  one  on  5th  ave.  The  corner-stone  of  the 
new  church  was  laid  Sept.,  1855,  the  church  dedicated  April 
6,  1856.  In  1881,  it  was  decided  to  build  a  new  church  in 
18th  St.  Tlie  last  services  in  the  old  church  were  held  June 
4,  1882.  The  corner-stone  of  the  new  church  was  laid  Aug. 
1,  1883.  The  church  is  a  frame  edifice,  about  50  by  80  feet, 
and  cost  about  $32,000.  Ministry:  L.  Saulsbury,  1845; 
Henry  Hatfield,  1846;  Eben  Heberd,  1847-'8;  Henry  D. 
Latham,  1849-50;  George  Taylor,  1851-3;  William  B.  Hoyt, 
1853-5;  M.  N.  Olrastead,  1856-7;  Joseph  Henson,  1858-9; 
Sam.  W.  King,  1860-1;  Stephen  Rushmore,  1 863-3:  Albert 
Nash,  1864-5;  George  A.  Hubbell,  1866-'8;  Calvin  B.  Ford, 
1869-71;  Ichabod  Simmons,  1873-4;  Rufus  C.  Putney,  1875 
-6;  Robert  W.  Jones,  1877-'9;  W.  Warner  Clark,  1880-3;  Jno. 
.lohns,  1883-4. 

The  Pacific  St.  M.  E.  Church.— In  Oct.,  1844,  a  few  Meth- 
odists of  South  Brooklyn  purchased  the  church  edifice  for- 
merly occupied  by  the  South  Presbyterian  Cliurch,  in  Pacific, 
bet.  Court  and  Clinton  sts.  The  first  sermon  was  preached 
by  Rev.  Dr.  George  Peck,  then  editor  of  the  Quarterly  Re- 
vieiv,  Oct.  13th,  and  on  Sunday  following  (30th)  the  church 
was  organized,  as  the  fifth  separate  Methodist  station  in  tlie 
city,  with  40  members.  On  the  18th  of  May,  1851,  the  con- 
gregation removed  to  its  present  beautiful  edifice,  at  the  cor- 
ner of  Pacific  and  Clinton  sts.  It  is  of  brown-stone,  in  the 
Romanesque  style,  and  with  a  most  attractive  interior. 
Ministry:  Revs.  George  Peck,  D.  D.,  Luther  Peck,  1845;  A. 
M.  Osborn,  D.  D.,  1846-'7;  W.  R.  Stopford,  1848-9;  John 
Kenneday,  D.  D  ,  1850-1;  John  Miley,  D.  D.,  1853-3;  R.  S. 
Foster,  D.  D.,  1854-5;  John  Kenneday,  D.  D.,  1856-'7;  W.  H. 
Milburn,  1858-9-'60;  J.  H.  Perry,  D.  D.,  1861;  M.  R.  Vincent 
and  F.  S.  De  Haas,  1864-5;  Dr.  Sewell,  1866-'7-'8;  Charles 
Fletcher,  1869-'70-'71;  W.  S.  Studley,  1873-'3-'4;  A.  S.  Hunt, 
1875-'6-'7;  W.  W.  Clark,  1878;  M.  B.  Chapman,  1879-80;  T. 
Stephenson,  1883-  3 

Carlton  Avenue  (Simpson)  M.  E.  Church,  cor.  Willoughby 
and  Clermont  Aves.  This  congregation  was  org.  as  the  Eighth 
M.  E.  Church,  February,  1845.  Though  called  in  honor 
of  Bishop  Simpson,  this  Church  has  never  relinquished 
its  corporate  name  of  "The  Eighth  M.  E.  Church," 
During  the  following  summer  a  small  building  was 
erected  on  Carlton,  north  from  Myrtle  ave.  On  the 
34th  of  September,  1851,  the  corner-stone  of  a  new 
church  edifice  was  laid.  This  building,  located  on  Carlton 
ave.,  south  from  Myrtle,  was  constructed  mostly  of 
materials  from  the  old  York  Street  M.  E.  Church,  of 
wood,  with  brick  basement,  43  by  97  feet,  costing  about 
110,000,  and  was  then  under  the  pastoral  charge  of  the  Rev. 
Nicholas  White,     Ministry:    1849,  R,   Seney;  1853-'53,  S,  A, 


ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


SIMPSON.M,  E.  CIIUKCH. 

Seaman;  1854,  J.  H.  Perry;  1855-56,  J.  W.  B.  Wood;  18o7-'58, 
Geo.  A.  Hubbell;  1859,  Chas.  E.  Harris;  1860,  C.  Kelsey; 
1861-63,  J.  A.  Roche;  1863-65,  Francis  C.  Hill;  1866-'67-'68,  G. 
L.  Taylor;  1809,  Rev.  John  Parlver;  1870-'l-'2,  Richard 
Meredith:  1873-'4-'5,  Wesley  R.  Davis;  1876-'7-'8.  C.  N. 
Sims;  1879-"S0-'81,  James  S.  Chadwiclj;  1883-'3,  Henry  Baker. 

Grand  Street,  or  Second  M.  E.  Church  ("  Gothic 
Church"),  E.  D.,  cor.  Grand  and  Ewen;  organized  Sept.  4, 
1845,  with  ten  members.  First  Trustees:  Lemviel  Ricliard- 
son,  Daniel  Maujer,  John  F.  Lutlier,  Robert  G.  Thursby, 
Isaac  Henderson,  Charles  Maujer.  The  corner-stone  was 
laid  Deo.  4,  1845,  and  the  edifice  dedicated  Nov.  26,  1846. 
Ministry:  1846-'47,  W.  R.  Stopford;  1848,  John  J.  Matthias; 
1849,  Samuel  Meredith;  1850-51,  Wm.  C.  Hoyt;  1853-'53, 
John  Crawford;  1854,  J.  W.  B.  Wool;  186.5-'66,  Seymour 
Landon;  1857,  Abm.  S.  Francis;  1858-'59,  Chas.  T.  Mallory; 
1860,  D.  A.  Goodsell;  1861-62,  F.  Bottome;  1865,  Geo.  Tay- 
lor; 1866-68,  J.  B.  Merwin;  1869-'70,  George  C.  Dunbar; 
1871-72-73,  C.  S.  Wing;  1874,  R.  C.  Putney;  1875-'76,  W.  J. 
Robinson;  1877-'78,  M.  L.  Scudder;  1879-'80,  L.  P.  Perry; 
1881-82,  J.  B.  Merwin. 

Rev.  John  B.  Merwin,  D.  D..  born  at  Albany,  1812;  grad. 
Augusta  Coll.  (Ky.),  1832;  located  in  Brooklyn,  1866-'70,  and 
1881-'83. 

Zion  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  E.D.,  was  org. 
in  1832,  by  Tliomas  AVilson,  in  his  own  house  in  3d  St.,  between 
North  4th  and  North  5th  sts.  From  there  the  infant  church 
of  twelve  members  removed  to  a  hired  room  in  North  4th 
St. ,  between  3d  and  4th  sts.    There  Rev.  John  Churchill  was 


employed  as  the  first  regular  preacher.  He 
also  taught  the  first  day-school  for  colored 
children  in  the  village.  The  next  removal  was 
to  the  old  Methodist  CUiurch  building,  on  the 
corner  of  Nortli  2d  and  5th  sts.  The  churcli 
then  came  under  the  care  of  the  Zion  Confer- 
ence. 

In  1844,  on  two  lots  of  ground  in  North  2d 
St.,  between  Union  ave.  and  Lorimer  st.,  the 
first  church  building  owned  by  the  congrega- 
tion was  erected.  The  corner-stone  was  laid 
in  1845;  tlie  building  was  a  plain  wooden  struc- 
ture, unijainted,  and  never  quite  finished.  In 
1850,  the  church  building  was  removed  to  De>  ^e 
St.,  and  destroyed  by  a  heavy  wind  before 
was  placed  on  the  foundation.  The  church 
was  rebuilt,  but  was  burned  in  1863. 

In  1865,  a  church  building  on  South  3d  st., 
corner  of  11th  st.,  was  purchased  for  |3,000, 
and  it  was  decided  to  build  a  new  edifice,  the 
corner-stone  of  which  was  laid  Nov.  5,  1882: 
and  the  church  was  dedicated  Feb.  11,  1883. 
The  first  Board  of  Trustees  consisted  of  Samuel 
Ricks,  Thomas  Wilson,  Samuel  AVilson,  Philip 
Groomer,  Jacob  Fields,  Oliver  Fields,  and 
David  Bush.  The  Pastors  of  the  church  have 
been :  Revs.  J.  Churchill,  T.  Eato,  J.  Chester, 
B.  N.  C.  Worrick,  P.  Lee,  J.  Spince,  P.  Coster, 
G.  Treadwell.  J.  P.  Thompson,  E.  Matthews,  J. 
Wells,  W.  Marshall,  M.  Manning,  W.  Pitts, 
D.  Kenneday,  P.  Hawkins,  J.  C.  Biddle,  N. 
Stubbs,  J.  Thomas,  H.  M.  Wilson,  and  the 
present  Pastor,  Rev.  George  E.  Smith.  There 
are  90  members  of  the  church,  and  140  scholars 
in  the  Sunday-school. 

The    Bethel    African    M.    E.   Church    was 

organized  about  1847,  a  house  of  worship  was 

built,  on  the  corner  of  Dean  st.  and  Schenectady 

ave.     It  was  a  small  wooden  building,   capable  of  seating 

about  two  hundred. 

In  1868,  it  was  demolished,  and  the  present  churcli  build- 
ing erected.  It  is  a  wooden  structure,  with  a  brick  base- 
ment, and  it  has  about  600  sittings.      Its  cost  was  |600. 

The  Pastors  of  this  church  have  been:  Revs.  Edward  C. 
Africanus,  J.  P.  Campbell,  Jeremiah  Thomas,  William  H. 
Ross,  Geo.  W.  Ware,  J.  Morris  Williams,  William  M.  Wat- 
son, William  Rogers,  Edward  Thompson,  William  Moore.  D. 

Dorrell,   Geo.    W.    Johnson,    Francis    Parker,   Study, 

Charles  Green,  John  Frisbee,  J.  J.  Mowbray,  John  Thomas, 
and  the  present  Pastor,  William  L.  Hunter. 

North  Fifth  Street  M.  E.  Church.— In  1847,  a  Sunday- 
school  was  org.  in  the  public  school,  in  North  2d  St.,  with 
W.  P.  Coleman,  Supt.  Soon  after,  a  church  of  40  persons, 
chiefly  from  South  2d  St.  M.  E.  Church,  was  org.  and  placed 
under  the  care  of  Rev.  S.  H.  Clark,  of  the  Greenpoint 
Church. 

In  1848,  a  frame  tabernacle  was  erected  in  4th  st.,  between 
North  5th  and  North  0th  sts.  The  present  church  edifice  on 
North  5th,  near  4th  St.,  a  substantial  brick  structure,  48  by 
75  feet,  seating  500  persons,  with  well  appointed  audience- 
room,  lecture  and  class  rooms,  was  erected  in  1850.  The 
first  Trustees  were:  D.  B.  Betts,  H.  O.  Austin,  H.  Bodwell, 
R.  Bonsai,  W.  Johnston,  W.  P.  Coleman,  J.  Briggs,  R.  White, 
and  J.  J.  Cox.  The  church  is  prosperous,  free  from  debt, 
and  sustains  a  fiourishing  Sunday-school.  Ministry:  Revs. 
S.  Meredith,  1849-51;  E.  S.  Heberd,  1851-'53;  C.  Gorse, 
1853-'55;  J.   Wildey,   1855-'50;  C.   T.   Mallory,   1856-'58;   M. 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Staples,  1858-'60;  J.  D.  Bouton,  1860-'62;  S.  W.  King,  186a-'63; 
H.  F.  Pease,  1863-'64;  W.  F.  Collins,  1864-'65;  E.  S.  Heberd, 
lS65-'67;  W.  Platts,  1867-70;  S.  W.  King,  1870-'72;  G.  Hol- 
lis,  1872-'75:  C.  P.  Corner,  ]87.5-'77;  W.  P.  Estes,  1877-'80; 
"VV.  W.  McGuire.  1880-"82:  S.  H.  Smith.  1882-'84. 

First  M.  E.  Ch.  of  Greenpoint,  Union  ave.,  near  Java  st. , 
E.D.,  commenced  from  prayer  and  class  meetings  held  by  three 
laymen,  Benj.  Downing.  Chas.  Huff,  and  one  other.  It  was 
org.  in  winter  of  1847-'48,  by  Mr.  S.  H.  Clark,  who  was  Pas- 
tor for  two  years;  during  wliich  time  the  present  site  was 
purchased,  a  frame  edifice  erected,  and  a  lecture-room  in 
basement  finished  for  use.     Ministry:  1850,  Harvey  Husted; 

1852,  Julius  Fields  ;  1853-54,  Geo.  Hollis  ;  1855-'o6,  William 
Gothard  ;  1857-58,  Seymour  Landon  ;  1858-'60,  Buell  Good- 
sell ;  1861-62,  Geo.  Taylor ;  1863,  John  F.  Booth;  1865-'67, 
Henry  Asteu:  1862-69,  John  W.  Leek;  1870-'71,  R.  C.  Putney; 
1872-'73-^74,  "W.  W.  Clark:  1875,  G.  A.  Hubbell;  1876-'77-'78. 
J.  W.  Barnhart;  1879-80,  W.  P.  Corbit ;  1881-82,-83,  C.  E. 
Miller ;  1871-"72,  C.  E.  Harris  :  1873-'74,  T.  H.  Burch  ;  1875- 
'76,  J.  S.  Breckenridge  ;  1877,  S.  H.  Piatt ;  187S-'79-'80,  W. 
H.  Simonson;  1881-82-83,  W.  D.  Thompson. 

In  1864,  the  congregation  had  so  increased  that  a  large 
colony  swarmed  to  form  the  church  known  as  the  Greenpoint 
Tabernacle;  yet,  in  1869,  there  had  been  in  the  congregation 
a  twenty-fold  increase  in  20  years. 

The  First  Place  M.  E.  Church  originated  from  a  survey 
made  in  South  Brooklyn,  in  1849,  by  Mr.  Charles  Bridges, 
under  the  auspices  of  the  Washington  St.  M.  E.  Sunday- 
School,  for  a  position  eligible  for  opening  a  Sunday-school. 
Some  Baptists  in  that  part  of  the  city  united  with  the  move- 
ment for  some  months;  and,  when  it  was  finally  deemed  best 
that  it  should  be  a  Methodist  school,  the  Baptists  amicably 
withdrew  and  formed  the  nucleus  of  the  present  Strong 
Place  Baptist  Church. 

Church  services  were  held,  and,  early  in  1850,  a  society 
was  organized.  Lots  were  purchased  on  Hicks  st. ,  corner  of 
Summit.  A  church  edifice  was  erected,  but  it  was  subse- 
quently sold  for  $7,000.  Lots  were  purchased  on  the  corner 
of  Henry  and  Summit  sts.,  and  a  church  edifice,  53  by  75 
feet,  with  a  parsonage,  was  erected.  As  the  lots  faced  First 
place,  the  church  was  incorporated  under  the  name,  "First 
Place  M.  E.  Church.  The  lecture-room  was  dedicated  Janu- 
ary 13,  1856,  and  the  church,  September  14  of  the  same  year. 

The  cost  of  the  entire  church  property  was  $34,000.  To 
Messrs.  Wm.  B.  Barber  and  Isaac  Henderson  the  church  is 
largely  indebted  for  its  financial  success. 

Ministry:  1850,  Rev.  S.  M.  Clark;  1851,  Rev.  Gad.  S.  Gilbert; 

1853,  Rev.  Wm.  F.  Collins ;  1854,  Thomas  H.  Burch  ;  1856, 
Rev.  Joseph  H.Rylance;  1858,  Geo.  C.Robinson;  1859-'61,  Rev. 
George  Taylor;  1861-2,  Rev.  Charles  E.  Glover;  1862,  Rev.  R. 
M.  Hatfield;  1863-'66,  Rev.  Alberts.  Hunt;  1866-'69,  Rev.  John 
A.  Roche;  1869-'7a,  Rev.  Wm  H.Thomas;  1872-'75,  Rev.  Albert 
S.  Hunt;  1875,  Rev.  John  W.  Barnhart;  1876,  Rev.  Chas. 
M.  Giffin;  1877,  Rev.  Wellesley  W.  Bowdish  ;  1880,  John 
E.  Cookman,  D.  D.;  1882-'84,  R^v.  W.  W.  Bowdish. 

Rev.  W.  W.  Bowdish,  D.  D.,  born  in  Fulton,  N.  Y.;  grad. 
Wes.  Univ.;  was  Prof,  in  B'klyn  Lay  CoUege;  located 
B'klyn  and  New  York,  1866-'83. 

St.  John's  M.  E.  Church  (formerly  known  as  Third,  or 
South  Fifth  St.),  E.  D.,  was  colonized  from  the  First  M.  E. 
Church  of  Williamsburgh,  and  was  organized  May  6,  1849 ; 
its  first  trustees  being:  James  D.  Sparkman,  Nathaniel  Briggs, 
Dr.  S.  Wade,  Thomas  Lewis,  Wilham  Y.  Hemmingway, 
Gilbert  Potter,  Wm.  Morgan,  Geo.  W.  Smith,  and  Geo.  D.  Hub- 
bard. Ground  was  purchased  on  the  corner  of  Fifth  and  South 
Fifth  fits. ,  the  Rev.  E.  L.  Janes  placed  in  temporary  charge  of 
the  society,  and  services  held  in  the  lecture-room  of  the  Re- 


formed Dutch  Church,  comer  of  Fourth  and  Second  sts.,  until 
the  completion  of  their  building.  It  was  dedicated  July  25, 
1850,  by  Bishop  Morris.  The  congregation  increased  and 
prospered,  so  that,  in  April,  1866,  it  was  decided  to  erect  a 
new  building,  and  lots  were  secured  for  the  purpose  on  the 
comer  of  Bedford  ave.  and  Wilson  st.  At  a  meeting  of  the 
trustees,  held  on  the  18th  of  the  same  month,  it  was  resolved 
to  call  the  church  the  St.  John's  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 
and  a  large  sum  of  money  was  contributed  toward  its  erec- 
tion. This  building  was  dedicated  April  3,  1868,  the  sermon 
being  delivered  by  the  venerable  Bishop  Janes.  The  new 
edifice  is  built  in  the  decorated  Gothic  style  of  the  13th  cen- 
tury, of  Belleville  brown-stone,  and  has  a  frontage  of  100 
feet  on  Bedford  av.,  including  20  feet  of  parsonage.  It  ex- 
tends a  depth  of  167  feet  on  Wilson  st.,  including  lecture- 
room,  etc.  There  are  five  entrances  from  the  outside,  three 
on  Bedford  ave.  and  two  on  Wilson  st. ;  and  two  towers,  one 
ending  in  a  spire,  180  feet  high.  The  audience-room  is  95 
feet  in  length,  68  feet  in  width,  and  44  feet  in  height;  with 
140  pews  on  the  main  floor,  and  62  in  the  gallery.  The  pews 
are  of  black  walnut,  and  capable  of  accommodating  one 
thousand  one  hundred  and  fifty  persons.  There  are,  also, 
five  class-rooms,  one  Bible  class-room,  a  lecture-room,  seating 
about  four  hundred  persons  ;  parlors,  kitchen,  closets,  etc. 
The  Sabbath-school  room,  which,  including  the  infant-class 
room,  seats  more  than  one  thousand  children,  is  the  hand- 
somest in  the  city,  and  a  model  of  elegance  and  convenience. 
The  school  has  a  fine  library  and  organ,  and  is  very  flourish- 
ing. The  windows  are  of  stained  glass,  and  the  interior  of 
the  structure,  the  audience-room,  is,  at  night,  lighted  by 
glass  jets,  arranged  in  a  dome,  similar  to  that  in  the  House 
of  Representatives,  at  Washington.  The  choir  is  in  the  rear 
of  the  pulpit,  in  a  recess,  around  which  are  triple  columns, 
from  which  the  ceiling  springs  in  rich  ribbed  work,  etc.  Be- 
tween these  columns  are  the  organ  pipes.  Altogether  the 
church  is  one  of  the  most  complete  in  the  city.  The  cost 
is  from  $225,000  to  $230,000.  The  parsonage  adjoining  the 
church,  on  Bedford  ave.,  is  a  neat,  brown-stone  dwelling, 
built  in  the  same  manner  as  the  church. 

Ministry:  Revs.  E.  L.  Janes,  1849-50;  B.  Creagh,  1851- 
'52,  F.  W.  Bill,  1853-54  ;  H.  J.  Fox,  185.5-'56  ;  E.  L.  Janes, 
1857-'58  ;  W.  S.  Studley,  1859-'60  ;  A.  S.  Hunt,  1861-'62  ;  C. 
D.  Foss,  1863-'64  ;  C.  H.  Payne,  1865-'67  ;  E.  G.  Andrews, 
1868-'69-'70;  J.  A.  M.  Chapman,  1871-'73-'77-'78;  H.  W.  War- 
ren, 1874-'76;  J.  O.  Peck,  1878-'80 ;  Wm.  V.  Kelley,  1881 
-'84. 

Rev.  WiLUAM  "V.  Kelley,  D.  D.  (Wes.  Univ.),  born  in 
Plainfield,  N.  J.,  1843  ;  grad.  Wesleyan  Univ.,  1865  ;  Prof. 
Math,  and  Sciences  in  Pennington  Sem.,  1866  ;  Pastor,  Burl- 
mgton,  N.  J.,  1867;  Camden,  N.  J.,  1868;  New  Brunswick,  N. 
J.,  1870;  Buffalo,  1873;  Phila.,  1874;  Newark,  1878;  Brooklyn, 
1881-'84. 

This  church  has  been  aptly  styled  '•  The  School  of  the 
Bishops,"  three  of  its  Pastors,  Foss,  Andrews,  and  Warren, 
having  become  Bishops,  while  Bishop  Harris  was  once  one 
of  its  class-leaders;  and  Rev.  Dr.  Paj-ne,  under  whose  influ- 
ence the  present  edifice  was  erected,  is  Presideiit  of  a  Western 
Methodist  College. 

Fleet  Street  M.  E.  Church,  corner  of  Fleet  and  La- 
fayette streets,  originated  in  the  action  of  certain  members 
of  the  Sands  street  and  Washington  street  M.  E.  churches, 
at  a  meeting  in  the  early  part  of  March,  1850.  During  the 
same  month,  land  was  purchased  for  $4,000,  and  the  erection 
of  an  edifice,  fifty  by  seventy  feet,  and  two  stories  high,  com- 
menced. The  congregation  was  organized  in  May,  1850,  and 
the  new  brick  lecture-room  was  dedicated  in  September  of 
the  same  year. 


ECCLESIASTICAL  ORGANIZATIONS. 


1035 


i^r 


1036 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


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In  June,  1852,  the  Rev.  E.  M.  Hattield  was  appointed  Pastor, 
and  the  church  edifice  cotumenced.  It  was  completed  and 
occupied  in  the  early  part  of  1853,  at  a  total  cost,  exclusive  of 
ground,  of  $27,000.  In  May,  1854,  the  Rev.  J.  S.  Inskip  was 
appointed  Pastor ;  and  was  followed,  May,  1855,  by  the 
Rev.  Dr.  James  H.  Perry;  April,  1867,  by  Rev.  William 
Lawrence;  April,  1859,  by  Rev.  C.  D.  Foss;  April,  1861,  by 
Rev.  J.  F.  Booth;  April,  1863,  by  Rev,  R.  M.  Hatfield  (second 
term);  April,  I860,  by  Rev.  B.  M.  Adams;  1868-'9-'70,  S.  H. 
Pratt;  1871-'2-'3,  B.  M.  Adams  (second  term) ;  1874-'o-'6, 
W.  C.  Steele;  1877-'8-'9,  J.  Simmons;  1880-'l,  JolmPegg,  Jr.; 
1882-'4,  Rev.  J.  Pullman. 

In  1859,  the  parsonage  was  erected  and  the  lecture-room 
enlarged  for  Sunday-school  purposes.  In  1872,  thoi'ough 
repairs  were  made  on  the  church  and  lecture-room,  costing 
about  $4,000.  The  value  of  church,  chapel  and  parsonage 
with  furniture  and  ground  is  estimated  at  .$80,000,  ff  ee  of  debt. 

Rev.  Joseph  Pullman,  D.  D.,  born  in  Ireland,  1889;  grad. 
Wesleyan  Univ.,  1863;  ijrevious  locations,  New  York,  New 
Haven,  Ct.,  came  to  Brooklyn,  April,  1882. 

Summerfield  M.  E.  Church. — Early  in  1851,  Messrs.  Robert 
IbbotsoD,  James  De  Gray,  J.  H.  Havens  and  Daniel  J.  Darling 
united  in  erecting  a  church  on  the  corner  of  Washington  and 
Greene  avenues,  at  a  total  cost,  including  furniture,  of 
|5,800. 

The  present  church  was  erected  in  1856,  and  ded. 
Feb.  22d,  1857.  Its  entire  cost,  including  the  parson- 
age and  two  additional  lots,  was  about  140,000;  the 
property  being  now  worth  !5i75,000.  The  seating  capacity  is 
1,000.  The  efficient  services  of  Rev.  J.  M.  Reed  in  superin- 
tending the  erection  of  the  church  are  remembered. 

Ministry:  Revs.  Chas.  Fletcher,  1851-52;  David  Osborn, 
1853-'54;  John  M.  Reed,  185.5-56;  William  S.  Studley,  1857- 
'58;  George  R.  Crook,  1859-'60;  Tlios.  J.  Osborn,  1861;  Chas. 
B.  Sing,  1862-63;  Levy  S.  Weed,  1864-'G5;  E.  L.  Janes,  1866; 
J.  M.  Buckley,  1867-68;  William  S.  Studley,  1869-'70-'71;  J. 
M.  Buckley,  1873-'73-'74;  Albert  H.  Wyatt,  1875;  Gea  F. 
Retell,  1876-'77-'78;  C.  M.  Sims,  lS79-'80;  W.  L.  Phillips, 
1881-83. 

Rev.  W.  L.  Phillips  was  born  in  Troy,  1850;  grad.  Wes- 
leyan Univ.,  1872;  studied  Boston  Theo.  School;  located  So. 
Yarmouth,  Mass.;  Fall  River ;  New  Bedford;  Brooklyn, 
1881-84. 

St.  Paul's  M.  E.  Church  was  formerly  known  as  the  Wil- 
liam. St.  M.  E.  Church.      Its  buildings  having  been  sold,  the 


society  was  partially  disbanded,  being 
without  a  pastor.^  In  April,  1879,  the 
Rev.  W.  W.  Bowdish,  D.  D.,  Pastor  First 
Place  M.  E.  Ch.,  was  appointed  to  look 
after  the  society.  He  met  with  them  in 
private  houses  until  the  present  place  of 
worship  was  secured  and  fitted  up  for 
Divine  services.  On  the  1st  of  May, 
^  the    Hall    on    Van    Brunt    street    was 

\V     is\  opened. 

~'  The  Sunday-school  was  org.  May  4th, 

with  an  attendance  of  about  60,  the  pas- 
tor acting  as  superintendent.  Jas.  Boyd 
soon  became  supt.;  under  his  direction 
the  Sunday-school  prospered  greatly  and 
in  membership  increased  to  250.  Too 
great  honor  cannot  be  given  to  him  for 
his  devotion  to  this  work.  During  the 
first  year,  the  pulpit  was  supplied  by 
students  from  Drew  Theological  Semi- 
nary who  contributed  much  towards  the 
success  of  the  work.  At  the  close  of  the 
year,  62  members  in  full  connection  and  20  probationers 
were  reported. 

Rev.  Wm.  Burt  was  appointed  as  Pastor  in  April,  1880.  He 
remained  three  3'ears  doing  efficient  work.  At  the  close  of 
his  pastorate,  he  reported  117  full  members  and  19  proba- 
tioners. The  Rev.  Millard  F.  Compton  succeeded  as  Pastor 
in  April,  1883.  The  church  has  been  a  great  blessing  to  this 
part  of  Brooklyn.  Statistics  cannot  represent  the  work  of 
this  heroic  band  of  Christians.  It  is  situated  in  the  12th 
Ward  of  the  city  of  Brooklyn,  upon  emphatically  missionary 
ground.  The  woi-k  is  among  the  men  who  follow  our  canals; 
sailors;  the  men  employed  in  the  Atlantic  Dock,  the  Erie  Basin 
and  the  ship-3'ards  and  factories  that  line  the  shore  of  the 
12th  Ward. 

The  congregation  worship  at  j)resent  in  a  "  hired  room  "  on 
Van  Brunt  st.  The  society  expects  to  build  a  church,  in  the 
near  future,  on  their  property,  corner  of  Richards  and  Sullivan 
streets. 

Warren  Street  M.  E.  Church.— Prior  to  1852,  a  small 
room,  for  religious  meetings  was  fitted  up  at  313  Baltic  St., 
by  Caleb  Leverich.  In  1852,  he  set  apart  the  upper  stories  of 
three  contiguous  houses,  in  Butler  st.,  for  the  use  of  tha 
Hedding  Mission,  which  was  established  during  that  year. 
In  1853,  the  mission  was  united  with  that  of  Hicks  St.; 
but,  on  the  formatioii  of  the  Hicks  Street  Church,  it  was  left 
alone;  and,  in  1855,  it  removed  to  the  old  Reformed  Dutch 
Church,  on  the  corner  of  Court  and  Butler  sts. ;  soon  after- 
ward, to  a  hall,  cor.  of  Court  and  Sackett  sts.;  and  in  1858, 
to  the  parlor  of  a  house  on  Warren  st. 

In  1S59,  the  church  was  incorporated  under  its  present 
name,  and  the  site  of  the  present  church  building,  on  War- 
ren St.,  was  purchased  for  !|!7,150.  The  corner-stone  of  the 
church  building  was  laid  Nov.  10th,  1859,  the  basement  was 
dedicated  June  24th,  1860,  and  the  audience-room  July  14th, 
1861.     Its  cost  was  about  $22,750. 

In  1869,  it  was  renovated  and  refurnished  at  an  expense  of 
■$2,600.  It  is  a  brick  structure.  While  the  society  was  a 
mission  it  was  supplied  by  the  Local  Preachers'  Association, 
and  Matthias  E.  Willing,  1852,  William  F.  Collins,  1853,  Al- 
bert Nash,  1854-55;  Joseph  Palmer,  1856-'57,  officiated. 

The  first  Pastor,  after  the  organization  of  the  church,  was 
Joseph  Law;  succeeded  by  Revs.  John  Mitchell,  1861;  Abram 
S.  Francis,  1862-"63;  Elislia  Sands,  186i-'65;  Wellesley  W. 
Bowdish,  1866-'67-'68;  George  A.  Hubbell,  1869-'70-'71;  Ed- 
win F.  Hadley,  1872;  J.  V.    Saunders,  1873;   John  Parker, 


ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1037 


1874-'75-'76;  C.  W.  Gallagher,  1877-'78-'79;  Spencer  H.  Bray, 
1880;  A.  Stevens,  18S1;  A.  S.  Kavanagh,  1883-83. 

Summerfield  M.  E.  Mission,  Park  ave.,  bet.  Spencer  and 
Walworth  sts.,  is  the  continuation  of  the  East  Brooklyn  First 
Mission  Sabbath-school  and  Society,  founded  in  Oct.,  1851, 
by  the  Rev.  Harvey  Newcomb.  The  first  building  occupied 
by  it  was  an  academy  building  in  Skillman  st. 

In  1853,  the  society  was  org.,  and  lots  purchased  on  Park, 
ave.,  bet.  Spencer  and  Walworth  sts.,  where  a  wooden  chapel 
was  built,  and  opened  first  in  Feb.,  1861.  This  was  enlarged 
in  1869,  and  will  now  accommodate  300  people. 

From  its  foundation  to  1874,  it  was  conducted  by  workers 
chiefly  from  the  Franklin  Avenue  Presbyterian  Church. 
During  nearly  the  whole  of  this  time,  the  Sabbath-school, 
which  was  its  chief  feature,  was  superintended  by  Mr.  John 
C  Cook,  of  that  church. 

In  1874,  it  was  relinquished  to  the  M.  E.  Oh.,  a  society  of 
which  denomination  was  org.  in  it,  largely  by  the  labors  of 
the  late  Rev.  A.  S.  Francis,  in  recognition  of  which,  the 
church  that  was  formed  was  called  the  Francis  M.  E.  Church. 
Ministry:  Revs.  Brower,  1877;  Nathan  Hubbell,  1878;  J. 
Pilkinton,  1880;  J.  S.  Whedon,  1881.  W.  Platts,  1888. 

In  the  spring  of  1883,  the  organization,  which  had  strug- 
gled under  great  difficulties  in  its  history,  was  taken  under 
the  care  of  the  Summerfield  M.  E.  Church  of  Washington 
ave.,  and  its  name  changed  to  its  present  style,  the  Summer- 
field  Mission.  Its  present  Pastor  is  the  Rev.  William  Platts. 
Its  membership  is  60.  The  membership  of  tlie  Sabbath- 
school  is  '200. 

The  South  Third  M.  E.  Church,  cor.  Union  ave.,  E.  D., 
was  org.  1854,  by  members  from  the  old  South  3d  Street 
Church.  Ministry:  1854-'55,  A.  S.  Francis;  1856,  L.  C. 
Cheney;  1857,  Daniel  Curry;  1858-'59,  Sam.  W.  King;  1860-61, 
J.  S.  Peck;  1803,  Benj.  Pillsbury;  1864-'65,  J.  S.  Inskip; 
1866-'68,  A.  C.  Eggleston;  1869-'7a-'71,W.T.  Hill;  1873-'73-'74, 
F.  W.  Ware;  1875-76,  I.  Simmons;  1877-"7&-'79,  W.  C.  Steele; 
1880-'81-'83,  A.  S.  Graves;  1883,  F.  Brown. 

The  First  German  M.  E.  Church  of  Brooklyn,  was  org. 
in  1855,  with  about  35  members.  They  worshiped  first  in  a 
private  house  in  Atlantic  street. 

In  1857,  the  present  house  of  worship  was  built  on  Wyckoff 
street,  bet.  Smith  and  Hoyt  sts.  It  is  a  brick  building,  with 
300  sittings.  The  church  is  now  called  the  Wyckoff  Street 
M.  E.  Church. 

The  Pastors  of  this  church  have  been  Rev.  J.  W.  Freind, 
1858-'59;  Frederick  F.  Zimmerman,  1860-61;  Henry  Rasten- 
deick,  1863-63;  Frederick  Bonn,  1864;  William  H.  Kurth, 
1865-'66-'67;  Francis  G.  Gratz,  1868;  F.  Rey,  1869;  George 
Abele,  1870-'71;  Christian  F.  Grimm,  1873-'73-'74;  Jacob 
WolflE,  1875-'76-'77;  C.  Jost,  1878-'79-'80;  C.  A.  Brockmeier, 
1881. 

The  New  York  Ave.  M.  E.  Church  originated  in  a  prayer 
meeting  which  was  established  in  the  latter  part  of  1855,  on 
the  old  Clove  road,  near  the  present  Eastern  Parkway,  by 
John  McKillop,  a  local  preacher,  and  his  wife.  Meetings 
•were  at  first  held  in  a  private  house;  but,  in  March,  1856,  a 
house  was  hired  for  a  temporary  chapel.  In  June  of  the 
same  year  a  church  organization  was  effected,  under  the 
name,  "Nathan  Bangs  M.  E.  Church."  A  plain  church 
building  was  erected  on  what  is  now  Nostrand  ave.,  between 
Butler  and  Douglass  sts.,  and  ded.  in  March,  1857.  Its  cost 
was  .f4,376.  In  1873,  the  property  of  St.  Andrew's  P.  E. 
Church,  on  New  York  ave.  was  purchased  for  |13,500,  and 
the  present  name  adopted. 

In  the  latter  part  of  1880,  the  building  was  thoroughly  ren- 
ovated and  enlarged,  and  a  chapel,  90  by  34  feet,  erected. 
The  seating  capacity  of  the  church  is  about  500. 


While  the  church  was  known  as  the  Nathan  Bangs  Church, 
it  was  served  by  the  following  Ministers  :  1857-'8,  Rev.  S.  H. 
Piatt;  1859-'60,  A.  S.  Hunt;  1861,  A.  C.  Eggleston;  1863-3; 
W.  F.  Hatfield;  1864.  John  McKillop  (local  preacher);  1865-'6, 
H.  P.  Shepherd;  1867-'8,  John  McKillop;  1869,  A.  S.  Francis, 
1870,  to  April,  1873,  D.  McMullen.  Subsequent  Ministry :  H. 
B.  Hibben  and  D.  H.  Hanebergh,  till  April,  1874;  1874-'.5-'6, 
G.  L.  Westgate;  1877,  T.  R.  Slicer,  J.  T.  Gracey;  1878-'9-'80, 
D.  A.  Goodsell;  1881,  L.  S.  Weed,  D.  D.;  1873,  N.  G.  Chee- 
ney. 

Hanson  Place  M.  E.  Church,  Hanson  place,  cor.  of  St. 
Felix  St.,  was  first  Dean  St.  M.  E.  Church,  which  was  reorg. 
January  3,  1858,  under  its  present  name.  In  that  year  a 
very  neat  and  commodious  church  edifice  was  erected,  and 
dedicated  by  Bisliop  Janes  Jan.  3,  1858.  When  it  was 
opened,  there  were  but  seventy  members  of  the  church. 
There  are  now  1,100.  Pastors:  Rev.  Joseph  Law;  1859-60, 
James  H.  Perry;  1861-3.  Cyrus  D.  Foss;  1863-'4-'5,  G.  W. 
Woodruff;  1866-'7-'8,  W.  F.  Watkins;  1869-'70-'l,  A.  S.  Hunt; 
1873-'3-'4,  Emory  F.  Haynes;  1875-'6-'7,  Geo.  E.  Reed;  1878 
-■9-80,  J.  M.  Buckley,  D.  D.;  1881-'3-'3,  J.  O.  Peck,  D.  D. 

In  1873,  the  church  was  taken  down  and  a  larger  edifice 
erected  on  the  same  site;  and  the  new  house  was  dedicated, 
.also,  by  Bishop  Janes,  on  the  first  Sunday  in  January,  1873. 
This  building  is  faced  with  Philadelphia  brick,  and  trimmed 
with  Ohio  free-stone.  The  auditorium  is  of  the  ampliitheatre 
form,  and  has  two  galleries.     Its  seating  capacity  is  1,-500. 

At  the  rear  of  the  church  is  a  Sabbath-school  room  and 
chapel,  with  accommodations  for  1,000,  and  with  the  usual 
class-rooms,  etc.  The  Christian  Union  connected  with  the 
church  numbers  180  members,  and  presents  attractive  pro- 
grammes at  its  semi-monthly  meetings.  Officers,  1883-'4  : 
R.  E.  Selmes,  Pres.;  E.  M.  Travis,  Vice-Pres.;  Chauncey  W. 
Browne,  Rec.  Sec;  Louise  Gilbert,  Cor.  Sec;  Chas.  R.  Ran- 
dall, Treas. 

Eev.  J.  O.  Peck,  D.  D.,  born  inGroton,Vt.;  grad.  Amherst, 
1863;  author  of  published  sermons;  located  at  No.  Amherst, 
1860;  Chicopee  Falls,  1861;  Chelsea,  Mass.,  1863-3;  Lowell, 
1864-'6;  Worcester,  1867-9;  Springfield,  1870-'3;  Chicago, 
1873-'5;  Baltimore,  1875-8;  Brooklyn,  1878-83. 

Janes  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  Reid  ave.,  cor.  Mon- 
roe St.,  had  its  origin  as  .Janes  3Ussion,  in  a  Sunday  School 
organized  in  a  private  house  in  June,  1858,  by  Daniel  North- 
rup,  of  Washington  Avenue  Methodist  Episco])al  Church. 

Ebenezer  Willson  and  wife,  of  Nathan  Bangs'  Church  on 
Clove  road  (now  New  York  Avenue  Church),  afterward  hired 
a  house  on  the  cor.  of  Patchen  ave.  and  Madison  st.,  where 
the  Sunday-school  was  continued  with  class-meeting,  prayer- 
meeting  and  occasional  preaching.  The  building  was  desig- 
nated by  a  white  flag  by  day,  and  a  lantern  by  night. 

The  preacliing  was  for  several  years  provided  by  the  Local 
Preachers'  Association  of  Brooklyn,  prominent  among  whom 
was  Rev.  John  McKillop,  of  Nathan  Bangs'  Church.  Rev. 
Job  G.  Bass,  a  local  preacher,  was  acting  pastor  for  about 
two  years.  During  his  ministry  lots  were  bought  on  the 
south-east  cor.  of  Reid  ave.  and  Jlonroe  St.,  and  a  frame 
church  erected  (36x60  feet),  at  a  cost  of  .$3,600. 

The  first  Board  of  Trustees  were:  Jabez  Ross,  John  W. 
Brush,  Gilbert  Draper,  David  B.  Morehouse,  John  McKillop, 
Ebenezer  Willson  and  William  Taylor. 

The  church  was  ded.  by  Bishop  Janes,  Nov.  30,  1859.  A 
year  afterwards.  Rev.  Charles  Packman  was  appointed  to 
take  charge  of  the  church,  which  then  consisted  of  eleven 
members  and  twelve  probationers.  He  remained  uutil  the 
spring  of  1863. 

The  Pastors  succeeding  him  were:  Rev.  A.  C.  Eggleston, 
1863;    Rev,  Wra.   H.  Simonson,  1863-'4-'5;  Eev.  Henry  C. 


1038 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Glover,  1866-'7-'8;  Re\.  Win.  1£.  Russell,  1871-'2-'3;  Rev.  J. 
H.  Stansberry,  1874-*5-"6;  Rev.  Geo.  L.  Thompson,  1877-'8-'9: 
Rev.  I.  Simmons,  18S0-'l-'3;  Rev.  Robt.  W.  Jones,  1883-"4. 
In  1868,  a  Sunday-school  room  was  added,  and  the  audito- 
rium iniproved. 

New  lots  were  bought  on  the  south-west  cor.  of  Reid  ave. 
and  Monroe  st.,  in  1882,  for  $4,100.  Plans  were  drawn  for  a 
new  church  in  June,  1883,  by  Mr.  John  Welch,  architect, 
90x65  feet,  of  brick  with  stone  trimmings,  to  cost  $30,000, 
with  a  seating  capacity  for  1,000  persons. 

The  Sunday-school,  which  was  really  the  mother  of  the 
church,  has  kept  in  advance  of  her  interests  and  now  num- 
bers 600  scholars. 

Its  superintendents  have  been  Daniel  Northi-up,  Ebeiiezer 
Wilson,  Gilbert  Draper,  Peter  Backman,  Wm.  A.  Fitch, 
Samuel  B.  Terry,  Allen  R.  Jollis,  J.  T.  McFall,  Alfred  E. 
Pearsall,  H.  C.  StoothofE,  Charles  L.  Potter,  Hiram  Bedell, 
James  H.  Jlclntosh. 

Rev.  Robt.  W.  Jones,  born  in  Bethlehem,  Pa. ;  grad.  Wes- 
leyan  Univ.,  1871;  located  in  Cochranville,  1862-3;  Enter- 
prise, Pa.,  and  Philadelphia,  1864-'5;  Windsor,  Ct,  1868-'70; 
Hartford,  Ct.,  1871-'3:  Norwalk,  Ct.,  1874-'6;  B'klyn,  1877-'9; 
Flushing,  L,  I.,  18S0-"2;  B'klyn.  1883-'4. 

Rev.  Job  Gardiner  Bass,  bom  1816,  in  Charleston,  S.  C, 
was  Chaplain  90th  N.  Y.  Vols.,  1861-5;  of  Seaman's  Fiiend 
Soc.  two  years;  of  Kings  Co.  Jail  and  Penitentiary,  1867-84; 
located  B'klyn,  1855. 

Nostrand  Avenue  M.  E.  Church. — A  mission  was  estab- 
lished, in  1860,  at  the  residence  of  Ebenezer  Wilson,  on 
Quincy  st.,  near  Nostrand  ave.  In  1861,  it  was  removed  to 
a  building,  erected  for  the  purpose  by  Mr.  Wilson,  on  Gates 
ave.,  near  Nostrand. 

In  June,  1862,  the  mission  was  org.  as  the  Gates  Ave.  M.  E. 
Ch.  Having  again  outgrown  its  accommodations,  it  was  re- 
org.,  in  1865,  under  its  present  name.  A  place  of  worship 
was  erected  on  the  corner  of  Quincy  st.  and  Nostrand  ave., 
which  was  occupied  in  April,  1867. 

In  1876,  a  parsonage  was  built ;  and,  in  1881,  the  present 
edifice  (see  opposite  page)  was  completed,  at  a  cost  of  $31,750. 
Tlie  total  value  of  the  church  i)roperty  is  $70,000.  The  seat- 
ing capacity  is  1,225.  The  acoustic  arrangement  of  the  audi- 
torium is  one  of  the  best  in  the  country. 

Ministry:  Revs.  Stephen  Rushmore,  1861;  S.  M.  Hammond 
(1st  Pa-stor  appointed  by  the  conference),  1865-'66-'67;  R.  S. 
Rust,  1868-'69  ;  C.  E.  Glover,  1870-'71-'73  ;  M.  Griffin,  1873- 
'74-'75;  James  Pullman,  1876-'77-'78;  Geo.  W.  Woodruff, 
D.  D.,  1879-80;  Geo.  E.  Reed,  1881-83. 

Rev.  Geo.  E.  Reed,  born  at  Brownville,  Me.,  1846  ;  grad. 
Wesleyan  Univ.,  1869;  and  Boston  Theol.  Sem.;  located  at 
Fall  River,  Mass.,  Stamford,  Ct.,  and  Bklyn.,  187.5-'78-'81- 83. 

Fleet  Street  Bethel  (colored)  Af.  M.  E.  Church  was  an 
offshoot  from  the  Wesleyan  African  M.  E.  Church,  Bridge 
St.,  about  1861.  In  that  year,  the  church  edifice  of  St. 
Mark's  Church  (Episcopal),  was  purchased  at  $6,500.  The 
congregation  was,  from  the  first,  numerous.  The  first  Pastor 
was  Rev.  (now  Bishop)  R.  H.  Cain,  followed,  in  1865,  by  Rev. 
Joshua  Woodlyn,  and  he,  in  succession,  by  Revs.  Theodore 
Gould  (now  Business  Manager  of  A.  M.  E.  Book  Concern),  in 
1868 ;  Robert  J.  Wayman,  1871 ;  J.  B.  Murray,  1874  ;  C.  T. 
Schaffer,  1877;  H.  H.  Lewis,  1881-'83;  Geo.  Dardis,  1883.  In 
1881,  the  church  was  enlarged,  renovated,  and  refitted,  at  an 
expense  of  $4,000. 

During  the  pastorate  of  Rev.  J.  B.  Murray,  the  Metro- 
politan Mission  was  established,  by  a  portion  of  the  members 
of  tbis  society. 

Greenpoint  Tabernacle  was  commenced  1864,  by  members 
of  the  M.  E.  Ch.  of  Greenpoint,  under  the  leadership  of  Rev. 


J.  F.  Booth.  In  January,  1870,  a  new  and  commodious 
building  was  dedicated.  It  is  of  brick,  massive  in  appear- 
ance, surmounted  by  a  high-peaked  roof,  is  90  feet  in  length, 
by  60  feet  wide,  with  a  large  extension  containing  class- 
rooms, infant-class,  and  church  parlors.  The  church  affords 
1,100  seats,  with  standing  room  for  200  more;  while  the  base- 
ment seats  700  persons.  Value  of  real  estate  and  building, 
about  $80,000.  It  is  a  prosperous  church,  with  a  very  large 
Sunday-school,  and  exerts  a  wide  influence  in  the  neighbor- 
hood where  it  is  located.  Ministry:  1864,  J.  F.  Booth  ;  1866- 
'67,  D.  A.  Goodsell;  1869-70-71,  Freeman  P.  Tower;  1872, 
C.  E.  Harris ;  1873-'74,  T.  H.  Burch  ;  1875-'76,  J.  S.  Brecken- 
ridge  ;  1877,  S.  H.  Piatt ;  1878,  J.  W.  Barnhart ;  1879-'80,  W. 
H.  Simonson;  1881-'82-'83,  W.  D.  Thompson. 


THE    WILLOUGHBT    AVENUE    M.    E.    CHURCH. 

The  Tompkins  (or  Willoughby)  Avenue  M.  E.  Church. — 
In  1865,=^  many  members  of  DeKalb  Ave.  M.  E.  Church 
were  dissatisfied  with  the  Pastor  sent  them  by  conference, 
the  Rev.  Gad  Smith  Gilbert,  and,  on  March  16,  forty-two  of 
his  adherents  withdrew  and  organized  John  Wesley  M.  E. 
Church,  but  were  incorporated  as  the  "Tompkins  Ave.  M.  E. 
Church.''' 

Lots  on  the  north-west  corner  of  Tompkins  and  Willoughby 
avenues  were  secured,  and  a  Tabernacle,  costing  $1,900,  was 
immediately  erected  and  occupied  ten  days  later.  Rev.  Gad 
Smith  Gilbert  became  the  first  Pastor.  The  corner-stone  of 
the  present  edifice  was  laid  April  25th,  1867.  On  August  2, 
1868,  it  was  dedicated  by  Bish.  Janes.  In  1872,  a  chapel  was 
added.  These  are  frame  structures  in  the  modern  gothic 
style,  with  stained-glass  windows.  They  occupy  land  front- 
ing 100  feet  on  Tompkins  ave.,  and  120  on  Willoughby  ave. 
The  church  is  75  by  60  ft.  in  size,  with  galleries  on  three 
sides  and  a  seating  capacity  of  1,200.  The  chapel  is  33  ft.  wide 
by  60  ft.  deep.  The  entire  cost  of  buildings  and  land  was 
$46,169.84. 

On  Aug.  6,  1868,  a  number  of  the  members,  who  were  dis- 
satisfied with  the  conference  appointment  of  pastor,  withdrew 
and  held  their  first  service  as  the  Greene  Ave.  M.  E.  Clmrch. 

The  Wesley  Church  became  more  and  more  involved  in 
debt.  The  membership  increased  to  330.  The  Sabbath-school 
numbered  270. 


ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1039 


NOSTKAND    AVENUE   M.   E.    CHURCH. 


1040 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Ministry  as  follows  :  1865,  Rev.  Gad  Smith  Gilbert;  1866- 
'69,  Rev.  Francis  C.  Hill;  1869-'71,  Rev.  J.  W.  Barnhart; 
1871-74,  Rev.  C.  B.  Ford;  187-l-'77,  Rev.  Frederick  Brown; 
1877-'79,  Rev.  J.  H.  Stansbury.  In  1879,  the  debt  was 
nearly  $40,000. 

In  March,  1879,  the  property  was  sold  under  foreclosure, 
and  purchased  by  the  Williamsburgh  Savings  Bank  for 
$15,000.  Subsequently,  Miss  Anna  Oliver  contracted  with 
the  bank  for  its  purchase  for  $14,000.  The  first  thousand 
was  paid  by  voluntary  contributions  from  four  men  and 


the  New  York  East  Conference.  It  was  decided  to  postpone 
the  raising  of  the  purchase  price  untU  the  church  should 
have  demonstrated  its  ability  to  continue.  The  church  and 
donors  of  the  first  thousand  requested  Jliss  Oliver  to  hold 
the  property  in  her  name.  This  she  reluctantly  consented 
to  do,  at  the  same  time  declaring  that  she  held  it  for  the 
church. 

A  bill  was  sought  from  the  Legislature  to  vest  the  title  to 
the  property  in  the  following  Board  of  Tnistees  :  Rev.  Wm. 
H.  Warren,  D.  D.,  Pres.  Boston  University;  Rev.  J.  E.  Lati- 


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Jli'Kf  11     ^< 


;itA<'l-;    .Mlil'IKIIIlST    ICI'ISCOl'xVL    CHUUCH. 


two  women.  A  storm  of  persecution  burst  over  this 
woman's  enterprise.  Miss  Oliver  is  a  graduate  of  the  School 
of  Theology  of  the  Boston  University,  with  degrees  of  A. 
M.  and  B.  D.,  and  a  license  to  preach  from  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church  in  Boston. 

Religious  services  commenced  under  the  new  regime  the 
first  Sabbath  in  April,  and  about  two  weeks  later  a  church 
organization  was  effected  in  accordance  with  the  doctrines 
and  discipline  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  known  as  the  Willoughby 
Avenue  M.  E.  Church,  but  which  was  never  recognized  by 


mer,  D.D.,  Dean  of  M.  E.  Sch.  Tlieol.  Boston  Univ. ;  Rev.  L.  T. 
Townsend,  D.  D.,  Dean  Chat.  Theol.  Inst.;  Samuel  B.  Terry; 
Mrs.  Harriet  Skidmore,  Sec.  W.  F.  M.  S.  of  M.  E.  Church, 
and  J.  C.  Taber,  M.  D.     The  bill  did  not  pass  in  three  years. 

Prominent  official  members  of  the  church  were  :  Gilbert 
E.  Currie,  Samuel  B.  Terry,  Hester  A.  Chasty,  Cornelia  G. 
Mitchell,  Wm.  M.  Parrish,  G.  H.  Hinds,  G.  P.  McClelland, 
Mary  P.  Tracy,  Helen  M.  Weekes,  J.  B.  Whitby,  K.  H.  Cad- 
doo,  D.  Lawson,  Laura  E.  Peden,  Caroline  Aspinall,  Martha 
Dibble,  J.  Leonard. 


ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1041 


The  principles  of  the  church  were  :  1.  No  debts  to  be  con- 
tracted. 3.  No  money  to  be  raised  by  means  of  fairs,  festi- 
vals, or  any  similar  projects.  3.  No  distinction  of  sex  to  be 
made  in  any  of  the  offices  or  work  of  the  chiirch. 

These  principles  were  immediately  put  to  the  severest  test, 
for  the  church  was  stripped  of  every  article  of  furniture, 
gas  fixtures,  reflectors  and  furnaces,  and  the  buildings  were 
much  out  of  repair.  Tlie  young  society,  at  first  of  eight 
members,  used  only  the  money  voluntarily  contributed  by 
the  congregation  that  gathered.  They  refurnished,  gradu- 
ally, the  church  and  chapel,  and  repaired  the  buildings. 

Meanwhile,  the  church  became  thoroughly  organized  in 
every  department,  with  Sabbath-school,  prayer-meetings, 
class-meetings,  young  people's  societies  and  meetings,  and 
children's  service.  A  temperance  organization  secured  about 
400  signatures  to  the  pledge  in  four  years;  and  is  still  in  exist- 
ence, having  recently  canvassed  the  Ward  and  obtained  more 
than  1,100  signatures  against  renewing  liquor  licenses. 

The  Sabbath-school  was  org.  Aug.  34,  1879,  with  150  mem- 
bers, and  increased  to  380.  In  the  spring  of  1883,  on  the 
completion  of  her  three  years'  pastorate,  which  is  the  full 
Methodist  term.  Miss  Oliver  resigned.  The  church  would 
not  accept  her  resignation,  and,  in  the  fall,  made  a  move  to- 
ward the  erection  of  a  parsonage.  However,  in  March,  1883, 
Miss  Oliver  again  sent  in  her  resignation,  giving  as  her  only 
reasons  that  they  were  not  recognized  by  their  own  denom- 
ination— the  M.  E.  Church — and  the  consequences  which  flow 
from  a  want  of  recognition. 

The  church  voted  to  disband,  and  also  directed  their  Pas- 
tor to  sell  the  church  property,  as  she  held  it  only  for  them; 
and  to  appropriate  to  herself  the  excess  over  |13,000  yet  un- 
paid. They  likewise  directed  her  to  sell  the  furniture,  the 
proceeds  to  be  devoted  to  the  poor  of  the  church.  She  de- 
clined to  disi)0se  of  the  sacred  edifice  for  business  purposes. 
It  was  finally  sold  for  |18,000  to  the  Brooklyn  Reformed 
Presbyterian  Church;  the  congregation  was  disbanded,  and 
the  larger  part  of  the  Sunday  school  united  with  the  East 
Congregational  Church. 

Embury  M.  E.  Church,  Herkimer  street,  corner  of  Schenec- 
tady avenue,  began  Dec.  10th,  1865,  when  twenty -seven  per- 
sons assembled  at  the  house  of  Mr.  James  Dundas,  corner  of 
Fulton  and  Howard  avenues,  and  listened  to  a  sermon  l)y 
Rev.  J.  G.  Bass.  On  the  same  day  a  Sunday-school  was  org. 
with  five  oflioers  and  teachers,  and  ten  scholars. 

The  first  board  of  trustees  was  elected  April  6th,  18G6.  The 
church  edifice  was  dedicated  June  9th,  1867,  by  Bishop 
Janes. 

It  was  enlarged  in  the  avitumn  of  1876.  The  church  num- 
bers 375  and  the  Sunday-school  300. 

Minlstrij:  1 867-'68-'69,  Thomas  Stephenson;  187r-'71-"73, 
S.  A.  Seaman;  1873-74,  Isaac  J.  Lansing;  1875-'76-'77,  Charles 
E.  Miller;  1878-'79-'80,  Charles  Bachman;  1881,  Charles  W. 
Millen. 

Grace  M.  E.  Church. — The  Seventh  Avenue  M.  E.  Church 
was  org.  about  1866,  by  members  of  the  Hanson  Place  Society. 
The  first  place  of  worship  was  a  small  wooden  chapel  at  the 
corner  of  what  was  then  Butler  street  and  Seventh  avenue. 
In  1869,  a  chapel  of  brick,  with  stone  front,  98  by  56  feet  in 
size,  was  erected  on  the  same  site. 

Grace  Church  was  organized  Jan.,  1878;  bought  the  chapel 
formerly  owned  by  the  Seventh  Ave.  Church  on  Sterling 
place;  afterwards  five  lots,  corner  Seventh  ave.  and  St.  John's 
place  were  purchased;  a  new  church  erected  and  dedicated 
Jan.  31,  1883,  at  a  total  cost  of  about  .|80,000.  The  building 
is  of  light  drab  stone  with  terra  cotta  trimmings,  in  the  Gothic 
style  of  the  13th  century;  the  auditorium  is  60  by  90  feet, 
with  600  .sittings.    The  Sunday-school  room  is  34  by  94  feet, 


and  adjoins  the  church,  the  two  opening  together.  The  in- 
terior trimmings  of  the  church  are  in  ash  and  cherry,  with 
fine  frescoes  in  the  Gothic  style.     (See  opposite  page). 

Ministry:  1867,  G.  A.  Hall;  1868-"69-'70,  C.  M.  Giffen;  1871-'3, 
E.  E.  Andrews;  (now  Bishop);  1873-'74-'75,  Dr.  Wild;  1876-'7, 
Emory  J.  Haynes;  1878-'79-'80,  John  S.  Breckenridge; 
1881-'83,  George  P.  Mains;  1882-4,  J.  R.  Thompson. 

Ti-ustees,  1882-84:  George  Copeland,  Pres.;  M.  J.  Goode- 
nough,  Treas.;  J.  C.  Haddock,  .S'ec;  J.  H.  Stevenson,  W.  H. 
B.  Pratt,  M.  D.,  J.  N.  Kenyon.W.  E.  Smith,  Jr.,  C.  M.  Brown, 
Thos.  Atkinson. 


CENTRAL    M.   E.    CHURCH. 

Central  M.  E.  Church. — This  Society  was  org.  by  Rev.  E. 
L.  Janes,  in  April,  1867,  and  commenced  its  services  in  the 
building  on  South  Fifth  street,  near  Fifth,  formerly  occupied 
by  the  Society  now  constituting  the  St.  John's  Church  on 
Bedford  ave.  The  original  valuation  of  the  church  property, 
including  the  Parsonage,  was  .f  33,000.  The  membershii^  at  the 
beginning  was  about  130,  and  the  names  of  the  oiiginal Trus- 
tees were:  James  A.  Bradley,  John  S.  Shelley,  James  H. 
Briggs,  William  H.  Hanford,  John  Gay,  Daniel  Maujer,  Jr. 
Its  successive  Pastors,  after  Rev.  E.  L.  Janes,  have  been: 
Rev.  Benj.  M.  Adams,  Rev.  Spencer  Bray,  Rev.  Dr.  J.  L. 
Peck,  Rev.  B.  M.  Adams,  Rev.  Dr.  Thos.  Burch,  Rev.  Dr.  F. 
S.  DeHass,  Rev.  Dr.  J.  E.  Cooknian.  The  present  member- 
ship is  about  five  hundred,  with  a  Sunday-school  of  five  hun- 
dred scholars  on  register. 

Its  classes  and  prayer-meetings  are  large  and  spiritual. 

Rev.  John  E.  Cookman,  D.  D.,  born  1836,  at  Carlisle,  Pa.; 
grad.  Philadelphia  College,  1854,  and  at  School  of  Theology, 
Boston  University;  previous  locations.  New  York,  Boston, 
Poughkeepsie;  settled  in  Brooklyn,  April,  1880. 

Leonard  Street  M.  E.  Church,  Leonard,  cor.  Conselyea, 
org.  in  November,  1867,  in  a  room  at  the  cor.  Skillman 
and  Leonard,  which  was  dedicated  Dec.  8th.  The  church 
was  incorporated  as  the  Hatfield  M.  E.  Church  ;  and  its 
corner-stone  was  laid  in  October,  1868.  The  edifice  is  a 
frame  structure,  63  by  75  feet;  seats  600;  cost  about  $10,500, 
and  was  ded.  Feb.  14,  1869.     Ministry:    Revs.  H.  Hatfield, 


1042 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


1868;  J.  L.  Hall,  1869-71;  H.  C.  Glover,  1873-'3;  W.  H. 
RusseU,  1874;  S.  C.  Keeler,  1876-'7;  J.  C.  Thomas,  1877;  G. 
HoUis,  1877-9;  n.  Baker,  1880;  W.  HamUton,  1881-3.  The 
church  has  130  members;  the  Sunday-school,  300. 

The  Mariner's  Church  (M.  E.)  was  established,  as  the 
name  indicates,  for  the  benefit  of  sea-faring  men.  The  first 
church  edifice,  cor.  President  and  Van  Brunt  sts.,  was  dedi- 
cated June  3,  1867.  This  building  was  occupied  about 
twelve  years.  In  1879,  a  lot  on  Van  Brunt  st.,  between 
President  and  Carroll  sts.,  was  purchased ;  the  present 
house  of  worship  was  erected  thereon,  and  dedicated,  Feb. 
1,  1880. 

A  Sunday-school  was  organized,  at  an  early  date,  under 
the  supervision  of  the  Pastor.  The  present  Superintendent 
is  "William  B.  Hoyt.  Rev.  Edmund  O.  Bates  has  been  Pastor 
from  the  beginning  to  the  present  time. 

Rev.  Edmund  Ogden  Bates,  born  in  Westchester  Co. ,  1808; 
joined  Me.  E.  Conf.  1837;  located  at  various  places;  at  Wil- 
liam Street  Bethel,  1855-'62;  Chaplain  Amer.  Seamen's 
Friend  Soc.  1863-'84;  located  Brooklyn,  1855-84. 

Greene  Avenue  M.  E.  Church  was  org.  Sept.  6th,  1868, 
with  30  members.  It  was  an  offshoot  from  the  Wesley  M.  E. 
Church  of  Tompkins  avenue.  The  first  place  of  worship  was 
a  building  on  the  corner  of  Lafayette  and  Tomjikins  ave. 
Tlie  present  churcli  edifice,  on  Greene  avenue,  near  Tomp- 
kins, was  erected  in  the  summer  of  1869.  It  has  a  seating 
capacity  of  400,  and  its  cost  was  about  |7,000.  A  parsonage 
adjoining  the  church  was  erected  in  1874,  at  a  cost  of 
|4,.500. 

Ministry:  Revs.  A.  H.  Mead,  186&-'9-'70;  O.  Kelsey,  1871-'2; 
G.  A.  Hubbell,  1873-'4;  F.  W.  Ware,  1875-'6;  C.  E.  Harris, 
1877-8;  Geo.  F.  Ketell,  1879;  Marcus  D.  Buell,  1880-1;  J. 
W.  Barnhart,  1882-'3. 

Rev.  John  W.  Baknhaet,  born  in  Marlborough,  N.  Y. ; 
grad.  Wes.  Universit}',  1861;  Pres.  Fairmount  Female  Coll., 
1862-6;  located  Sag  Harbor,  1867-8;  B'klyn,  1869-'71;  New 
York,  1873-'4;  B'klyn,  1875-'8;  New  Haven,  1879-'80;  Sag 
Harbor,  1881;  B'klyn,  1882-'3. 

The  Swedish  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  was  first  a  part 
of  the  work  of  the  New  York  Bethel  Association.  During 
many  years  class-meetings  and  prayer-meetings  were  held 
among  the  Swedes  at  their  residences.  About  1868,  a  small 
chapel  was  erected  on  Pacific  street,  near  Flatbush  ave., 
and  preaching  was  furnished  from  the  Bethel  Mission. 
In  1871,  the  present  church  edifice  was  erected  on  Dean 
St.,  near  5th  ave.  It  is  a  brick  building,  with  a  seating 
capacity  of  500.  In  the  same  year  a  church  organization, 
under  the  New  York  East  Conference,  was  effected. 

Rev.  Albert  Ericson  was  the  first  Pastor,  succeeded  in  1880 
by  the  present  Pastor,  Rev.  A.  J.  Anderson. 

Cedar  St.  M.  E.  Church  grew  out  of  a  Sunday-school  in 
Evergreen  ave. ,  nearDeKalb. ;  org.  in  1871,  with  8  teachers 
and  twenty  scholars,  and  C.  W.  Cook,  Supt.  The  following 
winter  they  removed  to  Mr.  Brundige's  store,  on  Broadway, 
and  were  known  as  the  "  Broadway  Mission."  There  the  first 
Minister,  Rev.  Mr.  Pease,  commenced  preaching.  Soon 
after,  he  hired  a  church  building  in  Kosciusko  st.,  and  re- 
moved the  society  there.  He  was  followed  a  year  later  Ijy 
Rev.  John  Perrine,  1872-'3;  Rev.  R.  P.  Christoplier,  1873-'5. 
During  his  pastorate,  the  society  took  steps  towards  purchas- 
ing their  present  building  from  the  Protestant  Methodists. 
The  building  was  purchased  for  about  $2,600;  soon  after,  the 
Rev.  A.  B.  Sanford  (1876)  was  appointed  the  Pastor.  The 
society  incorporated  under  the  name  of  the  Cedar  St.  M.  E. 
Church,  and  removed  to  their  present  home  and  place  of 
worship,  the  first  Sunday  in  July,  1876.  The  school  now 
numbered  about  150  scholars. 


Ministry:  Revs.  Mr.  Sanford,  1876-'7;  R.  K.  Diossy,  1877-'8; 
C.  K.  True,  1878;  W.  C.  Wilson,  1878-'81;  Wm.  Platts,  1881-3; 
C.  P.  Corner,  1883-'84. 

The  school,  from  its  small  beginning,  has  gained  in  num- 
bers, and  now  has  (1883)  an  average  attendance  of  335.  The 
church  is  a  wooden  building,  seating  about  350.  In  1883,  a 
new  infant-class  room  and  lecture-room  were  built. 

Rev.  Charles  P.  Corner,  born  1834,  in  Ontario,  Can. ;  at 
Victoria  Univ.,  1857-"8;  was  at  Baldwin's,  L.  I.,  1866-'7; 
Rockaway,  1868-'70  ;  Rockwell  Centre,  1871-'2  ;  Thomaston, 
1873-4;  Bklyn.,  1875-6;  New  York,  1877-8-9;  Greenwich, 
Ct.,  1880;  City  Island,  N.  Y.,  lS81-'2;  Bklyn.,  1883. 

Carroll  Park  M.  E.  Ch.  was  org.  in  tlie  Spring  of  1872,  its 
principal  originators  and  largest  contributors  being  Henry 
Du  Bois,  Chas.  BedeU,  and  W.  J.  Bedell.  While  building, 
they  worshiped  in  a  store  on  Smith,  near  Carroll  st.  The 
church  was  ded.  by  the  late  Bp.  Janes,  Dec.  22,  1872.  It  is 
of  brick,  with  Nova  Scotia  stone  trimmings,  and  is  40  by  71 
feet  deep,  with  an  L  across  the  rear,  25  by  52  feet,  contain- 
ing class-rooms  and  parlor  for  social  meetings.  Its  cost  was 
about  130,000,  and  it  seats  about  450  persons. 

Ministry:  1873-'4,  Revs.  L.  S.  Weed;  1875-6,  W.  W.  Bow- 
dish;  1877,  R.  C.  Putney;  1878-'9,  A.  B.  Sanford;  1880,  W.  C. 
Blakeman  ;  1881,  H.  H.  Beale  ;  1882,  W.  H.  Simonson  ;  1883, 
Jno,  L.  Gilder  (till  his  death).  Membership,  100;  with  an 
average  of  150  in  the  Sunday-school. 

Forty-Fourth  Street  M.  E.  Church. — A  Mission  was  or- 
ganized April  24, 1874,  in  South  Brooklyn,  and  rooms  secured 
in  3yth  St.,  between  3d  and  4th  aves.,  where  the  first  session 
was  held.  May  17,  with  11  teachers  and  21  children  present. 
Isaac  S.  Bogart  was  elected  Superintendent.  Soon  after, 
preaching  services  were  instituted,  and  a  room  on  40th  st.  se- 
cured. 

About  the  1st  of  January,  1876,  it  was  accepted  as  a  Mis- 
sion by  the  18th  M.  E.  Church,  and  the  Pastor,  R.  C.  Putney, 
preached  there  on  Thursday  evenings.  In  the  following 
year,  two  lots  in  44th  st.,  near  4th  ave.,  were  secured. 
April  2,  1877,  Rev.  Jesse  Povey  was  authorized  by  the  Quar- 
terly Conference  to  take  charge  of  the  Mission.  A  frame 
building,  25  by  50  feet,  was  erected  in  the  fall  of  1877,  which 
was  dedicated  October  14,  1877.  The  congregation  and 
Sunday-school  increased,  and  the  church  building  was 
lengthened  to  85  feet,  in  January,  1881.  March  31,  1880,  five 
stewards  were  appointed,  and  the  church  became  an  inde- 
pendent organization.  The  first  Trustees  were:  J.  Bradshaw, 
J.  Bedell,  H.  L.  Spicer,  F.  Purdy,  and  L.  N.  Haskins.  Rev. 
J.  Povey  was  followed  as  Pastor,  April  17,  1881,  by  Rev. 
Nathan  Hubbell,  who  remained  two  years,  and  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Rev.  George  Dunbar,  April  16,  1883. 

Rev.  John  Johns  was  born  in  England,  1835  ;  preached  in 
England,  1856-72,  and  in  New  York,  1873-'9;  came  to  Brook- 
lyn, April,  1883. 

Zion  M.  E.  Church,  corner  of  South  Third  and  Eleventh 
streets,  was  dedicated  Feb.  12,  1884.  The  new  building  is  con- 
structed of  brick  and  is  a  substantial  edifice.  It  has  been 
erected  for  the  use  of  the  Zion  M.  E.  Church,  of  which  Rev. 
George  E.  Smith  is  the  Pastor.  Tlie  new  structure  is  without 
a  steeple,  though  its  front  is  relieved  by  ornamental  brick 
work.  A  large  vestry  extends  under  the  entire  building, 
with  class-rooms  and  kitchen  and  all  modern  church  ap- 
pliances. The  audience-room  has  a  seating  capacity  of  about 
five  hundred.  At  the  coming  of  the  present  Pastor  to  the 
^;hurch^the]  society  was  found  to  be  incumbered  with  a  debt, 
while  the  church  building  was  in  a  state  of  dilapidation  that 
made  it  almost  unsafe.  The  Pastor  set  himself  to  work  at 
once.  The  various  churches  were  enlisted  in  a  union  fair, 
which  was  held  in  the  basement  of  what  is  now  the  Lee  ave. 


EG CLESIASTICAL    OR  GANIZA  2 IONS. 


1043 


Academy  of  Music,  which  proved  successful  enough  to  pay 
off  the  entire  debt.  A  new  church  was  at  once  proposed, 
a  building  committee  of  leading  citizens  was  selected,  and  a 
vigorous  canvass  inaugurated.  One  gentleman  generously 
gave  $1,000,  and  an  anonymous  benefactor  in  the  Eastern 
District  gave  !S!5,000,  conditioned  on  the  whole  amount  being 
raised.  The  cost  of  the  church,  embracing  the  adjoining 
parsonage,  was  $10,400,  and  it  was  dedicated  free  of  debt. 

Zion's  Chapel. — This  chapel  is  attached  to  the  Zion  Home 
for  the  Aged  and  Infirm  on  Dean  St.,  between  Albany  and 
Troy  aves.  Both  organizations  are  under  the  care  of  A.  M. 
E.  Zion  Church  of  New  York  city.  The  lots  were  bought 
Sept.  20,  1873,  and  such  alterations  made  in  the  buildings  as 
to  adapt  them  for  use  as  a  Home  and  a  chapel.  Rev.  John 
H.  Smith  was  the  first  Chaplain,  and  was  succeeded  by  Rev. 
H.  M.  Wilson,  and  he  in  turn  by  Rev.  Abram  Anderson,  who 
was  followed  by  Rev.  T.  Wilhams,  the  present  incumbent. 

The  Norwegian  Bethel  Ship  Mission  of  the  M.  E.  Church 
was  originally  the  Scandinavian  M.  PI  Bethel  Ship  Mission  of 
New  York.  About  1875,  the  Bethel  Ship  was  moored  at  the 
foot  of  Harrison  street,  Brooklyn;  and  services  were  held 
there  till  F'ebruary,  1879,  when  the  place  of  worship  was  re- 
moved to  a  hall  on  the  corner  of  Van  Brunt  and  President 
streets.  In  1881,  a  new  church  building  was  erected  on  the 
site  of  this  hall,  at  an  expense  of  $16,000.  This  house  was  a 
donation  to  the  mission,  from  Edwin  Mead  of  New  York.  The 
present  name  was  adopted  in  1881. 

The  Pastors  of  this  Mission,  since  the  removal  of  the  Bethel 
Ship  to  Brooklyn,  have  been:  Revs.  O.  B.  Peterson,  B.  Jo- 
hansen  and  the  present  Pastor,  Christopher  Freeder.  The 
principal  work  of  the  Mission  is  among  Morwegian  sea- 
men. 

Sheepshead  Bay  M.  E.  Church. — The  certificate  of  incor- 
poration of  a  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  at  Sheepshead  Bay 
was  fded  in  the  County  Clerk's  otfice  Aug.  9,  1883.  Trustees 
and  incorporators  are:  Supervisors  John  G.  McKane.  Alan- 
son  Tredwell,  Obadiah  S.  Aumack,  James  McKane  and  John 
Colwell.  The  presiding  officers  for  the  first  year  are:  Alan- 
son  Tredwell  and  Obadiah  S.  Aumack. 


METHODIST  (NON-EPISCOPAL)  CHURCHES. 

The  First  Methodist  Protestant  Church,  being  the  third 
ecclesiastical  organization  in  Willianisburgh,  originated  in 
the  withdrawal  of  thirty-five  members  from  the  existing 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  of  the  place.  It  was  organized 
in  1833,  at  a  meeting  held  in  the  residence  of  Brown  Suttle, 
on  North  Second  st.  The  first  Board  of  Trustees  was:  Fred- 
erick Dickerman,  John  Snyder,  Benjamin  Doxey,  Peter  Mer- 
rit  and  Stephen  Baker.  A  small  but  comfortable  wood  edi- 
fice was  erected  and  dedicated  in  the  autumn  of  1833;  which 
was  replaced  in  1850  by  a  brick  structure,  45  by  70  feet,  with 
lecture-room.  Rev.  Ruel  Hanks  was  installed  Pastor  in  1835, 
followed  by  the  Revs.  William  H.  Johnson,  P.  K.  Whitsel, 
J.  J.  Smith.  Samuel  Henderson,  William  Millar,  and  the 
present  Pastor,  Rev.  R.  Woodruff.  The  membership  of  the 
church  has  been  small,  but  is  now  increasing,  while  the  Sun- 
day-school is  flourishing. 

Rev.  Robert  Woodruff,  born  in  Elizabeth,  N.  J.,  1809; 
circuit  preacher  in  Meth.  Prot.  Church  over  40  years;  located 
Brooklyn,  1879. 

The  Fourth  Methodist  Prot  stant  Church  was  organized 
in  September,  1879,  with  14  members.  The  Rev.  F.  Kratz 
became  Pastor  in  October,  1879;  succeeded  in  March,  1880, 
by  the  present  Pastor.  Rev.  Thomas  BuUer. 

The  first  place  of  worship  was  Greenwood  Hall,  on  Fifth 
ave.,  near  Ninth  st. ;  then  a  store  on  Fifth  ave.,  bet,  Tenth 


and  Eleventh  streets.  The  present  church  edifice  is  on  the 
corner  of  Fifth  ave.  and  Eighth  st. 

The  First  Free  Methodist  Church  of  Brooklyn  was  org. 
in  April,  1874,  mainly  through  the  exertions  of  Joseph  Mac- 
key,  who  purchased  the  house  of  worship  of  the  North  Dutch 
Reformed  Church  for  1 18,000. 

In  October,  1878,  the  church  was  reorganized  under  the 
name,  Brooklyn  Free  Methodist  Church.  In  1881,  a  new 
church  building  was  erected  on  Sixteenth  st.,  bet.  Fourth 
and  Fifth  aves.  It  is  a  framed  structure,  with  a  seating  ca- 
pacity of  400,  and  its  cost,  including  site,  was  $5,000. 

Ministry,  since  1874 :  Revs.  James  Matthews,  Thos.  La 
Due,  William  Gould,  George  Ekin  and  Fred.  Wurster. 

Rev.  Fred.  Wurster  born  in  Freudenstadt,  Germany, 
1841;  grad.  Theol.  at  Phil.,  1879;  located  New  York  and 
Brooklvn,  1S83-'1, 


PAUK   AVENUE    PUI.MITIVE     METHODIST   (JHUKCH. 

Park  Avenue  Primitive  Methodist  Church,  cor.  N.  Elliott 
place.  The  congregation  formerly  worshiped  in  the  frame 
structure  on  Bridge  st.,  which  they  sold  in  1873,  and  built 
the  handsome  brick  church,  48  by  80  feet,  on  Park  ave., 
which  they  completed  in  1873,  at  a  cost  of  $40,000,  includ- 
ing site  and  adjoining  parsonage.  Ministry:  Revs.  Fred.  Bell, 
1873-6  ;  Joseph  Odell,  1876-80  ;  J.  Finch,  1880-3  ;  E.  Hum- 
phries, 1883-4.  The  church  system  has  no  bishops  or  pre- 
siding elders,  but  is  governed  by  the  Annual  Conference  and 
Executive  Committees ;  it  maintains  an  itinerant  ministry, 
i  but  pastorates  are  not  strictly  limited  to  three  years.  The 
congregation  numbers  about  300,  and  the  Sunday  school  the 
same.     E.  L.  Frost,  Supt. 

The  Brooklyn  Primitive  Methodist  Church  has  existed 
since  1839.  In  church  government  it  is  entirely  democratic, 
and  all  matters  of  progress  and  discipline  are  settled  by  the 
will  of  the  people.  The  church  is  situated  in  Bridge  St.,  bet. 
Concord  and  Tillary  sts.  It  is  a  wood  frame  building,  the 
inside  plain  and  neat,  and  the  religious  devotions  are  ener- 
getic and  lively.  All  the  seats  in  the  church  are  free.  No 
further  information  concerning  this  church  could  be  ob- 
tained. 

Orchard  Primitive  Methodist  Church,  Oakland  St.,  near 
Nassau  ave.,  was  commenced  by  a  few  earnest  Christians, 


1044 


SIS70RT  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


who  rented  a  store-room,  cor.  of  Oakland  st.  and  Nassau  ave., 
and  org.  a  Sunday-school  July  4,  1874,  with  the  following 
Officees  :  Smjj^.,  Thos.  Butler  ;  4ssi.,  W.  J.  Hoyt;  Treas., 
Jas.  H.  Whitehorne;  Sec,  Jas.  H.  Bennett.  Preaching  ser- 
vices were  instituted  the  same  month.  In  May,  1875,  a 
church  organization  was  effected,  and  the  following  ap- 
pointed TrKstees:  Thomas  Butler,  Jas.  H.  Whitehorne,  C. 
Montross,  James  H.  Bennett,  W.  J.  Morrison,  Jacob  Weiss, 
Abraham  Gamble,  John  Davis,  Atkins  Storer. 

Ministry:  Rev.  Thos.  Butler,  1877-'9;  J.  A.  McGraham, 
1879-'82;  W.  H.  Yarrow,  1882-'4. 

In  1877,  two  lots  were  leased  on  Nassau  ave.,  and  a  neat 
one-story  church,  35  by  60  feet,  was  erected  and  paid  for. 
In  1883,  two  lots  were  purchased  on  Oakland  st.,  and  the 
church  building  moved  on  to  the  same,  raised  13  feet,  and  a 
commodious  lecture-room  built  under  it.  A  neat  parsonage 
house  was  also  erected. 

The  membership  at  the  last  conference  numbered  103,  and 
the  congregations  are  improving.  Tliere  is  a  good  Sunday- 
school,  numbering  150,  in  excellent  working  order. 

Rev.  William  H.  Yarrow  born  in  London,  Eng.,  1830: 
located  London  till  Sept.,  1876;  Shepardvale,  Pa.,  1876-'8; 
Hazleton,  Pa.,  1878-83;  B'klyn,  1881-4;  author  ot  Theology 
Made  Easy;  History  of  Primitive  Methodism;  Life  and  ]Vorks 
of  Charles  Spurgeon. 

Protestant  Methodist  Qhurch,  originated  in  a  schism 
which  took  place  among  the  Primitive  Methodists  in  1839. 
The  secession  first  assumed  the  style  of  Wesleyan  Methodists, 
and  hired  the  building  that  had  lieen  erected  by  the  Piimi- 
tive  society,  and  sold  for  the  debt  with  wliich  it  was  encum- 
bered. The  preacher  of  the  original  society  went  with  the 
secession.  For  a  while  the  new  organization  appeared  to  pros- 
per, and  numljered  nearly  one  hundred  members.  They 
purchased  a  lot  of  ground  on  Kent  st.,  on  whicli  they  erected 
a  church  edifice,  which  they  occupied  from  1841  to  1845, 
when  it  was  sold  to  the  Roman  Catholics. 

It  is  understood  that  the  society  is  dissolved.  Fred.  W. 
Holland  was  Pastor,  1839-'40;  George  Parsons,  1841-'3;  Wm. 
Birch,  1844-'5. 

Metropolitan  Mission  (Independent  African  M.  E.  Church) 
was  organized  May  28tli,  1878,  with  60  members,  most  of 
whom  had  been  members  of  the  Fleet  Street  A.  M.  E.  Church. 
The  congregation  first  worshiped  in  the  Brooklyn  Lyceum, 
Washington  street.  In  September,  1879,  they  purchased  from 
St.  Matthew's  (Evangelical  Lutheran)  Church  their  house  of 
worship  on  Atlantic  avenue,  between  Third  and  Fourth  ave- 
nues, for  $8,000.  It  is  a  brick  stracture  with  a  seating  ca- 
pacity of  500.  The  church  prospered,  and  now  numbers 
300  members.  Rev.  J.  B.  Murray  has  been  Pastor  from  the 
time  of  its  organization. 

The  following  M.  E.  Clergymen  reside  in  the  city: 

Rev.  I.  Simmons,  born  1831,  in  Duxbury,  Mass.;  grad.  Wes. 
Univ.  1860;  studied  Concord  Bib.  Inst.;  stationed  Lynesbury, 
Conn.,  1860-"62;  New  Haven,  1863-'G4;  Bridgeport,  1864-'66; 
Birmingham,  1866-69;  Norwalk,  1869-73;  Brooklyn,  1873- 
'84;  is  Presiding  Elder  of  New  York  East  Conference. 

Rev.  Gf.o.  a.  Hall,  born  New  Castle,  N.  Y.,  18.37;  grad. 
Wesleyan  Univ.,  1867;  Pastor  7th  Ave.  M.  E.  Ch.,  1866-'67; 
State  Sec'y  Y.  M.  C.  A.,  1876;  Special  Agt.  U.S.  Christ.  Com., 
one  and  a  half  years. 

Rev.  WiLBERT  C.  Blakeman,  born  at  Bridgeport,  Conn., 
1847;  grad.  Wesleyan  Univ.,  1876;  located  at  Rockland,  Ct., 
1877;  Whitestone,  L.  L,  1878-79;  Brooklyn,  1880;  Parkville, 
L.  L,  1881-'83;  Brooklyn,  188.3-'84. 

Rev.  Alonzo  F.  Selleck,  born  in  New  York,  1806;  has 
been  30  years  in  itinerant  ministry;  located  Bklyn,  1877, 


Rev.  James  Porter,  A.  M.  (Wes.  Univ.,  1847),  D.  D. 
(McKendrix  Coll.  1856),  was  born  in  Middleboro,  Mass.,  1808; 
was  trustee  Wesleyan  Univ.,  1855-71;  Overseer  Harvard; 
Trustee  C'oncord  Theol.  Sch. ;  author  of  Compendium  of 
Methodism,  1851;  Spirit  Mappings,  1853;  History  of  Method- 
ism, 1876;  and  many  other  pub.  works;  located  N.  E.  Con- 
ference, 1830-'56;  Local  Secy.  Nat.  Temp.  Soc,  till  1881;  came 
to  Bklyn,  1864. 

Rev.  E.  Humphries  was  born  in  England,  1853;  studied 
theol.  with  Rev.  E.  Mill  ward,  Eng.;  is  Publisher  and  Gen.  Sec. 
of  Conference;  previous  locations,  Shamokin,  Pa.,  1874-'76; 
Mahanoy,  1876-'78;  Tamaqua,  1878-83;  came  to  B'klyn,  1883. 

Rev.  McClintic  R.  Barnitz,  ord.  as  Bapt.  Min.,  at  Sag 
Harbor,  1866;  Agt.  Amer.  Bible  Union,  1868-78;  settled  over 
18th  St.  M.  E.  Ch.,  1883. 

Rev.  William  Burt,  born  in  England,  1853;  grad.  Wes. 
Univ.,  1879;  Madison  Theol.  Sem.,  1881;  located  B'klyn,  April, 
1880. 

Presiding  Elders  of  the  M.  E.  Church  in  Brooklyn  and  the 
Long  Island  District:— 1785,  Thomas  Chew;  178Cs  John  Tun- 
nel; 1787,  Thomas  Foster;  1788,  Henry  Willis;  1789,  Freeborn 
Garrettson;  1790,  Thomas  Morrell;  1791,  Robert  Cloud;  1793 
-'3,  Jacob  Brush;  1794,  Freeborn  Garrettson;  1795,  George 
Roberts;  1796,  Freeborn  Garrettson,  Sylvanus  Hutchinson; 
1797-'9,  Sylvester  Hutchinson;  1800-3,  Freeborn  Garrettson; 
1804-'6,  William  Thatcher;  1807-'10,  Joseph  Crawford;  1811 
-'14,  Freeborn  Garrettson;  1815-'18,  Samuel  Merwiu;  1819, 
Nathan  Bangs;  1830-'3,  Peter  P.  Sandford;  1834-7,  Labau 
Clark;  1838-'31,  D.  Ostrander;  1832-5,  Samuel  Merwin;  1836 
-'9,  D.  Ostrander;  1840-3,  S.  TVIartindale;  1844-7,  J.  J.  Mat- 
thias; 1848-'50,  Labau  Clark;  1851-4,  Seymour  Landon;  1855 
-'8,  Buell  GoodseU;  1859-'61,  Wm.  H.  Norris;  1863,  Wm.  H. 
Norris;  1863,  John  Kennaday.  *  L.  I.  South  Dist.:—18U, 
Daniel  Curry;  1865-'7,  B.  Pillsbury;  1868-'71,  E.  E.  Griswold; 
1872,  T.  G.  Osborne;  1873-5,  Chas.  Fletcher;  1876,  A.  S. 
Graves.  L.  I.  North  Disf.;— 1864-'5,  H.  F.  Pease;  1866,  N. 
Mead;  1867-'8,  H.  Bangs;  1869-70,  J.  B.- Merwin;  1871,  H.  F. 
Pease;  1873-'5,  C.  B.  Sing;  1876,  J.  L.  Peck.  N.  Y.  Dist.:- 
1877-8,  J.  L.  Peck;  1879-'80,  J.  W.  Beach;  1881-'3,  Thos.  H. 
Burch;  1883-'4,  Benj.  M.  Adams.  Brooklyn  Disf.  .•—1877-'9, 
A.  S.  Graves;  1880-'l,  G.  F.  Kettell;  1882,  W.  T.  HUl;  1883-4, 
Ichabod  Simmons.  In  1800,  the  M.  E.  population  of  the 
U.  S.  was  64,894,  with  287  preachers.  Brooklyn  statistics 
for  1883:— Churches,  39;  Church  members,  13,885;  Sunday- 
schools,  91;  Sunday-school  scholars,  19,832;  Valueof  Churches, 
$1,867,700. 

List  of  M.  E.  Preachers  in  L.  I.  Circuit,  from  1784  [till 
1845:— 1784,  Philip  Cox;  1785,  Ezekiel  Cooper;  1786,  Thomas 
Ware;  1787,  Peter  Moriarty;  1788,  Robert  Cloud;  1789,  Wm. 
Phoebus,  John  Lee;  1790,  David  Kendall;  1791,  Wm.  Phoebus, 
Benj  Abbott;  1793,  John  Ragan,  James  Boyd;  1793,  Joseph 
Totten,  Geo.  Strebeck;  1794,  E.  Cooper,  L.  McCombs;  1795, 
Joseph  Totten;  1796,  John  Clark,  Jacob  Rickhow,  David 
Buck,  Wm.  Phoebus;  1797,  Andrew  Nichols,  Josejjh  Totten, 
Wm.  Phoebus;  1798,  Andrew  Nichols;  1799,  Cyrus  Stebbins, 
Jas.  Campbell,  John  Wilson;    1800,   David    Buck;    1801-2, 

*  The  churches  were  all  in  the  Long  Island  District  until  1864,  when 
they  were  divided  into  the  Long  Island  South  and  Long  Island  North 
Districts,  the  former  containing  the  Sands  St.,  Yorli  St.,  Washington 
St.,  Johnson  St..  Pacific  St.,  First  place,  Carroli  Paris,  Warren  st ,  Wil- 
liam St.,  18th  St.,  7th  ave.,  Hanson  place.  Fleet  St.,  Nevp  Yorl<  ave., 
Embury,  Nostrand  ave.,  Greene  ave.,  Janes  Swedish  Miss.,  Norwegian 
Miss.  The  latter  contained  Summerfieid,  Simpson,  Parlt  ave..  Miss. » 
De  Kaib  ave.,  Tompliins  ave.,  Broadway,  St.  John's,  Central,  Soutli 
2nd,  South  3rd,  Gothic,  Cook  St.,  North  5th,  Leonard  St.,  St.  Mariv's 
Miss.,  Greenpoint,  First,  Tabernacle  and  Orchard  Miss.  In  1877,  the 
former  were  made  part  of  the  New  Tork  District,  the  latter  the 
Brooklyn  District, 


ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1045 


David  Buck,  Peter  Jayne;  1801,  Billy  Hibbard;  1803,  John 
Fjnnegan;  1803,  Ezekiel  Canfield;  1804,  Cyrus  Stebbins; 
1805-6,  Elzekiel  Cooper;  1806,  Samuel  Thomas;  1807,  Elijah 
Woolsey,  John  Wilson;  1808,  Daniel  Ostrander;  1809,  Reu- 
ben Hubbard;  1810-11,  William  Thacher;  1812-13,  Lewis 
Pease;  1814,  Samuel  Merwin;  1815,  Nathan  Emory;  1816-17, 
Joseph  Crawford;  1818,  William  Ross;  1819-'20,  Alexander 
McCaine;  1821-'23,  Lewis  Pease;  1823-'4,  William  Ross;  1825 
-6,  Thomas  Burch;  1836-7,  S.  L.  Stillman;  1827-28,  Samuel 
Luckey;  1828,  S.  Landon;  1839-'30,  Noah  Levings,  James 
Covel;  1831-2,  John  C.  Green,  Charles  W.  Carpenter;  1832, 
J.  Tackaberry;  1833-"4,  Thomas  Burch,  J.  Kennaday,  J. 
Luckey;  1835-6,  B.  Creagh,  1st  ch.  ;  R.  Gilbert,  2d  ch.  ;  1835, 
S.  Remington,  3d  ch.;  1836,  J.  B.  Stratten,  8d  ch.;  1837-8, 
Wm.  H.  Morris,  1st  ch.  ;  J.  L.  Gilder,  2d  ch.  ;  Robert  Seney, 
3d  ch.;  1839,  Fitch  Reed,  1st  ch.;  1839-'40,  E.  E.  Griswold, 
3d  ch.  ;  1839,  Benjamin  Grififen,  3d  ch.  ;  1840,  Peter 
C.  Oakley,  1st  ch. ;  James  Floy,  3d  oh.;  Benjamin  Grififen, 
Centenary  ch. ;  J.  Le  Fevre,  C.  Foss,  Williamsbiu-gh  and 
Newtown;  1841,  Peter  C.  Oakley,  Istch.;  Seymour  Landon, 
2d  ch. ;  James  Floy,  3d  ch. ;  Jarvis  Z.  Nichols,  Centenary 
ch. ;  J.  W.  Le  Fevre,  Charles  B.  Sing,  Williamsburgh;  1843,  L. 
M.  Vincent,  1st  ch.  ;  S.  Landon,  2d  ch.  ;   James  Sewell,  3d 


ch.;  J.  Youngs,  Centenary  ch. ;  H.  F.  Roberts,  Williams- 
burgh; M.  Richardson,  Bushwick  and  Wallabout;  1843,  L. 
M.  Vincent,  1st  ch. ;  J.  Poisal,  2d  ch. ;  J.  Sewell,  3d  ch. ;  J. 
Youngs,  Centenary  ch . ;  H.  F.  Roberts,  Williamsburgh  ch. ; 
O.  States,  WaUabout  ch. ;  1844-5,  H.  F.  Pease,  Sands  street 
ch.  ;  B.  Goodsell,  York  street  ch. ;  C.  W.  Carpenter,  Wash- 
ington street  oh.;  J.  M.  Pease,  Centenary  ch. ;  O.  Starr, 
Ebenezerch.;  Paul  R.  Brown,  Williamsburgh;  A.  F.  Beach, 
Bushwick. 

The  names  of  ministers  in  years  following  1845  will  be 
found  in  the  sketches  of  the  respective  churches. 

M.  E.  Churches  in  the  New  York  District  of  the  N.  Y. 
East  Conference,  1884: — Summerfield,  Francis,  Cook  street, 
Cedar  street,  St.  John's,  Central,  So.  2d  street.  So.  3d  street 
"  Crothic,"  No.  5th  street,  Leonard  street,  St.  Luke's,  First 
(Greenpoint)  Tabernacle. 

M.  E.  Churches  in  the  Brooklyn  District  of  N.  Y.  East 
Conference,  1883:— Sands  street,  York  street,  Washington 
street.  Pacific  street,  Johnson  street.  First  place,  St.  Paul's 
Mission,  Carroll  park,  Warren  street,  18tli  street,  44th  street, 
Grace,  Hanson  place.  Fleet  .street,  DeKalb  avenue,  Snnpson, 
New  York  avenue,  F^uibury,  Nostrand  avenue,  Greene 
avenue,  Janes,  Swedish  Slission,  Norwegian  Mission. 


ROMAN    CATHOLIC    CHURCHES. 


The  history  of  the  Roman  Catholics  of  Brooklyn,  as  a 
body,  begins  in  the  second  decade  of  the  present  century. 
Before  that,  the  Catholics  of  Brooklyn  were  compelled,  for 
religious  worshij),  to  cross  the  East  river,  to  attend  St. 
Peter's  Church,  in  Barclay  St.,  New  York,  the  first,  and  long 
the  only  Catholic  church  in  that  city.  The  present  Cardinal 
of  New  York,  the  Most  Rev.  John  McCloskey,  is  a  native  of 
Brooklyn,  and  remembers  the  time  w^hen  he,  as  a  boy,  thus 
crossed  to  the  neighboring  city.  The  Rev.  John  Power, 
Pastor  of  that  church  previous  to  1822,  caused  mass  to  be 
celebrated  occasionally  here,  in  such  rooms  as  could  be  ob- 
tained. It  is  said  that  mass  was  first  celebrated  in  Brooklyn, 
at  the  residence  of  Mr.  William  Rircell,  on  the  north-east 
corner  of  York  and  Gold  sts.,  by  Rev.  Philip  Larissey. 

Among  the  clergy  who  ministered  to  the  Catholics  of 
Brooklyn  in  these  early  days,  were  :  Revs.  Mich.  O'Gorman, 
Patrick  Bulger,  McCauley,  and  McKenna,  the  latter  of  whom 
died  and  was  buried  in  Brookl)'n. 

When,  on  Jan.  7,  1823,  a  meeting  was  held  to  consider  the 
erection  of  a  church,  it  was  found  by  a  careful  census  of 
the  Catholics  in  the  village,  that  only  70  were  able  to  help, 
either  in  money  or  labor.  Mr.  Cornelius  Heeney  offered  lots 
on  the  corner  of  Court  and  Congress  sts.,  as  a  site;  which, 
however,  were  declined  as  being  too  far  out  of  the  village. 

St.  James'  Church. — March  2,  1833,  eight  lots  were  pur- 
chased on  the  corner  of  Jay  and  Chapel  sts.,  |400  being  paid 
in  cash,  and  $300  more  secured  by  a  mortgage.  The  ground 
was  blessed  by  Rev.  Jlr.  Bulger,  April  25th.  Just  two 
months  later,  a  building  committee  was  appointed;  and,  not- 
withstanding the  difiSculties  attending  the  work,  the  edifice 
was  so  far  completed  that  it  was  dedicated  under  the  name 
of  St.  James,  August  28,  1833.  The  building  cost,  including 
fences,  $7,118.16.  A  school  was  at  once  established,  but  for 
some  time  all  efiforts  to  secure  a  resident  Pastor  failed. 

The  Clergy  of  the  church  from  its  organization  havo  been  : 
1825-'33,  Revs.  John  Farnan,  Pastor  ;  1833-'43,  John  Walsh, 
Pastor  ;    1836-'7,  P.  Dougherty  ;    1839,  PhiUp   Gillick  ;    1840, 


Patrick  Dauaher  ;  1841,  J.  McDonough  ;  1843-'47,  Charles 
Smith,  Pastor;  1845-"0,  Jerome  Nobriga ;  1847-'8,  Patrick 
McKenna;  1 848-'52,  Jas  McDonough,  Pastor  ;  1849,  Eugene 
McGuire;  1849-52,  John  Quinn. 

At  this  time,  the  Roman  Catholic  churches  on  Long  Island 
had  so  increased  from  the  small  beginning  at  St.  James',  that 
the  Holy  See  formed  the  island  into  a  Diocese,  and  the  Very 
Rev.  John  Loughlin,  then  Vicar-General  of  New  York,  was 
appointed  Bishop  of  Brooklyn.  He  was  consecrated  October 
3,  1853,  and  made  St.  James'  Church  his  cathedral. 

Clergy:  1852-'7,  Revs.  Eugene  Cassidy,  Rector ;  1852-'i, 
Samuel  .A.  Mulledy ;  1856-'7,  Thomas  W.  McCleery,  D. 
Whelan  ;  1857-9,  Thomas  Walsh  ;  1857-'60,  John  F.  Turner  ; 
1857-8,  Bartholomew  Gleason  ;  1859-60,  Robert  McGuire ; 
1859-'60,  Robert  V.  Moyce  ;  1864,  Joseph  Giraud  ;  1864-'(;, 
Francis  J.  Freel,  D.  D. ;  1865-8,  Thomas  J.  Gardner,  D.  D. ; 
1807-'8,  Eugene  McSherry  ;  1870,  Michael  Hickey  ;  1872-'3, 
John  Kelly;  1872,  P.  Sheridan  ;  1873-'78,  P.  F.  O'Hara;  1877- 
'78,  ]W.  J.  Murray  ;  1877,  Richard  Foley  ;  1878,  Ed.  McCabe, 
John  O'Donohue;  1879-83,  James  T.  Woods;  1879,  M.  McCabe; 
1879,  Wm.  Dougherty  ;  1879,  John  Joseph  Mallon  ;  1880-3, 
Jas.  F.  Mealia,  Jas.  H.  Mitchell.  The  parish  has,  from  an 
early  date,  maintained  a  school  for  boys. 

Bishop  Loughlin  has  secured  a  fine  site  for  a  cathedral  on 
Lafayette  ave.,  between  Carlton  and  VanderbOt  aves.,  and  is 
now  erecting  a  splendid  church,  which  will  be  the  finest 
ecclesiastical  structure  on  Long  Island." 

*The  corner-atoQO  was  laid  with  much  pomp  and  ceremony,  by  the 
Rt.  Rev.  Bishop  Loughlin,  on  the  21st  of  June,  1868;  and  an  address 
was  delivered  by  the  Most  Itev.  Archbishop  McCloskey,  of  New  York, 
in  the  course  of  which  the  speaker  thus  alluded  to  his  own  earlier 
recollections  of  Brooklyn:  "And  well  may  you  rejoice  on  the  day  and 
on  the  occasion  which  is  to  be  ever  memorable  to  the  Catholics  of  this 
city  and  of  this  diocese,  a  day  which  recalls  so  many  memories,  such, 
in  part  at  least,  as  were  awakened  in  the  hearts  of  oid  ;  for  many  there 
are  who  had  hardly  hoped  to  sec  this  day.  Of  that  number  I  can  men- 
tion one,  and  it  is  he  who  now  addresses  you.  His  first  and  earliest 
memories  ^o  hero.    lie  first  sdw  tho  light  of  heaven  and  breathed  the 


1046 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


St.  Paul's  Church,  -Court,  cor.  Congress  st.  Tlie  plot  of 
ground  originally  offered  by  Cornelius  Heeney,  Esq.,  to  St. 
James',  became^  in  time,  the  site  of  the  second  Eoman 
Catholic  church  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn.  In  183(5,  the  church 
of  St.  Paul  was  erected  here.  It  was  a  substantial  brick 
building.  73  by  125  feet,  and  cost  about  $20,000  ;  the  land 
being  then  valued  at  |S,000  more. 

The  Pastors  and  Clergy  of  this  church  have  been  :  Revs. 
Richard  Waters,  1838-'40  ;  Nicholas  O'Donnell,  O.  S.  A., 
1840-"7  ;  James  O'Donnell,  O.  S.  A.,  1840-4  ;  William  Hogan, 
1845-'8;  Joseph  A.  Schneller,  1848-'60;  Hippolyte  De  Luynes, 
S.  J.,  1849-'50  ;  Joseph  Regan,  1851-'3  ;  Timothy  Farrell,  1853 
-•3  ;  John  Curoe,  1852  ;  John  McShane,  1854-'7  ;   M.  O'Reilly, 

1854-'5  ;   B.  Allaire,  1857-'8;  Peter  C.  Fagan,  1858-00  ;  

McGerrish,  1862-3;  Robert  J.  McGuire,  ]863-'80  ;  V.  Dallis, 
1863-5  :  P.  Reddy,  P.  McGuire,  John  R.  McDonald,  1863-4 ; 
Ed.  O'Reilly,  1870-'3  :  Wm.  Lane,  1870-3  ;  Jno.  McCarty, 
1873  :  Henry  J.  Zimmer,  1873  ;  Wm.  Connolly,  1874 ;  Peter 
Maguire,  1875  ;  John  Hogan,  1877-8  ;  John  Loughran,  D.  D., 
1877;  Philip  J.  Kinney,  1877-'9  ;  J.  J.  Marvin,  1878-'80;  Wm. 
Giles,  1879-81  ;  Wm.  J.  Lane,  1880-83  ;  M.  S.  Boylan,  1881- 
"82 ;  Wm.  J.  Hill,  1882-4  ;  Peter  H.  Pluukett,  1883  ;  Edwd. 
M.  Gannon,  1883-'4. 

A  school  was  early  established  in  connection  with  this 
church,  and  it  was  regularly  maintained.  The  boys  and  girls 
are  under  the  Sisters  of  Charity. 

Church  of  the  Assumption  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary, 
York  and  Jay  sts.  Corner-stone  laid  October  27,  1831,  by 
Rev.  Father  Farnliam,  as  an  independent  Catholic  Church, 
who  afterwards  abandoned  his  undertaking.  It  remained 
unfinished  for  many  years,  when  it  was  finally  purchased  by 
Bishop  Hughes,  in  1840,  who  placed  it  in  charge  of  Rev.  D. 
W.  Bacon.  He  completed  it,  and,  on  June  10,  1843,  it  was 
dedicated  under  the  above  title.  Father  Bacon  remained  its 
Pastor  until  1855,  when  he  was  consecrated  First  Bishop  of 
Portland.  During  his  pastorate,  he  was  assisted  by  the  fol- 
io wing  clergymen:  Revs.  P.  McKenna,  I844-'5;  Hugh  Maguire, 
1845-'6;  J.  Viera,  1851-2;  B.  Farrell,  1852-"3,  when  the  present 
Pastor,  Rev.  William  Keegan,  became  assistant,  and  suc- 
ceeded Father  (now  Bishop)  Bacon.  His  assistants  have 
been  :  Revs.  P.  Bradley,  P.  Kelly,  Benjamin  Allaire,  P.  V. 
Moyce,  Gaudentius  Ballestrini,  Thos.  Farrell,  T.  Eeid,  1865  ; 
Owen  O'Brien,  1869-'75,  when  the  present  assistant.  Rev.  C. 
J.  Gallagher,  was  appointed.  The  Very  Rev.  W.  Keegan 
was  appointed  Vicar-General  of  the  Diocese,  in  1880;  but  still 
retains  his  position  as  Pastor,  and  still  resides  at  the  parochial 
residence,  cor.  of  Jay  and  York  sts.     He  has  built  a  mag- 


breath  of  life  in  wliat  was  then  but  the  little  village  of  Brooklyn.  He 
well  remembers  the  day  when  there  was  neither  Catholic  church  nor 
chapel,  neither  priest  nor  altar,  within  all  these  surroundings.  He 
1  jmembers  when,  as  a  youth,  when  Sunday  morning  came,  he,  as  one 
of  a  happy  group,  wended  his  way  along  the  shore  to  what  was  then 
called  Hkks'  ferry,  to  cross  the  river,  not  In  elegant  and  graceful 
steamers  as  now,  but  in  an  old  and  dingy  horse-boat ;  going,  led  by  the 
hand  of  tender  and  loving  parents,  to  assist  at  the  sacrifice  of  mass  in 
the  old  brick  church  of  St.  Peter's,  In  Barclay  St.  How  little  could  he 
then  have  dreamed  ever  to  have  witnessed  a  spectacle  such  as  this ;  to 
have  stood  here  In  the  capacity  In  which  ho  now  stands,  in  such  a 
presence;  to  see  the  foundations  laid  and  the  corner-stone  blessed  and 
consecrated  by  a  bishop  of  Brooklyn,  surrounded  by  prelates  from 
other  sees  and  dioceses,  by  a  numerous  clergy  from  far  and  near,  and 
by  such  a  vast  and  innumerable  concourse  of  people,  brought  together 
to  take  part,  as  it  were,  in  the  beginning  of  such  a  glorious  work  ;  a 
work  which  is  to  rear  Itself  up  in  grand  and  goodly  proportions  before 
the  eyes  of  men,  and  stands  a  monument  of  your  Catholic  faith,  your 
Catholic  generosity,  and  your  Catholic  zeal;  stands  as  a  monument, 
too,  of  Catholic  genius.  Catholic  architectural  taste  and  skill,  and  to 
be,  besides,  looked  upon,  as  it  will  be,  as  adding  a  newer  beauty,  and 
another  glory,  and  another  honor,  and  another  source  of  pride  to 
what  Is  already  the  renowned  city  of  churches." 


nificent  school,  a  hall  for  the  young  men  of  the  parish;  and, 
at  present,  there  is  nothing  wanting  to  complete  all  the  de- 
sideratum of  a  well  furnished  parish.  The  venerable  church 
has  been  recently  provided  with  a  new  roof,  and  the  interior 
decorated  in  a  most  artistic  and  devotional  style. 

The  Very  Rev.  William  Keegan,  Vicar-General 
of  the  R.  C.  Diocese  of  Brooklyn. — The  story  of  a  life 
devoted  to  duty  in  the  heart  of  a  great  city,  can  be 
neither  romantic  nor  exciting,  unless  under  very  excep- 
tional circumstances.  Novelists  may  indeed  thrill 
their  readers  with  the  imaginary  exploits  of  imaginary 
characters,  discovered  active  in  the  routine  of  ordinary 
experience;  but  when  for  the  eye  of  fertile  fancy  we 
substitute  the  observation  of  plain  common  sense,  it  is 
found  that,  even  as  navigable  rivers  have  few  falls, 
perilous  straits  or  whirlpools  to  be  described,  the  careers 
of  men  who  carry  forward  the  abiding  work  of  society, 
are  rarely  marked  by  amazing  incidents.  Moral  and 
material  forces  have  at  least  this  in  common — that  they 
operate,  as  a  rule,  steadily,  rather  than  by  unexpected 
manifestations.  Perseverance,  rather  than  audacity, 
progress  effected  step  by  step,  and  without  any  of  the 
noise  of  battle,  rather  than  a  series  of  leaps  and  bounds, 
mark  the  records  of  the  men  who,  upon  the  whole, 
have  in  settled  states  of  society  been  helpful  to  their 
day  and  generation.  By  this,  of  course,  no  reflection 
is  cast,  so  to  speak,  upon  the  valuation  of  the  thunder 
storm.  It  is  both  sublime  and  serviceable.  But  the 
chief  debt  of  the  farmer,  none  the  less,  is  to  the  rain  that 
falls  in  due  season,  and  the  winds  that  are  never  rude. 

The  very  reverend  gentleman,  whose  work  and 
character  are  in  this  sketch  outlined,  rather  than 
described,  falls  within  the  unromantic  category 
just  alluded  to  ;  the  category  of  those  who  by  pa- 
tience, peace,  good  will,  charity  and  an  unwaver- 
ing faith  in  justice,  make  the  world  better  by  liv 
ing  in  it.  This,  however,  we  need  hardly  say,  does 
not  involve  a  trivial  or  negative  outcome.  On  the  con- 
trary, if  the  result  be  duly  weighed,  we  shall  see  that 
the  need  of  an  unostentatious  labor  is  an  imposing  fab- 
ric, made  all  the  more  enduring  by  the  quiet  sincerity 
of  the  builder.  Emerson,  referring  to  the  Abbeys  of 
England,  says  :  "  they  grew  as  grows  the  grass,"  and 
so,  too,  has  the  growth  of  the  structure,  in  which  Vicar- 
General  Keegan  has  been  concerned,  gone  on. 

In  1853,  when  he  was  ordained,  there  were  in  the 
diocese  of  Long  Island  but  14  Roman  Catholic 
Churches,  and  14  priests.  One  parish  school  alone  rep- 
resented the  system  of  parish  education,  destined  to 
reach  the  proportions  already  attained.  There  was  no 
Catholic  asylum,  nor  any  Catholic  hospital.  To-day 
there  are  90  churches,  37  chapels  and  stations,  where 
mass  is  celebrated  ;  160  priests;  75  parish  schools;  20 
academies  and  select  schools;  2  colleges  and  1  seminary, 
16  asylums  and  4  hospitals 

When  his  work  began  in  Brooklyn,  the  Catholic 
population   of   the   diocese   numbered   not  more   than 


^  ''ife- 


ECCLESIASTICAL    OR  GANIZA  TIONS. 


26,000.  The  number  is  now  over  226,000.  This,  as- 
suredly, is  an  impressive  tale  told  in  few  words. 
Had  this  been  wrought  by  tlie  sword,  historians  would 
have  been  swift  to  give  the  narrative  to  the  world;  and 
the  world  would  have  treated  the  record  with  the  skep- 
ticism reserved  for  whatever  transcends  ordinary  ex- 
perience. But,  due  as  it  is  to  the  unremitting  efforts 
of  men  and  women,  well  content  to  have  their  deeds 
unheralded  and  unsung,  no  other  weapons  than  those 
befitting  gentle  minds,  it  is  accepted  as  if  it  were  an 
outcome  of  nature,  as  familiar  as  the  rising  of  the  sun, 
or  the  rounding  out  of  the  moon.  If  the  statistics 
before  us  speak  to  any  purpose  with  clearness,  it  is  to  the 
effect  that  in  no  other  field  has  the  Catholic  Church  in 
modern  times  gathered  honor,  power  and  confidence 
more  rapidly,  and  by  methods  more  amiable,  than  in 
the  diocese  of  Brooklyn.  " 

What  Father  Keegan's  part  has  been  in  this  cannot 
be  told.  Nor  to  him,  or  to  anyone  alone,  is  the  credit 
due;  though  indeed,  if  comparisons  were  in  order, 
special  commendation  could  be  given  to  those  who, 
more  than  their  fellows,  have  been  distinguished  for 
their  zeal,  skill  and  unwearying  toil. 

The  record  answers  our  purpose  in  illustrating  the 
magnitude  of  the  task  in  which  the  subject  of  our 
sketch  has  been,  with  others,  engaged  heart  and  hand, 
and  as  to  which  he  can  properly  say:  "All  of  which  I 
saw,  and  part  of  which  I  was."  It  also  indicates  the 
variety,  complexity  and  importance  of  the  interests, 
which  must  be  mastered  and  managed  by  the  mind, 
which  demand  the  attention  of  the  Vicar-General  of 
Long  Island  diocese. 

If  the  Very  Reverend  Wm.  Keegan  was  the  most 
commonplace  of  men  (instead  of  being,  as  he  is, 
distinguished  for  breadth  of  mind,  large  sympathies, 
and  that  art  of  arts,  the  art  of  ruling  without  seeming 
to  command),  there  would  be  reason  enough  for  writing 
about  him,  in  the  fact  that  over  a  quarter  of  a  million 
Catholics  look  to  him  as  the  right  hand  of  their  vener- 
able and  justly  celebrated  Bishop. 

So  far  as  dates  go,  here  is  the  biography  of  the  Vicar- 
General: 

In  the  year  1824,  he  was  born  in  Kings  County, 
Ireland;  a  county  by  name,  at  least,  significant  of  the 
field  in  whicu  he  was  destined  to  make  a  name  in  the 
world.  While  yet  a  child  his  parents  emigrated  to 
the  United  States,  and  fixed  their  abode  in  the  city  of 
Brooklyn,  in  the  year  1842,  where  the  boy  William 
soon  began  the  work  of  fitting  himself  for  his  chosen 
calling.  The  family  came  here  to  remain,  and  it 
still  is  represented  in  the  citizenship  of  Brooklyn,  as 
well  as  in  the  priesthood.  After  a  course  of  prepara- 
tory education,  William  entered  the  Jesuit  College, 
then  but  recently  established  at  Fordham,  New  York, 
and  was  duly  graduated  from  it  in  1849,  having  made 
a  record  for  scholarship,  and  the  other  qualities  which 
secured  for  hiui,  at  the  hands  of  the  college  authori- 


ties, a  teachership  in  the  institution.  As  a  teacher 
he  remained,  until  1853;  pursuing  meantime,  with  ardor 
and  profit,  the  theological  studies  in  which  he  still  de- 
lights, and  upon  which  he  has  been  recognized  as  an 
authority  in  the  provincial  councils  of  the  church.  In 
the  year  1853,  he  was  ordained  by  Cardinal  Bedini, 
then  Papal  Nuncio  to  the  United  States;  and,  almost 
immediately  thereafter,  was  appointed  to  the  assistant 
pastorate  of  the  Church  of  the  Assumption,  at  York 
and  Jay  streets,  Brooklyn.  ~  "^ 

When  Father  Bacon,  Pastor-in-Chief  of  the  Assump- 
tion Church,  was  consecrated  Bishop  of  Portland, 
Maine,  in  1856,  Father  Keegan  was  promoted,  and  has 
continued  from  then  until  the  present  time  in  charge  of 
the  parish.      In  1880,  he  was  appointed  Vicar-General. 

Although  the  life  of  Father  Keegan  has  been  spent 
in  the  discharge  of  his  priestly  duties,  and  for  the  wel- 
fare of  his  people,  yet  snatching  a  moment  now  and 
then  from  this  never-ending  work,  he  has  composed  a 
few  lectures  and  addresses,  which  are  rare  gems  of  wit 
and  eloquence,  and  can  be  read  at  all  times  with  plea- 
sure by  the  lovers  of  true  and  genuine  English  litera- 
ture, -s 

On  the  16th  of  October,  1878,  occurred  the  twenty- 
fifth  anniversary  of  his  ministry,  and  likewise,  almost,  of 
his  pastorship.  The  event  was  made  the  occasion  of  a 
Jubilee;  and,  whether  at  the  mass  of  the  morning, 
where  were  assembled  the  bishops  and  priests  of  the 
diocese,  or,  in  the  more  popular  demonstration  of  the 
evening,  where  were  gathered  all  the  civic  dignitaries 
of  Brooklyn,  the  men  of  letters  and  of  social  standing, 
the  address  of  the  congregation  but  expressed  the  gen- 
eral verdict — "  Surely  no  words  can  frame  a  more 
glowing  eulogy,  a  nobler  panegyric,  than  this  assem- 
blage." Hon.  James  Howell,  then  Mayor,  abandoned  a 
birthday  celebration  in  his  own  home  that  he  might 
unite  with  his  fellow-citizens  in  this  personal  tribute  to 
Father  Keegan.  Hon.  Thomas  Kinsella,  editor  of  the 
Brooklyn  Eagle;  Mr.  Andrew  McLean,  the  present 
editor  of  the  Eaglej  Mr.  George  M.  Nichols,  Alder- 
man at  Large;  Mr.  Dewey,  editor  of  the  Union;  Mr. 
Barclay  Gallagher,  agent  of  the  Western  Associated 
Press;  Corporation  Counsel  De  Witt,  Police  Com- 
missioner John  Pyburn;  Controller  Burrell;  Alder- 
man Murtha  and  Assemblyman  Clancy ;  Doctors 
Bodkin,  Young  and  Griffin;  Colonel  David  T.  Lynch, 
Mr.  P.  J.  Regan,  President  of  the  St.  Patrick  Society, 
and  its  other  officers,  were  all  present ;  and  many  other 
notables  ;  while  a  great  number  of  the  reverend  clergy 
occupied  chairs  within  the  sanctuary.  The  Brooklyn 
Eagle,  in  an  editorial  upon  this  jubilee,  used  the  fol- 
lowing language: 

"  It  is  difficult  to  estimate  the  influence  which  such 
a  man  must  exert,  placed  as  Father  Keegan  has  been, 
in  twenty-five  years.  The  men  and  women  who  have 
been  brought  directly  under  his  influence  are  numbered 
by  tens  of  thousands.  To-day,  there  are  gentlemen 
distinguished  in  all  the  walks  of  life,  who  received  from 


HISTORY  OF KI^TGS  COUKTY. 


him  their  earliest  lessons  in  manly  duty,  coupled  with 
their  first  introduction  to  English  education.  In  hun- 
dreds of  households  the  matrons  were  girls  subject 
to  his  guidance  years  ago.  It  needs  a  very  mean  soul 
to  take  other  than  delight  in  the  proof  that  opportuni- 
ties so  vast  have  been  used  as  becomes  a  priest,  a  citi- 
zen, a  friend  and  a  neighbor." 

The  programme  opened  with  a  procession  march, 
dedicated  to  Father  Keegan,  the  music  being  furnished 
by  Professor  William  H.  Nolan's  orchestra.  This  was 
followed  by  "  Gloria  "  (Twelfth  Mass),  by  Mozart,  Mr. 
Thomas  Ward  officiating  at  the  organ,  and  a  full  choir 
assisting.  The  Rev.  Father  Malone  then  followed  in  an 
address,  in  which  he  especially  dwelt  upon  Father  Kee- 
gan's  remarkable  ability  in  the  guiding  and  education 
of  young  men.  Rev.  Henry  C.  Gallagher,  who  was 
trained  to  the  jariesthood  by  Rev.  Father  Keegan,  was 
the  next  speaker;  expressing  the  obligations  of  the 
younger  clergy  to  Father  Keegan  for  the  sjiiritual 
training  which  they  had  received  at  his  hands.  "The 
Heavens  are  Telling "  was  then  excellently  rendered 
by  the  choir,  after  which  an  address  from  the  congre- 
gation to  their  pastor  was  read  by  Rev.  Charles  J. 
Gallagher,  as  follows: 
"  Reverend  and  Dear  Father  Keegan : 

"  On  this  the  twenty-fifth  anniversary  of  5'our  elevation  to 
the  priesthood,  and,  it  may  be  said,  the  twenty-fiftlx  year  of 
your  pastorate,  the  congregation  of  tlie  Church  of  the  As- 
sumption united  this  morning  with  the  venerable  Bishop  and 
the  reverend  clergy  at  a  mass  of  jubilee  and  thanksgiving. 
To-night  we  again  meet  to  offer  our  congratulations  on  this 
hapjiy  day,  and  to  give  you  thanks  for  the  many  favors 
which  we  have  received  at  your  hands. 

"  This  morning  we  returned  thanks  to  Heaven  for  the  zeal- 
ous pastor;  to-night  we  thank  the  prudent  covinsellor,  the 
faithful  friend,  the  kind,  indulgent  father. 

"  You  are,  in  yourself,  in  your  life  and  labors,  an  epitome  of 
Catholicity  in  Brooklyn — its  foundation,  its  progress,  its  full 
and  grand  development.  As  a  boy,  you  assisted  at  the  first 
mass  celebrated  in  this  church;  as  a  priest,  here,  on  this  al- 
tar, was  offered  your  first  mass;  and  here,  first,  your  pastor- 
ate commenced,  which  long  may  Heaven  to  us  continue. 

"Standing  thus  as  it  were  by  the  cradle  of  Catholicity,  you 
guided  its  steps  in  infancy,  watched  over  its  youth,  guarded 
and  directed  it  in  its  progress;  and  whatever  there  is  now  in 
its  maturer  years  which  finds  favor  in  the  sight  of  Heaven  or 
commands  the  admiration  of  men,  is  largely  due  to  your  ear- 
nest, zealous  and  untiring  ministration. 

"  Words — fervent  and  heartfelt  though  they  be — can  do  but 
faint  justice  to  such  a  life.  The  children  in  your  schools,  the 
young  men  in  your  halls,  the  thousands  that  crowd  this  sacred 
edifice  on  each  recurring  Sabbath,  speak  more  eloquently 
than  any  words  of  your  entire  devotion  to  the  duties  of  your 
sacred  calling  and  of  the  many  claims  you  have  to  our  love 
and  reverence. 

"  To  you  belongs  the  credit  of  erecting  the  first  building  de- 
voted to  the  education  of  the  Catholic  children  of  tliis  city. 
There,  education  and  religion,  both  in  their  highest  develop- 
ment, are  found  to  be  not  antagonistic,  but  mutually  self- 
sustaining  and  elevating. 

"Assumption  Hall  is  another  monument  to  your  priestly 
zeal  and  prudent  forethought.  There  the  youth  who  has  left 
school  and  entered  upon  the  battle  of  life,  is  not  only  afforded 
every  facility  for  self-improvement;  but  has  likewise  opjjor- 


tunities  to  form  acquaintances  agreeable  and  beneficial.  If 
to  the  average  youth,  the  path  of  duty  may  seem  rugged  and 
uninviting,  what  greater  inducement  to  perseverance  unto 
the  end  than  tlie  assurance  of  good  company  and  cheerful 
converse  on  the  way. 

"  But,  while  ever  zealous  among  your  own,  while  ever  anx- 
ious to  promote  their  real  spiritual  and  temporal  welfare, 
your  labors  have  not  been  circumscribed  by  any  mere  paro- 
chial boundary  line.  Any  appeals  made  to  you  were  ever 
promptly  answered  by  the  generous  hand  responsive  to  the 
warm  heart.  One  instance  out  of  many:  the  Star  of  the 
Sea — a  church,  which,  as  far  as  mere  human  adornment  can 
attain,  is  not  unworthy  the  grand  and  solemn  purposes  of  its 
erection. 

"  But  why  speak  your  praises  in  the  presence  of  those  who 
know  you  so  well?  to  this  congregation,  to  whom  your  worth 
as  a  man,  your  fidelity  as  a  friend,  your  zeal  as  a  priest,  are 
familiar  as  household  words;  to  those  young  clergymen  here 
present,  who,  walking  faithfully  in  your  footsteps  in  their 
youth,  are  now  endeavoring  to  emulate  your  many  virtues; 
to  the  reverend  clergy,  your  co-laborers,  who,  knowing  now, 
even  in  this  period  of  comparative  quietude,  the  trials  and 
difficulties,  the  obstacles  and  discouragements  which  the  con- 
scientious pastor  has  to  encounter  and  overcome,  can  alone 
truly  estimate  what  trials  and  difficulties  you  overcame,  with 
what  obstacles  and  discouragements  you  were  surrouaded; 
to  our  venerable  and  venerated  Bishop,  who  so  soon  himself 
will  have  completed  the  twenty-fifth  year  of  his  episcopate. 
His  presence,  surrounded  by  his  clergy,  at  the  mass  of  the 
jubilee  this  morning,  showed  that  he  is  fully  satisfied  with 
you  as  a  priest  and  pastor;  his  presence  hereto-night,  joining 
with  the  laity  in  their  congratulations,  proves  the  higli  per- 
sonal esteem  and  regard  he  entertains  for  you. 

"Nor  is  this  knowledge  of  your  great  worth — your  many 
virtues — confined  to  those  associated  with  you  in  the  sacred 
ministry,  nor  to  the  members  of  your  congregation.  Your 
good  name  and  fair  fame  have  spread  far  and  wide,  and  to- 
night a  whole  city — its  highest  olficials,  its  social  leaders,  its 
men  of  letters — come  here,  and  deem  it  no  derogation  to  of- 
ficial position,  to  literary  rank,  to  social  standing,  to  join  with 
the  humblest  Catholic  in  grateful  testimony  to  one  who  has 
been,  io  his  holy  calling,  the  good  and  faithful  servant  of  his 
Master. 

"  Surely,  no  words  can  frame  a  more  growing  eulogy,  a 
nobler  panegyric,  than  this  assemblage. 

"  On  the  tomb  of  Sir  Christopher  Wren,  the  architect  of  St. 
Paul's,  is  this  inscription:  Si  quceris  moitumentum  circumspie. 
So,  in  a  similar  spirit  and  with  equal  truth,  may  it  be  said  of 
you,  reverend  sir,  that  no  greater  nor  grander  tribute  can  be 
paid  to  these  last  twenty-five  years  of  your  life,  than  to  see 
you  here  to-night  surrounded  by  so  manv  grateful  hearts, 
warm  friends  and  sincere  well  wishers." 

At  the  close  of  this  address,  a  handsome  purse,  con- 
taining $2,500,  was,  amid  the  applause  of  the  congrega- 
tion, presented  to  Father  Keegan. 

This  interesting  ceremony  over,  the  Te  Deum  was 
rendered  with  fine  effect.  At  its  close  the  Rev.  Father 
Keegan  thus  addressed  the  congregation : 

"  My  dear  Friends :  There  have  been  so  many  and  such 
pleasant  things  said  of  me  to-day,  and  during  this  evening, 
that  I  am  at  a  loss  how  to  respond  to  them.  I  never  thought 
for  a  moment  that  I  could  be  painted  in  such  brilliant  colors 
as  the  wording  of  your  address  has  just  presented  me.  You 
might,  in  framing  it,  have  had  some  more  worthy'  subject 
before  your  imagination,  for  I  assure  you  I  cannot  discover 
in  it  a  vebtigo  of   the  original.     It  is   not  necessary  that  I 


MGCLESIA8TIGAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1049 


should  now  go  Uirough  the  formality  of  expressing  my  thanks 
to  you  upon  this  memorable  occasion,  and  human  language 
could  not,  at  this  moment,  convey  to  you  the  gratitude  tliat 
swells  within  my  bosom.  This  is  the  most  important,  as  it 
will  be  the  most  cherished,  event  of  my  whole  life.  I  can 
only  hope  and  wish  that  my  character  were  half  what  your 
address  has  so  elegantly  expressed,  and  that  my  life  liad  been 
such  as  to  merit  the  munificent  offering  which  you  Imve  just 
presented  me.  It  is  true  that  we  liave  spent  together  many 
happy  years,  the  best  and  most  jjrecious  period  of  our  exist- 
ence. 

"  Twenty-five  years  of  unbroken  friendship  and  undimin- 
ished confidence,  between  priest  and  people,  is  something  of 
which  any  man  might  well  be  proud.  We  have  worked  to- 
gether, we  have  consulted  together,  and  we  have  knelt  and 
prayed  at  the  satne  altar.  And  1,  at  least,  am  not  anxious  to 
sever,  at  this  moment,  the  golden  link  that  has  bound  us  so 
long  in  sucli  harmony  and  love.  We  all  have  had  our  faults; 
we  have  nrade  many  false  steps.  But  we  ha\o  endeavored, 
to  the  best  of  our  abUities,  to  perform  the  work  and  the  duties 
assigned  to  us.  We  may  have  been  thought  rash  in  many  of 
our  enterprises,  in  trying  to  educate  and  cultivate  the  minds 
of  the  youth  of  this  parish.  But  let  me  tell  our  outside 
friends,  who,  this  evening,  have  honored  us  with  tlieir  pres- 
ence, that  we  have  never  entered  upon  any  good  work  when 
failure  was  possible. 

"  During  this  quarter  of  a  century,  I  say  it  witli  pleasure, 
I  never  appealed  in  vain  to  this  congregation.  Wo  are,  in 
deed,  very  few  in  number,  and  our  means  are  limited.  But 
a  united  congregation — a  people  with  one  heart  and  one  mind 
— is  able  to  sm-mounteverydifficult}';and  we  always  received 
every  kindness  from  our  many  friends  outside  of  the  Parish 
of  the  Assumption.  We  have  had  the  sanction  and  confi- 
dence of  one  to  whom  we  shall  ever  look  with  the  most  pro- 
found veneration  and  respect,  one  who,  under  God,  has  been 
the  mainstay  of  all  our  ambition;  wlio  never  yet  cast  a  frown 
or  uttered  a  harsh  word  toward  us,  no  matter  what  faults 
we  might  have  committed.  Our  beloved  Bishop  has  buoyed 
us  up,  and  always  cheered  us  by  his  kind  and  fatherly  advice. 
We  have  had  the  sympathy  and  good  wishes  of  our  brethren 
of  the  priesthood;  fur,  I  must  say  it  in  all  honor  to  that  dis- 
tinguished body  of  gentlemen,  that  no  angry,  or  unkind,  or 
bitter  expression  has  ever  escaped  the  lips  of  eitlier  young  or 
old  towards  me. 

"  But.  my  dear  friends,  it  would  be  too  tedious  for  me  to 
dwell  at  length  upon  the  various  topics  alluded  to  in  your 
kind  address.  I  can  only  hope  that  the  bond  of  friendship 
may  be  yet  more  firmly  cemented  as  we  advance  in  years. 
And,  if  God  spares  us,  we  shall  start  again  with  renewed  en- 
ergy, and  renewed  zeal,  in  the  cause  which  we  all  have  so 
much  at  heart. 

"  I  will  now  merely  thank  3'ou,  one  and  all,  in  the  name 
of  the  Assumption  congregation.  I  thank  you,  brethren  of 
the  priesthood,  in  the  name  of  our  venerated  and  beloved 
Bishop;  and  the  laity  at  large,  I  thank  in  the  name  of  its 
chief  civic  officer,  the  people's  choice  of  ruler,  His  Honor, 
Mayor  Howell." 

The  exercises  were  brought  to  a  close  with  the  bene- 
diction by  Bishop  Loughlin.  As  the  congregation 
slowly  dispersed,  the  choir  rendered  the  "  Hallelujah 
Chorus,"  and  the  orchestra  performed  a  grand 
march. 

The  jubilee  at  the  church  was  supplemented  by  a 
splendid  banquet  at  the  pastoral  residence,  to  which 
over  one  hundred  persons  had  been  invited.     The  long 


tables  were  loaded  down  with  substantials,  and  the 
hospitality  was  generous  in  the  extreme.  Bishop 
Loughlin  presided,  and  was  supported  on  his  right  by 
Mayor  Howell,  and  on  his  left  by  Mr.  Thomas  Kinsella. 
The  speeches  were  by  Bishop  Loughlin,  Mr.  Thomas 
Kinsella,  Mayor  Howell,  Henry  C.  De  Witt,  Esq.,  Rev. 
Fathers  Keegan  and  Fransioli,  Mr.  Geo.  M.  Nichols, 
Felix  Campbell,  Arthur  Crooks,  Vice-President  of  the 
St.  Patrick  Society,  and  David  T.  Lynch. 

Mr.  Andrew  McLean  offered  the  following  "  Tribute 
in  Verse,"  which  was  loudly  applauded.  Songs  were 
sung  by  Messrs.  Fitzharris  and  Thomas,  and  after  an 
evening  memorable  for  its  wit,  eloquence  and  kindly 
associations,  the  company  dispersed. 


When  basking  in  the  calm  pure  light 

Of  gentle  hearts  and  kipdly  deeds— 
Of  souls  that  ever  tend  aright 

Through  all  the  shifting  shades  of  creeds. 
Wo  feel  the  joy  the  soldier  feels 

When,  resting  at  the  battle's  close, 
The  uprolled  cloud  of  smoke  reveals 

Strange  allies  where  he  counted  foes. 

'Tis  well  for  us  a  generous  power 

Makes  difference  fade  and  manhood  rise; 
That  not  the  most  impatient  hour 

Will  pass  unless  some  discord  diee; 
That  distance  renders  harshness  sweet, 

And  time  makes  dull  the  edge  of  strife; 
That  every  wrong  grows  obsolete, 

And  charity  is  Lord  of  life. 

To-night  I  count  my  difference  naught 

On  any  subtle  schoolman's  theme; 
I  banish  wholly  from  my  thought 

The  questions  jarring  minds  esteem. 
And  stand  'mid  friends  who  love  you,  sire, 

To  blend  with  theirs  my  friendly  mood; 
To  own  with  them  how  deeds  inspire 

That  blossom  into  stainless  good. 

A  thousand  little  children  fair. 

Who  cannot  plead  with  Heaven  in  vain; 
To-night  send  with  their  evening  prayer 

For  thee  a  pure  beseeching  strain  ; 
A  thousand  matrons,  trouble-tried. 

But  cheered  by  hopes  that  baffle  woe, 
Kneel  by  the  crib  and  cradle-side 

To  speed  the  prayers  that  trembling  go. 

Youths  round  us  hero  with  ardent  look 

Bent  on  the  Future's  mystic  face, 
Attest  thy  kindly  past'ral  crook 

And  patient,  tireless  teaching  grace  ; 
I  know,  too,  strong  men  at  their  toil. 

From  strangling  passion  lifted  free, 
Who,  standing  fast  on  honest  soil, 

Do  in  their  manhood  honor  thee, 

But  as  the  beacon  on  the  hill 

That  lights  some  shepherd  to  his  spouse. 
May  guide  a  hundred  feet  from  ill 

Unthought  of  in  the  shepherd's  house, 
The  annals  cannot  tell,  dear  friend. 

How  many  lives  thy  goodness  praise  ; 
'Tis  only  known  the  beams  you  send 

Have  lighted  countless  darkened  ways. 

Nor  can  it,  matter  much  to  one 

Who  lives  for  good  because  he  must. 
If,  like  the  radiant-hearted  Sun 

Who  shines  on  all  the  stellar  dust. 
He  hear  not  of  the  flowers  that  long 

A  thankful  incense  to  return  ; 
Nor  of  the  birds  that  in  theircong 

To  chant  his  gifts  with  music  burn. 


1050 


HISTORY   OF  KINGS    COUNTY. 


Yet,  well  11  is  that  after  years 

Of  labor  in  a  noble  cause, 
Some  noble,  generous  fruit  appears— 

Some  echo  comes  of  right  applause. 
To  prove  that  he  who  sows  the  seed 

For  other  hands  to  reap  and  bind. 
Hath  greater  glory  in  the  deed 

Than  any  selfish  soul  shall  find. 

T  fain  would  add  with  furtive  liand 

Some  triQing  token  to  the  mass. 
Built  high  by  those  who  understand, 

The  father  thoughts  that  through  you  pass, 
Some  token  that  shall  only  say, 

As  chance  eyes  choose  to  turn  it  o'er, 
He  swept  some  mists  of  hate  away 

And  made  men  trust  each  other  more. 

Rev.  Henry  A.  Gallagher,  Rev.  Charles  J.  Gallagher 
and  Rev.  David  A.  Hickey,  the  three  clergymen  who, 
in  their  youth,  were  altar  boys  in  the  Church  of  the 
Assumption,  surprised  Father  Keegan  with  new  furni- 
ture for  his  bedroom.  The  Sisters  of  Charity  of  St. 
Joseph  and  of  the  Visitation,  and  the  Little  Sisters  of 
the  Poor,  each  made  elegant  presents.  Dr.  John  S. 
Thorne  sent  a  picture  of  liigh  value  and  richly  framed. 
The  floral  offerings  were  many  and  handsome. 


St.    Peter  and    St.    Paul's  Church,    Second   street,    near 
Sout)i  2d,  E.  D. — The  first  mass  celebrated  in  Williamsburgh 


(about  1838)  was  in  a  stable  on  Grand  street,  west  of 
Third,  by  Rev.  Dougherty,  of  St.  Mary's  Church  in  New 
York. 

The  first  churcli  erected  in  Williamslmrgh  was  ,S'^  Mar'ifs, 
corner  North  Eighth  and  First,  org.  1841,  and  under  charge 
of  Eev.  Mr.  O'Donnell.  In  1S44,  Rev.  Sylvester  Malone  took 
charge  of  St.  Marj-'s,  and  soon  set  about  building  a  new 
church.  Tlie  corner-stone  of  the  Church  of  Saints  Peter 
and  Paul  was  laid  May  11th;  1847,  and  the  church  was  dedi- 
cated in  May,  1848.  Rev.  Sylvester  Malone  has  been  its 
Pastor;  with  the  exception  of  part  of  1881  and  1883,  when 
he  was  abroad,  and  his  place  was  supplied  by  Rev.  Mr. 
Gallagher. 

Clergy:  Rev.  Jno.  N.  Campbell,  1870-'78;  Rev.  John 
Fagan,  1870-'74;  Rev.  Henry  Gallagher,  1875-'83;  Rev. 
Michael  Killahy,  1879;  Rev.  Hugh  Ward,  1881-84. 

While  Father  Malone  has  held  in  strict  regard  the  disci- 
pline and  order  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church,  in  respect  to 
the  order  and  relation  of  its  priesthood,  he  has  ever  recognized 
the  duties  growing  out  of  the  progressive  civilization  of  the 
age.  And  while  enforcing  religion  on  the  consciences  of  his 
people  by  the  logic  of  its  power,  he  has  been  careful  that  the 
claims  of  religion  a:id  of  his  church  should  not  euroach  on 
the  civil  rights  of  tlie  citizen,  either  to  restrict  or  control  his 
dutj'  to  the  State. 

Tlie  community  of  Williamsburgh  owe  a  debt  of  gratitude 
to  Father  Malone  for  suppressing  the  turbulent  spirit  of  his 
people  during  the  draft  riots  in  New  York. 


REV.    SYLVESTER     MALONE. 

Pastor  of  Sfs.    Titer  mid  Paul's  R.   (J.    Clnirrli. 


Father  Malone,  as  he  is  called  (not  alone  by  his  parish- 
ioners, after  the  manner  of  Catholics,  but  also  by  the  whole 
body  of  non-Catholics  in  the  city,  in  which  for  forty  years 
he  has  labored  with  grand  purpose  as  true  man  and  true 
priest),  was  born  in  the  inland  town  of  Trim,  about  twenty 
miles  from  the  city  of  Dublin,  County  Meath,  Ireland,  May 
8th,  A.  D.  1821. 

All  the  conditions  cnv.'roning  his  early  life,  from  his  birth 
onward,  naturally  led  to  the  adoption  Ity  him  of  an  intellec- 
tual pursuit,  and  to  forming  and  developing  him  into  the 
broad,  strong,  earnest,  hard-working,  intellectual  and  Chr.'s- 
tian  man  he  is  known  to  be. 

His  whole  family  had  a  bent  for  the  higher  callings  ami 
duties  of  life.  His  father  was  a  country  merchant  in  Trim, 
but  also  discharged  the  functions  of  a  civil  engineer  and  sur- 
veyor. His  mother  was  possessed  of  fine  executive  ability 
and  strong  intellect — both  possessed  in  large  degree  by 
Father  Malone.  She  died  only  recently,  at  the  age  of  ninety- 
four  years,  with  unimpaired  faculties.  It  is  said  of  her  that 
she  was  the  wise  counsellor  of  the  country  people  through- 
out a  wide  circuit.  One  of  his  brothers  now  follows,  in 
the  old  town,  his  father's  profession  as  au  engineer;  and 
another  has  been  a  'eading  physician  in  Brooklyn  for  manj' 
years.  ^ 

At  an  early  age,  the  subject  of  this  sketch  was  entered  as  a 
student  of  mathematics  and  classics  in  the  Academy  of  Prof. 
Matthew  Carroll,  a  non-Catholic,  and  a  Fellow  of  Trinity 
College.  This  gentleman  was  one  of  the  most  accomplished 
and  erudite  instructors  of  youth  of  that  day.  If  results  may 
be  taken  as  determining  fitness,  the  successful  careers  of  his 


then  pupils  serve  to  clearly  jirove  that  he  was  admirably 
qualified  in  his  vocation. 

These  pupils  were  divided  as  to  religious  opinions  and 
creeds.  Many  of  the  Catholics  entered  professional  life ; 
some  became  missionaries  in  the  colonies  of  Great  Britain; 
one  is  still  Bursar  in  the  College  of  Maynooth.  Of  the  non- 
Catholics,  several  achieved  distinction  in  the  civil  service 
of  Great  Britain,  in  India;  and  one,  Dr.  James  Hanbury, 
was  recently  Chief  of  the  Medical  Staff  with  the  English 
army  in  Egypt. 

Of  his  term  at  this  Academy,  and  of  his  observations  and 
experiences  at  this  period  of  his  life,  Father  Malone  has  im- 
pressively written  in  a  letter  to  a  friend  : 

"  My  early  life  was  toned  by  association  with  non-Catho- 
lics. The  kindliest  feeling  was  cultivated  among  people  who 
followed  different  religious  beliefs.  The  Catholic  priest  and 
the  Protestant  minister  walked  arm-in-arm  througli  the  pub- 
lic streets  of  the  town.  No  doubt  such  an  example  was  a 
Iiowerful  agenc3'  for  harmony  and  peace.  Its  influence,  on 
botli  sides,  was  calculated  to  destroy  prejudice  and  insjiire 
confidence  among  citizens  of  the  same  nationality.  To  tliis 
I  lovingly  turn  as  the  school  that  has  fitted  me  for  the  proper 
appreciation  of  what  citizens  owe  each  other  in  America, 
where  religion  is  left  as  an  individual  interest  which  no  one 
has  the  right  to  iuterfere  with." 

All  the  good  of  those  days  that  touched  him  found  in  him 
a  heartily  sympathetic  and  responsive  subject  for  its  influ- 
ence. The  impressicms  then  made  upon  him  were  deep  and 
abiding.  Nurtured  by  such  parents,  aided  by  his  happy  asso- 
ciations, he  formed  habits  and  purposes,  and  made  for  him- 
self an  ideal,  neither  of  which  has  ever  been  abandoned.  On 
the   contrary,    each  has   been   strengthened   and  confirmed 


^  ^./?^    ^i'/la  //--2- 


ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1051 


■with  his  growth.  His  jireliminary  preparation  and  experi- 
ence liad  made  liim  ready  to  accept  tlie  opportunity  soon  to 
be  offered  to  him  for  entering  the  priesthood. 

In  1838,  Rev.  Andrew  Byrne,  Pastor  of  St.  James'  Catholic 
Church  in  tlie  city  of  New  York,  was  in  Ireland,  seeking 
young  men  desirous  of  entering  the  Catholic  priesthood,  for 
the  American  Mission.  Tiiis  priest,  a  few  years  later,  was 
elevated  to  the  new  Bishopric  of  Little  Rock,  Arkansas; 
and  died  during  the  war,  regretting  the  sad  state  of  the 
country  he  loved  so  much.  With  liim,  young  Malone,  then 
in  his  seventeenth  year,  sailed  for  the  United  States,  land- 
ing in  Philadelphia.  The  first  acquaintance  he  made  there 
was  with  a  friend  of  his  companion.  Bishop  Kenrick,  who, 
later  on,  was  transferred  to  Baltimore,  created  Archbishop 
of  that  See,  and  thereby  Primate  of  America.  From  Phil- 
adelphia, Sylvester  soon  came  to  New  York.  He  was  at 
once  presented  to  Archbishop  Hughes,  and,  by  his  advice, 
entered  the  temporary  seminary  at  Le  Fargeville,  Jeffer- 
son county,  N.  Y.  After  one  year's  study  there,  he  entered 
St.  John's  Seminary,  Fordham,  where  he  completed  his 
course  of  studies  and,  on  August  15th,  1844,  was  ordained 
a  priest  of  the  diocese  of  New  York  by  its  present  Arch- 
bishop, His  Eminence  Cardinal  McCloskey,  who  was  then 
coadjutor  to  Bishop  Hughes.  This  was  the  first  ordina- 
tion of  a  i^riest  by  him,  and  Father  Malone  claims  the  honor 
of  having  been  the  first  priest  so  ordained.  Immediately 
after  his  ordination,  Father  Malone  was  sent  on  the  mission 
in  Williamsburgh,  where  he  has  ever  since  remained. 

Into  the  then  scattered  village  of  Williamsbui-gh,  liaving  a 
population  of  only  ten  thousand,  of  whom  not  jn<  ro  tlian 
five  hundred  were  Catholics,  if,  in  fact,  there  were  sj  many. 
Father  Malone  came  on  a  Saturday  night  in  September  fol- 
lowing. 

Tliere  and  then  was  begun  in  reality  the  sacred  work  to 
which  his  life  had  been  devoted,  and  immersed  in  which  it 
was  to  be  filled  out.  And  w)io  shall  say  that  he  was  not  well 
equipped  for  it  ?  He  was  robust  in  constitution  and  health, 
imbued  with  piety,  zealous  in  purpose — that  purpose  being 
of  the  loftiest — untiringly  industrious,  admirable  in  energy, 
wholly  self-reliant,  resolute,  well-educated,  studious  and  in- 
tellectually well  balanced. 

Quickly  perceptive,  judicially  calm  and  searching  in  all 
his  mental  processes,  he  at  once  apprehended  the  nature  and 
range  of  the  duties  devolving  upon  him,  and  correctly  esii- 
niated  the  difficulties  to  be  overcome.  How  onerous  the 
former,  how  grave  the  latter,  can  be  discerned  at  this  time 
only  by  those  of  his  flock  who  can  recollect  the  events  of  that 
period,  and  who  remember  the  humble  little  parish  church 
of  St.  Mary's  and  its  young  Pastor. 

His  first  sermon  was  almost  i^rophetic  of  what  was  to  be 
the  most  controlling  influence  in  his  life.  Of  that  sermon, 
Father  Malone  in  his  farewell  address  to  his  people,  on 
May  29,  A.  D.  1881,  prior  to  his  departure  for  Europe,  said: 

"  The  first  sermon  I  preached,  as  I  remember,  was  on  char- 
ity, its  principles  and  teachings;  and  I  have  tried  to  make 
this  virtue  tlie  star  guiding  me  in  my  course  of  life,  as  I  was 
called  to  minister  to  not  only  the  physical  wants  of  depend 
ent  members  in  society;  but  still  more  to  be  charitable  in 
word  and  thought,  to  those  who  were  not  seen  to  worship  at 
the  same  altar  with  me." 

How  completely  the  prophecy  has  been  fulfilled.  St. 
Mary's  parish  comprised  all  the  territorj'  bounded  by  Hallet's 
Cove  on  the  north.  Middle  Village  on  the  east.  Myrtle  ave. 
on  the  south,  and  the  East  River  on  the  west.  From  these 
remote  points  Catholics  found  their  way  to  the  services  of 
the  church  in  the  little  wooden  building  surrounded  by  the 
graves  of  their  kindred,  at  North  8th  and  2d  St.,  almost 
the  northfrlv  line  of  Old  Williamsburgh.     The  old  churcli 


building  has  been  razed,  but  the  church-yard,  with  its 
memorial  stones  testifying  to  that  past  and  dead  genera- 
tion, is  still  a  landmark. 

To  these  points,  too,  toiled  Father  Malone  in  his  ministra- 
tions to  the  sick  and  dying;  for  in  those  days,  he  had  no 
assistant  in  the  care  of  the  parish. 

Those  were  busy  days  for  him.  When  he  took  charge  of 
St.  Clary's,  it  was  burdened  by  a  debt  of  .|2,300.  Father 
Malone  immediately  set  himself  to  the  payment  of  it,  and  in 
two  years  he  rejoiced  with  his  people  in  having  paid  off  the 
entire  sum. 

Meantime,  there  had  been  a  gradual  and  steady  increase  in 
the  number  of  worshipers  at  St.  Mary's,  but  not  till  his 
Iieople  had  been  freed  from  the  oppression  of  the  debt, 
would  he  permit  his  mind  to  dwell  on  the  project  of  build- 
ing a  new  church  edifice,  and  in  the  Thirteenth  Ward.  Nor 
did  he,  iintil  the  way  before  him  seemed  to  be  reasonably 
favorable  for  its  successful  execution. 

Ways  and  means  were  subjects  of  serious  consideration 
for  him.     In  the  address  already  referred  to  he  spoke  thus: 

"  It  was  then  only  we  conceived  the  idea  of  a  new  church; 
but  to  accomplish  this  in  a  Ward,  where  as  yet  none  of  the 
Catholic  people  seemed  to  have  found  liomes,  was  thought 
by  many  a  rash  undertaking.  It  was  my  judgment  tliat  the 
location  was  well  selected  and  convenient  for  tlie  Catholics 
of  the  14tli,  as  well  as  those  of  tlie  13tli  V/ard,  which  were 
the  only  settled  sections  of  Williamsburgh." 

He  did  not  advert  to  the  fact  that  the  land  for  the  new 
church  was  not  obtained  without  difficulty.  Anti-Catholic 
prejudice  was  feverish  and  aggressive  in  its  assertion,  and 
the  proposal  to  erect  a  Catholic  Church  in  the  13th  Ward, 
was  unfavorably  considered  by  the  holders  of  that  prejudice. 
But  land  was  purchased;  the  title  to  it  secured  by  a 
friend  of  the  church  and  Pastor,  and  on  a  day,  bright  in  the 
memories  of  Father  Slalone,  and  those  of  his  old  flock  who 
survive  (May  11th,  A.  D.  1847),  the  corner-stone  of  the 
present  Saints  Peter  and  Paul's  Church,  was  laid  by  Arch- 
bishop Hughes.  The  superstructure  was  speedily  forwarded 
to  completion,  and  one  year  later  was  dedicated  by  the  same 
prelate. 

In  the  address,  already  quoted,  Father  Malone  said  further: 

'■  I  may  here  state  that  we  never  collected  a  cent  to  help 

us  in  our  then  great  undertaking,  save  only  from  the  people 

who  were  immediately  benefited   by  the  erection  of    the 

church." 

It  was  the  first  church  built  in  the  diocese  of  New  York,  in 
the  Gothic  order  of  architecture.  The  architect  was  Mr.  J. 
J.  Kelly. 

For  five  years,  from  1844  to  1849,  Father  Malone  had  la- 
bored unceasingly.  A  period  of  rest  came  to  his  labor  that 
almost  proved  final.  In  the  latter  year,  in  the  discharge  of 
his  duty,  he  attended  a  woman,  from  whom  he  contracted  a 
virulent  disease,  that  carried  him  far  within  the  shadow  of 
death.  There  is  almost  cynical  irony  in  what  followed.  The 
woman  was  soon  after  murdered  by  her  husband,  and  for  it 
he  was  executed.  Scarcely  convalescent.  Father  Malone 
was  prostrated  by  cholera;  the  scourge  of  ship  fever  at- 
tacked his  weakened  system;  and  finally  he  was  burned  out 
of  house  and  home,  losing  in  the  fire  his  library,  manu- 
scripts, and  the  whole  of  his  worldly  possessions. 

He  had  been  ten  years  ordained;  had  removed  the  debt  of 
the  old  church,  erected  the  new  one,  the  parochial  school, 
and  the  handsome  pastoral  residence;  had  inaugurated  the 
Academy  of  the  Sisters  of  St.  Joseph;  established  a  church 
library;  organized  a  literary  association  of  the  young  men 
of  his  parish,  many  of  whom  have  become  prominent  and 
successful  in  professional  and  business  life,  and  had  gathered 
around  him  a  large  and  loving  congregation,  when,  in 
1854,  he  visited  Europe;  chiefly  to  witness  tlie  grand  assem- 


105 -2 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


l)ly  of  tho  Bishops  of  the  whole  world,  then  convened  at 
Rome,  by  the  late  Pope  Puis  IX.,  to  proclaim  the  dogma  of 
the  Immaculate  Conception,  and  to  be  present  at  the  making 
of  the  proclamation. 

During  liis  absence  in  Europe,  political  and  religious 
prejudices  became  much  embittered  in  Williamsburgh,  as 
elsewhere,  and  induced  acts  of  physical  violence.  In  No- 
vember of  that  year,  a  mob  attacked  the  church  and  en- 
deavored to  destroy  it  by  fire,  or  to  wreck  it.  It  was  saved 
by  the  prompt  and  resolute  action  of  the  civic  and  military 
authorities,  who  guarded  it  for  several  days,  and  until  the 
danger  to  it  had  passed,  almost  as  much  from  personal  re- 
gard for  Father  Malone,  who  had  already  made  his  impress 
as  a  good  citizen,  as  from  convictions  of  duty. 

Returning  in  1855,  Father  Malone  bent  himself  anew  to 
his  work,  but  the  next  few  following  years  were  un- 
marked by  any  event  of  sjiecial  significance  in  his  pas- 
torate. 

It  was  not  until  the  dreadful  coming  of  the  Rebellion  that 
his  power  and  energy  were  fully  put  forth  and  wrought 
with.  Durhig  the  dark  days  and  years  of  its  continuance, 
no  man  did  more  in  his  place,  and  of  his  ability,  to  contrib- 
ute to  the  maintenance  of  the  Union  and  the  success  of  its 
arms.  By  voice  and  pen  in  his  daily  mingling  with  the  people ; 
from  the  pulpit;  from  the  platform;  every  where  that  opportu- 
nity afforded,  he  declared  for  the  cause  of  the  nation,  cheered 
and  encouraged  the  loyal,  reproved  and  discouraged  the  dis- 
loyal. He  aided  largely  in  the  success  of  the  Sanitary  Fair  for 
the  soldiers  in  field  and  liospital,  and  donated  one-quarter  of 
his  small  salary  to  the  fund  for  soldiers'  wives  and  children.  I 
"When  rumor  came,  on  that  memorable  April  Saturday  after- 
noon, that  rebels  were  about  to  fire  on  Sumter,  the  flag  that 
symbolized  the  unity  of  the  nation  was,  by  his  direction, 
thrown  to  the  breeze  from  the  spire  of  Sts.  Peter  and  Paul's 
Clmrch,  and  astonished  the  eyes  of  early  church-goers  next 
morning.  It  was  the  first  flag  displayed  on  a  church  in  the 
United  States  at  the  beginning  of  the  long  struggle,  and  was 
afterwards  carried  to  the  front  by  Williamsburgli  men. 

With  an  eloquent  address,  citizens  presented  to  Father 
Malone  a  flag  to  replace  it.  This  one,  often  afterwards,  from 
the  spire  of  Sts.  Peter  and  Paul's,  signaled  victory  to  the 
people — never  more  welcomely  than  on  the  1st  day  of  Jan- 
uary, A.  D.  18G3.  All  the  previous  night  had  been  passed  in 
anxious  waiting  for  news  of  the  result  of  the  three  days'  fight- 
ing at  Murf  reesboro.  It  came  at  last  through  the  dark  and 
stormy  morning  of  that  day,  and  the  flag  went  up  to  its  place 
with  fervent  gratitude  to  God,  in  symbol  that  the  nation  had 
won,  what  Father  Malone  believes  tho  philosopher  in  history 
will  find  to  have  been,  the  most  radically  decisive  battle  of  the 
war.  It  was  in  symbol  also  that  African  slavery  in  the 
United  States  went  to  its  death  on  that  day,  and  that  four 
milUons  of  freemen  had  been  raised  out  of  that  death. 

At  the  close  of  the  war.  Father  Malone,  being  in  need  of  re- 
spite from  his  arduous  duties,  made  a  journey  through  the 
South  with  his  friend.  Rev.  Thomas  P'arrell,  of  St.  Joseph's 
Church,  New  York,  since  deceased.  He  fully  studied  the 
condition  of  affairs  there,  and  expressed  his  views  on  it  in 
able  letters,  then  published.  After  his  return  from  tlie  South, 
he  resumed  his  active  work  in  the  care  of  his  parish,  and 
continued  it  with  all  his  old-time  vigor  and  ability  until,  in 
1881,  he  was  compelled  to  take  entire  rest,  and  seek  change 
of  scene  and  climate.  The  necessity  for  his  doing  so  had 
long  been  manifest — he  was  overworn — but  he  yielded  to  it 
reluctantly,  and  only  under  the  imperative  orders  of  his 
physician.  In  taking  leave  of  his  people,  in  his  farewell  ad- 
dress before  quoted,  he  stated  some  of  the  results  of  his  labors 
in  his  thirty-seven  years'  pastorate.    Ten  thousand  discourses 


(he  might  have  added  hundreds  of  addresses  on  civic  occa- 
sions) ;  eighteen  thousand  baptisms;  tliree  thousand  five  hun- 
dred marriages;  half  a  million  penitents  prepared  for  com- 
munion; five  thousand  applicants  prepared  for  confirmation 
and  first  communion;  one  thousand  converts;  all  debt  on  the 
church  and  parochial  school  paid,  and  the  debt  on  the  paro- 
chial liouse  and  St.  Joseph's  Academy  reduced  to  a  small  sum. 

Referring  to  Catholic  growth  and  expansion  in  the  interim, 
particularly  alluding  to  four  churches  that  had  been  built,  he 
continued: 

"  And  twelve  churches  besides,  where  the  English  tongue 
is  spoken  by  Priests  and  people.  All  tliese  find  good  support 
on  territory  where  I  stood  alone,  the  representative  of  Catho- 
lic interests  in  the  early  years  of  my  ministry.  Within  the 
same  area  there  has  sprung  up  seven  other  churches,  in 
which  the  language  spoken  by  a  thrifty  and  hard-working 
race  is  that  of  Fatherland. " 

He  paid  high  tribute  in  his  eloquent  address  to  his  non- 
Catholic  fellow  citizens,  an<l  to  his  adopted  country;  tenderly 
advised  his  deeply-moved  congregations,  and  concluded  in 
these  words: 

"  And  finally,  may  you  live  in  charity  with  all  your  fellow 
citizens;  though  you  have  necessarily  to  differ  with  many 
in  religious  belief,  and  may  or  may  not  agree  in  your  judg- 
ments of  men,  and  in  those  questions  that  are  constantly  oc- 
cun-ing  in  civil  life.  There  is  one  thing  which  will  ever  dis- 
tinguish you — charity — loving  God  above  all  things,  and 
loving  your  neighbor  for  Christ's  sake." 

He  had  come  to  them  thirty-seven  years  before  in  the  sign 
of  charity,  and  in  that  sign  he  departed.  A  few  days  later 
he  sailed.  His  tour  was  an  extended  one,  embracing  Eng- 
land, Ireland,  Scotland,  Continental  Europe,  Egypt  and  the 
Holy  Land.  Letters  from  his  Bishop,  Cardinal  McCloskey, 
the  United  States  Secretary,  and  other  leading  men,  brought 
him  into  intimate  association  with  our  ministers,  diplomats, 
and  the  leading  men  abroad,  and  his  reception  was  as  cor- 
dial and  enjoyable  as  it  was  desening,  in  all  his  journey- 
ings. 

Probably  no  incident  or  experience  of,  or  in  them  all,  so 
much  affected  him,  or  will  be  so  enduring  to  his  memory,  as 
will  be  that  of  the  celebration  by  him  of  mass  on  Mount  Cal- 
vary. He  returned  to  his  people  early  in  September,  1883, 
and  again  took  up  his  work.  His  welcome  liome  by  the 
whole  community  was  earnest  and  grateful.  His  first  ad- 
dress indicated  that  he  had  looked  on  in  Europe  and  else- 
where with  intelligent  appreciation  of  men  and  events.  Here 
it  may  be  remarked,  that  he  made  voluminous  notes  of  ob- 
servation and  comment  on  both,  and  that  he  may  hereafter 
arrange  them  for  use  and  reference.  They  may  well  be  es- 
teemed, by  those  who  know  him,  as  valuable. 

This  address  was  in  part  a  criticism  on  the  separation  abroad 
of  priests  and  people.  He  deplored  it,  and  argued  for  a  more 
close  identification  of  the  clergy  with  the  everj'-day  life  of 
the  people  everywhere. 

The  address  provoked  some  adverse  criticism,  and  gave 
him  an  opportunity  to  restate  his  position  with  greater  em- 
phasis. 

Sincerely  believing  in  the  peojile,  he  argues  that  their  ad- 
vancement will  lift  the  clergy  to  a  higher  place.  Banquets 
were  tendered  to  hiin.  The  leading  newspapers  contained 
warm  expressions  of  affectionate  regard.  Extracts  from 
one  of  these  will  suffice  to  express  the  tone  of  all: 

"Upon  all  occasions  in  the  pulpit  he  has  enforced  strongly 
the  brotherhood  of  man  as  man.  and  the  sacred  duty  of  obe- 
dience to  law  and  public-spirited  citizenship.  He  is  sincerely 
attached  to  liis  adopted  country,  and  no  voice  during  the  re- 
bellion was  more  patriotic  than  his.  No  word  ever  uttered 
by  liim  has  ever  given  offence  to  Protestants,  many  of  whom 
are  to  be  found  occasionally  among  his  Sunday  congregation, 
drawn  thither  by  esteem  for  the  man.     ...    In  days  like 


ECCLESIASTICAL   OR  GANIZA  TIONS. 


1053 


our  own,  when  there  has  been  so  much  ecclesiastical  disturb- 
ance in  many  of  the  countries  of  Europe,  it  is  refreshing  to 
Hnd  an  irreproachable  priest,  who  has  consistently  exhibited 
in  his  own  career  the  true  modus  ^''f 'i**' .  j^'^'^;?^"  „^  "'^J' 
•iiid  State  His  has  been  the  loyal  and  spiritual  Catholicism, 
Which  has  chi.aoterized  so  many  illustrious  American 
Catholics.  Like  the  late  Archbishop  Bayley,  he  lias  always 
been  recognised  bv  Americans  as  thoroughly  in  accord  w,th 
the  fundamental  principles  of  the  Repubhc.  ;  Handsome  is 
t  at  handsome  does,'  is  his  estimate  of  human  con- 
duct; and  he  would  neither  detract  from  virtue,  because 
he  found  it  in  those  of  a  different  belief  nor  white- 
wash crime  because  it  was  done  by  those  of  his  own  reli- 
gion."' 

Never  a  self-seeker.  Father  Maloiie  lias  not  sought  prefer- 
ment to  higher  office  in  the  church,  but  has  serenely  abided 
in  his  sphere  as  a  parish  priest  with  the  people  he  has  guided 
from  infancy  to  mature  age,  and  they  are  very  dear  to  lum. 
In  May  1852,  at  the  age  of  thirty-one,  he  attend,  d  the 
First  Plenary  Council  of  the  Church  in  the  United  States,  at 
Baltimore  On  the  suggestion  of  Archbishop  Hughes,  he 
was  ai.pointed  Theologian  in  that  council  to  Bishop  Reynolds, 
then  Bishop  of  Charleston,  S.  C.  Later,  he  prepared  and  de- 
livered the  address  to  Bishop  Loughlin  of  Brooklyn,  on  be- 
half of  the  priests  of  his  diocese,  accompanyinr;  the  pre- 
sentation to  him  of  a  purse  to  defray  his  expenses,  on  the  oc- 
casion of  his  first  visit  to  Rome.  In  1866,  he  attended  the 
Second  Plenary  Council,  held  at  Baltimore,  as  Theologian 
to  the  same  Bishop. 

On  the  30th  of  October,  1S78,  the  twenty-fifth  anniversary 
of  the  consecration  of  Bish.^,  Loughlin,  he  prepared  and  pre- 
sented the  address  of  congratulation  to  him  of  the  priests  of 
Brooklyn  on  the  event.  Though  brief,  it  contained  an  inter- 
esting and  permanently  valuable  view  of  the  growth  of  the 
church  in  its  spiritual  and  material  interests  in  the  diocese, 
andwas  an  eloquent  testimony  to  the  Bishop's  admmistra- 
tion.     He  has  been  for  many  years  a  member  of  his  Bishop  s 

council.  f   iu     x> 

In  politics,  Father  Malone  has  been  a  member  of  the  Re- 
publican party  since  its  organization,  and  has  given  to  it 
hearty  support.  He  never  acted  with  the  Democratic  party. 
His  love  for  his  kind,  his  eagerness  for  human  progress, 
would  not  permit  acceptance  by  him  of  its  policy  or  methods. 
These  were  uncongenial  to  him,  and  in  his  view  obnoxious 
to  just  principles  of  government,  and  therefore  dangerous  to 
the  well-being  of  the  nation. 

His  atfection  for  his  native  land  has  caused  him  to  take  ac- 
tive interest  in  the  movement  by  the  Land  League  to  amelio- 
rate her  condition. 

The  foUowing  extract  from  one  of  his  addresses  from  the 
pulpit,  in  reference  to  it,  will  serve  alike  to  define  his  position 
on  this  point,  and  his  clear,  strong  style: 


"  A  people  have  the  right  to  inhabit  their  own  land,  and  to 
inherit  all  the  benefits  and  happiness  of  living  which  may 
come  to  them  in  it.  When  this  is  denied  to  a  p.>ople,  every 
orihould  give  his  aid  to  them  in  putting  off  the  misgovern- 
ment  which  allows  and  continues  such  a  condition  of  affairs. 
On  that  account  I  am  with  the  present  Land  League  move- 
ment I  believe  in  it  and  look  upon  it  as  the  most  promising 
Zvemeat  that  has  yet  stirred  the  thoughts  of  men  every- 
where for  justice  to  that  land.  But  I  go  no  further  than  the 
aeitation  of  the  Land  League  question  on  its  merits.  Those 
wlo  counsel  and  call  for  an  uprising  with  arms  are  not  those 
who  seek  the  proper  and  moit  effective  way  to  arouse  the 
people  to  the  justice  of  the  questions  embodied  'U  the  Land 
League  movement.  Be  wary  of  those  people  Agi  ate  t  e 
uuestion  on  its  merits,  and  the  great  press  of  the  countiy 
w"u  make  known  the  justice  of  the  cause,  and  move  a  speed> 
rectification  of  the  wrongs.  Whatever  is  done,  b^  caieful 
that  you  do  nothing  to  interfere  with  your  line  ot  duty  as 
citize."  <.f  \merica.  Exaggerated  statements  and  exagger- 
ated threats  Snly  prove  deH^menlalto  your  positions  as  citi- 
zens and  detrimental  to  the  cause  you  would  see  advanced. 


"  I  have  no  word  of  approbation  for  any  movement  that 
contemplates  an  appeal  to  armed  force.  Agitate  the  ques- 
tion, create  a  moral  sympathy  for  the  oppressed  of  Ireland, 
and  your  movement  will  accomplish  what  an  appeal  to 
force  would  not— success. 

"  We  here  In  America  must  not  do  anything  winch  will 
bring  this  country  into  complications  with  a  friendly  govern- 
ment; and  we  must  ignore  those  who  liope  by  Hre-crackers 
to  make  a  stand  against  cannon,  rifles,  and  all  tiie  improved 
implements  of  destruction  in  the  hands  of  a  strong  govern- 
ment When  we  become  citizens  of  tins  great  country- 
Frenchmen,  Germans,  Spaniards  and  Irishmen— we  swear 
allegiance  to  it,  and  for  it  we  must  ever  be  ready,  even 
against  the  country  we  have  left,  to  fight,  and  hght  to  con- 
quer." 

In  physique.  Father  Malone  is  of  full  average  height  and 
corpulent.  He  has  a  large,  symmetrical  head,  and  a  strong 
face  that  in  repose  is  very  grave,  but  lights  up  on  o<-casion 
with  rare  brightness.  Dignified  in  manner,  without  being 
austere,  he  has  in  large  measure  the  faculty  of  putting  one 
at  ease. 

He  is  a  close  student  and  keeps  in  line  with  the  leading 
thought  and  thinkers  of  the  day.  A  thinker  in  the  best 
sense,  superficial  men  have  no  use  for  him.  He  has  a  very 
complete  wt.rking  library.  There  is  not  a  book  in  it  for 
show,  and  he  knows  his  books  as  old  friends. 

Being  a  man  of  refined  and  cultivated  tastes,  he  is,  as  may 
weU  be  expected,  a  patron  of  the  arts,  and  he  is  at  once  a 
generous  and  discriminating  one.  He  has  always  caused  a 
high  standard  of  excellence  to  be  maintained  in  the  musical 
services  of  Sts.  Peter  and  Paul's;  and  is  a  warm  admirer 
of  fine  painting  and  sculpture  which  he  studies  with  critical 
acumen  and  appreciation. 

In  private  life  he  is  genial,  unostentatious,  simple  and  tem- 
perate To  one  who  should  know  him  there,  it  would  n  )t  be 
difficult  to  believe  of  him,  as  he  has  stated,  that  retirement 
would  be  more  congenial  to  his  natural  and  acquired  habits. 
The  worn  and  weary  priest  has  always  found  in  his  house 
a  place  of  rest  and  bountiful  hospitality.  To  young  men  he 
has  freely  given  with  a  parent's  generosity  and  tenderness. 
His  beneficence  has  helped  forward  many  such  in  then- 
chosen  pursuits,  more  especially  to  the  priesthood.  To  the 
unfortunate,  the  dependent,  the  shiftless  and  the  weak,  he  is 
as  a  loving  brother,  a  strong  staff,  a  wise  helper  and  a  merci- 
ful chider;  and  he  can  be,  to  the  wilfully  corrupt,  the  sternly 
reproving  judge.  There  is  no  weakness  in  his  gentleness- 
no  hardness  in  his  resoluteness-no  mere  obstinacy.  All 
true  himself,  he  has  a  wide-reaching  detestation  of  shams. 
His  pulpit  addresses  are  wholly  extemporaneous.  In  them 
all  mere  display  of  rhetoric  is  studiously  avoided.  Uttered 
with  definite  aim  and  objects,  they  are  practical,  rich  m 
pregnant  suggestion,  argumentative  and  logical;  but  they  are 
always  attractive,  persuasive,  and  hold  closely  the  attention 
of  his  hearers,  so  rife  are  they  with  the  genius  of  his  person- 
ality  fine  manhood  and  true  priestly  character. 

Often  eloquent,  he  is  always  felicitously  so  in  his  funeral 
discourses.  These  latter  would  serve  as  excellent  models  m 
statement  of  matter  and  in  style.  „    ,  v.-    « 

But  it  is  in  his  altar  talks  with  his  people,  that  his  fine 
mind  and  hearty  and  cultivated  powers  are  best  revealed  to 
them,  and  by  which  they  are  most  closely  drawn  to  him.  He 
exercises  inthesetalksa  never-weakening  charm. 

With  ^n-eater  significance  and  force  than  even  he  used  them 
in  his  address  to  his  Bishop,  on  the  latter's  twenty-fifth  anni- 
versary, might  his  people  deliver  to  him  the  testimony  held 
in  these  words 


"  They  cannot  but  look  up  to  their  Priest  as  one  most  ex- 
emnlaiy  in  his  devotion  to  his  sacied  office;  ever  at  his  post; 
X?ays  accessible  to  every  member  of  his  flock,  young  or  old, 
hi^l?oi  lowly,  who  claimed  his  fatherly  eai-  or  sympathy; 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


always  most  willing  to   give  to  everyone  the  benefit  of  his 
couusels,  and  the  light  of  his  own  experience. 

Wlieii  we  .say  devotion  to  your  high  and  sacred  office,  we 
mean  tidelicy  to  its  duties  in  the  strictest  sense.  Thus  has  the 
liglit  of  your  example  been  a  guide  to  all,  priests  and  people. 
Thus  ha;  the  iufluenceof  your  chiracter  served  to  form  others 
to  priBstly  fervor  and  apostolic  zeal.  We  now  look  back  over 
tliese  pregnaat  forty  years,  and  finding  in  your  life  and  labors 
so  much  to  be  grateful  for  to  the  Eternal  Shepherd  of  souls, 
we  come  in  this  presence  to  pay  to  you,  who  have  been  so  long 
our  good  Shepherd,  the  homage  of  our  congratulations  and 
our  gratitude.  May  Gk)d  brighten  the  remaining  years  of 
your  most  useful  life." 


German  Church  of  the  Holy  Trinity. — This  cliurch,  Mon- 
trose avenue,  near  Eweii  street  (E.  D.),  was  established  in 
July,  1841,  for  the  German  Catholics.  It  was  rebuilt  in  18-53, 
the  cornerstone  having  been  laid  by  Ai'chbishop  Hughes, 
June  39,  iu  that  year.  The  site  and  edifice  were  olitained  at 
the  sole  expense  of  first  Pastor,  Rev.  John  Raffeiner,  who 
directeJ  it  till  his  death,  July  17,  1861. 

The  church  proving  inadequate  to  tlie  wants  of  the  con- 
gregition,  in  1882,  the  f.iundation  was  laid  for  an  elegant 
stone  edifice  in  the  Gothic  style  of  the  13tli  century,  which 
has  a  front  of  7.5  feet  on  3Iontrose  avenue,  by  a  dejith  of  180 
feet.  This  new  church,  which  is  not  yet  completed,  will  be 
finished  in  the  finest  style,  and  will  cost  $350,000.  The  fami- 
lies in  the  parish  number  about  900.  The  schools  in  connec- 
tion with  the  church  contain  1,700  scholars.  The  boys  are 
taught  l)v  lay-teachers,  and  the  girls  by  the  Sisters  of  St. 
Dominic. 

Clergy:  1.  Very  Rev.  John  Raffeiner,  V.  G.  Pastor,  1841 
-"61;  assistants,  John  Raffeiner,  Jr.,  1848-'49;  Rev.  John 
Rauferisen,  1849-'50;  Rev.  Maurus  Ramsauer,  18.50-'51;  Rev. 
Frederic  Jung,  1851-"53:  Rev.  Casper  Metzler,  185.3 ;  Rev. 
Joseph  Huber,  1853-"56  ;  Rev.  Alois  Endets,  1856-'u7;  Rev.  P. 
Albrecht,  1857-'59;  Rev.  Michael  May,  18d9-'61:  Rev.  John 
Hauptman,  18")9-'61.  3.  Rev.  M.  May,  Pastor,  1861-'83;  as- 
sistants, Rev.  John  Hauptman,  1861-'63;  Rev.  Anthony 
Arnold,  1863-66;  Rev.  Joseph  Ulrech,  186.5-66;  Rev.  Gustav 
Kamerer,  1866-'69;  Rev.  Peter  Deaffenbach,  1869-75;  Rev. 
P.  J.  Schwarg,  1869-75;  Rev.  C.  Muller,  1870-'74;  Rev.  J. 
F.  Hanselman,  1877-"80;  Rev.  F.  X.  Pauletigi,  1877-'79;  Rev. 
J.  B.  Willman,  1877;  Rev.  Geo.  Feser,  1880-83;  Rev.  Geo. 
Kaupert,  18Sl-'84. 

Rev.  Michael  May,  born  in  Bavaria,  1836;  came  to  Brook- 
lyn May  80,  1859,  as  assistant  to  Father  Raffeiner  at  Holy 
Trinity;  appointed  Pastor,  July,  1862;  founded  Ch.  of  An- 
nunciation, 1863;  built  parish  schools  later,  St.  Nicholas' Ch., 
and  All  Saints  Ch. ;  built  an  Orjjhan  Asylum,  St.  Catharine's 
Hospital,  and  new  church,  1881-'83,  of  stone,  88  feet  by  170, 
and  70  feet  in  height,  with  two  towers,  300  feet  high;  cost 
$300,000. 

St.  Patrick's  Church. — This  church,  cor.  of  Kent  and 
Willoughby  avenues,  was  the  first  R.  C.  Church  in  East 
Brooklyn.  It  was  commenced  in  1848  by  the  Rev.  Hugh 
McGuire,  and  was  for  some  years  known  as  the  Wallabout 
Church.  It  was  dedicated  in  honor  of  St.  Patrick,  August 
3d,  1856. 

Clergy :  Revs.  Hugh  McGuire,  1848-"60;  Patrick  O'Neill, 
1853-54;  John  Bowling,  18.54-"o5;  Henry  G'Neil,  1857-'58; 
Peter  C.  Fagau,  1803-'64;  Edward  Fitzpatrick,  1870-'72;  J. 
Conlon,  1870;  Francis  Lennon,  1870-71;  John  Purcell,  1871 
-'72;  John  McCoUum,  1873-'75;  Thomas  Taafe,  Pastor,  from 
1873  to  present  time;  Andrew  0"ConneIl,  1873-'77;  M.  S. 
Boylan,  1877;  Henry  J.  Zimmer,  1877-79;  Jno.  McCloskey, 
lH78-'83;  Will.  Giles,  1878;  M.  Goodwin,  1879:  Jas.  Bobier, 
1830-83:  James  Taafe,  1880-'83;  E.  J.  McGoldrick,  1883-83; 
Thomas  A.  Mao-Caff rey,  1883. 


Rev.  James  Taafe,  born  at  Dromard,  Ireland;  grad.  Clon- 
gowes  Wood  College,  1873;  studied  at  Coll.  de  Ste.  Marie, 
Toulouse,  and  S.-m.  St.  Sulpice,  Paris;  ordained  1878;  app. 
curate  in  Brooklyn,  1879. 

Church  of  St.  Charles  Borromeo. — The  Episcopal  Church 
on  Sydnej-  place  was  purchased  by  the  Roman  Catli<jlics  iu 
1851;  and  the  Rev.  Charles  Constantine  Pise,  then  Pastor  of 
St.  Peter's  Church,  in  Barclay  street.  New  York,  was  sent 
over  by  Archbishop  Hughes  to  take  charge  of  the  new  church 
and  parish.  Dr.  Pise  was  a  gentleman  of  the  nio-st  refined 
last 'S  and  scholarly  attainments,  and  he  soon  gathered  to  his 
church  a  congregation  of  the  elite  of  the  Catholic  population 
of  the  city.  Dr.  Pise  died  in  l>fi6,  and  his  successor.  Dr.  Freel, 
purchased,  at  a  cost  of  .$35,000,  ground  adjoining  the  churcli 
and  pastoral  residence  lor  a  church  site.  In  1868,  the  old 
church,  with  its  valuable  organ,  its  superb  frescoes  and  fine 
collection  of  music,  was  burned.  Measures  were  at  once  in- 
stituted to  build  a  new  church  which  is  130  feet  in  length  by 
75  in  width,  and  cost  about  $70,000.  The  walls  of  the  old 
churcli  were  turned  into  St.  Philoineiia's  School  on  Sidney 
place.  It  is  a  somewhat  remarkable  fact  that  on  one  occasion 
tlie  Rt.  Rev.  Levi  Silliman  Ives,  as  Episcopal  Bishop  of  North 
Carolina,  ordained  in  this  church  the  Rev.  Donald  Macleod, 
as  a  minister  of  the  Episcopal  Church;  and  that,  not  many 
years  after,  they  met  again,  both  Roman  Catholics,  iu  this 
church,  which  had  also  like  them  become  Roman  Catholic. 

Clergy:  Rev.  C.  C.  Pise,  D.  D.,  1851-66;  Rev.  Joseph Frau- 
sioli,  1857-'59;  Rev.  David  O'Mullane.  1863-'64;  Rev.  F.  J. 
Freel,  D.  D.,  1866-81;  Rev.  Thomas  F.  McGivern,  1866-'71; 
Rev.  Jas.  Doherty,  1870;  Rev.  Chas.  Hubert,  1873;  Rev.  Jas. 
S.  Duffy,  1873-78;  Rev.  Ignatius  O'Brien,  1874;  Rev.  Denis 
A.  Tivenan,  1875;  Rev.  Thomas  Ward,  1875-'84;  Rev.  Jere- 
miah Brosnan,  1878-'83.     Dr.  Freel  died  in  March,  1884. 

St.  Joseph's,  Pacific  street,  near  Vanderbilt  avenue,  is  a 
brick  edifice,  with  a  seating  capacity  of  fifteen  hundred.  It 
was  erected  in  1853,  and  afterwards  enlarged.  There  are  large 
schools  connected  with  it;  the  boys'  school  of  600  pupils 
under  the  care  of  the  Franciscan  Brothers,  and  the  girls' 
school  with  450  children  in  attendance  conducted  bj'  the 
Sisters  of  St.  Joseph. 

Clergy  :  Rev.  P.  O'Neill,  1853-'67;  Rev.  Edward  Corcoran, 
1867-83.  Assistant  Pastors  :  Rev.  Peter  Kearney,  1867-'73; 
Rev.  William  O'Donnell,  1870-71;  Rev.  P.  J.  McGIinchey, 
1876:  Re\  .  Patrick  McNamara,  1871-74;  Rev.  James  O'Rourke, 
1873-'75;  Rev.  Bernard  McHugh,  1874-'75;  Rev.  John  Hogaii, 
1875;  Rev.  Thos.  S.  Reilly,  187.5-78;  Rev.  John  Lougliran, 
1879--81;  Rev,  C.  J.  Curtin,  1881-'83;  Rev.  P.  J.  McGIinchey, 
1883-'84. 

St.  John's  Church,  31st  st.,  was  org.  about  the  year  1846, 
and  a  wooden  edifice  erected.  For  several  years  there  was  no 
settled  Pastor.  Rev.  Peter  McLoughlin  was  Pastor  in  18.55-'6; 
Rev.  Francis  McKeon,  1850-57;  Rev.  J.  McGovern,  1857-60; 
Rev.  Hugh  McGuire,  1860-'73;  and  the  present  Pastor,  Rev. 
James  O'Beirne,  since  1873.  The  Assistant  Pastors  have  been : 
Rev.  Peter  Daly,  Rev.  John  McGuire,  Rev.  Michael  Hickey, 
Rev.  Patrick  Mulligan,  and  Rev.  Bernard  A.  Plunkett.  The 
church  building  was  enlarged  in  1873,  and  now  has  a  seating 
capacity  of  1,380.  Near  the  church  is  a  convent  of  the  sisters 
of  St.  Joseph,  erected  by  Father  O'Beirne  in  1876.  Two 
schools  are  maintained:  one  for  hoys,  under  the  charge  of 
the  Franciscan  Brothers,  and  one  for  giiis,  under  the  Sisters 
of  St.  Joseph.  The  average  attendance  at  these  schools  is  900. 
The  church  propert}'  is  valued  at  $60,000. 

Rev.  .Iames  O'Beirne,  born  in  Ireland,  1823;  grad.  St.  Pat- 
rick's Coll.,  Maynooth,  1853;  located  Flushing,  L.  I.,  1853-'73; 
B'klyn,  1873-'84;  Rev.  Bernard  A.  Plunkett,  died  No\-.  1883; 
succeeded  by  Rev.  Michael  A.  Naugliton. 


ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1055 


Church  of  the  Immaculate  Conception. — This  church,  sit- 
uated ou  tlie  coriu-r  of  Maujer  and  Leonard  streets,  was  com- 
menced in  1853,  tlie  corner-stone  liavins;  been  laid  August  1st. 
It  was  a  substa  ntial  brick  structure,  on  a  solid  stone  foundation , 
61  feet  by  103.  The  interior  is  neatly  and  tastefully  deco- 
rated, and  the  altar  and  organ  are  both  tine.  Including  the 
lot,  the  church  cost  |30,000.  CUvgy:  Rev.  Peter  McLaughlin, 
lS.13-".")4;  Rev.  Anthony  Farrelly,  1854-'55;  Rev.  A.  Bohan, 
I8.).j-'G1;  Rev.  John  R.  McDonald,  1864-'78;  Rev.  William  Mc- 
Closky,  18G6-"67;  Rev.  Thomas  Shanley,  1867-'69;  Rev.  Flor- 
ence McCarthy,  1870;  Rev.  T.  Reynolds,  1871;  Rev.  M.  Nevin, 
1872-75;  Rev.  M.  Brennan,  1872-75;  Rev.  James  Woods, 
1877-'78;  Rev.  John  Crimmins,  1879-83;  Rev.  M.  F.  Murray, 
1879-83;  Rev.  A.  J.  O'Rourke,  1883-'84. 

Church  of  St.  Boniface.— In  1853,  the  Episcopal  Church  cf 
St.  Thomas,  cor.  of  Willoughby  and  Bridge  streets,  was  pur- 
chased by  a  German  Catholic  congregation,  and  was  dedi- 
cated to  Roman  Catholic  worship,  under  the  above  title,  Jan. 
29,  1854.  Its  Pastors  have  been:  Rev.  M.  Ramsauer,  1855-"6; 
Rev.  B.  Keller,  1857-58;  Rev.  Joseph  Bruncmann,  185£-'59. 
Rev.  John  G.  Hummell,  1859-'64;  Rev.  Michael  J.  Decker, 
1864-'68;  Rev.  W.  Oberschneider,  1868-"69;  Rev.  F.  EarifR, 
1870;  Rev.  P.  DeBerge,  1871-75;  Rev.  P.  Schwarz,  1877;  Rev. 
J.  B.  Wittman,  1878-84. 

There  are  two  flourishing  schools  connected  with  the 
church. 

St.  Benedict's  Church  (German),  Fulton  ave..,  near  Ralph, 
is  a  handsome  brick  edifice,  137  by  65  feet,  built  in  1874,  at  a 
cost  of  $60,000.  The  church  was  organized  in  1853,  and  wor- 
shii)ed  first  in  a  building  on  Herkimer  st.,  which,  since  the 
new  church  was  completed,  lias  been  used  as  a  school-house, 
under  the  charge  of  the  Sisters  of  Christian  Charity.  Its 
Pastors  havo  been:  Revs.  M.  Ramsauer,  1855-6;  B.  Keller, 
1856-8;  A.  Enders,  1857-'8;  Joseph  Tuboly,  ;858-'63;  T.  Al- 
brecht,  1861-2;  F.  Klosterbauer,  1863-73;  M.  Koehreu, 
1874-5;  Henry  Zimmer,  1875-6;  Ignatius  Zeller,  1877-'83; 
Michael  N.  Wagner,  S.  T.  L.,  1881-4. 

St.  Mary's  Star  cf  the  Sea. — This  church.  Court  st.,  cor. 
of  Luqucer,  was  erected  chiefly  through  the  exertions  of 
Rev.  Mr.  Bacon,  afterwards  Bishop  of  Portland.  It  is  one  of 
the  largest  church  edifices  in  the  city,  having  a  seating  capa- 
city of  nearly  2,000.  It  was  dedicated  April  29,  1855.  The 
interior  was  frescoed,  and  the  spire  finished  in  1872.  Father 
Bacon  was  succeeded  as  Pastor  by  Revs.  James  McGinnis, 
from  1855  to  1857;  Eugene  Cassidy,  from  1857  to  1876;  Law- 
rence Toi;er,  Curate  in  charge,  1876-"7;  and  the  present  Pas- 
tor, Henry  O'Loughlin,  1877-83.  The  Assistant  Clergy  have 
been:  Revs.  J.  McKenna;  Stephen  Cassidy;  J.  M.  Reilly; 
John  Heflfeman,  1871;  Florence  McCarthy,  1872-'3;  Felix 
O'Callaghan,  1872-4;  Daniel  Sheehy,  1874;  Lawrence  Toner, 
1875-3;  Peter  O'Neill,  1875;  Peter  McGuire,  1877-81;  Michael 
Dennisoa,  1878;  Ed.  Wm.  Dulles,  1879-'80;  Joseph  Kilpatrick, 
1880-1;  P.  Kenny,  1881. 

St.  Mary's  Parochial  School  was  established  in  1855,  and 
was  kept  in  the  chapel,  and  in  the  basement,  till  1868,  when 
the  present  brick  stiucture  was  erected,  througli  the  exer- 
tions of  Father  Cassidy.     The  average  attendance  is  1,000. 

St.  Francis'  Church,  Putnam  ave.,  near  Bedford,  was 
started  in  1857  as  a  German  church,  Rev.  Bonaventure  Keller 
being  its  Pastor  for  two  years.  The  building  is  of  brick,  75 
l)y  25  feet.  So  many  of  its  German  parishioners  removed 
that  it  was  closed  for  five  yeais.  In  1866,  services  were 
aL,ain  commenced,  with  Rev.  N.  Balleis,  O.  S.  B.,  as  Pastor, 
wlio  still  continues  in  charge. 

Tlie  property  was  devised  by  its  owner,  Father  Keller,  to 
the  Orphan  Asylum  of  Holy  Trinity  Church,  and  is  still  held 
ill  trust  fur  that  institution. 


Church  of  the  Visitation  of  the  Blessed  'Virgin  Mary. — 
This  church,  on  F.wen  and  Van  Hruiit  sts.,  was  begun  in 
1854,  and  dedicated  Oct.  29,  1855.  A  handsome  building, 
about  75  by  90  feet,  of  blue-stone,  was  commenced  in  1880, 
and  finished  the  following  year,  except  the  towers.  Clergy  : 
Revs.  Timothy  O'Fariell,  1854-69;  John  Cummings,  lS65-"6; 
Isaac  Miguely  Diaz,  1868-9;  T.  O'Farrell,  187C-7;  T.  Rey- 
nolds, 1870;  E.  McCarty,  lS71-'4;  Florence  McCarthy,  1871; 
Hugh  Hand,  1875-83;  M.  Riordan,  1877-'81;  John  M.  Kiely, 
1878-'81;  Wm.  J.  Lane,  1881-'4. 

Church  of  Our  Lady  of  Mercy,  Debevoite  place,  near  De 
Kalb  ave.  The  parish  was  formed  and  the  first  church  dedi- 
cated ill  1857.  The  present  edifice  was  erected  in  1857  and  '8, 
of  brick,  with  iime-stonc  trimmings,  ia  the  mixed  Gothic 
E-tyle.  It  is  150  feet  deep  and  65  feet  in  width,  and  has  seal- 
ing accommodations  for  1,900  i^ersons.  The  exterior  of  the 
building  is  jjlain,  but  the  interior  is  in  remarkable  contrast. 
It  cost  about  $70,000,  and  was  dedicated  Feb.  7,  1869.  Clergy: 
Revs.  John  McCarthy,  1857-8;  John  McKccna,  1858-'68; 
Bernard  Gerrety,  1859-'60  ;  Martin  Carroll,  1S65-8 ;  M.  J. 
Goodwin,  lS67-'8;  Thomas  Taafe,  186£-';2;  Jiunes  McElrov, 
1868-77;  J.  McNamee,  1870-'4;  M.  Ricrdan,  187C-'5;  F.  O'CU- 
laghan,  1875-84;  J.  CoughUn,  1875-7;  J.  Galvin,  1877-8;  P. 
MoNamara,  S.  T.  D.,  1878-'84;  T.  McGivern,  1878;  James 
Donohoe,  1877-'81;  Felix  O'Callaghan,  1883-'4. 

Rev.  Patrick  J.  McNamara,  born  in  Ireland,  1844;  gi-ad. 
St.  Francis  Xavier's  Coll,  New  York,  1867  ;  St.  Mary's  Theol. 
Sem.,  Baltimore,  1870;  located  B'klyn,  1870-4;  East  New 
York,  1874-'7;  B'klyn,  1877-'84. 

Tlie  Society  of  the  Holy  Name  has  been  connected  with  the 
church  about  seven  years.  James  Donohoe,  Spiritual  Direc- 
tor. 

Church  of  St.  Anthony. — About  the  year  1857,  a  church 
with  this  title  was  commenced  on  India  st.,  by  the  exertions 
of  Rev.  John  Brady,  and  was  finished  in  the  j'ear  following. 
Its  Clergy  have  been  :  Revs.  John  Brady,  1857-72;  A.  J. 
Dorris,  1871-'2;  W.  J.  Lane,  1873-9;  C.  Fairelly,  187C-'5;  W. 
Connolly,  1875;  J.  J.  Mouin,  1877;  E.  Smith,  1877-'80;  John 
Loughran,  D.  D.,  1878-83;  B.  Plunkett,  1879;  Michael  J. 
Mm-phy,  1880-'3;  John  Hogan,  1880;  E.  W.  Dullea,  1881;  J. 
O'Reilly,  1881;  John  F.  Baxter,  1883-'3-'4;  Wm.  J.  H'-imilton, 
1883.  '-  -^ 

St.  Peter's  Church. — Thirty-five  years  ago  that  part  of 
South  Brooklyn,  between  Amity  and  Sackett  streets,  Henry 
street  and  the  river,  was  occupied  by  a  rough  population  with- 
out church  privileges  in  their  midst.  The  Rev.  Joseph  Frans- 
ioli,  a  native  cf  Ticino,  Switzerland,  having  seen  the  needs  of 
the  district,  recjuested  that  a  parish  be  set  off  embracing  that 
district;  which  was  accordingly  done  in  Aprd,  1859,  and 
Father  Fransioli  appointed  to  undertake  the  great  work  of 
christianizing  the  people.  A  stone-yard,  corner  of  Hicks  and 
Warren  sts.,  was  purchased,  and  after  long  and  jjersistent  ef- 
forts the  church  was  completed  anel  dedicated  Nov.  4, 1860,  at  a 
total  cost  of  $65,000.  The  congregation  numbered  about  3,000, 
and  has  since  largely  increased.  In  1866,  Father  Frai;sioli 
built  the  Academy  which  adjoins  St.  Peter's  Church,  at  a 
cost  of  $60,000,  where  1,300  children  annually  receive  free  in- 
struction. During  the  war  he  purchased  a  house,  corner  of 
Hicks  and  Congress  sts. ,  as  a  home  for  the  children  of  soldiers 
and  for  orphans.  Afterwards  a  larger  building  was  erected, 
and  the  whole  made  into  a  hospital  known  as  St.  Peter's 
Hospital,  which  has  accomplished  a  great  work  during  its 
existence.  In  1878,  the  Bacar  estate  was  purchased,  which 
gave  to  the  church  the  whole  of  the  block;  and  all  the  build- 
ings thereon  were  devoted  to  charity.  A  few  years  later 
Father  Fransioli  secured  the  chapel  on  Warren  st.,  formerly 
a  mission  of  the  Church  of  the  Pilgrims,  anel  instituted  special 


1056 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS   COUNTY. 


services  for  the  Italians.  A  brick  building  60  by  70  ft.  is  in 
course  of  erection  for  the  use  of  the  diflferent  young  men's 
societies  attached  to  St.  Peter's  Church.  A  handsome  build- 
ing, 60  by  100  ft.,  at  13-16  "Warren  st.,  has  been  erected  for 
librari',  school  and  kindergarten  use.  The  influence  of  the 
oliurch  and  its  surrounding  institutions  has  completely 
changed  the  character  of  tlie  populationpf  that  portion  of  the 
city,  and  great  credit  is  due  to  Fatlier  Fransioli  for  his  long 
and  arduous  labors.  He  is  still  at  his  jwst  enjoying  the  rever- 
ence and  affection  of  the  entire  community.  The  Assistant 
Clergy  have  been  as  foUows:  Revs.  A.  Geraud,  1860-'63;  L. 
Strain,  1862-63;  A.  J.  Dorris,  1863-"66;  M.  J.  Goodwin, 
1868-"6T;  W.  Gualco,  1867-'68;  J.  H.  Pollard,  1867-'73;  J.  A. 
Casella,  1869-'70:  J.  McMeel,  1869-'74;  M.  Mm-phy,  1870-'74: 
P.  A.  Walsh,  1873-'82;  E.  McCarty,  1874-76;  J.  Bobier, 
1875-78;  M.  Nevin,  1877-81;  M.  J.  Malone,  1876--81;  M.  J. 
Boylan,  1879-'80;  M.  Galvin,  1881-'84;  M.  L.  O'Connell, 
1876-'84. 

St.  Anne's  Church. — August  Slst,  1860,  ground  was 
broken  for  the  erection  of  a  Roman  Catholic  Church  on  the 
S.  W.  corner  of  Front  and  Gold  streets.  It  was  a  brick  edi- 
fice, 60  feat  by  122,  with  a  tower  130  feet  high.  It  was  erected 
under  thc^  superintendence  of  Mr.  P.  C.  Keeley,  and  cost 
$15,000,  exclusive  of  the  site.  Clenjy:  Rev.  Bartholomew 
Gleeson,  186C-75;  Thomas  Shanley,  O.  S.  H.,  1866-67;  Wil- 
Uam  McCloskey,  1867-72;  J.  Kelly,  1871 ;  E.  Smith,  1877;  J. 
McMeel,  1878-83;  B.  MoHugh,  1878-'83;  Jas.  Durick,  1882-"83. 

St.  Vincent  de  Paul. — In  1863,  a  churcli  of  this  name  was 
begun  on  North  6th  street,  near  5th,  under  tlie  direction  of  the 
Rev.  Bernard  McGorisk.  Rev.  David  0"Mullane,  with  his  as- 
sistant, Michael  Moran,  began  preparations  for  erecting  a  new 
edifice.     The  corner-stone  of  the  new  building  was  la'.d  July, 

1868.  The  church  U  Gothic,  68by  156  feet,  of  Belleville  gray- 
stone,  with  Ohio  stone  trimming.     It  was  dedicated  Oct.  17, 

1869,  and  cost  about  $130,000.  Clergy:  Revs.  Bernard  Mc- 
Gorisk, 1863-"66;  David  O'Mullane,  1865-72;  Michael  Moran, 
186.5-'66;  Thomas  McNally,  1860-67;  John  Crimmins,  1807-'9: 
M.  Farelly,  1870-80;  J.  O'Rourke,  1871;  M.  Carroll,  1873-84; 
T.  Adams,  1874-"75-'76;  J.  Growney,  1881; E.  McCabe,  1880-4; 

John  T.  Woods,  1883;  born  in  Brooklyn,  1860;  graduated  St. 
John's  College,  Brooklyn,  1880;  and  Tlieo.  Sem.,  Our  Lady  of 
Angels,   Niagara,    1883;  located  in  Brooklyn,  Dec,  1883-'84. 

Rev.  Martin  Caeboll,  born  in  Ireland,  1841,  grad.  Coll.  of 
Our  Lady  of  Angels,  Niagara,  1864;  Pres.  Alumni  Assoc;  lo- 
cated Brooklyn,  1865-84. 

Rev.  E.  J.  McCabe,  born  in  B'klyn,  1853;  grad.  Seton  Hall 
CoU.,  N.  J..  1874;  and  Theol.  Sem.,  Our  Lady  of  Angels, 
Niagara,  1877;  located  B'klyn,  1877-'84;  founder  and  editor 
of  The  Catholic  Youth. 

Church  of  the  Annunciation,  B.  V.  M.,  is  a  German  cluirch 
at  the  comer  of  North  Fiftli  and  Seventh  streets.  The  first 
church  erected  in  186:5  by  Rev.  John  Hauptmami.  gave  plsco 
in  1870,  to  a  handsome  edifice  of  brick,  125  by  65  feet,  built 
at  a  cost  of  $65,000  and  |70,000  for  the  lots.  Rev.  Mr.  Haupt- 
mann  is  still  Pastor.  There  is  a  large  school  attached;  also  a 
convent  of  the  Sisters  of  St.  Dominic.  The  Clergy  have  been 
as  follows:  Rev.  J.  Hauptmann,  1870-'84;  H.  Zimmer,  1874-'5; 
L  Schafifer,  1877-'79;  B.  F.  Kurtz,  1880-81;  W.  Guhl, 
1873. 

St.  Stephen's  Church. — Soon  after  the  formation  of  this 
parish  in  1866,  a  church  on  Carroll  street,  near  Hicks,  was 
purchased  from  the  Episcopalians,  and  lots  on  Hicks  street, 
between  Carroll  and  Summit,  v/ere  bought  for  future  building 
purposes.  In  a  few  years  the  erection  of  a  new  church  at  the 
comer  of  Summit  and  Hicks  was  commenced.  In  July,  1 873, 
the  corner-stone  was  laid,  and  the  dedication  occun-ed  in  Oct., 
1875.     The  edifice  is  built  of  brick,  with  Belleville  free-stone 


trimmings,  and  in  the  Modern  Gothic  style.  Its  dimensions 
are  166  feet  in  lengtli  by  78  in  width.  Its  spire  is  225  feet  in 
height,  surmounted  by  a  cross,  which  is  often  illuminated  at 
night.  The  old  church  is  used  for  schools  in  which  there  arc 
800  children  taught  by  the  Sisters  of  charity.  Pastors:  Rev. 
O.  J.  Dorris.  1866-'69;  James  Moran,  1869-72;  Edward 
O'Reilly,  1872-'S4.  The  assistants  have  been:  Rev.  Louis 
Rhatigan,  1867-70;  N.  Doran,,  lM70-'83;  Ja-i.  McMeel,  1S75; 
O.  O'Brien,  1877-83. 

St.  Nicholas'  Church  (German),  cor.  of  Powers  and  Oliver 
sts.,  E.  D.,  is  a  brick  structure,  100x40  feet.  The  corner- 
stone was  laid  in  1865,  and  the  church  dedicated  May  13tli, 
1866.  The  congregation  was  organized  by  the  Very  Rev. 
M.  May,  of  the  Most  Holy  Trinity  Church.  In  1877,  the 
church  was  enlarged.  There  are  two  schools  connected  with 
tlie  church,  imder  the  charge  of  the  Sisters  of  St.  Dominic. 
Pastors:  Rev.  C.  Peine,  1866-77;  Rev.  J.  P.  Hoflfmann, 
1877-'83.  Assistant  Clergy:  Revs.  F.  Bariffi,  1868-9;  L. 
Fuchs,  1869-72;  J.  P.  Hoflfmann,  1872-'S4;  51.  J.  Alichels, 
1877-84. 

Rev.  John  P.  Hoffmann,  born  in  New  York,  1848;  grad. 
St.  Francis  Xavier's  Coll.,  1867,  and  Sem.  of  Our  Lady  of 
Angels,  Niagara,  1872;  located  B'klyn,  1872-'84. 

St.  Francis  de  Sales',  Broad waj',  near  HuU  st.,  E.  D. ; 
built  in  1875;  is  of    brick,  100x40  feet. 

Pastm-s:  Revs.  Mr.  Lenneuf,  1875-'6:  E.  H.  Porcile. 
1876-84.  Clergy:  Revs.  J.  M.  Miller,  1873-'5;  F.  Guicheteau, 
1873-'9:  T.  Vaudray,  1873;  A.  Kohboo.  1877;  T.  Lynn, 
1878-'9i  E.  H.  Porcile,  S.  P.  M.,  1883-'3;  H.  Barker,  S.  P.  M,. 
1882-3;  Patrick  F.  Carr,  1882-'3:  A.  Galland,  1883-'3:  William 
J.  Smith,  S.  P.  M.,  18S3. 

Church  of  St.  John  the  Baptist.— Rev.  E.  M.  Smith  of 
the  Congregation  of  the  Mission,  w'as  sent,  in  the  spring  of 
1868,  to  Brooklyn,  to  eitablish  a  house  of  his  order. 

A  large  plot  of  ground  was  secured  on  Lewis  and  Wil- 
lougliby  aves.,  and  a  small  cottage  situated  thereon  served 
as  a  residence  for  the  Pastor.  One  of  its  small  rooms  was 
fitted  up  as  a  chapel.  Mass  was  said  for  the  first  time  on 
July  12th,  1868.  Ten  or  twelve  persons  from  the  sparsely 
settled  neighborhood,  constituted  the  first  congregation. 

On  the  same  day  the  foundation-stone  of  the  jireseut 
church  was  laid.  During  the  following  September,  Rev. 
John  Quigley,  C.  M.,  took  charge  of  the  parish;  the  clmrch 
was  dedicated  Aug.  29th,  1869.  This  church  being  designed 
as  temporary  only,  is  a  jjlain,  wooden  structure,  with  a  seat- 
ing capacity  of  800.  Pastors:  Rev.  E.  M.  Smith,  C.  M. ; 
J.  Quigley,  C.  M.,  Sept.,  1868,  until  his  death  in  Jan..  1872; 
E.  M.  Smith,  C.  M.,  Jan.,  1872,  to  Sept.,  1873;  P.  V.  Byrne, 
C.  M.,  Sept.,  1873,  to  Jan.,  1876;  J.  J.  Maloney,  C.  M.,  Jan., 
1876,  to  Sept.,  1877;  A.  J.  Myer,  C.  M.,  Sept.,  1877,  to  Feb., 
1882;  Rev.  J.  A.  Hartutt,  C.  M. 

A  jtarochial  school  for  girls,  under  the  care  of  the  Sisters 
of  Cliarit}-,  is  attached  to  the  church.  The  attendance  is 
about  250. 

Chur  h  of  All  Saints  (German).— Soon  after  the  formation 
of  the  parish.  Rev.  M.  Maj'  commenced  the  erection  of  a 
church  on  Thornton  st. ,  near  Throop  ave.,  which  was  dedi- 
cated on  the  last  day  of  1867;  the  building  is  of  britk, 
49x94  feet.  Rev.  Anthony  Arnold  was  appointed  first  Pas- 
tor, and  came  to  the  charge  on  the  first  day  of  Jan.,  1868, 
which  position  he  still  occupies.  The  Assistant  Clergy  have 
been  as  follows:  Revs.  Alfred  Kreutzer,  John  Schmetz,  J. 
Amman,  C.  Eisolay,  1876-'81;  Bernard  Kurtz,  1881-'83.  The 
basement  of  the  church  is  occupied  by  a  school  for  boys; 
behind  the  church  is  a  girls'  school,  both  conducted  by  the 
Dominican  Sisters,  and  containing  700  scholars.  About  550 
Catholic  families  reside  in  the  pai'ish.     The  church  owns  a 


EC CLESFA STICAL    OR  GAJSTIZA  TIOJVS. 


1051 


lot  on  Throop  ave.  and  Thornton  st.,  100x147  feet,  on  which 
a  handsome  new  structure  will  be  built  in  the  near 
future. 

Rev.  Anthony  Arnold,  born  in  Bavaria,  1831;  grad.  St. 
Vincent's  Coll.,  and  Theol.  Sem.,  Pa.;  previous  location  at 
Holy  Trinity,  B'klyn,  1 863-8. 

Church  of  Our  Lady  of  Victory. — In  18G8,  the  site  for  a 
new  Roman  Catholic  Church  was  obtained  on  Throop  ave., 
between  Macon  and  McDonough  sts. ,  and  a  temporary  frame 
structure,  70x40  feet,  erected  and  dedicated  July  26,  1868. 
In  1883,  this  was  replaced  by  a  handsome  stone  structure  in 
the  Gothic  style,  and  of  larger  dimensions.  A  flourishing 
school  is  maintained  by  the  church.  Rev.  P.  Creighton, 
Pastor,  186H-'84. 

Church  of  the  Nativity. — The  parish  was  organized  Sept., 
18T1,  and  Rev.  M.  J.  Moran  appointed  Pastor.  Fifteen  city 
lols,  on  the  south-east  corner  of  Classon  ave.  and  Madison 
St.,  were  purchased  Dec.  2~,  1871,  for  .$30,000. 

First  mas?  was  celebrated  March  17,  1873,  in  the  house  that 
is  now  the  parochial  residence.  The  new  church  was  com- 
menced April  23,  1872,  and  dedicated  Oct.  30  cf  the  same 
year.  It  is  of  brick,  with  seating  capacity  of  600,  at  a  cost, 
including  furnishing,  of  about  $35,000.  Clergy:  Revs.  M. 
Moran,  1871-84;  M.  Hickey,  1873-5;  W.  McGinnis,  1877-84; 
W.  J.  McGuire,  1881-4;  P.  J.  Kenney,  1881-'4. 

St.  Bernard's  Church  (German)  was  formed  about  tlie 
year  1872.  The  congregation  met  in  the  Temperance  Hall 
on  Hamilton  .avenue,  for  a  couple  of  years,  when  the  brick 
building,  40x85  feet,  on  the  corner  of  Hicks  and  Rapelye 
streets,  was  purchased  and  fitted  up  for  a  church,  with 
school-rooms  below.  Rev.  John  J.  Ammann  has  been  the 
Pastor  since  its  beginning.  Four  hundred  children  are 
taught  in  the  schools. 

Rev.  John  J.  Amm.\nn,  born  in  New  York,  1840;  grad.  St. 
Francis  Xavier's  Coll.,  1868;  St.  Mary's  Baltimore,  1872; 
located  Bklyn,  ]873-"84. 

Church  of  the  Nativity,  Madison  avenue,  near  Classon,  is  a 
brick  edifice,  100  feet  by  40,  erected  in  18T2,  through  the 
labors  of  Rev.  M.  J.  Moran,  who  still  continues  to  officiate  as 
Pastor.  The  other  Clergy  are  :  Revs.  M.  Hickey,  1873-75; 
W.  McGinnis,  ]8T7-'81;  W.  McGuire,  1882-83;  P.  Kenney, 
1882-'83. 

Church  of  St.  Louis  (French),  McKibben,  near  Leonard,  is  a 
wooden  structure,  75x45  feet,  erected  in  186il.  Rev.  Jules 
JoUon  has  been  its  Pastor  from  1869.  Services  in  French  and 
English  are  held  and  a  French  and  German  school  is  con- 
nected with  the  clmrch. 

St.  Vincent's  Chapel  is  attached  to  St.  ^"incelit's  Home  for 
Boys,  at  7  Poplar  street,  and  was  established  in  1873,  for  the 
benefit  of  the  inmates  of  the  Home,  by  Rev.  Maurice  Hickey, 
its  present  Pastor. 

St.  Augustine's  Church  was  organized  in  1870,  with  about 
eighteen  members,  and  Rev.  Lewis  J.  Rhatigan,  Pastor. 
Messrs.  Bennet,  Dougherty  and  Rorko  were  chiefly  in- 
strumental in  procuring  its  organization.  Services  were  at 
first  held  at  the  residence  of  the  Pastor,  in  Warien  street. 
The  present  -hurch  edifice,  on  the  corner  of  Fifth  avenue  and 
Bergen  street,  was  dedicated  March  lOth,  1871.  It  is  a  brick 
structure,  with  a  seating  capacity  of  eight  hundred,  and  its 
cost,  including  site,  was  $43,000.  In  1873,  a  parsonage  was 
erected,  at  a  cost  of  $12,000.  Father  Rhatigan  died  in  1874, 
and  was  succeeded  by  the  x^resent  Pastor,  Rev.  Edward  W. 
McCarty.  Under  his  wise  financial  management,  the  debt 
on  the  church  and  parsonage  Ijas  been  nearly  discharged. 
The  other  Clergy  have  been  :  Revs.  J.  E.  Bobier,  1873-4; 
D.  J.  Sheehey,  1875-'83;  D.  Hickey,  1878-'83;  James  F. 
Crowley,  1883. 


Church  of  St.  Leonard  of  Port  Maurice.— In  1871,  Rev.  J. 
J.  Raber  was  appointed  to  the  charge  of  this  parish,  then 
newly  formed.  In  the  same  year,  a  church  was  commenced 
on  Hamburg  street,  corner  of  Jefferson,  and  dedicated  the 
year  following.  It  is  a  substantial  frame  structure,  97  by  50 
feet,  finely  decorated  inside,  with  a  Ijeautiful  painting  of  the 
Madonna  and  child  in  the  center  of  the  ceiling,  and  the  four 
evangelists  in  the  corners,  also  a  fine  painting  of  St.  Leonard 
above  the  altar.  The  parish  now  contains  about  400  fami- 
lies. 

The  schools  connected  with  the  church  contain  some  600 
children,  and  are  in  charge  of  the  Sisters  of  St.  Dominic. 
New  buildings  will  soon  be  erected.  There  is  also  an  Orphan 
Asylum,  with  80  inmates,  occupying  a  handsome  brick  build- 
ing near  the  church.  Father  Raber  has  been  the  Pastor  from 
first,  and  by  arduous  labors  has  built  up  and  paid  for  the 
lots  and  buildings. 

Church  of  the  Sacred  Heart. — In  1871,  Bishop  Loughlin 
established  the  parish  of  the  Sacred  Heart,  in  that  portion  of 
Brooklyn  which  is  bounded  by  Ryerson  and  Canton  sts.,  and 
Flushing  and  Myrtle  aves.,  appointing  Rov.  Thos.  F.  McGiv- 
ern.  Pastor.  A  chapel  was  opened  in  Vanderbilt  ave.,  Dec.  ", 
1871.  About  the  same  time  nine  lots  extending  from  Cler- 
mont ave.  to  Adelphi  st.,  near  Park  ave.,  were  purchased,  to 
which  three  more  \vere  afterwards  added,  at  a  total  cost  of 
120,500. 

The  erection  of  a  church  was  soon  commenced,  its  corntr- 
stone  being  laid  May  10,  1874.  In  May,  1875,  Rev.  Mr. 
McGivern  resigned,  and  Rev.  John  A.  McCullum  was  ap- 
pointed pastor.  He  hastened  the  work  on  the  new  church, 
occupying  it  for  divine  service  in  three  weeks  after  assuming 
the  pastorate,  finishing  it  for  dedication  June  34,  1877.  It  i^ 
a  brick  edifice,  64x137  feet,  handsomely  frescoed  within,  and 
possesses  a  very  fine  painting  of  the  Sacred  Heart.  The  A.'i- 
sistant  Pastors  have  been:  Rev.  John  F.  Nash,  Rtv.  Chas.  F. 
Wightman,  1883;  Rev.  P.  O'Mallon,  1888.  The  girls'  Sunday- 
school  is  taught  by  the  Sisters  of  Mercy,  and  the  boys'  by 
lay  superintendent  and  teachers.  There  is  no  day-school  at 
present,  but  it  is  the  intention  to  erect  one. 

St.  Cecelia's  Church. — This  parish  was  organized  in  1873, 
and,  in  the  year  following,  a  frame  edifice,  a' out  50x80  feet, 
erected  on  North  Henry  and  Herbert  sts.  The  congregation 
increased  rapidly,  now  numbering  some  300  families.  Rev. 
Florence  McCarthy  was  Pastor  from  1873-'H3,  when  he  was 
succeeded  by  Rev.  James  TaaiTe. 

St.  Alphonsus'  is  a  German  church  in  Kent  ave.,  near 
Manhattan,  built  in  1873,  of  wood,  at  a  cost,  including  site, 
of  121,000.  Rev.  W.  Guhl  has  been  the  pastor  since  tne  form- 
ation of  the  parish.  The  number  of  families  is  nearly  500. 
There  is  a  large  school  attached,  which  is  taught  by  the  Do- 
minican Sisters. 

Church  of  the  Transfiguration: — The  parish  was  formed  in 
1874,  with  Rev.  John  Fagan  its  first  Pastor.  Lots  were  se- 
cured at  the  corner  of  Hooper  st.  and  Marcy  ave.,  and  the 
erection  of  the  present  church  was  commenced ;  meanwhile 
services  were  held  in  a  carpenter's  shop  on  Hooper  st.  The 
church  was  finished  in  1875;  it  is  of  brick,  40x75  feet,  and  is 
intended  to  be  used  for  schools  after  a  larger  church  shall 
b3  built  on  the  corner  adjoining.  Father  Fagan  died  i..  1879, 
and  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  Wm.  J.  Hill,  now  of_  St.  Paul's, 
and  he  in  turn  by  the  present  Pastor,  Rev.  Jnp.  M.  Kiely, 
who  came  to  the  parish  in  February,  1881.  Rev.  D.  A.  Tive- 
nan  was  assistant  from  1877-'81.  The  Catholic  population  cf 
the  parish  is  4,000  souls. 

Rev.  John  M.  Kik.ly,  born  in  Ireland,  1847;  grad.  Mt.  Mel- 
leray  Coll.,  1864;  grad.  Theol.,  Dublin,  1869;  located  in 
B'klyn,  1869;   St.  James'  Church;  Church  of  Visitation;   is 


1058 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


contributor  to  relig-  journals;  published  sermons  and  lec- 
tures. 

Church  of  the  Holy  Name— The  parish  was  founded  by 
Bishop  IvOUKhliu,  March  15,  18T8.  A  building  on  (he  corner 
of  18th  St.  and  11th  ave.,  called  McCann's  Stable,  was  the 
only  available  place  of  worship.  la  this  humble  abode  t!:c 
first  service  was  held  March  31,  1878,  and  continued  ou  every 
Sunday  until  the  following  December.  In  tlio  meantime  at- 
tention was  given  to  the  purchase  of  land  and  the  erection 
of  a  church.  The  site  was  secured  April  29,  1878,  at  a  cost  of 
$6,000,  by  Mr.  John  Collias,  Park  place,  who  paid  and  pre- 
sented the  first  $103  of  the  purchase  money.  The  following 
day.  May  1,  work  was  commenced;  August  11.  the  corner- 
stone was  laid:  December  25,  same  year,  it  was  completed 
and  occupied. 

The  present  church  edifice,  situated  on  the  cor.  of  9th  and 
Prospect  aves.,  is  of  brick  and  stone,  and  has  a  seating 
capacity  of  over  one  thousand  people.  It  was  erected  by  the 
present  Pastor,  Rev.  Thomas  S.  O'Reilly,  who  is  the  first  and 
only  one  since  the  foundation  of  the  parish.  The  market 
value  of  church  property  in  this  parish,  including  church, 
parochial  house  and  grouuds,  is  about  $40,000. 

Rev.  Thomas  S.  O'Reilly,  born  in  Ireland,  1844;  grad.  Mt. 
Melleray  Coll.,  1865,  and  Theol.  Sem.,  Our  Lady  of  Angels, 
1871;  located  in  Flatbush.  1871-"4;  Bklyn.,  1874- "84. 

Church  of  the  Holy  Family  (German).  About  the  year 
1876,  Rev.  F.  Heuselmann  gathered  a  congregation  in  a  hall 
at  the  corner  of  27th  st.  and  Fourth  ave.  In  June,  1830,  the 
corner-stone  was  laid  for  a  new  frame  stmcture,  90  by  45 
feet,  on  13th  St.,  near  Fourth  ave.,  which  was  completed  in 
the  following  year.  There  is  a  flourishing  school  attached, 
in  charge  of  the  Sisters  of  St.  Dominic.  Rev.  Mr.  Heusel- 
mann continues  in  the  pastorate. 

St.  Patrick's  Church,  at  Fort  Hamilton,  was  established 
as  a  mission  in  1849.  Services  were  first  held  in  the  residence 
of  Peter  J.  Murphy,  on  United  States  ave. ,  between  Lafay- 
ette and  Church  sts.,  and  afterwards  in  a  now  barn  on  Third 
ave.,  near  Shore  road.  In  1853,  a  frame  church  was  built  on 
the  corner  of  Stewart  ave.  and  Lafayette  st.,  with  a  seatin;j 
capacity  of  350.  Rev.  J.  McLaughlin  was  Pastor  during  the 
first  year,  when  he  was  removed.  Rev.  Mr.  McKeon,  of  St. 
John's  Church,  Gowanus,  performed  pastoral  duties  until 
March  10,  1854,  when  Rev.  Mr.  McGuire  succeeded  as 
Pastor.  , 

He  built  a  Pastor's  residence  adjoining  the  church.  His 
deatii  occurred  in  1856.  Rov.  Cornelius  J.  McCarney  was  the 
next  Pastor,  and  was  succeeded,  ia  1861,  by  the  present  in- 
cumbent. Rev.  .John  Tanzer.  There  ij  a  school  connected, 
which  is  under  the  care  of  the  Sisters  of  St.  Dominic. 

St.  Michael's  Church  was  established  iu  November,  1874. 
The  first  place  of  worship  was  a  private  house  on  Third  avo. 
In  1876,  the  present  church  edifice  was  erected  an  the  corner 
of  Fourth  ave.  and  42d  st.  It  is  a  wooden  structure,  with  a 
seating  capacity  of  900  to  1,000.  Rev.  M.  J.  Hickie  was  the 
Pastor  about  three  months,  in  1875,  and  Rev.  J.  P.  O'Connell, 
D.  D.,  from  1876  to  the  present  time  ;  Rev.  J.  J.  McCusker, 
Assistant  Pastor,  from  1878-'84. 

Sit.  Theresa's  Church  was  organized  March  29,  1874,  under 
the  present  Pastor,  Rev.  Joseph  McNamee.  Ground  on  the 
corner  of  Butler  st.  and  Classon  ave.  was  purchased,  in 
April  of  the  same  year  ;  and,  in  the  following  August,  the 
corner-stone  of  the  present  church  edifice  was  laid.  The 
building  was  opened  for  divine  service  in  Febiruary,  1875. 
In  September,  1876,  Rev.  L.  J.  Guerin  became  Assistant 
Pastor,  in  which  capacity  he  still  continues. 

St.  John's  Chapel,  of  the  now  Roman  Catholic  Cathedral 
of  Brooklyn,  is  situated  on  Clermont  ave.,  bet.  Lafayette  and 


Greene  aves.  It  is  of  dark,  rough-dressed  stone,  with  light 
trimming,  and  is  97  feet  long  by  38  wide.  It  was  opened  for 
divine  service  December  27,  1878.  It  is  the  largest  of  the  six 
chapels  which  will  adorn  the  fulure  Cathedral  of  Brooklyn — 
a  cathedral  which,  in  size,  will  be  unequalled  by  any  church 
yet  erected  on  tliis  continent:  and  in  artistic  beaut}',  inipress- 
iveness,  and  ecclesiastical  utility,  will  be  without  a  modern 
peer.  The  first  Priest  appointed  to  the  charge  of  St.  John's 
Chapel  was  the  Rev.  Patrick  F.  O'Hare,  who  is  assisted  by 
Rev.  I.  I.  Mallen  and  Rev.  Martin  I.  Loftus. 

St.  Agnes'  Church. — This  parish  was  formed  in  1879, 
and  placed  in  charge  of  Rev.  James  Duffy.  The  congrega- 
tion increased  rapidly;  it  first  worshiped  in  a  small  frame 
stracture  on  Hoyt  St.,  near  Sackett,  where  lots  had  been 
secured  for  church  purposes. 

The  corner- stone  of  the  new  church  was  laid  by  Bishop 
Loughlin  in  the  spring  of  1881.  It  is  a  massive  Gothic  structure 
of  brick,  brown-stone  and  polished  marble,  and  located  on  the 
north-cast  corner  of  Hoyt  and  Sackett  streets.  The  interior 
dimensions  are  73i  feet  wide  and  180  feet  long,  and  from  the 
ground  to  the  tower  the  height  is  130  feet.  Seven  largo 
arched  windows  on  each  side,  a  rose  window  in  the  front, 
and  three  grand  windows  in  the  chancel,  provide  an  ample 
supply  of  light,  through  stained-glass  panes,  which  were 
made  in  Munich.  The  entire  cost  of  the  stracture  was  $185,- 
COO,  and  the  grand  organ,  built  by  the  Jardines,  cost  $20,000 
more.  The  parish  is  a  very  large  one,  and  the  money  for  the 
building  was  raised  before  work  was  begun.  Rev.  James  S. 
Duffy  is  Pastor;  Rev.  M.  T.  Kilah}",  Assistant. 

Rev.  Michael  T.  Kilahy,  born  in  Brooklyn,  1854;  grad. 
St.  Francis' Coll.,  Brooklyn,  1873,  and  Niagara  Theol.  Sem., 
1877;  located  B'klyn,  1878-'84. 

St.  Bridget's  Church. — The  parish  was  org.  October  9th, 

1882,  and  Rev.  Father  McCloskey  placed  in  charge.  Lots 
were  secured  on  Linden  st. ,  near  Myrtle  ave.,  and  the  corner- 
stone of  a  church  laid  June  17,  1883;  first  service,  Christmas, 

1883.  It  is  a  frame  structure,  90  by  50  feet,  with  vestry  and 
basement,  and  seating  600.  The  basement  is  used  for  a  jiaro- 
chial  Echool.     The  cost  of  the  buildicg  was  about  $16,000. 

St.  Ambrose's  Church.  — In  tlio  eailypartof  1883  a  num- 
ber of  prominer:t  Catholic  families,  f,  eling  that  a  church  was 
necessary  in  their  neighborhood,  met,  after  the  appointment 
of  the  Rev.  D.  J.  Sheehy,  formerly  Cui-atc  of  St.  Augustine's 
Church,  Fifth  ave.,  as  their  Pastor,  in  a  jirivate  dwelling  in 
Kosciusko  street,  where  services  were  regularly  held.  The 
congregation  increased  rapidly,  and  it  was  finally  deemed 
wise  to  select  other  quarters,  and,  accordingh-,  a  very  desir- 
able site,  comprising  150  feet  on  Kosciusko  street,  200  feet  on 
Tompkins  ave.,  and  50  feet  on  DeKalb  ave.,  was  ijurchased, 
and  a  handsome  little  Gothic  building,  which  cost  between 
$5,000  and  $6,00(1,  was  erected.  A  flourishing  Sunday-school 
is  established. 

Rev.  D.  J.  Sheehy  still  remains  Pastor.  He  was  born  iu 
Ireland,  1850;  grad.  Mt.  Melleray  Coll.,  1868,  and  Niagara 
Coll.,  1873;  located  Brooklyn,  1873-'8|. 


The  following  Roman  Ciatholic  Clergymen  reside  in  Brook- 
lyn: 

Rev.  TuoM.vs  Adams,  born  in  Ireland,  grad.  Coll.  de  los 
Nobles  Irlandeses,  Salamanca,  Spain,  and  ord.  1866;  lo- 
cated Ballymena,  1866 -'72;  B'klyn,  187 .-•76;  author  of  Moral- 
ity of  ihe  Irish  Land  League. 

Rev.  M.  J.  H.VTTON,  born  yi  France,  1838;  ord.  1861;  was 
Prof,  in  Sem.,  and  Asst.  Priest  in  France:  located  B'klyn, 
1872,  iu  charge  of  Homes  for  Aged  of  Little  Sisters  of  the 
Poor,  in  U.  S.  A. 


ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1059 


THE    VERY    REV.    JOHN     LOUGHLIN, 

Bishop  of  the  R.   C.  Diocese  of  the  City  of  Brooklyn,  N.   Y. 


A  little  more  than  thirty  years  ago,  in  October,  1853,  the 
city  of  Brooklyn  was  raised  to  the  dignitj'  of  an  Episcopal 
See.  On  the  30tli  of  that  month,  Very  Rev.  John  Lovighlin, 
then  Vicar-Cxeneral  of  New  York,  was  consecrated  first 
Bishop  of  Brooklyn.  The  ceremony  of  consecration  was 
performed  in  St.  Patrick's  Cathedral  by  Archbishop  Bedini, 
the  Pope's  Nnncio,  assisted  by  six  bishops,  and  the  consecra- 
tion sermon  was  preached  by  Archbishop  Hughes.  On  the 
9th  of  November,  Bishop  Loughlin's  installation  took  place. 
The  Catholics  of  Brooklyn  made  the  occasion  a  gala  day, 
and  turned  out  en  masse,  to  welcome  him  who  was  hereafter 
to  be  their  spiritual  director.  Catholic  societies  paraded, 
banners  waved,  bands  played,  and  over  one  hundred  priests 
Were  present.  Catholic  writers  termed  ii;  a  great  day  for 
Brooklyn. 

It  is  entirely  unnecessary  for  us  to  refer,  at  any  length,  to 
the  great  administrative  ability  of  Right  Rev.  Bishop  Lough- 
lin.  The  condition  of  the  Catholic  Church  in  his  diocese  to- 
day speaks  j)lainer  than  any  written  words,  of  the  work 
that  the  Bishop  has  done.  A  plain,  unassuming  man,  gifted 
not  with  ability  alone,  Init  also  endowed  with  soimd,  prac- 
tical common  sense,  to  a  degree  that  fe<v  nien  are;  he  has 
labored  for  the  honor  of  God  and  the  glory  of  his  church, 
and  his  lalxirs  have  been  abundantly  blessed  with  great 
fruits. 

Upon  tlie  advent  of  Bishop  Loughlin,  the  episcopal  resi- 
dence of  the  diocese  was  fi.xed  at  St.  James',  where  it  has 
since  been.  He  entered  immediately  upon  the  duties  of  his 
high  position.  The  spiritual  affairs  of  the  diocese  were  then 
circumscribed.  The  number  of  churches  in  the  diocese 
could  bo  almost  counted  on  the  fingers  of  a  single  hand. 
Since  his  coming,  the  average  of  new  parishes  created  has 
been  over  one  for  each  year;  and  the  Bishop  has  fairly  earned 
the  title  of  the  "  Church  Builder." 

Bishop  Loughlin  was  born  in  Albany,  N.  Y. ;  was  educated 
at  Emmettsbargh,  Md.,  and  was  then  appointed  Assistant  to 
the  Bishoj)  of  the  city  of  New  York.  When  we  have  stated 
these  facts,  and  presented  the  following  resume  of  the  con- 
dition of  his  diocese,  after  his  thirty-one  j-ears'  administra- 
tion of  its  spiritual  and  temporal  affairs,  we  have  written 
his  biography.     Words  can  do  no  more. 

When  he  came  to  Brooklyn,  the  churches  of  St.  James, 
St.  Patrick,  St.  Paul,  and  of  the  Assumption,  comprised 
tlie  bulk  of  the  Roman  Catholic  membership  of  the  city. 
It  is  true  there  were  a  few  other  scattered  congregations, 
Ijut  they  were  generally  insignificant  in  point  of  numbers; 
the  great  bulk  of  the  people  having  clustered  in  the  lower 
jiart  of  the  city. 

By  1856,  seven  new  and  fine  churches  had  been  erected 
and  dedicated;  besides  one  in  Queens  county;  and,  in  the 
same  year,  the  corner-stones  of  another  one  in  Queens 
county,  and  one  in  Greenpoint,  Avere  laid.  The  work  thus 
vigorously  carried  on  in  the  early  years  of  Bishop  Loughlin's 
administration  has  never  been  allowed  to  stop,  and  to-da}'  is 
being  as  earnestly  prosecuted  as  ever  in  the  history  of  the 
diocese. 

Catholic  soeieties  of  all  kinds  have  also  grown  and  pros- 
pered with  the  church  in  Brooklyn,  and  have  done  much  in 
the  vaiious  parishes  in  wliicli  they  are  situated,  to  asssist 
then-    respective    Pastors.       Almost    every    church    has    its 


"  Holy  Name,"  and  its  "St.  Vincent  de  Paul's  "  Society;  and 
both  of  these  societies  have  effected  great  good.  In  addition 
to  these,  there  are  numerous  other  societies  having  various 
aims  and  objects,  and  all  doing  gojd  in  their  resijective 
fields.  The  Yoiinf/  Men's  Literary  Soeieties  in  Brooklyn  num- 
ber about  fifteen,  and  have  an  aggregate  membership  rang- 
ing from  1,200  to  1,500.  Most  of  them  affiliate  with  a  Na- 
tional Union  of  all  the  Catholic  Literary  Societies  in  the 
United  States.  The  President  of  this  National  Union  is  a 
Brooklyn  clergyman,  Rev.  J.  H.  Jlitchell,  of  St.  James' 
C'athedral. 

Temperance  societies  exist  in  many  parishes  of  tlie  city. 
Those  two  beneficial  organizations,  the  Catholic  Knights  of 
America,  and  the  Catholic  Benevolent  Legion,  both  very  strong 
in  Brooklyn,  have  the  unqualified  approval  of  the  Bishop.  Tlie 
Knights  have  eiglit  branches  in  Brooklyn;  the  Legion  seven- 
teen councils.  Both  are  in  a  flourishing  condition.  Other 
societies  of  lesser  importance  our  lack  of  space  compels  us 
to  refrain  from  mentioning.  Bishop  Loughlin  lias  not  been 
slow  to  approve  of  good  societies;  but  he  has  steadily  refused 
to  encourage  any  whose  aims  were  not  thoroughly  Catholic. 

The  increase  of  opportunities  for  Catholic  education  in 
Brooklyn  has  kept  pace  with  the  growth  of  the  church. 
That  every  Catholic  child  in  his  diocese  should  be  provided 
with  a  Catholic  education  has  always  been  Bishop  Lough- 
lin's earnest  desire. 

Upon  his  arrival  in  Brooklyn  there  were  but  two  Catholic 
schools  in  this  city;  one  attached  to  the  Church  of  the  As- 
sumption, and  the  other  to  St.  James'  Church.  The  Chris- 
tian Brothers  of  New  York  were  invited  to  take  charge 
of  the  new  school.  The  desire  fur  Catholic  education  was 
so  great  even  then  tliat  the  school  was  overcrowded  on  the 
opening  day.  The  Brothers  are  still  in  charge,  and  fully  sus- 
tain their  reputation  as  educators  of  Catholic  youth.  Very 
many  of  their  pupils  liave  become  prominent  in  mercantile 
or  public  life;  and  not  a  few  have  been,  and  are  to-day, 
zealous  priests,  exercising  their  ministry  in  this  diocese  and 
elsewhere. 

At  the  invitation  of  the  Bishop,  the  Sisters  of  St.  Joseph 
came  to  Brooklyn  iu  August,  1855.  In  September  of  the 
same  year,  the  Sisters  of  Mercy,  and  the  Sisters  of  the  Vis- 
itation a\so  cuaie;  and  in  1858,  Bishop  Loughlin  applied  for 
a  few  Franciscan  Brothers  to  ass'st  in  the  work  of  Catholic 
education.  Two  Brothers  came  in  May  of  lliat  year,  and 
aided  by  the  Bishop,  they  multiplied  in  numbers,  and  be- 
came prosperous  and  flourishing.  Their  headquarters  is  the 
Monasters-  of  St.  Francis  of  Assissi,  in  Butltr  street.  They 
are  now  educating  about  5,000  children  in  this  diocese  each 
year.  Today  there  is  scarcely  a  cliuri h  that  has  not  a 
school  adjoining.  Church  and  school  have  been  simultane- 
ously erected,  and  we  can  say,  without  fear  of  contradiction, 
that  to-day  no  city  in  this  broad  land  has  better  facilities 
for  Catholic  education  than  Brooklyn.  These  schools,  as  a 
rule,  are  well  attended.  In  the  diocese  there  are  73  i:)aio- 
chial  schools,  18  academies  and  select  schools,  and  3  col- 
leges. The  jjarochial  schools  are  attended  by  9,173  boys  and 
9,8'35  girls;  the  aggregate  attendance  being  18,997.  The  se- 
lect schools  are  attended  by  3,030  scholars,  of  whom  1,680 
are  girls,  and  350  boys.  St.  Fi-ancis'  College  is  attended  by 
3-5  pupils,  and  St.  John's  by  185.     Bj-  this  it  will  be  seen 


1060 


HISTORY    OF  KINGS   COUNTY. 


that  the  total  number  of  scholars  attending  Catholic  schools 
of  all  kinds  in  this  city  is  21,437. 

For  thirty  years  Bishop  Loughlin  has  lived  in  this  com- 
munity; and,  during  that  time,  his  life  has  been  as  simple 
and  open  as  that  of  the  least  of  his  flock.  His  heart  has  al- 
ways lieen  with  his  people,  and  his  door  has  ever  stood  open, 
th;it  tlie  meanest  and  most  wretched  of  them  might  come  to 
him  for  the  relief  not  to  be  elsewhere  found.  He  found  the 
Catholics  of  Brooklyn  few  in  number  and  weak  in  resources. 
To-day,  in  90  churches  and  37  chapels  and  stations,  150  priests 


minister  to  the  spiritual  needs  of  300,000  Catholics;  in  nearly 
100  schools  and  colleges  more  than  30,000  children  are  being 
carefully  insli-ucted  ;  and  within  the  confines  of  his  diocese, 
four  hospitals  and  sixteen  asylums  stand  with  their  doors  open 
to  the  poor,  the  sick,  and  the  unfortunate.  Deeds  are  more 
eloquent  than  words,  and  the  administration  of  Bishop 
Loughlin  has  been  big  with  deeds.* 


*  We  ackuowledge  our  indebtedDess  to  The  Catlioiic  ExamiTier  of 
October  6,  1883. 


REFORMED    CATHOLIC    CHURCHES. 


The  movement  of  late  years  to  return  to  the  primitive 
Christianity  which  recognizes  the  Bible  as  the  only  authority 
in  religious  matters,  iostead  of  the  decrees  of  councils,  found 
a  number  of  adherents  in  Brooklyn.  Its  mission  is  to 
reach,  with  Bible  tiiiths,  the  Roman  Catholic  element.  In 
this,  success  lias  been  achieved  by  not  becoming  identified 
with  any  particular  denomination,  but  by  standing  aloof, 
and  as  ex-Roman  Catholics,  still  retaining  the  name  and 
character  of  Catholic;  thus  having  a  greater  influence, 
speaking  more  directly  to  Roman  Catholics.  During  the 
past  two  3'ears  of  this  church  in  Brooklyn,  09  persons  have 
identified  themselves  with  the  First  Reformed  Catholic 
Church.  This  church  is  under  no  episcopal  jurisdiction 
whatever,  but  conducted  on  a  purely  congregational  basis. 

Rev.  E.  H.  Walsh,  of  New  York,  formerly  a  Trappist 
monk  in  the  Church  of  Rome,  formed  the  First  Independent 
Catholic  Church  in  this  city,  Sept.  25th,  1881,  in  Bridge  St., 
between  Tillary  and  Concord. 

Rev.  J.  F.  McNamee  was  the  Pastor  in  charge  until  March, 
1883,  when  he  tcjok  a  portion  of  the  church  and  established 
a  congregation  in  Central  Hall,  known  as  the  Fi7-st  Reformed 
Catholic  Churcli.  At  the  same  time  Rev.  Mr.  Walsh  camo 
to  Brooklyn  and  took  charge  of  the  Bridge  street  church, 
which  was  incorporated  in  October,  1883. 


Rev.  J.  V.  McNamara  has  charge  of  the  Independent  Re- 
formed Church,  which  holds  it  meetings  in  Everett  Hall,  and 
was  organized  in  June,  1883. 

Jan.  7,  1884,  a  branch  was  org.  at  Masonic  Hall,  Grand  st., 
for  the  Eastern  District,  of  which  Father  McNaniee  is 
Pastor. 

These  churches  are  all  the  outgrowth  of  a  movement  that 
took  form  about  six  years  ago,  and  which  throws  otf  from 
church  organization  everything  of  human  origin,  and  aims 
to  return  to  the  Apostolic  form,  and  to  the  simplicity  of  the 
Gospel. 

Rev.  Jas.  F.  McNamee.  born  in  Ireland,  185T;  grad.  Coll. 
de  Beaucamps,  Lille,  1879;  located  Newark,  1881;  Brooklyn, 
1881. 

Rev.  Edmlnd  H.  Walsh,  born  in  Ireland,  1853;  was  in 
Bridge  St.  Ch.,  and  in  Ind.  Cath.  Ch.,  Harlem,  N.  Y.,  from 
Sept.  to  Nov.,  1881;  Ind.  Cath.  Ch.,  Brooklyn,  Nov., 
1881-84. 

Rev.  Charles  F.  Gaegan,  born  at  Fairfax  C.  IL,  Va., 
1857;  grad.  Mt.  St.  Mary's  Coll.  (Md.),  1875,  and  New  York 
Theol.  Sch.,  1880:  located  Newark,  New  York,  Hartford. 
Boston,  1879-'83;  lecturer.  Gen.  Miss,  and  Gen.  Sec'y,  Ind. 
Cath.  Ch. 


PRESBYTERIAN    CHURCHES. 


First  Presbyterian  Church  (New  School). — The  ground 
upon  which  the  Plymouth  Church  now  stands  was  purchased 
in  1822,  by  John  and  Jacob  M.  Hicks,  for  the  erection  of  an 
edifice  for  the  use  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church.  The 
population  of  Brooklyn  was  then  less  than  ten  thousand, 
and  the  church  located  in  the  midst  of  cultivated  fields, 
and  far  out  from  the  settled  portion  of  the  village.  It  was  or- 
ganized with  ten  members,  by  the  Presbytery  of  New  York, 
March  10th,  1822,  and  incorporated  cii  the  13th  of  the  same 
month.  The  new  organization  was  admitted  to  connection 
with  the  Presbytery  of  New  York,  April  10,  1822;  and  on  the 
15th  of  the  same  month,  the  corner-stone  of  a  substantial 
church  edifice  was  laid.  This  building  was  ninety  feet  in 
depth,  by  fifty-five  feet  in  width.  A  lecture-room,  including 
a  Sabbath-school  room  and  study,  was  attached  to  the  rear 
of  the  church,  fronting  upon  Orange  street,  in  1831.  The 
first  Pastor  was  Rev.  Joseph  Sanford,  installed  Oct.  16th, 
1833,  and  dismissed  Jan.  11,  1829.     He  was  succeeded  by  Rev. 


Daniel  Lynn  Carroll,  installed  March,  1829,  and  dismissed 
July  9,  1835.  The  ])ulpit  then  remained  vacant  nearly  two 
years:  until,  on  the  8th  of  Slay,  1837,  the  Rev.  Samuel  Han- 
son Cox,  D.  D.,  was  initalled  as  Pastor.  In  November,  1838, 
the  division  of  the  Synod  of  New  York  was  followed  by  a 
corresponding  division  of  the  memljership  of  this  church. 
About  forty  families,  including  three  elders  and  nearly  one 
hundred  members,  claiming  to  be  the  legitimate  representa- 
ti^'es  of  the  original  founders  of  the  church,  in  their  reli- 
gious opinions  and  sentiments,  preferred  to  retain  their  con 
nection  with  the  Presbytery  of  New  York  (which  remained 
attached  to  the  Old  School  Synod  and  General  Assembly), 
and  asserting  themselves  to  be  the  First  Presbyterian  Church 
of  Brooklyn,  withdrew  from  Dr.  Cox's  charge.  The  Pastor, 
seven  elders,  and  about  five  bundled  and  fifty  members,  ac- 
knowledging the  jurisdiction  of  the  Presbytery  of  Brooklyn, 
continued  on  the  even  tenor  of  their  way.  On  the  28th  of 
July,  1846,  the  corner-stone  of  the  present  elegant  house  of 


ECCLESIASTICAL   ORGANIZATIONS. 


worship  was  laid ;  the  edifice  being  first  opened  for  service 
on  the  6th  of  June,  1847.  The  old  church  in  Cranberry  street 
had  been  sold,  in  June,  1846,  for  the  sum  of  |20,000,  to 
parties  who  subsequently  conveyed  it  to  Plymouth  Church. 

The  Rev.  William  Hogarth,  D.  D.,  was  installed  as  Pastor 
on  the  15th  of  March,  185.5.  On  the  20th  of  March,  1860,  the 
Rev.  Charles  S.  Robinson,  D.  D.,  was  installed,  and  resigned 
March,  1868.  He  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  Norman  Seaver, 
D.  D.,  installed  December  1st,  1869.  Dr.  Seaver  resigned 
in  1876,  and  was  succeeded,  in  April,  1877,  by  the  present 
Pastor,  Kev.  C.  Cuthbert  Hall. 

Second  Presbyterian  Church  (Old  School)  was  organized 
by  the  Presbytery  of  New  York,  October  35th,  1831,  from  a 
colony  of  the  First  Church,  consisting  of  thirty-one  members. 
They  first  erected  a  lecture-room  on  Adams  street,  near 
Concord,  which  was  opened  May  1st,  1833.  During  the  years 
of  1833  and  '84,  a  brick  church  edifice,  of  the  Grecian  Doric 
order,  one  hundred  and  three  feet  by  seventy-five,  was 
erected  on  Clinton  street,  near  Fulton,  at  a  cost  of  about 
$24,000,  and  $4,000  for  the  ground.  It  was  dedicated  May 
4th,  1834;  a  lecture-room  was  subsequently  built,  ou  an 
adjoining  leased  lot,  atacostof  $6,000;  the  old  one,  in  which 
they  had  first  worshiped,  having  been  disposed  of  for  $8,000. 

Pastors:  Ichabod  S.  Spencer,  D.  D.,  March  23d,  1833,  till 
his  death,  Nov.  33,  1854,  aged  fifty-six  years;  Willis  Lord, 
D.  D.,  1854  to  Aug.,  1859;  Dr.  Nathaniel  West,  1860-67. 

In  July,  1870,  this  church  and  the  Third  Presbyterian 
Church  were  consolidated;  and  the  united  society  retained 
the  name,  Second  Presbyterian  Church,  the  house  in  Clinton 
street  continuing  to  be  the  place  of  worship.  Rev.  J.  M. 
Green,  Pastor  of  the  Third  Church,  continued  as  Pastor  of 
the  consolidated  church  till  1873,  in  which  year  Rev.  A. 
Crosby  was  called. 

In  Sei)t.  1877,  a  lecture-roojn.  church  parlor  and  vestry 
room  were  fitted  up  in  the  church  building,  and  reduced  the 
seating  capacity  of  the  auditorium  from  1.100  to  900.  In 
Dec,  18S2,  this  church  was  consolidated  with  the  Clinton 
Street  Church,  and  the  two  Pastors,  Revs.  H.  J.  Van  Dyke 
and  A.  Crosby,  retained  as  Collegiate  Pastors. 

Third  Presbyterian  Church  (New  School). — In  the  spring 
of  1831,  a  few  members  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church 
(Rev.  Dr.  Carroll,  Pastor)  commenced  a  mission  Sabbath- 
school  in  the  upi)er  room  of  a  dwelling-liouse,  cor.  Nassau 
St.  and  Hudson  ave.,  then  Jackson  St.  In  January,  1833,  a 
framed  building  was  erected  at  153  Nassau  st.,  nearly  ojipo- 
site  Stanton  st.,  for  a  .school  and  for  occasional  religious 
meetings.  April  13,  1835,  the  Third  Presbyterian  Church 
was  there  org.,  with  34  members,  and  Rev.  RoUin  S.  Stone 
was  installed  as  first  Pastor.  Mr.  Stone  resigned  in  1837, 
and  the  congregation  removed  to  Classical  Hall,  in  Wash- 
ington St.,  near  Concord.  Rev.  William  Beale  Lewis  was 
installed  Pastor  Oct.  10,  1837;  and  a  church  edifice  was 
erected  in  Jay  St.,  between  Sands  and  High,  in  1840.  Mr. 
Lewis  resigned  in  Oct.,  1848;  Rev.  Daniel  P.  Noyes,  installed 
April,  1849,  resigned  Sept.,  1854;  Rev.  William  S.  Karr,  in- 
stalled Sept.  2Sth,  1854,  resigned  Nov.  15,  1867.  Rev.  Joseph 
M.  Greene  was  installed  May  12th,  1868. 

July  5th,  1870,  this  church  was  consolidated  with  the 
Second  Presbyterian  Cliurch,  Clinton  st.,  and  Mr.  Greene  be- 
came the  Pastor  of  the  united  congregation. 

Tabernacle  Presbyterian  Church  (formerly  Central,  Old 
School),  Schermerhorn  st.,  near  Nevins  st.  July  19,  1834, 
the  Prince  St.  Mission  School  was  established  under  the 
direction  of  the  Second  Presbyterian  Church,  then  under  th# 


pastoral  charge  of  Rev.  Ichabod  Spencer.  That  school,  of 
which  Jolm  Morris,  senior  Elder  of  the  church,  was  the  first 
Superintendent,  and  C.  C.  Mudge  the  last,  resulted  in  a 
chm-ch  organization  April  13.  1847.  After  worshiping  for 
a  time  in  a  school-room  in  Prince  st.,  the  building  at  the  cor- 
ner of  Willoughby  and  Pearl,  formerly  occupied  by  the  Fifth 
Presbyterian  Church,  was  purchased.  This  was  sold  in  1853, 
and  a  frame  building  on  the  corner  of  State  and  Nevins  sts. 
was  erected  and  first  occupied  April  30  of  the  same  year. 
The  corner-stone  of  a  permanent  edifice  was  laid  on  Scher- 
merhorn St.,  near  Nevins,  which  was  dedicated  Dec.  10,  1854, 
at  a  cost  of  about  $30,000.  Rev.  Nathaniel  C.  Locke  was  the 
first  Pastor;  succeeded  April  13,  1851,  by  Rev.  Edson  Rock- 
well. He  resigned  in  1868,  and  was  succeeded  by  the  present 
Pastor,  Rev.  T.  DeWitt  Talmage,  who  was  installed  March 
23,  1869.  The  church,  by  reason  of  controversies,  was  nearly 
extinct  at  the  time  Mr.  Talmage  was  called  to  its  pastorate. 
In  1870,  a  church  edifice,  called  the  Tabernacle,  was  erected 
on  the  same  block  with  the  one  erected  in  1874.  This  build- 
ing had  a  sealing  capacity  of  3,000;  it  vpas  destroyed  by  fire 
December,  1872.  The  present  Tabernacle  was  erected  in  1873, 
and  dedicated  Feb.  33,  1874.  It  is  in  the  Gothic  style,  built 
of  brick,  with  stone  trimmings,  and  has  a  seating  capacity  of 
5,000  at  the  ordinary  services.  The  auditorium  has  the 
amphitheatre  form,  and  its  acoustic  properties  are  excellent. 
The  membership  of  tlie  church  exceeds  3,100,  while  the  Sun- 
day-school contains  nearly  2,000. 


TABERNACLE   ORGAN. 

The  organ  is  one  of  the  largest  in  the  country.  A  series  of 
"  fifteen-cent  admission  "  popular  organ  concerts  were  org. 
during  the  winter  of  1883-'84  by  Mr.  Henry  Eyre  Browne, 
the  organist  of  the  Tabernacle,  partly  to  defraj-  the  expenses 
of  certain  improvements,  and  partly  to  afford  the  people  of 
Brooklj'n  first-class  music  at  reasonable  prices.  At  these 
concerts  appeax-ed  many  of  the  best  vocalists  in  New  York 
and  Brooklyn.  At  each  concert  were  produced  five  different 
pieces,  without  repetition  of  a  single  selection,  a  record  never 
before  made  by  any  organist  in  this  country  ;  and  the  music 
performed  has  always  been  of  the  classical  order.  These  con- 
certs had  an  average  attendance  of  2,000  persons,  and  proved 
a  great  success,  both  musically  and  financially.  The  singing 
at  the  services  is  assisted  by  a  male  quartette  and  led  by  a 
cornet 


1062 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


REV.    THOMAS    DEWITT    TALMAGE,    D.  D. 


Thomas  Dewitt  Taxmage,  D.  D.,  was  born  at 
Hound  Brook,  N.  J.,  January  V,  1832,  the  youngest  of 
a  family  of  five  girls  and  seven  boys.  He  was  reared 
in  a  Christian  home,  from  which  three  brothers  pre- 
ceded him  in  the  Christian  ministry.  His  prejjaratory 
education  was  acquired  in  the  common  schools,  and  at  the 
Academy  in  New  Brunswick..  He  then  went  througli  a 
thorough  course  of  reading  for  the  law,  which  was  first 
his  chosen  j)rofession;  but,  feeling  it  a  duty  and  a  priv- 
ilege to  preach  the  Gospel,  he  entered  the  New  York 
University,  took  a  degree  of  A.  B.,  with  the  class  of 
1853;  and,  three  years  later,  graduated  from  the  Theo- 
logical Seminary  in  New  Brunswick,  N.  J.  His  first 
charge  was  at  Belleville,  N.  J.,  where  he  preached  for 
three  years  to  one  of  the  oldest  societies  in  the  State; 
and  was  then  called  to  Syracuse,  N.  Y.  After  a  pas- 
torate there  of  three  years  also,  where  his  .preaching 
grew  tonic  and  free,  as  the  preacher  learned  humanity 
and  his  own  heart,  he  went  to  the  Second  Reformed 
Dutch  Church  in  Philadelphia.  He  attracted  large  con- 
gregations, and  his  preaching  was  fruitful  in  spiritual 
results,  during  his  seven  years'  stay  in  that  city. 
There  his  powers  became  "set;"  he  had  the  courage 
of  his  convictions,  and  realized  his  duty  and  mission  in 
the  world  to  preach  the  Gospel  in  his  own  way,  and  to 
compel  men  to  listen  and  to  heed.  The  church  was 
not  to  him  a  select  few,  in  organization  a  monopoly, 
but  it  was  meant  to  be  the  conqueror  and  transformer 
of  the  world,  and  his  the  I'esponsibility  of  arousing  and 
leading  his  people  in  the  great  conflict.  He  also  ac- 
(juired  wide-spread  fame  as  a  lecturer,  being  invited, 
far  and  near,  to  occupy  the  platform.  Meanwhile,  the 
Central  Presbyterian  Church  in  Brooklyn  was  without 
a  pastor,  and,  by  reason  of  controversies,  had  dwindled 
to  nineteen  voting  members;  these  signed  a  call  to  Mr. 
Talmage  to  become  their  Pastor.  At  about  the  same 
time,  invitations  came  to  hmi  from  churches  in  Chicago 
and  San  Francisco.  He  came,  however,  to  Brooklyn, 
and  was  installed  March  22,  18G9.  The  old  Central 
Presbyterian  edifice,  on  Schermerhorn  street,  near 
Nevins,  a  cramped,  brick  rectangle,  capable  of  holding 
twelve  hundred,  was  used  until  it  became  evident  that 
a  larger  house  must  be  provided.  In  1870,  he  laid 
before  the  trustees  of  the  church  his  plan  for  a  new 
edifice.  The  plan  was  accepted,  and  an  iron  structure 
erected,  with  raised  seats,  the  interior  curved  like  a 
horse-shoe;  the  pulpit,  a  platform  bridging  the  ends. 
It  was  dedicated  in  September,  1870,  and  accommo- 
dated three  thousand  persons,  but  within  the  first  year 
was  enlarged  to  accommodate  five  hundred  more.  The 
spiritual  growth  of  the  church  kept  pace  with  its  in- 
crease in    numbers.       But  on   the   22d   of  September, 


1872,  the  Tabernacle  was  destroyed  by  fire.  When  Dr. 
Talmage  arrived  on  the  scene,  his  characteristic  re- 
mark was — "  Well,  the  Tabernacle  never  was  large 
enough,  now  the  people  throughout  the  country  will 
help  us  build  a  more  roomy  structure."  While  the 
fire  was  still  burning,  arrangements  for  the  future  were 
discussed,  and  the  sympathy  of  others  was  shown  by 
the  generous  offer  of  several  churches  for  the  use  of 
the  Tabernacle  congregation,  but  the  Academy  of 
Music  was  secured  as  a  temporary  place  of  worship.  A 
new  and  larger  Gothic  structure  of  brick  and  brown- 
stone,  cathedral-like  above,  amphitheatre-like  below, 
was  dedicated  February  22d,  1874.  It  holds  five 
thousand  as  easily  as  one  person,  and  all  can  hear  and 
see  equally  well.  Dr.  Talmage's  ideal  in  the  plan  was 
that  of  a  great  family  gathered  around  the  hearth- 
stone. Even  this,  the  largest  church  building  in  this 
country,  is  now  insuflicient  to  accommodate  the  thou- 
sands who  throng  to  attend  its  services. 

Next  to  a  free  church,  dispensing  a  free  gospel.  Dr. 
Talmage  had  at  heart  the  enlistment  of  laymen  in 
Christian  work;  he  was  anxious  to  arouse  and  direct 
the  dormant  energy  of  the  church  to  the  work  of  evan- 
gelizing the  world.  To  this  end  he  formed  and  success- 
fully carried  out  a  plan  for  training  and  educating 
Christian  workers.  From  this  beginning  grew  up  the 
Tabcrmtcle  Lay  College,  with  organized  classes,  com- 
petent teachers,  and  able  lecturers  in  their  special  fields. 
The  work  was  undenominational,  productive  of  in- 
creased activity  in  the  churches,  and  in  the  establish- 
ment of  new  mission  and  Sunday-school  entei'prises, 
but  of  late  years  has  been  discontinued,  owing  to  the 
multifarious  duties  which  demand  Dr.  Talmage's  time 
and  energies  in  other  directions.  In  1879,  Dr.  Tal- 
mage went  abroad  for  the  third  time,  visiting  and 
preaching  in  the  cities  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland, 
and  speaking  ninety-six  times  in  ninety-four  days,  also 
making  a  short  tour  upon  the  Continent.  His  reception 
among  the  English-speaking  people  was  a  continuous 
ovation;  his  public  appearances,  the  occasion  of  great 
gatherings  of  people;  while  a  large  public  meeting  in 
Brooklyn  welcomed  him  on  his  return  home. 

Dr.  Talmage  has  been  termed  a  "sensational" 
preacher,  but  a  more  erroneous  judgment  could  not  be 
made,  in  the  sense  in  which  that  term  is  commonly 
used.  He  is  an  earnest,  impassioned  speaker;  and  his 
extraordinary  imagination,  descriptive  powers  and 
humor;  his  great  art  in  grouping  and  arrangement;  his 
wonderful  mastery  of  words  to  illumine  and  alleviate 
human  conditions,  to  interpret  and  inspire  the  harmo- 
nies of  the  better  nature,  are  appreciated  by  all  who  can 
put  themselves  in  sympathy  with  his  high  consecration 


ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1063 


Rev.    THOMAS    DEWITT   TALMAGE,    D.  D 


of  purpose.  His  manner  mates  with  his  nature.  It  is 
each  sermon  in  action.  He  presses  the  eyes,  hands,  the 
entire  body,  into  the  service  of  illustration;  gestures 
are  the  accompaniment  of  what  he  says.  As  he  stands 
before  the  immense  throng,  without  a  scrap  of  notes  or 
manuscript,  and  no  desk  before  him,  the  eifect  pro- 
duced cannot  be  understood  by  those  who  have  never 
seen  it.  His  power  to  master  an  audience,  from  text 
to  peroration,  is  marvelous.  No  man  was  ever  less  con- 
scious in  his  work;  he  preaches  the  Gospel  literally  as 
ho  finds  it,  with  a  simplicity  and  thoroughness  that 
withhold  nothing.  He  fears  and  defers  to  no  prejudice, 
interest  or  ism;  be  manifests  the  closest  sympathy  with 
nature  and  humanity.  His  mantle  of  charity  is  so 
broad,  and  covers  the  failings  of  others  so  completely, 
that  no  enmities  or  resentments  linger  in  his  memory. 
His  language  is  clear,  terse  and  epigrammatic;  his  vo- 
cabulary noticeably  from  the  Anglo-Saxon.  The  prac- 
tical test  of  the  value  of  his  preaching  is  given  in  the 
great  numbers  that  gather  around  him  in  the  Taber- 
nacle, Sunday  after  Sunday,  where  there  is  a  congrega- 
tion of  more  than  five  thousand  regular  attendants,  in- 


cluding business  men  and  their  families,  young  people, 
and  those  who  had  previously  given  up  the  habit  of  at- 
tending church,  besides  a  multitude  of  strangers  from 
all  parts  of  the  land;  and,  best  of  all,  a  church  of  more 
than  thirty-one  hxindred  active  members,  the  largest  in 
the  world.  Type  gives  him  two  Continents  for  a 
church,  and  the  English-speaking  world  for  a  congre- 
gation. One  hundred  papers  in  Christendom  statedly 
publish  his  sermons  and  "  Friday-night  talks,"  exclusive 
of  the  dailies  of  the  United  States.  To  pulpit  labors 
of  this  responsibility  should  be  added  considerable  pas- 
toral work,  constantly  recurring  lecturing  and  editorial 
labors,  to  fill  out  the  public  life  of  a  very  busy  man. 
He  is  the  author  of  Crumbs  Swept  Up,  The  Abomina- 
tions of  Moder7i  Society,  Around  the  Tea-table,  and 
many  published  volumes  of  sermons.  He  was  also  editor 
of  the  Christian  At  Work,  of  the  Advance,  and  now 
edits  the  Sunday  Magazine,  contributing  likewise  to 
other  periodicals. 

Personally,  Dr.  Talmage  is  unassuming  and  a  man 
of  vivacious  temperament,  of  pleasant  address,  easy 
to  approach,  and  a  sincere  friend 


]064 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS    GOUKTY. 


Clinton  Street  Presbyterian  Church  (formerly  First  Pres- 
byterian Churcli— Old  School).— That  portion  of  the  congre- 
gation of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  whicli  seceded  in 

1838,  woi-shiped  in  the  Court-house  for  about  a  year.  In 
ISSO-MO,  they  erected  a  new  (Ouirch  edifice  on  the  corner  of 
Fulton  and  Pineapple  sts.  It  was  a  Gothic  brick  structure, 
SI  by  G")  feet,  and  cost,  including  the  ground,  .$40,000.  It 
was  one  of  the  finest  church  edifices  in  the  city.  In  1850,  it 
was  taken  down,  and  the  materials  used  in  the  construction 
of  the  present  church,  on  the  corner  of  Clinton  and  Remsen 
sts. ,  which  was  completed  in  1853.   Tlie  seating  capacity  is  900. 

Rev.  Melancthon  Williams  Jacobus  was  installed  as  the 
Srst  Pastor  of  this  congregation  in  the  autumn  of  1839,  and 
was  dismissed,  on  account  of  ill  health,  Oct.  21,  1851.  His 
labors  here  were  faithfully  prosecuted,  in  the  midst  of  diffi- 
culties which  few  young  ministers  have  encountered  and 
overcome.  During  nearly  two  years  after  his  departure  the 
pastorate  was  vacant,  and  the  congregation  in  a  very  unset- 
tled and  distracted  state.  The  present  Pastor,  Rev.  Henry  J. 
Van  Dyke,  was  installed  on  the  29th  of  June,  1853,  and  within 
ten  years  the  society  exjiended  about  ^12,000  in  the  im- 
provement of  the  churcli  building,  and  extinguished  their 
debt.  In  1868,  the  interior  was  remodelled,  at  an  expense  of 
about  $18,000.  ^ 

This  Firs\t  Presbyterian  Church  (Old  School)  and  the  South 
Presbyterian  Church  (New  School),  which  worshiped  at  the 
corner  of  Clinton  and  Amity  sts.,  and  was  for  28  years  under 
the  pastoral  care  of  Rev.  Dr.  Samuel  Spear,  in  December, 
1875,  were  consolidated.  Both  churches  technically  dis- 
banded, and  reorganized  under  the  title  of  the  Clinton.  Street 
Presbyterian  Church.  For  eighteen  months  the  congrega- 
tion worshiped  in  the  two  buildings  alternately,  and  then 
voted  to  have  their  permanent  home  at  the  corner  of  Clinton 
and  Remsen  sts.  Some  time  after,  the  building  at  the  comer 
of  Clinton  and  Amity  sts.  was  sold  to  St.  Matthew's  Lutheran 
Church.  The  object  of  the  consolidation  was  to  reduce  the 
number  of  Presbyterian  churches  on  the  Heights.  Dr.  Van 
Dyke  remained  Pastor  of  the  consolidated  church. 

In  December,  1882,  at  the  request  of  the  Second  Presbyte- 
rian Church,  on  Clinton  st.,  near  Fulton,  another  consolida- 
tion was  effected,  and  the  two  were  united  under  the  title  of 
the  New  Second  Presbyterian  Church,  with  Rev.  Dr.  Van 
Dyke  and  Rev.  Arthur  Crosby  as  collegiate  Pastors. 

The  Fourth  Presbyterian  Church  (New  School)  was  or- 
ganized at  Gowanus,  by  the  third  Presbytery  of  New  York, 
in  February,  1838.  A  house  of  worship  was  erected  soon 
after,  and  the  Rev.  Robert  R.  Kellogg  was  installed  June  4, 

1839,  by  the  Presbytery  of  Brooklyn.  He  was  dismissed  in 
December  following,  and  the  congregation  being  few,  and 
oppressed  with  debt,  the  church  was  dissolved  by  the  Presl)y- 
tery.  May  9,  1842,  and,  subsequentl}',  the  building  was  p\ir- 
chased  by  the  Third  Dutch  Church. 

The  Fifth  Presbyterian  Church  (New  School),  which  was 
first  organized  in  Brooklyn,  was  entii-ely  distinct  from  the 
congregation  whicli  subsequently  existed  under  the  same 
name.  It  had  its  origin  in  the  schism  which  occurred  in  the 
infancy  of  the  Second,  or  Central,  Dutch  Church. 

The  seceders,  with  their  Pastor,  Mr.  Tappan,  organized  as 
a  Congregational  body,  and  subsequently  removed  to  a 
church  which  Samuel  A.  Willougliby  built,  and  ded.  May  30, 
1839.  At  the  same  time,  the  church  changed  its  order,  com- 
ing; under  the  care  of  the  Brooklyn  Presbytery,  as  the  Fifth 
Pres.  Church.  Mr.  Tappan  left  in  1839,  and  was  succeeded 
by  Rev.  Absalom  Peters,  D.  D.,  as  supply.  After  a  fe\/ 
weeks,  preaching  ceased:  and  tlie  church  was  disbanded. 

The  Fifth  Presbyterian  Church  (New  School)  was  an  en- 
tirely distinct  organization  from  the  preceding.     The  Rev. 


George  DufHeld,  Jr.,  was  ordained  in  January,  1841,  in  the 
churcli  on  the  corner  of  Pearl  and  Willoughby  sts..  built  in 
1837,  by  S.  A.  Willoughby,  Esq.,  and  occupied  by  the  first- 
mentioned  Fifth  Presbyterian  Church.  Shortly  after,  a 
church  was  formed  of  twenty  members.  The  building  is  70 
by  40  feet,  and  cost  |10,000,  but  is  now  used  as  an  auction 
sales-room. 

The  Sixth  Presbyterian  Church  (New  School)  was  gath- 
ered, but  never  legally  organized,  at  the  Wallabout,  January 
26,  1840,  by  a  committee  of  the  Brooklyn  Presbytery.  Rev. 
James  Knox  labored  here  about  three  months.  After  his 
departure,  the  church  became  extinct,  although  it  continued 
to  have  a  nominal  existence  for  about  three  years,  two  of  its 
elders  and  most  of  its  members  giving  the  Wallabout  that 
church. 

The  Free  Presbyterian  Church  (New  School)  was  or- 
ganized March  2i,  1841.  and  the  Rev.  Russell  J.  Judd  in- 
stalled Pastor  the  1st  uf  May  following.  He  was  dismissed 
in  the  autumn  of  1843  ;  and,  in  the  spring  of  1844,  the  Rev. 
Edward  Reed  was  installed,  and  served  about  a  year.  Suli- 
sequently,  this  congregation  purchased  the  edifice  erected  by 
the  Second  Baptist  church,  on  the  corner  of  Tillary  and  Law- 
rence sts.  In  the  spring  of  1845,  the  church,  having  become 
vacant,  unanimously  agreed  to  change  their  order  and  be- 
come Congregational. 

The  First  Presbyterian  Church  (New  School),  E.  D.,  org. 
witli  fifteen  members,  under  the  Presbytery  of  Brooklyn, 
May  3(!,  1842.  Shortly  afterwards,  its  members  became 
divided  on  the  subject  of  abolitionism,  which  resulted  in  the 
dismission  of  four  male  and  three  female  members,  who  sub- 
sequently united  in  the  formation  of  a  Congregational  so- 
ciety. At  first  dependent  upon  occasional  supplies,  the  con- 
gregation received  an  element  of  permanence,  liy  the  instal- 
lation, June  13,  1843,  of  Rev.  Joseph  Rawson  Johnson,  who 
had  labored  with  them  during  the  previous  November. 
In  Feb.,  1844,  when  their  number  amounted  to  eighty-six,  ,a 
proposition  to  transfer  their  relation  to  the  Old  School  Pres- 
bytery, of  New  York,  again  divided  the  feelings  and 
opinions  of  the  church;  and,  finally,  three  elders  and  twenty 
members  were,  at  their  own  request,  dismissed,  March  29, 
1844,  for  the  purpose  of  organizing  another  church,  to  be 
placed  under  the  New  York  Presbytery.  In  April,  1845,  Mr. 
Johnson  was  dismissed  from  his  pastoral  relations,  and  was 
succeeded  by  the  Rev.  James  W.  McLane,  who  was  installed 
September  2,  1845.  During  his  pastorate,  in  1848,  a  new 
church  edifice  was  erected  on  South  Fourth,  corner  of  Sixth 
St.,  of  brick,  and  with  a  lecture-room  on  the  rear,  two 
stories  high  and  facing  on  Sixth  st.  Dr.  McLane  died  in 
Feb.,  1864,  and  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  Joseph  H.  Robinson 
1864  to  1865;  Rev.  Samuel  Carlisle,  1866  to  Oct.,  1870;  Rev.  J. 
Glentworth  Butler.  D.  D.,  1871  to  May  1,  1873;  Rev.  S.  Miller 
Hegeman  preached,  June  1873,  to  .luly,  1874,  but  was  not 
settled  as  Pastor;  Rev.  William  Guthrie  Barnes,  Dec,  1874, 
till  Nov.,  1876;  Rev.  Thomas  Crowther,  from  April  3,  1877,  to 
his  death,  Oct.  10,  1877  ;  Rev.  Aaron  Peck,  from  1878  to  Oct. 
16,  1881.     Rev.  H.  H.  Northrop  is  the  present  Pastor. 

South  Third  Street  Presbyterian  (Old  School),  cor.  of 
Fifth  St.,  orig.  in  the  second  secession  from  the  First  Church, 
])reviously  mentioned.  Thej'  first  assembled  for  divine  wor- 
ship, on  the  7th  of  Ajiril,  1844,  in  the  public  school-room  of 
District  No.  1.  The  (Old  School)  Presbytery  of  New  York, 
on  the  19th  of  April,  org.  a  church  of  twenty-seven  mem- 
bers, and  Rev.  N.  S.  Prime  was  engaged  as  stated  supply. 
April  22,  1844,  trustees  were  elected  .and  the  congregation 
incorporated  as  Tlie  Presbyterian  Church  of  Williamsburgh. 
Rev.  Eugene  P.  Stevenson  was  installed  as  Pastor  February 
20,  1845;  meetings  being  held  in  the  public  school-house,  cor. 


ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1065 


SOUTH    THIRD    STREET    PRESBYTERIAN    CHURCH. 

So.  Third  and  Fifth  sts.  A  new  church  edifice  on  So.  Tliird 
and  Fifth  sts.  was  first  occupied  on  Thanksgiving,  December 
4,  1845,  and  dedicated  on  Sabbath,  May  10,  184G.  This  edifice 
is  of  brick,  63  by  75  feet,  with  a  projection  of  13  by  20  feet 
for  a  tower  and  steeple;  the  land  costing  $6.")0,  and  the  build- 
ing flG.OOO,  together  with  a  parsonage  costing  :|3,800.  In  the 
following  year,  the  house  adjoining  the  church,  and  occu- 
pied as  a  parsonage  house,  was  built.  Mr.  Stevenson  was 
succeeded  by  the  Rev.  John  D.  Wells,  who  was  ord.  October 
9,  1849,  and  is  still  the  Pastor. 

In  1S.53,  and  several  times  since,  extensive  repairs  and  im- 
provements have  been  made  in  the  interior  of  the  church. 
From  this  church  have  been  colonized  the  Christie  St.,  the 
Tliroo})  Ave.,  and  tlie  Ro.is  St.  Pres.  churches;  yet  the  parent 
lias  lost  none  of  its  vigor  or  influence.  Rev.  N.  W.  Wells  has 
been  As-istant  Pastor  since  1881. 

Rev.  John  1».  Wells,  D.  D.,  born  at  Whiteborough,  N.  Y., 
1815;  grad.  Union  Coll,  1838,  and  Princeton  Theol.  Sem., 
1844  ;  Trustee  of  Princeton  Theol.  Sem.,  1878  ;  on  Board  of 
For.  Miss.,  1861;  Vice-Pres.  of  same,  1877;  on  Board  of  Con- 
trol, N.Y.  State  Colonization  Soc. ;  preached  in  private  chapel 
of  J.  Lenox.  Esq.,  1844;  Mission  Chapel,  N.  Y.  City,  1845-6; 
author  of  Last  Week  in  the  Life  of  Davis  Johnson,  Jr., 
Little  Walter  of  JSijalusing:  sermons  and  pamphlets ;  lo- 
cated in  Brooklyn,  Jan.,  1850. 


The   South    Brooklyn    Presbyterian    Church 

(New  School)  was  org.  Sept.  18,  1842.  with  sev- 
enty-two members,  and  the  Rev.  Samuel  T. 
Spear,  Pastor,  May  14, 1843.  Their  first  place  of 
"vorship  was  a  school-house  on  Pacific  street, 
which  they  purchased  and  occupied  till  their 
beautiful  edifice,  on  Clinton,  corner  of  Amity 
street,  was  completed  in  August,  1845.  Its 
dimensions  were  sixty  bj'  one  hundred  and  fif- 
teen feet,  including  a  lecture-room  in  the  rear, 
and  its  whole  cost  was  about  ^38,000.  In  1875, 
it  was  consolidated  with  the  first  Presbyterian 
Chunrh  (Old  School),  and  the  United  Society  took 
the  name  of  Clinton  Street  Presbyterian  Church. 
The  Wallabout  Presbyterian  Church  (Old 
School),  now  Franklin  Ave. — The  Wallabout 
village,  now  East  Brooklyn  is  nearly  a  mile  to 
the  eastward  of  the  Navy  Yard,  the  ancient 
Waale-boght.  Prior  to  the  years  1828  and  1830, 
this  territory  lay  in  farms.  The  Primitive  Meth- 
odists, in  1836;  the  Episcopalians,  in  1837  ;  and 
the  Presby'erians  (New  School),  and  Dutch  Re- 
formed in  1840,  attempted  to  occupy  the  ground, 
but  all  fa  led.  In  1842,  Rev.  Jonathan  Green- 
leaf  commenced  missionary  labor  here,  and  in 
Deceiiil>er,  1842,  a  church  was  organized  under 

^^      tilt' alpn\f  name.    In  January,  1843,  it  was  legally 

^^^^      constituted ;    and,   in   February,    Mr.    Greenleaf 
became  the  Pastor.     He  was  succeeded,   after 
his  death,  Aoril  24,1865,  by  Rev.  Wm.  A.  Fer- 
guson, and  h",  Januaiy  1,  1868,  by  Rev.  Samuel 
P.  Halsey.     A  lot  of  ground  on  Franklin,  near 
Myrtle  ave.,  was  presented  for  a  church  edifice, 
by  Mr.  Greenleaf  and  wife,  on  condition  that  no 
debt  slinuld  be  incurred  in  the  erection  of  the 
house.    The  building  was  commenced  in  March, 
1844,  and  dedicated  in   March,  1845.     The  cost 
was  $55,000,  exclusive  of  bell,  chimneys,  carpets, 
lamps,  fence,   etc.,  which  were  contributed  by 
individuals.     It  is  now  known  as  the  Franklin 
Avenue  Presbyterian  Church.      Rev.  Samuel  P. 
Halsey,  Pastor,  until  June  30,  1888. 
Siloam    Presbyterian    Church  (colored),  org.   July    25th, 
1847,  under  the  Presbytery  of  Brooklyn  with  about  ten  mem- 
bers.    The  congregation  first  worshiped  in  a  hall  in  Fulton  st. 
Then  the  house  of  a  mission  in  Prince  st.  was  purchased  by 
the  Presbytery,  in  1854,  for  |4,000.      In  1868,  the  house  was 
enlarged,  and  a  basement  was  built,  at  an  additional  cost  of 
14,000. 

Ministry:— Revs.  A.  N.  Freeman,  18.53-'60,  and  1863-'84; 
Charles  H.  Thompson,  1860-3. 

The  church  has  been  uniformly  prosperous,  owing  to  the 
untiring  efforts  of  the  Pastor,  Rev.  A  N.  Freeman,  who  was 
born  in  New  Jerse.y,  1809;  ordainec'  m  Portland,  Me.,  1841; 
came  to  Brooklyn,  April,  1853. 

The  City  Park  Chapel,  originally  org.  as  the  City  Park 
Union  Mission  Siibbath-school,  July,  1848,  at  a  prayer  meet- 
ing held  at  the  residence  of  Mr.  Kellogg,  in  Willoughby  st. 
Its  first  officers  were:  Isaac  N.  Judson,  Superintendent,  John 
T.  Davenport,  Assistant  Superintendent,  and  Thomas  S. 
Simmons,  Secretary  and  Treasurer.  Its  first  session  was 
held  on  the  third  Sabbath  in  July,  1848.  Its  rapid  increa'  c 
demanded  larger  accommodations;  and,  in  the  spring  of  1851. 
the  association  was  organized  which  purchased  lots  on  Con-, 
cord,  near  Gold  st. ,  on  which  was  erected  the  building  now 
occupied  by  the  Children's  Home.  The  first  board  of  trustees 
of  this  asioi^iation  was  composed  of  the  following  gentlemen 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


.-awi!«|<» 


THE    OLD    FRANKLIN    AVENUE    PRESBYTERIAN    CHURCH.       (See  previous  page). 


viz.:  Austin  Melvin  (Congregationalist),  Thoma.s  S.  Simmons 
(Methodist),  Silas  R.  Beebe  (Baptist),  John  T.  Davenport, 
Timothj'  Dauncy  and  Isaac  N.  Judson  (Presbyterians).  Mr. 
Judson,  after  six  years'  service,  was  succeeded  in  tlie  sujier- 
intendency  of  the  school  by  Mr.  Nathaniel  M.  Terry,  for 
about  six  years;  followed  by  Mr.  A.  A.  Smith  for  a  year;  and, 
in  May,  1864,  by  Mr.  A.  M.  Earl;  and  in  May,  1868,  by  Mr.  R. 
J.  Dodge.  Then  the  vicinity  began  to  be  occupied  by  the 
schools  of  individual  churches,  so  that  the  union  principle 
became  less  effectual,  and  those  interested  in  the  P.  M.  U.  S. 
School  felt  that  a  church  organization  would  better  accom- 
modate the  people  of  the  neighborhood  in  which  the  school 
was  located.  Accordingly,  an  organization  was  effected, 
composed  of  jiersons  mostly  from  the  First  Presbyterian 
Church,  but  was  eventually  disbanded,  the  teachers  continu- 
ing to  labor  in  the  mission  school.  In  the  spring  of  1862,  the 
school  was  transferred  to  the  charge  of  the  First  Presbyter- 
ian Church  (Henrj'  st.),  which  had  furnished  a  greater  part 
of  the  teachers,  and  most  of  the  funds  for  the  mission.  In 
Feb.,  18C6,  a  new  building  was  erected  by  the  trustees  of  the 
First  Presbyterian  Church,  on  lots  adjoining  the  old  one,  at  a 
cost  (including  a  handsome  organ)  of  nearly  |21.000.  In 
.lanuary,  1867,  the  session  of  the  First  Church  extended  a 
unanimous  call  to  the  Rev.  Charles  Wood,  who  accepted  the 
call,  entering  upon  his  charge  in  Februar}'  following,  and 
still  continues  Pastor.  Since  that  time  the  enterprise  has 
continued  to  flourish.  More  than  a  hundred  members  have 
been  added  to  the  First  Presbyterian  Church,  by  profession 
of  their  faith,  through  the  instrumentality  of  this  chapel. 

In  1874,  the  chapel  was  enlarged  by  an  addition  to  its  au- 
ditorium, making  its  seating  capacity  about  400;  and  it  was 
further  improved  by  the  addition  of  rooms  for  infant  classes, 
and  alcoves  for  adult  and  Bible  classes.  The  cost  of  these 
improvements  was  $6,000.  A  commodious  reading-room  was 
fitted  up,  in  1880,  at  the  expense  of  Mrs.  James  Sheldon. 
In  this  room,  which  is  comfortably  warmed  and  cheerfully 
Ughted,  many  young  men   gather  nightly,  some  of  whom 


formerly  spent  their  evenings  on  the  street  comers,  or  in 
more  demoralizing  places. 

Rev.  Ch.\rles  Wood,  born  in  Salem,  N.  J.,  1819;  grad. 
Lafayette  Coll.  (Pa.),  1846,  and  Princeton  Theol.  Sem.,  1849; 
was  Vice-Pres.  of  Alumni  Assn.,  1878-'9:  located  at  Fox 
HiU,  Blackw<iod,  N.  J.;  City  Park  Cliapel,  B'klyn,  1867-'83. 

The  Lawrence  Street  Presbyterian  Church. — In  1852,  the 
Associate  Reform  Presbytery  of  New  York  established  a 
mission  in  Brooklyn,  where  they  soon  organized  a  church. 
The  young  organization  not  having  been  supplied  with  reg- 
ular preaching,  or  a  fixed  place  of  worship,  was  frequently 
reduced  to  the  verge  of  dissolution. 

In  1858,  the  church  cal'ed  tlie  Rev.  Adam  McClelland  to 
become  their  Pastor,  and  moved  from  their  hall  in  Front 
street  to  an  edifice  purchased  from  the  Congregational  Meth- 
odists, cor.  Lawrence  and  Tillary  streets. 

In  1875,  a  union  was  effected  with  the  Fort  Greene  Presby- 
terian Church,  Dr.  McClelland  continuing  as  Pastor  of  the 
united  congregation.  Shortly  after  the  consolidation  the 
united  congregation  sold  the  edifice  in  Lawrence  st.  to  St. 
Casimir's  (Catholic)  Church. 

German  Evangelical  Pres.  Church. — In  18.53,  Rev.  John 
Neander,  a  German  missionary  among  the  Jews  in  New 
York  city,  at  the  request  of  seven  Germans  in  Brooklyn, 
commenced  a  series  of  religious  meetings  here  at  private 
houses.  And,  being  authorized  liy  the  Board  of  Foreign 
Missions,  in  whose  service  lie  then  was,  he  org.  a  church  in 

1853,  under  the  care  of  the  New  York  Presbytery.  Lots 
were  secured  cor.  Leonard  and  Stagg  sts.  (E.  D.),  on  which 
a  neat  brick  building  was  erected,  and  dedicated  Got.  14,  1855, 
at  a  cost  of  $9,000,  mostly  furnished  by  George  Douglas, 
Esq.,  of  Flushing,  L.  I.  It  has  since  been  enlarged,  and  ia 
now  called  the  First  German  Presbyterian  Church. 

Ainslie  St.  Presbyterian  Church  was  organized  Oct.  22, 

1854.  It  has  had  to  date  six  Pastors:  1854-'56,  Rev.  C.  W. 
Hodge;  1857-'58,  Rev.  Albert  Biglow;  1859--66,  Rev.  Jas. 
McDougal,  Jr.;  1866-"70,  Rev.  John  Hancock;  1870-78,  Rev. 


ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1067 


J.    M.    Buchanan;    1878,    to    date.   Rev.    Jos.    G.   William- 
son, Jr. 

The  cougregation,  since  its  organization,  lias  worshiped 
in  but  one  building,  a  frame  structure,  enlarged  from  time 
to  time,  at  the  corner  of  Ewen  and  Ainslie  sts.  It  was 
erected  in  18.')4.  The  property'  consists  of  five  lots,  a  church 
edifice  and  a  i)arsonage.  The  seating  cajjacity  of  the  church 
is  500.  The  present  membership  is  about  600.  The  Sabbath- 
school  has  500  scholars  and  50  teachers. 

The  Westminster  Presbyterian  Church  (New  School), 
org.  in  a  hall  on  the  corner  of  Court  and  Sackett  sts.,  Jan. 
31,  185(>,  with  01  members.  A  frame  chapel  was  first  erected 
on  the  present  site,  and  dedicated  on  the  third  Sabbath  of 
May,  1856 ;  the  enterprise  received  a  .strong  impetus  in 
its  early  work  from  the  able  ministry  of  Rev.  Roswell  D. 
Hitchcock,  D.  D.,  who  supi)lied  the  pulpit  from  the  first 
Sabbath  in  Feb.,  1856,  until  the  first  Sabbath  of  May,  1857. 
In  Oct.,  1857,  the  Rev.  Hugh  S.  Carpenter  was  installed, 
and  dismissed  May,  1870.  In  1858,  the  present  building  was 
commenced,  and  with  a  temporary  roof  and  front,  the  au- 
ditorium was  occupied  for  divine  service  the  second  Sabbath 
in  October  of  that  year.  In  October,  1807,  the  new  church 
edifice,  facing  on  Clinton  street,  corner  of  First  place,  was 
finished  and  dedicated. 

Mr.  Carpenter  was  succeeded  in  the  pastorate  by  Rev.  J. 
Clement  Fi-ench,  D.  D.,  installed  Maix-h,  1873,  dism.  Nov., 
1876;  and  he  by  Rev.  James  M.  Ludlow,  D.  D.,  installed 
Oct.,  1877. 

Rev.  James  M.  Ludlow  was  born  at  Elizabeth,  N.  J. ,  1841 ; 
grad.  from  Princeton  Coll.  in  1861 ;  and  from  Princeton  Tlieol. 
Sem.,  1864.  In  the  fall  of  1864,  he  was  called  to  the  First 
Presbyterian  Church  at  Albany.  In  1868,  he  succeeded  Dr. 
Duryea  in  the  C'ollegiate  Reformed  Church,  New  York,  dur- 
ing which  time  their  elegant  church  was  erected.  Dr.  Lud- 
low is  a  scholarly  man,  earnest  and  persuasive,  stimulating 
and  effective.  In  1881,  he  visited  Emope  and  the  Holy  Land; 
he  is  a  contributor  to  various  religious  papers  and  periodicals. 
The  John  Knox  Presbyterian  Church  was  commenced  on 
the  corner  of  Fulton  avenue  and  Adelphi  street,  May  4th, 
1856;  and  a  church  organized  June  13th,  by  the  Presbytery  of 
Nassau,  with  sixteen  members,  eight  of  whom  were  males. 
The  Rev.  Lorenzo  Wescott  was  ordained  Pastor,  October 
16,  1856. 

Lafayette  Ave.  Presbyterian  Church. — May  16th,  1857,  a 
meeting  of  several  gentlemen  was  held  at  the  house  of  Mr. 
Edward  A.  Lambert,  Clinton  avenue,  to  cons\]lt  in  reference 
to  the  formation  of  a  Presbyterian  church  in  the  11th  Ward, 
to  be  imder  the  care  of  the  Presbytery  of  Brookl\-n.  A  com- 
mittee was  appointed,  and  on  the  16th  of  June  a  public  meeting 
was  held  in  the  church  on  Carlton  avenue,  occupied  hy  the 
Park  Congregational  Society,  when  it  was  unanimously 
resolved  to  organize  a  Presbyterian  church,  as  contemplated 
in  the  resolution  of  May  16th,  and  arrangements  were  im- 
mediately made  to  purchase  and  occupy  the  building  in 
Cailton  avenue,  near  DeKalb;  the  Park  Congregational 
Church  (worshiping  there)  having  resolved  to  disband. 

Trustees  were  elected,  and  the  congregation  organized 
under  the  corporate  name  of  "  The  Park  Presbyterian 
Church."  On  the  39th  of  June,  a  constitution  was  adopted, 
and  a  petition  was  presented  to  the  Presbytery  of  Brooklyn 
to  organize  said  church. 

The  Presbytery,  on  the  9th  of  July,  met  in  the  church, 
Carlton  avenue,  and  duly  constituted  the  church — 16  males 
and  33  females  being  received  from  various  churches. 
Messrs.  N.  W.  Burtis,  Josiah  Widnell,  and  Harrison  Teller, 
M.  D.,  were  chosen  Elders,  and  John  Rhodes  and  Ralph 
Hunt,  Deacons. 


Soon  after  the  organization,  the  church  engaged  the  ser- 
vices of  the  Rev.  Roswell  D.  Hitchcock,  D.  D.,  who  continued 
to  occupy  the  pulpit  until  January,  1859.  In  the  spring  of 
1858,  the  congregation  had  so  increased  that  it  was  found 
necessary  to  enlarge  the  accommodations,  by  extending  the 
building  toward  DeKalb  avenue,  thus  furnishing  seats  for 
some  750.  On  the  termination  of  the  services  of  Rev.  Pro- 
fessor Hitchcock,  the  Rev.  Lyman  Whiting,  of  Portsmouth, 
N.  H.,  occupied  the  pulpit  until  August,  1859. 

On  the  7th  of  February,  1800,  the  Rev.  Theodore  L.  Cuyler 
was  mianimously  elected  Pastor,  and,  having  accepted  the 
call,  entered  upon  the  duties  of  Pastor  on  the  8th  of  April, 
and  was  installed  by  the  Presbytery  of  Brooklyn,  on  Tues- 
day evening,  April  24th. 

In  the  spring  of  1861,  a  new  church  edifice  was  commenced 
on  the  corner  of  Lafayette  avenue  and  Oxford  street,  and 
was  completed  in  March,  1863.  The  building  is  of  Belleville 
free-stone,  and  in  th  j  Romanesque  style;  it  is  one  hundred 
and  forty-six  feet  in  length,  and  eighty-six  in  width.  The 
height  of  the  spire  is  one  hundred  and  ninety-five  feet.  The 
auditorium  contains  three  hundred  and  four  pews,  and  wOl 
accommodate  1,800  persons;  with  seats  in  the  aisles  it  holds 
3,300.  Above  the  lecture  -  roonv  and  Pastor's  study  are 
spacious  Sabbath-school  rooms,  ninety  feet  in  length.  The 
whole  cost  of  the  ground  and  of  the  edifice  did  not  exceed 
$60,000 . 

After  the  completion  of  the  new  edifice,  the  name  of  the 
church  organization  was  changed  to  that  of  the  "  Lafayette 
Avenue  Presbyterian  Church."  Its  present  membership 
numbers  1,575. 

"Olivet  Mission"  has  a  chapel  on  Bergen  street,  near 
Sixth  avenue,  and  a  flourishing  Sabbath-school.  "Cumber- 
land Street  Mission,"  long  connected  with  this  church,  has 
been  organized  into  the  Fort  Greene,  Presbyterian  Church, 
under  the  pastoral  charge  of  Rev.  Dr.  McClelland.  Over 
one  hundred  members  of  the  Lafayette  Avenue  Church  w  ere 
dismissed  to  form  this  organization,  and  "Calvary  Chapel" 
was  presented  to  them  for  their  use. 

The  chapel  erected  as  a  memorial  of  the  revival  of  1866,  in 
W^arren  street,  near  Fifth  avenue,  and  opened  in  November 
of  that  year,  was  organized  into  a  church  by  the  Presby- 
tery of  Brooklyn  in  1867,  as  the  Memorial  Presbyterian 
Church. 

In  the  summer  of  1881,  a  house  near  the  church  was  pur- 
chased and  taken  down;  and  on  its  site,  church  parlors 
were  erected.  Over  these,  and  over  the  lecture-room,  a  Sun- 
day-school room  was  added,  100  by  55  feet,  with  a  seating 
capacity  of  1,000.  This  was  open.«d  on  Christmas,  1881.  The 
cost  of  these  improvements  was  |35,000. 

Rev.  Theodore  L.  Cdyler,  D.  D.,  born  in  Aurora,  N.  Y., 
1833;  grad.  Princeton  Coll.,  1841;  Princeton  Theol.  Sem., 
1846;  located  in  Burlington,  N.  J.;  Trenton,  N.  J.;  New  York 
city;  came  to  B'klyn,  April,  1860;  author  of  Empty  Crib, 
'Tliought  Hives,  Pointed  Papers,  Nile  to  Noriray,  Cedar 
Christian,  Stray  Ari-oirs,  Heart  Life,  etc.;  also  of  iiublished 
sermons;  is  widely  known  as  a  powerful  worker  in  cause 
of  temperance,  and  of  Sunday-schools. 

The  Cumberland  Street  Chapel  (near  Myrtle  avenue)  was 
established  in  connection  with  Lafayette  avenue  Presbyterian 
Cburch,  and  was  afterward  erected  into  the  Fort  Greene 
Presbyterian  Church. 

The  Genevan  Presbyterian  Church  (Old  School),  Gates 
avenue,  corner  ot  Hunter  street,  was  org.  by  the  Presbytery 
of  Nassau,  June  13,  1856,  under  the  name  of  the  Greene  Ave- 
nue Presbyterian  Church,  and  so  continued  until  June,  A.  D. 
1864,  when  its  place  of  worship  was  removed  from  Greene 
avenue,  corner  of  Clermont  avenue,  to  its  present  place,  where 


1068 


BISTORT  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


LAFAYETTE    AVENUE   PKESBYTEKIAN  CHURCH. 


MGGLE8IA8TIGAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


the  church  edifice  was  completed  and  dedicated,  June  19, 
1864,  and  at  the  request  of  tlie  church,  and  by  order  of  tlie 
presbytery,  the  title  was  changed  f  o  the  name  of  the  Genevan 
Presbyterian  Cliurch  of  Gates  avenue,  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 

The  first  Pastor  was  Rev.  William  B.  Lee;  succeeded  by 
Rev.  Alonzo  Clark,  under  whose  pastorate  a  jiortion  of  the 
congregation  formed  a  union  with  the  Tompkins  avenue 
Presbyterian  Church.  The  remnant  contmued  for  a  time  to 
worship  ill  the  churcli  on  Gates  avenue,  but  finally  dis- 
banded. 

The  Ross  Street  Presbyterian  Church  (Old  School)  was 
org.  April  28tli,  1804,  in  the  chapel  of  Christ  Church,  Division 
avenue,  by  tlie  Presbytery  of  Nassau  witli  forty-three  mem- 
bers, of  whom  twenty- seven  wex'e  from  the  South  Third  street 
Presbyterian  Church,  and  the  remainder  from  tlie  First  Re- 
formed Dutch  and  first  Presbyterian  Churches.  On  the  15th 
of  October,  1864,  tlie  Rev.  Cliarles  S.  Pomeroy  was  duly  in- 
stalled as  Pastor.  Lots  were  purchased  for  a  church  edifice 
on  Ross  strt  et,  between  Lee  and  Bedford  avenues,  and  also 
lots  in  the  rear  on  Wilson  street,  for  the  erection  of  a  chapel 
and  Sabbath-school  room.  The  chapel  was  completed  and 
dedicated  Sunday,  May  14,  186.5.  Its  size  is  eighty-five  feet 
by  forty;  substantially  built  of  brick  and  brown -stone,  with 
a  school-room  upon  the  lower  floor  and  an  audience-room 
above,  seating,  with  the  galleries  subsequently  added,  about 
six  hundred.  It  was  furnished  with  a  fine  large  organ,  and 
all  the  appointments  of  a  modern  cliurch  edifice.  The  expense 
of  this  chapel  (furnished)  and  the  ground,  was  about  $35,000, 
free  from  debt.     On  June  5,  1871,  the  corner-stone  was  laid 


ROSS    STREET    1'KL;.-.11VTI;U1AX    CHURCH. 

of  an  <:/legant  churcli  edifice,  upon  the  lots  belonging  to 
them  in  Rcss  street,  cor.  of  Wilson.  It  seats  comfortably 
with  boxes,  800;  as  originally  with  pews,  1,000.  Mr.  Pomeroy 
was  succeeded  in  the  pastorate  by  Rev.  Mr.  McGinley,  who 
remained  two  years.  Rev.  Archibald  McCullagh  became 
Pastor  March  ITtli,  1878.  During  his  pastorate  the  church  has 
been  greatly  jirospered.  It  has  a  flourishing  Sunday-school  of 
000  scholars. 

Tlie  growth  of  the  Ross  Street  Church  has  been  rapid  and 
healthful.  Its  present  membership  is  430.  May,  1869.  the 
Pastor  and  session  organized  a  mission-school  on  the  north 
side  of  tlie  city  in  Grand  street,  as  a  branch  of  the  home 
school,  and  conducted  by  members  of  the  Ross  Street 
Church.  Mr.  Frederick  A.  Thompson  was  the  first  superin- 
tendent. 

Rev.  Archibald  McCullagh  was  born  in  Armagh,  Ireland, 
1842;    grad.    IMnoeton   Coll.,   1808;    and    Princeton   Theol. 


Sem.,  1871;  was  located  Germantown  and  Phil.,  1871-'S; 
Brooklyn,  1878-83. 

First  Presbyterian  Church  of  Greenpoint  (E.  D.),  Noble, 
cor.  of  Guernsey  street,  org.  with  fourteen  members  at  a  meet- 
ing held  in  May,  1869,  at  Masonic  Hall,  under  the  auspices 
of  the  Presbytery  of  Nassau.  Lots  were  purchased  for  110,- 
000,  on  which  they  proceeded  to  build  a  neat  one-story  frame 
structure,  thirty-five  by  seventy-five  feet  in  size,  seating  U]i- 
wards  of  four  hundred  and  fifty  persons,  and  costing  |4,000. 
It  was  dedicated  July  18th,  1869.  Officers:  Deacon,  George 
Brinkerhoflf;  Elders,  J.  N.  Stearns,  David  Jolioe;  Tmstee.i, 
D.  H.  Furbish,  Henry  Dixon,  David  Joline,  George  Campbell, 
John  N.  Stearns.  A  thriving  Sunday-school,  under  the  super- 
intendence of  Mr.  Stearns,  was  a  feature  in  connection  witli 
this  enterprise. 

Christie  Street  Presbyterian  Church,  organized  October 
23d,  1854,  by  eighteen  members  from  the  South  Third  street 
Presbyterian  Church. 

Throop  Avenue  Presbyterian  Church. — In  1852,  a  mission 
Sabbath-school  was  org.  in  a  small  room,  cor.  Throop  avenue 
and  Bartlett  street,  in  a  sparsely  settled  German  neighbor- 
hood. 

In  1854,  the  school  removed  to  Broadway,  between  Flush- 
ing and  Yates  avenues,  becoming  known  as  the  Broadicay 
Mission  Sunday-school.  It  increased  in  numbers,  so  that 
preaching  and  other  religious  services  were  maintained. 
Nov.  14th,  1861,  the  corner-stone  of  the  Mission  build- 
ing on  Throop  avenue,  bet.  Hopkins  and  Ellery  streets,  was 
laid,  whither  the  school  removed  in  1862,  assuming  the  name 
Throop  Avenue  Mission  Sunday -school.  The  same  month 
measures  were  taken  to  org.  a  Presbj  ,eriaii  Church  from  the 
Mission,  which  was  completed  by  the  Presbytery  June  8th, 
1862.  The  membership  was  37,  of  whom  18  came  from  the 
Sunday-school,  and  17  from  the  South  Third  Presbyterian 
Cliurch.  Rev.  John  Hancock  was  Pastor,  from  1863  to  Dec, 
1866;  Rev.  John  Lovvrey,  from  May,  1867,  to  April,  1873. 
In  1867,  a  new  edifice  was  built  at  the  cor.  of  Throop  and 
Willoughby  avenues,  on  land  given  by  Hon.  Darwin  R.  James. 
It  was  intended  as  a  temporary  building  only,  and  has  since 
been  twice  enlarged,  at  a  total  expense  of  about  $26,000,  and 
seats  about  900.     (See  engraving  on  following  page. ) 

Rev.  Lewis  Ray  Foote  was  installed  Pastor,  Dec.  31st, 
1873,  and  still  occupies  the  position.  The  cliurch  is  prosper- 
ous, having  737  members,  and  annually  expends  more  money 
upon  benevolent  work  than  for  its  own  current  expenses.  It 
has  under  its  care  in  the  home  Sunday-school,  and  in  the  two 
branch  schools,  3,300  children. 

Rev.  LE\\as  R.  Foote,  born  in  So.  New  Berlin,  N.  Y.,  1844; 
grad.  Hamilton  CoU.,  1869;  and  Union  Theol.  Sem.,  1872; 
served  as  private  in  61st  N.  Y.  Vols. ;  wounded  at  Fair  Oaks, 
and  honorably  discharged;  located  B'klyn,  Nov.,  1873. 

Classen  Avenue  Church. — On  December  10,  1866,  the  ses- 
sion of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  on  Henry  st.,  and  of 
the  Lafayette  Avenue  Presbyterian  Church,  appointed  a 
joint  committee  of  two  to  inaugurate  the  movement  for  a 
new  Presbyterian  Church,  in  the  section  of  the  city  now  oc- 
cupied hj  the  Classon  Avenue  Church.  At  the  in.itation  of 
this  committee,  a  number  of  gentlemen  met  on  December 
20tli,  at  the  residence  of  Mr.  Olin  W.  Walbridge,  on  Down- 
ing St.,  when  the  organization  of  the  new  church  was  fully 
resolved  upon.  On  January  27,  1867,  church  services  were 
held  morning  and  evening,  and  a  Sunday-school  was  organ- 
ized in  the  building  No.  174  Gates  ave.  Lots  on  the  north- 
easterly corner  of  Classon  ave.  and  Monroe  st.  were  pur- 
chased for  $9,000,  and  a  frame  chapel  was  built,  which  was 
dedicated  June  3(lt1i.  On  the  8tli  of  July,  the  church  was 
constituted  by  the  Presbytery  of  Brooklyn,  with  .'59  members. 


HrSTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


THROOP    AVENUE    PRESBYTERIAN    CHURCH.     (See  previous  page.) 


Rev.  Joseph  T.  Durj'ea,  D.  D.,  was  unanimously  chosen  tlie 
first  Pastor  on  December  3,  1867,  and  he  was  installed  on  the 
2fith  f>f  December.  Ground  was  broken  by  the  Pastor  for 
the  new  edifice  on  May  13,  1868,  the  corner-stone  was  laid 
December  1,  1868.  and  the  edifice  was  dedicated  on  Sunday, 
January  2,  1870.  Previous  to  the  completion  of  the  chvirch, 
tlie  chapel  was  enlarged  to  its  present  size.  A  mission  Sun- 
day-school was  established  on  Atlantic  ave.  soon  after  the 
commencement  of  Dr.  Duryea's  pastorate.  In  1879,  the 
church  purchased  the  building  formerly  occupied  by  Dr. 
Nyes'  Church,  corner  of  Vanderbilt  and  Atlantic  aves.,  and 
the  mission  school  removed  to  this  building,  which  has  since 
been  known  as  Duryea  Chapel.  On  April  7,  1879,  the  pas- 
toral relations  of  Rev.  Dr.  Duryea  were  dissolved.  Rev. 
David  R.  Frazer,  D.  D.,  was  installed  March  4th,  1880.  Dur- 
ing his  jiastorate,  the  remaining  mortgage  debt  of  $28,000 
was  paid;  ani  a  large  proportion  of  the  pews,  which  had  been 
held  by  individuals,  were  surrendered  to  the  church.  Rev. 
Dr.  Frazer's  pastorate  terminated  January  31,  1883. 

Dr.  Leander  T.  Chamberlain  accepted  the  call  extended  to 
him  by  the  Classon  Avenue  Presbyterian  Church  to  become 
its  Pastor,  and  was  settled  in  October,  1883. 

The  church  in  Classon  ave.  has  a  seating  capacity  of  1,500. 
It  is  elegantlj-  finished  inside,  and  free  from  debt.  Its  mem- 
bership is  over  700.  The  Home  Sunday-school  and  the  Mis- 
sion Sunday-school,  which  hold  their  meetings  in  Duryea 
Chapel,  on  Clermont  ave.,  are  in  a  prosperous  condition,  un- 
der the  able  management  of  their  respective  superintendents, 
Messrs.  E.  B.  Bartlett  and  E.  P.  Loomis.  The  membership 
of  the  latter  school  amounts  to  400. 

Dr.  Chamberlain  was  born  in  Massachusetts  about  forty- 
five  years  ago.     He  received   his   classical  training   in  Yale 


College,  where  he  deUvered  the  valedictory  oration.  He 
went  to  Andover  Theological  Seminary,  in  Massachusetts, 
to  prosecute  his  studies  for  the  ministry.  He  enjoys  a  wide 
reputation  for  biblical  scholarship  and  eloquence  in  the  pulpit. 

Memorial  Presbyterian  Church. — In  the  spring  of  1866,  a 
movement  was  set  on  f<iiit  by  some  members  of  the  Lafay- 
ette Avenue  Presbyterian  Church,  and  others,  resulting  in 
the  organization  of  a  Sunday-school,  which  met  for  a  time  in 
a  room  on  Baltic  st.  In  the  autumn  following,  the  School 
took  possession  of  a  chapel  which  had  been  provided  in  War- 
ren St.  (now  Prospect  place),  near  Sixth  ave.  Preaching  ser- 
vices were  occasionally  held,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Mason,  of  East 
Tennessee,  oflficiating  for  a  time.  February  19,  1867,  a  Board 
of  Trustees  was  elected,  and  the  chapel  and  properties  were 
transferred  to  the  Board,  to  be  used  for  a  Presbyterian 
Church.  March  38,  1867,  the  Presbytery  of  Brooklyn  (N.  S.) 
met  at  the  Chapel,  and  organized  the  Memorial  Presbyterian 
Church,  with  34  members,  of  whom  the  majority  were  from 
Lafayette  Avenue  Church.  James  Craikshank,  C.  C.  Mudge 
and  Jacob  S.  Denman  were  elected  Ruling  Elders,  while 
Ithamar  DuBois  and  John  H.  Wilson  constituted  the  first 
Board  of  Deacons. 

Rev.  Theodore  S.  Brown,  of  Plainfiekl,  N.  J.,  was  installed 
as  the  first  Pastor  of  the  church  April  23d,  1867;  he  remained 
for  six  years.  During  the  year  following  Mr.  Brown's  resig- 
nation, services  were  maintained  by  supplies,  the  way  not 
appearing  clear  for  the  calling  of  a  Pastor  adapted  to  the 
work.  In  June  of  1874,  the  Rev.  t'.  K.  Jones  was  engaged 
as  stated  supply  for  one  year,  but  retired  from  the  work 
somewhat  before  the  expiration  of  that  time. 

On  the  1st  of  May,  1875,  the  Rev.  Thomas  Crowther,  of 
Pittsfield,  Mass.,  commenced  his  labors.     In  the  .spring  of 


no CLESIASTIGAL    OR  GANIZA TIGim 


1071 


-^-sii'i 


MEMOniAl,    ]-l(i;s]iVi'ERTAN    CHURCH. 


1877,  he  was  dismissed  at  his  own  request.  On  the  23d  of 
Juno,  1877,  a  call  was  extended  to  the  Rev.  T.  A.  Nelson,  the 
present  Pastor,  who  was  then  completing  his  studies  in  the 
Union  Theological  Seminary  of  New  York.  He  began  his 
labors  on  the  first  Sabbath  of  August  following,  and  was 
ordained  and  installed  as  Pastor  on  the  evening  of  Wednes- 
day, Sept.  20,  1877. 

The  steady  growth  of  the  congregation  rendering  both  a 
change  of  location  and  increase  of  aoconimodation  desirable, 
a  movement  was  inaugurated  for  the  purchase  of  an  eligible 
site  and  the  ei'ection  of  a  ne%v  edifice,  which  resulted  in  the 
present  projierty  on  the  corner  of  Seventh  ave.  and  St.  John's 
place.  Ground  was  broken  for  the  present  church  edifice  on 
the  morning  of  March  13,  1882,  and  the  corner-stone  of  the 
new  building  laid,  with  appropriate  ceremony,  on  the  1st  day 
of  June  following.  On  Sabbath  morning,  Februaiy  18,  1883, 
the  church  was  first  opened  for  worship. 

The  style  is  the  pure  Gothic  of  the  early  decorated  period, 
which  flourished  in  the  beginning  of  the  fourteenth  century. 
The  church  is  faced  throughout  witli  gray-rock  Belleville 
stone,  the  windows  having  stone  tracery  throughout.  The 
buttresses  are  surmounted  by  stone  pinnacles;  the  parapets 
pierced  with  open  tracery,  and  the  roof  is  of  blue  slate,  ridged 


with  ornamented  terra  cotta.  The  tower  serves  as  a  porch 
with  double  entrance,  the  other  entrances  being  on  Seventh 
ave.  and  St.  John's  jjlace.  The  pews  in  the  auditorium  are 
circular  in  form,  and  the  woodwork  generally  is  of  stained 
cherry.  The  dimensions  of  the  structure  are  95  by  67;  the 
height  to  ridge,  47  feet;  and  to  the  apex  of  the  spire,  which 
is  of  stone,  117  feet  high.  There  are  seats  for  about  800  peo- 
ple in  the  edifice.  It  is  proposed  in  the  early  future  to  build 
a  cliapel  closely  adjoining,  for  lecture-room  and  Sunday- 
school  purposes. 

Rev.  Thomas  A.  Nelson  was  born  in  Montreal,  Canada. 
In  early  life  he  ■was  engaged  in  the  mercantile  business  in 
Indianapolis.  In  1866,  he  entered  Asbury  TJniversit}',  to 
prepare  for  the  ministry.  He  was  Secretary  of  the  Y.  M.  C. 
A.  of  Toledo,  1871-'4,  when  he  entered  the  Union  Theol. 
Sem.,  New  York,  graduating  in  May,  1877;  and  tlie  follow- 
ing month  he  accepted  a  call  to  the  Memorial  Presbyterian 
Church  of  this  city.  His  pulpit  discourses  are  noted  for 
clearness  and  precision  of  expression ;  he  claims  no  advanced 
ideas  iia  religious  theory,  but  his  mind  is  naturally  liberal 
and  his  views  cheerful.  His  earnest,  sincere  and  manly 
characteristics  have  won  the  esteem  of  a  large  circle  of 
friends. 


1072 


HISTORY  OF  KlJSroS  COUNTY. 


Bethlehem  Mission  was  commenced  November  1,  1868,  in 
the  livery  stablo  of  Jlr.  "Witty,  at  the  junction  of  Fulton  and 
Flatbusli  aves.  The  mission  took  its  name  because  of  its  or- 
ganization in  .-  stable.  It  was  org.  by  A.  M.  Earle  and  Eev. 
D.  M.  Heydrick,  whose  life  has  been  devoted  to  mission  labor 
in  this  city,  and  who  lias  been  intimately  connected  with  the 
organization  of  many  missions.  After  five  Sunda.vs  in  this 
place  the  mission  was  removed  to  Prospect  Hall  (now  Music 
Hall),  at  the  junction  of  Flatbush  and  Fulton  aves.,  and  sub- 
sequently to  a  room  over  Nos.  635  and  637  Fulton  St.,  vphere 
it  has  since  been  held. 

The  first  su]ierintendent  was  A.  M.  Earle,  followed  by  Mr. 
Hawley,  Mr.  Kimball  and  Mr.  G.  A.  Brett,  who,  with  his  ex- 
cellent wife,  carried  on  the  work  there  at  their  own  exjiense 
during  five  years.  Mr.  Heydrick  has  been  the  Pastor  of  the 
mission  from  the  first,  and  since  1879,  both  Pastor  and  Super- 
intendent. 

The  German  Evangelical  Mission  Church  (Presbyterian), 
Hopkins  St.,  was  org.  as  a  mission  in  1868,  and  as  a  church 
in  1870.  Its  ])lace  of  worship,  while  a  mission,  was  the 
Tliroop  Ave.  Mission  School  building.  In  1871  the  present 
church  edifice  was  built,  on  Hopkins  st.,  near  Throop  ave. 
It  is  of  brick,  with  l,-400  sittings.  A  parsonage  adjoins  the 
church.     The  cost  of  the  church  ]iroperty  was  |62,000. 

Rev.  John  Meury  has  been  Pastor  from  the  time  when  the 
church  was  a  mission. 

A  parochial  school  is  maintained  iu  tlie  basement  of  the 
church,  where  instruction  is  given  in  both  German  and  Eng- 
lish. It  has  an  average  attendance  of  160.  Two  teachers 
are  employed. 


Nnni.E    STItEET    PRESBYTERIAN    CHURCH. 

Noble  Street  Presbyterian  Church. — This  church  was 
formed  by  the  Presbytery  of  Nassau,  iu  April,  1869,  and 
consisted  of  fourteen  members.  The  first  place  of  meeting 
was  the  Masonic  Hall,  corner  of  Manhattan  and  Meserolo 
aves.  A  short  time  after,  a  small  frame  building  was  erected 
on  the  corner  of  Noble  and  Lorimer  sts.,  the  Presbytery  giv- 
ing tlie  lots  for  the  jjurpose.  Subsequently  this  was  removed, 
and  the  present  brick  edifice  was  erected  in  its  place.  A 
large  lecture-room  and  j)arsonage  were  added. 


Rev.  William  Howell  Taylor  was  installed  the  first  Pastor 
in  1870,  and  continued  to  1875,  when  ill  health  comjielled  him 
to  seek  a  more  salubrious  climate,  and  a  less  arduous  field  of 
labor.  Rev.  John  T.  Lloyd  was  installed  in  1876,  and  con- 
tinued Pastor  nearly  one  year.  Rev.  C.  F.  Taylor,  D.D.,  was 
called  from  Le  Roy,  N.  Y.,  and  installed  iu  1878. 

The  church  has  grown,  in  spite  of  many  discouragements, 
till  it  numbers  over  three  thousand  members. 

Its  Officers  now  (1884)  are:  Rev.  C.  F.  Taylor,  D.D.,  Pas- 
tor; Bavid  Joline,  Geo.  P.  Wilson  and  John  A.  Jenkins, 
M.D.,  Elders:  Mervin  Briggs,  Supt.  of  the  large  and  flourish- 
ing Sabbath-school. 

Foit  Greene  Presbyterian  Church. — The  Lafayette  Avenue 
Presbyterian  Church  established  a  mission  in  Cumberland 
St.,  known  as  Calvary  Chapel.  The  flourishing  Sunday- 
school  was  the  nucleus  of  a  church  which  the  Presbytery  or- 
ganized in  1873,  with  Rev.  William  Guthrie  Barnes  the  first 
Pastor.  Lots  were  bought  for  $10,000,  and  a  handsome  brick 
church,  aliout  70x120  feet,  was  erected,  costing  about  $45,000. 
Its  seating  capacity  is  about  750. 

In  1875,  Dr.  Adam  McClelland's  church,  the  Lawrence 
Street  Church,  corner  of  Tillary,  was  sold  to  the  Roman 
Catholics,  and  the  congregation  united  with  the  Fort  Greene 
church  under  the  pastoral  care  of  Dr.  McClelland,  who  re- 
signed in  1883.  Dr.  McClelland  was,  from  1855,  principal  of 
the  New  York  Institution  for  the  Blind.  In  1858,  he  began 
his  work  as  Pastor-elect  of  the  Lawrence  Street  Presbyterian 
Church,  and  was  ordained  on  September  23  of  the  same  year. 
He  remained  Pastor  of  the  Lawrence  Street  Churcli  until  the 
time  of  its  union  with  the  Fort  Greene  Presbyterian  Church, 
in  February  of  1875.  He  has  since  been  in  quiet  possession 
of  his  pastorate.  At  the  time  of  the  union  of  the  two 
churches  his  whole  congregation  went  with  him. 

Greene  Avenue  Presbyterian  Church — In  1874,  A.  M.  Earle 
erected  on  Greene  ave.,  between  Reid  and  Patchen  aves.,  an 
edifice,  which  subsequently  liecame  the  house  of  worship  of 
this  society,  which  was  organized  May  19th,  1874,  with  about 
twenty  members.  It  was  but  a  temporary  structure,  but 
served  their  purpose  until  they  took  possession  of  their 
present  church  building,  which  is  a  wooden  edifice,  with 
about  500  sittings. 

During  a  portion  of  the  first  year  of  its  existence,  the 
church  was  supplied  by  James  S.  Evans,  D.  D.,  a  Sy nodical 
Missionary.  The  present  Pastor,  Rev.  Williana  J.  Bridges, 
was  installed  May  20th,  1875. 

The  First  United  Presbyterian  Church  of  Brooklyn. — The 
Rev.  H.  H.  Blair,  then  Pastor  of  the  Associate  Presbyterian 
Church,  of  Charles  St.,  New  York,  first  began  missionary 
work,  in  connection  with  his  own  pastoral  labors,  in  Wil- 
liamsburgh,  by  preaching  occasionally  in  a  hall.  He  thus 
gathered  a,  nucleus,  from  which  an  organization  was  effected 
about  1849.  The  first  Pastor  was  ihe  Rev.  Wm.  Cleeland,  a 
licentiate  from  the  Irish  Presbyterian  Church,  installed,  Oct. 
11th,  1849,  in  Butterman's  Hall,  Williamsburph.  Tiiis  pas- 
toral relation  continued  till  April  22d,  1854.  On  the  18th  of 
May,  1854,  Rev.  Andrew  Thomas  was  installed  Pastor,  but 
soon  accepted  the  charge  of  a  church  in  Providence,  R.  I. 

Nov.  15th,  1855,  Rev.  Samuel  Farmer  was  installed  Pastor. 
John  Robb  and  James  Smith  were  Ruling  Elders  at  this  time. 
During  Mr.  Cleeland's  pastorate,  the  congregation  bought  a 
lot,  and  built  a  small  brick  church  on  the  corner  of  8th  and 
So.  1st  sts.,  but,  under  the  ministry  of  Rev.  S.  Farmer,  this 
was  sold,  and  a  new  and  much  larger  church  edifice  was 
built,  on  corner  of  8th  and  So.  8th  sts.  This,  however, 
proved  almost  fatal  to  the  existence  of  the  congregation. 

The  financial  crisis  of  1857  came;  the  Pastor  demitted  his 
chai'ge,  and  an  effort  was  made  to  foreclose  a  mortgage  of 


ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


10V3 


about  $14,000.  They  exchanged  their  new  church  and 
grounds  for  a  little  frame  church  in  No.  5th  st.,  between  4tli 
and  5th  sts.,  with  the  grounds,  tliree  full  lots.  This  was 
nearly  ruinous  to  the  congregation.  The  organization,  how- 
ever, was  not  broken  up,  though  thoroughly  discouraged  and 
disheartened. 

Rev.  J.  T.  Wilson  was  installed  in  1867,  and  worked  suc- 
cessfully for  a  few  years;  but  feeling  that  his  church  was 
overwhelmed  with  debt,  and  tliat  it  was  badly  located,  he 
made  an  effort  to  take  the  congregation  out  of  it,  and  leave 
the  property  to  the  parties  having  mortgages  against  it.  But 
tliis  effort  was  opposed  by  part  of  the  congregation,  and  re- 
sulted in  a  division.  Tliose  who  went  out  with  Mr.  Wilson, 
worshiped  in  a  hall  for  some  months,  and  Mr.  Wilson  soon 
was  released.  From  this  nucleus  was  afterwards  foi-med 
what  is  now  known  as  the  2d  Reformed  Presbyterian  Church, 
Brooklyn. 

Those  remaining  in  the  church  were  few  and  feeble.  Three 
short  pastorates,  however,  viz.,  that  of  Rev.  Martin  Ross, 
Rev.  H.  Brown,  and  Rev.  R.  T.  Wylie,  intervened  between 
that  time  and  May  15th,  1876,  when  the  present  Pastor,  Rev. 
J.  H.  Andrew,  was  installed.  With  the  aid  of  the  Bd.  of 
Home  Missions,  they  were  able  to  jiay  him  a  salary  of  only 
f  1,300.  In  less  than  two  years  they  became  self-sustaining. 
They  have  now  almost  paid  their  church  debt,  and  the  con- 
gregation numbers  about  160  members,  and  is  increasing. 

In  the  year  1858,  a  union  was  formed  between  the  Associate 
and  Associate  Reformed  Presbyterians.  And  Jhva  little  con- 
gregation which  belonged  to  the  Associate  Church,  went  into 
that  union,  hence  the  present  name  United  Presbyterian 
Church. 

The  present  eldership  of  the  church  is  as  follows:  John 
Patterson,  William  Ramsay,  Robert  Moore,  John  Ward,  John 
McLean. 

The  Second  United  Presbyterian  Church. — In  response  to 
the  petition  of  sixty-five  citizens  of  Brooklyn,  desirous  to  be 
taken  under  its  care,  and  supplied  with  preaching,  the  Pres- 
bytery of  New  York,  of  the  United  Presbyterian  Church, 
in  July,  1858,  consented  to  the  request,  and  approved  of  the 
organization  of  this  congregation,  which  wao  effected  Sept. 
1st  of  that  year.  The  new  church  immediately  commenced 
public  worsliip  in  the  Brooklyn  Institute,  under  the  pastoral 
charge  of  the  Rev.  David  J.  Patterson;  installed  Feb.  1, 
1859,  and  who  had  labored  in  Brooklyn  during  the  previous 
ten  years,  in  charge  of  another  church  organization. 

About  Nov.  8,  1863,  the  congregation  purchased  the  clmrch 
building  previously  occupied  by  the  Reformed  Presbyterians, 
on  the  corner  of  Atlantic  ave.  and  Bond  st. ,  and  hero  they 
have  since  worshiped.  It  is  of  brick,  40x70  feet  in  size,  and 
accommodates  about  500  persons.  The  principles  anc  forms 
of  govermuent  of  this  church  are  those  formulated  in  the 
Westminster  Confession  of  Faith,  etc.  Rev.  Mr.  Patterson 
continues  in  pastoral  charge,  and  the  church  is  prosperous. 
The  First  Reformed  Presbyterian  Church  was  an  off- 
shoot from  a  church  of  tlie  same  name  in  New  York  city. 
Several  families  in  connection  with  that  church  resided  in 
Brooklyn,  and  this  led  to  the  establishment  here  of  a  church, 
which  was  organized  April  3,  1848. 

Lots  were  purchased,  and  a  house  of  worship  was  erected 
in  DufBeld  st.,  near  Myrtle  ave.  Here  the  congregation  wor- 
shiped till  IsTi),  when  the  building  was  sold  to  the  Church 
of  the  Holy  Trinity  (Episcopal),  for  a  chapel.  The  congrega- 
tion then  worshiped  in  Granada  Hall,  Myrtle  ave.,  till  Oc- 
tober, 1881,  when  they  purchased  the  chapel  of  the  Memorial 
(Presbyterian)  Church,  in  Prospect  place. 

Tlio  first  Pastor  was  Rev.  David  J.  Patterson,  followed  in 
succession  by  Revs.   G.  A.  McMillan;    J.  Agnew  Crawford, 


Jan.,  1861 ;  Alexander  Clements,  Nov.,  1863;  Nevin  Wood- 
side,  installed  Jan.  17,  1867  ;  and  John  C.  Mackey.  Rev.  T. 
J.  McClelland  was  installed  Pastor,  Jan  ,  1884. 

The  Reformed  Presbyterian  Church  was  organized  June 
17,  1857,  and  its  first  house  of  worship  was  at  the  corner  of 
Atlantic  ave.  and  Bond  st.,  with  Rev.  J.  M.  Dickson  as  the 
Pastor  for  six  years.  The  building  is  now  occupied  by  the 
United  Pretbylerian  Church.  Its  second  house  of  worship 
was  at  the  corner  of  Lafayette  ave.  and  Ryerson  st.,  and  Rev. 
J.  A.  Boggs  was  Pastor  for  sixteen  years.  Dec.  7,  1881,  Rev. 
S.  J.  Crowe  was  installed  Pastor.  In  1888,  the  congregation 
pm-chased  the  Willoughby  ave.  M.  E.  Church  building,  corner 
of  Willoughby  and  Tompkins  aves.  The  congregation,  then  75 
strong,  now  numbers  104  ;  and  has  purchased  the  edifice  in 
which  it  now  worships,  corner  of  Willoughby  and  Tomp- 
kins aves. 

Rev.  S.  J.  Crowe,  born  1843,  near  Pittsburgh,  Pa.;  grad. 
Westminster  Coll.,  Pa.,  1866,  and  Ref.  Pres.  Theol.  Sem.  at 
Allegheny,  1871;  was  Pres.  Geneva  Coll.,  Pa.,  1867-71;  lo- 
cated at  Newcastle,  Pa.,  1872-'81;  B'klyn,  Dec,  1881-'4. 

Second  Reformed  Presbyterian  Church,  Ninth  st.,  Brook- 
lyn, E.  D.,  between  South  Second  and  South  Third  sts.,  was 
org.  about  1869.  The  people  worshijjed  for  about  seven  years 
in  a  Hall.  Its  first  Pastor  was  Rev.  Alexander  Moffat,  who, 
after  four  years,  returned  to  Ireland.  Rev.  W.  J.  McDowell 
then  became  the  Pastor,  until  the  23d  of  May,  1883,  when  he 
resigned.  In  1876,  a  church  edifice  was  erected,  mainly 
through  the  exertions  of  Mr.  McDowell,  who  was  materially 
encouraged  and  assisted  by  the  late  J.  B.  Guthrie,  Esq.  The 
building  is  35  by  60  feet  in  size,  neat  and  tastefully  furnished, 
and  has  a  seating  capacity  of  2.50,  and  cost  $11,000,  includ- 
ing the  ground.  Beside  the  auditorium,  is  a  good  basement, 
lecture-room,  and  Sabbath-school.  It  is  at  present  without 
a  Pastor. 

Rev.  Wm.  J.  Macdowell  was  born  in  Ireland,  1837  ;  grad. 
Royal  Belfast  Acad.  Instit.,  1845,  and  Paisley  (Scotland) 
Theol.  Sem.,  1847;  located  Canada,  1848;  Lisbon,  N.  Y.,  1858; 
So.  Ryegate,  Vt.,  1863;  B'klyn,  1873-'84  ;  aufhov  Scripture 
Catechism,  1880,  and  Ch.  Magazine  Arts. 

February  3d,  1869,  at  a  meeting  held  ia  one  of  the  rooms  of 
the  Masonic  Temple,  corner  of  Seventh  and  Grand  streets,  E. 
D.,  a  new  congregation  was  organized  in  connection  with  the 
General  Synod  of  the  Reformed  Presbyterian  Chiu-ch.  Messrs. 
John  B.  Guthrie  and  Thomas  M.  Stewart  were  chosen  elders, 
and  Messrs.  Dunn,  Black,  McFadden,  Hawthorne  and  Martin 
were  elected  trustees.  This  enterprise  is  under  the  supervision 
of  the  Northern  Reformed  Presbytery. 

There  are  two  churches  in  the  United  States  called  Re- 
formed Presbyterian.  The  one  is  known  as  "The  General 
Synod  of  the  Reformed  Presbyterian  Church,"  to  which  this 
church  belongs,  and  to  vvhicli  the  First  Reformed  Presby- 
terian Church,  in  Prospect  place,  belongs.  The  other  Re- 
formed Presbyterian  Church  is  known  by  the  designation  of 
"The  Synod  of  the  Reformed  Presbyterian  Cliurch."  The 
only  material  difference  between  them  is,  that  the  General 
Synod  allows  its  people  to  vote  at  municipal,  state,  and  presi- 
dential elections.  The  other  organization  forbids  all  fra- 
ternization with  political  affairs.  The  division  took  place  in 
the  year  1833.  The  only  church  of  this  denomination  is  lo- 
cated on  the  corner  of  Tompkins  and  Willoughby  aves. 
Mr.  Crowe  is  its  present  Pastor. 

The  First  Free  Presbyterian  Church  of  Brooklyn  was 
organized  May  31,  1881,  with  Rev.  W.  J.  Clarke  as  Pastor. 
During  five  months  the  congregation  worshiped  in  a  mis- 
sion chapel,  in  Clifton  place.  The  present  iilace  of  worship 
is  Granada  Hall,  in  Myrtle  ave.  This  is  tlie  only  clmrch  in 
Brooklyn  where  the  psalms  and  paraphrases  are  sung. 


1074 


HISTOHT  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


The  following  Presbyterian  clergymen  are  residing  in 
Brooklyn  : 

Rev.  James  H.  Callen,  D.D.,  born  in  Ireland,  1834;  grad. 
Lafayette  Coll.,  Pa.,  1846;  Alleghany  Theol.  Sem.,  1848. 
Previous  locations,  Uniontown,  Pa.,  and  Trenton,  N.  J., 
1848-'64. 

Rev.  Lyman  Gilbert,  born  at  Brandon,  "Vt.,  June,  1798; 
grad.  Middleburv  Coll.,  1824,  and  Andover  Tlieol.  Sem.,  1837. 
Pastor  Congl.  Ch.,  West  Newton,  Mass.,  1838-'o6;  at  Malden- 
on-the-Hudson,  1859-'63;  came  to  B'klyn,  1863. 

Rev.  Benjamin  Parsons,  born  in  Bloomfield,  N.  J.,  1836: 
grad.  Yale,  1850,  and  Hartford  Theol.  Sem.,  1854;  was  Mis- 
sionary of  Amer.  Bd.  C.  F.  Missions  in  Turkey,  6  yrs. ;  located 
Le  Roy,  N.  Y.,  B'klyn,  1883-'4;  was  with  Army  of  Cumber- 
land in  U.  S.  Chr.  Com. 

Rev.  WiLLiAJi  M.  Martin,  born  in  Rahway,  N.  J. ;  grad. 
N.  Y.  Univ.,  1837,  and  Union  Theol.  Sem.,  N.  Y.,  1840;  lo- 
cated Woodbridge,  N.  J.,  1852-'63;  Columbia  City,  Cal.,  1803 
-4;  Virginia  City,  Nev.,  1864-'7;  Sec'y  B'klyn  Y.  M.  C.  A., 
1868-'76;  Supt.  B'klyn  City  Miss,  and  Tract  Soc,  1878-'84;  in 
1863,  in  Chris.  Com.  Works. 

Rev.  John  Abeel  Baldwin,  born  in  New  York,  1810;  grad. 
Yale  CoU.,  1839,  and  Princeton  Theol.  Sem.,  1834;  located  in 
Flatlands  and  New  Lots,  1836-'53;  Lincaster,  Pa.,  1853-'6; 
New  Providence,  1857-'63;  came  to  B'klyn,  1863;  Pastor  at 
Woodhaven,  L.  L,  1869. 


Rev.  David  Lyme,  born  in  Perthshire,  Scotland,  1810;  grad. 
St.  Andrew's  Univ.,  1838;  in  theology,  at  St.  Mary's  Coll.,  St. 
Andrew's  Univ. ,  1832;  licensed  to  preach,  1833;  Prof.  Mathe- 
matics, etc..  in  Columbia  Coll.  Gram.  School;  Principal 
B'klyn  Pub.  School  No.  7,  1849-53;  of  No.  6,  1853;  was  Prin. 
of  first  evening  sell.,  1853;  opened  Eng.  and  class,  sch.,  1862; 
retired  in  1871.    • 

Rev.  Benjamin  G.  Benedict,  born  in  Patterson,  N.  Y.,  1838; 
grad.  La  Fayette  Coll.,  Pa.,  1859,  and  Princeton  Theol.  Sem., 
1866;  located  in  Hopewell,  N.  Y.,  18e0-'74;  B'klyn,  1876-84. 

Rev.  Oliver  S.  St;  John,  born  in  New  York,  1814;  grad. 
Amherst  Coll.,  1838;  studied  Hartford  Theol.  Sem.,  1840-'l; 
located  Elizabethport,  N.  J.,  1841-'50;  Prof.  Latin  and  Greek, 
1850-'4;  located  B'klyn,  1865-'84. 

Rev.  Charles  W.  Taylor,  born  at  Candor,  N.  Y. ;  grad. 
Union  Coll.,  1848,  and  Princeton  Theol.  Sem.,  1853;  was  tutor 
in  Union  Coll. ;  located  Ballston  Center,  Cambridge,  Le  Roy, 
B'klyn,  1878-84. 

Rev.  John  Gottfried  Hehr,  born  in  Germany,  1853;  grad. 
Acad.  Dep't.,  1878;  Theol.  Sch.  Bloomfield,  N.  J.,  1881;  lo- 
cated B'klyn,  1883. 

Rev.  Loois  EuLNER,  born  in  Hessen  Cassel,  Germany, 
1815;  Missionary  Amer.  and  B'klyn  Mission  and  Tract  Soc, 
1843-'84. 

Rev.  William  J.  Bridges,  born  in  Baltimore,  Md.,  1835; 
grad.  Princeton  Theol.  Sem.,  1875;  located  B'klyn,  1875-'84. 


BAPTIST    CHURCHES. 


The  First  Baptist  Church,  cor.  of  Pierrepont  and  Clinton 
sts.,  represents,  since  April,  1873,  two  organizations,  viz., 
the  First  Baptist  Church,  formerly  located  on  the  corner  of 
Nassau  and  Liberty  sts.,  and  the  Pierrepont  St.  Baptist 
Church,  which  formerly  occupied  a  part  of  the  present  site. 
John  Ellis,  a  Bajitist  preacher  from  Oyster  Bay,  L.  I.,  seems 
to  have  attempted,  during  the  winter  of  1819-'20,  to  establish 
a  church  of  this  denomination  in  the  village  of  Brooklyn. 
We  have  no  further  record  of  the  results  of  his  effort;  but, 
during  the  prevalence  of  the  yellow  fever  in  New  York,  in 
the  summer  of  1833,  among  those  who  sought  refuge  in 
Brooklyn  were  two  Baptists,  viz.,  Eliakim  Raymond  (father 
of  the  late  John  H.  Raymond,  LL.  D.,  first  president  of  the 
Polytechnic  Institute,  and  afterward  president  of  Vassar 
College)  and  Elijah  Lewis  (father  of  Elijah  Lewis,  Jr.,  the 
well-known  Long  Island  naturalist  and  active  director  of  the 
L.  I.  Hist.  Soc),  who  subsequently  became  one  of  Brooklyn's 
prominent  merchants.  Finding  in  the  village  five  other  Bap- 
tists, they  commenced  a  prayer-meeting,  occasionally  pro- 
curing preaching  for  the  twenty  or  thirty  persons  whom  they 
could  gather  to  hear  a  Baptist  minister.  Despite  the  subse- 
quent return  of  these  two  bretliren  to  New  York,  after  the 
pestilence  had  ceased,  they  still  continued  to  strengthen  the 
hands  of  the  little  band  they  had  left  in  Brooklyn  by  fre- 
quent visits,  often  crossing  the  East  River  in  open  boats,  in 
all  sorts  of  weather  ;  and  by  supplying  preachers  at  their 
own  cost,  in  which  they  were  afterward  joined  by  Mr.  Wm. 
Winterton.  On  the  19th  August,  1833,  a  church  was  finally 
organized,  with  the  following  members  :  Charles  P.  Jacobs 
(Clerk),  Richard  and  Hannah  Jones,  Joshua  and  Margaret 
Evans,  Maria  Cornell,  Sarah  Quereau,  Elizabeth  Jacobs, 
Margaret  Nostrand  and  Eliza  Ann  Rust. 

Messrs.  Raymond  and  Lewis  continued  their  membership 
ia  New  York,  but  gave  their  counsel  and  labor  to  the  new 


enterprise.  The  first  communion  service  was  held  Sunday, 
Aug.  24,  1823,  and  the  church  was  formally  incorp.  on  the 
16th  of  the  following  October,  with  Eliakim  Raymond,  Elijah 
Lewis,  John  Brown,  Richard  Poland  and  Chas.  P.  Jacobs  as 
Trustees.  Meetings  continued  to  be  held  at  private  houses 
until  1834,  when  the  use  was  secured  of  the  First  District 
School -house,  on  the  site  of  the  present  Pub.  S.  No.  1,  corner 
of  Concord  and  Adams  sts.,  and  Rev.  Wm.  C.  Havvley  was  set 
apart  to  the  charge  of  the  church  in  March  of  that  year. 
Afterwards  the  congregation  occupied  the  public  school- 
house  in  Middagh  st.,  until  early  in  1837,  when  (by  the  man- 
agement and  strenuous  exertions  of  Messrs.  Raymond,  Lewis 
and  Corning)  they  had  completed  an  edifice,  40  by  00  feet, 
without  galleries,  but  ample  for  their  wants  at  that  time, 
which  is  still  in  existence,  being  occupied  as  a  synagogue  by 
the  Jewish  Congregation  of  Beth  Elohim.  Mr.  Hawley  was 
at  this  time  receiving  for  his  pastoral  services  at  the  rate 
of  $11.33  a  month.  The  first  deacons  of  the  church  were 
Elijah  Lewis,  Gersham  Howell  and  E.  Rajmond.  Mr.  Haw- 
ley was  succeeded  in  the  pastorate  by  Rev.  Jos.  A.  Warne, 
1838-'29;  Rev.  Geo.  Colt  and  Rev.  Josiah  Denham,  1829-'30; 
Rev.  J.  E,  Lascalle,  1830-'31;  Rev.  Leland  Howell,  1833-'37. 
During  his  term  (1834)  the  building  was  sold  to  the  Calvary 
Free  Episcopal  Church,  and  a  new  one,  cor.  of  Liberty  and 
Nassau  sts.,  was  dedicated  May  3,  1835.  In  June,  1857,  the 
bass  viol  was  ousted  from  the  choir  by  an  organ,  not  with- 
out great  opposition  from  the  older  members.  In  1857,  Rev. 
Silas  Ilsley  became  Pastor;  and,  in  April,  1840,  33  members 
were  dismissed  to  form  what  was  first  known  as  the  East, 
and  later  as  the  Pierrepont  St.  B.  Ch.,  which  was  reunited  to 
the  parent  church  in  1873.  In  1837,  the  Central  B.  Ch.  was 
org.  from  tliis  congregation,  which,  in  1848,  with  many 
others,  suffered  the  loss  of  its  edifice  in  "  the  great  fire."  But, 
by  Nov.,  1849,  a  new  building  was  ready  for  use,  costing 


EGGLEtSIASTICAL    OEGANIZATIONS. 


lOYs 


lyliillililill  I  I  II  I 


llKbi   B\?Xibl    CHURCH 

$16,000.  Colonies  wei'e  sent  forth  from  the  church,  which 
establislied  the  Washington  Ave.  B.  Ch.  in  1851,  and  the 
Hanson  Place  B.  Ch.  in  1834. 

The  Pastors  which  succeeded  Mr.  Ilsley  (who  resigned  Nov., 
1841.  to  take  charge  of  the  Wash.  Ave.  enterprise)  were  : 
Revs.  Jas.  L.  Hodge,  O.  W.  Briggs,  in  1853;  D.  J.  Yerkes,  in 
July,  1860;  H.  M.  Gallaher,  in  Sept.,  1864,  during  whose  pas- 
torate the  church  edifice  was  twice  enlarged  and  improved, 
and  a  parsonage  purchased.  In  Sept.,  1873,  Mr.  Gallaher 
was  obliged  by  ill  liealth  to  resign.  Elijah  Lewis,  Sr.,  after 
•a  service  of  25  years  as  Superintendent  of  the  Sabbath-school, 
died  in  August,  1860,  and  was  succeeded  by  Edward  L. 
Brown. 

In  April,  1873,  the  Pierrepont  St.  B.  Ch.  was  reunited  with 
this  church,  and,  in  November  following,  the  united  body 
extended  a  call  to  Rev.  J.  B.  Thomas,  D.  D.,  of  Chicago,  111., 
former  Pastor  of  the  former  church,  who  commenced  his  du- 
ties Jan.  1,  1874.  In  Dec,  1873,  the  edifice  was  partially 
destroyed  by  fire,  so  that  tlie  church  was  obliged  to  worsliip 
in  the  Pierrejiont  st.  building;  and,  in  1880,  the  property  was 
sold,  and  the  site  is  now  occupied  by  the  publishing  estab- 
lisliment  of  A.  S.  Barnes  &  Co. 

Rev.  Jesse  B.  Thomas,  D.  D.,  was  born  at  Edwardsville, 
111.,  July  29,  1832,  a  son  of  Judge  Thomas,  of  the  Supreme 
Court  of  Illinois.  He  grad.  at  Kenyon  Coll.,  O.,  in  1850; 
studied  law  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1855.  He  after- 
wards entered  Rochester  Theol.  Sem. .  but  ill  health  obliged 
him  to  leave  after  a  short  time.  In  1862,  he  entered  the 
ministry  at  Waukegau,  lU.  His  subsequent  locations  were 
in  Brooklyn,  San  Francisco  and  Chicago,  returning  to  Brook- 
lyn Jan.  1,  1874.  Dr.  Thomas  is  a  pungent  and  forcible 
speaker.  He  has  a  judicial  mind,  with  great  logical  powers, 
and  is  very  systematic.    He  is  known  as  lecturer  and  author. 

The  Second  Baptist  Church,  org.  about  1830,  with  seven 
members,  who  at  first  worshiped  in  the  "  Brooklyn  Acad- 
emy "  on  the  corner  of  Henrj'  and  Pineapple  streets.  In  1834, 
a  churcli  edifice  was  erected  on  a  lea.sed  lot,  cor.  of  TiUary 
and  Lawrence,  at  a  cost  of  about  $4,000.  The  Rev.  Jacob 
Price,  C.  F.  Frey,  John  Beetham  (1839-40),  and  Octavius 
Winslow  (1836-'37),  successively  labored  here;  but  whether 
any  of  them  were  settled  as  pastors  is  not  ascertained.  In 
the  autumn  of  1838,  this  church  was  dissolved,  and  the  build- 
ing sold  to  the  Free  Presbyterian  congregation. 


PIERBBPONT   STKEEX   BAPTIST   CHUKCH. 

Pierrepont  Street  Baptist  Church  was  org.  April,  1840, 
with  33  members  from  tlie  First  Church  (See  p.  1074,)  by  the 
name  of  tlie  East  Baptist  Church.  A  building  was  hired  at 
the  cor.  of  Tillary  and  Lawrence  sts. ,  and  the  Rev.  E.  E.  L. 
Taylor,  under  wnose  labors  the  enterprise  had  commenced, 
became  its  Pastor.  On  the  20th  of  July,  1843,  at  the  cor.  of 
Pierrepont  and  Clinton  sts.,  the  corner-stone  was  laid  of  a 
brick  edifice  (Gothic  style),  on  Pierrepont  St.,  seventy-seven 
by  sixty  feet,  which  was  finished  in  March,  1844,  at  a  cost  in- 
cluding lot  of  over  $19,000.  The  church  was  org.  as  The 
Pierrepont  St.  B.  Church,  May  24,  1843,  with  the  foUowing 
Trustees:  John  Speir,  Win.  T.  Dugan,  Amos  Allen,  John  West, 
Joseph  Steele,  John  H.  Smith,  Geo.  Gault,  Gilbert  Beam  and 
Adam  T.  Tiebout.  In  1847,  thirty-eight  members  left  the 
church  to  aid  in  forming  the  Central  B.  Church.  In  1849,  the 
Pastor,  Rev.  E.  E.  L.  Taylor  and  fifty-four  members  left  to 
form  the  Strong  Place  B.  Church,  and  in  1854,  others  aided 
in  establishing  the  Hanson  Place  B.  Church. 

In  November,  1848,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Bartholomew  Welsh,  of 
Albany,  N.Y.,  succeeded  Mr.  Taylor,  and  was  followed  June, 
1854,  by  the  Rev.  John  S.  Holmes.  He  was  followed  by  Rev. 
J.  B.  Thomas,  D.  D.,  who  was  installed  July,  1864,  and  re- 
signed January,  1868;  and  he,  by  the  Rev.  Walter  W.  Ham- 
mond, who  was  installed  September  10,  1868,  and  officiated 
uutil  Feb.,  1870,  from  which  time,  until  1873,  the  church  was 
without  a  regular  Pastor. 

In  1873,  this  church  and  the  First  Baptist  Church  were  con- 
solidated under  the  name  of  First  Baptist  Church.  (See 
account  of  that  church). 

Soon  after  the  consolidation,  the  interior  of  the  church 
building  of  the  First  Church  in  Nassau  street,  in  which  the 
miited  congregation  worshiped,  was  burned  out,  and  the 
Gothic  edifice  on  the  corner  of  Pierrepont  and  Clinton  streets 
was  occupied.  Within  a  year  the  insurance  company  re- 
paired the  church  in  Nassau  street,  and  the  congi\gation  re- 
turned to  it.     In  1877,  the  erection  of  a  new  building  on  the 


loM 


SISTOBT  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


site  of  the  o:i  ■  in  Pierrepoat  street  was  commenced,  and,  in 
18S0,  it  was  completed  and  dedicated. 

It  is  a  brick  structure,  trimmed  with  Ohio  free-stone,  cost- 
ing with  furniture,  $05,000,  and  having  a  seating  capacity  of 
1,800.  Tlie  auditorium  has  the  form  of  an  amphitheater,  with 
the  pulpit  aiid  ($7,000)  organ  in  one  corner.  The  acoustic  ar- 
rangement of  this  audience-room  is  nearly  perfect,  and  the 
(duirchisinmany  of  its  features  unique.  This  is  tha  only  Bap- 
tist church  in  the  city  with  an  open  Baptistry.  The  building 
was  dedicated  free  from  debt.  The  seats  are  free,  and  contri- 
butions voluntarj'. 

The  Young  People's  Association  of  the  church  numbers 
300,  and  from  it  came  the  Y.  P.  B.  Union,  having  selected 
organizations  in  all  the  Baptist  churches  in  Brooklyn.  The 
Sabbath-school  (H.  C.  S.  Jervis,  Sup't)  ha  5  500  scholars,  of 
whom  200  are  in  the  Adult  Bible  Classes,  and  over  25  Chinese 
scholars. 

WiUoughby  Avenue  Baptist  Church. — Tlie  first  meeting  of 
the  Bajitists  of  Hush  wick  was  held  April  5,  1851,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  organizing  a  Baptist  Church  in  that  vicinity.  On 
April  25,  1854,  a  regular  Board  of  Trustees  was  elected  and 
incorporated,  and  the  church  was  organized  with  23  consti- 
tuent members,  and  known  as  tlie  First  Baptist  Church  of 
Bushirick.  They  jmrchased  their  first  house  of  worship 
from  tliB  Episcopal  Society,  for  $1,600,  and  occupied  it  for 
twelve  years,  when  it  became  so  dilapidated  that  they  could 
use  it  no  longer.  They  then  moved  temporarily  to  what 
was  known  as  J.  Whittlesey's  Omnibus  House,  on  B'way, 
(near  the  present  Railroad  engine  house,  nearSumneravenue.) 
which  they  occujiied  nearly  one  year.  In  the  meantime, 
five  lots  were  purchased  on  Willougliby  ave.,  near  Broadway 
(ninth  Ward),  on  a  portion  of  which  the  new  church  was 
erected  and  fitted  up,  at  an  expense  of  nearly  $8,000.  It 
is  a  framed  stnicture,  74  by  35,  one  story  in  height,  and 
capable  of  seating  about  four  hundred  persons.  The  interior 
is  finished  off  in  a  neat  and  substantial  manner,  well  heated 
and  lighted,  arid  in  everj-  respect  well  suited  to  the  purpose 
to  which  it  is  devoted.  In  the  rear  of  the  main  b\iilding 
is  an  extension,  14  feet  deep,  running  entirely  across,  and 
divided  into  two  apartments,  the  library  and  infant-class 
rooms  respectively. 

In  May,  1866,  they  changed  their  name  to  Gethsemane  Bap- 
tist Church:  on  Jan.  20,  1877,  dedicated  the  new  church 
building,  situated  onWUloughby  avenue,  near  B'way;  on  Jan., 
1873,  enlarged  the  building  to  about  the  present  size;  August 
1878,  changed  the  nam  3  to  WiUoughby  Avenue  Baptist 
Church.  Sabbath-school  was  organized  May  2,  1854,  and  re- 
organized Jan.  9,  1862;  at  dedication  of  the  new  Church,  in 
1867,  numbered  164  scholars,  and  now  numbers  about  800 
scholars.  The  church  edifice  is  65x65;  extension,  20x65;  is 
a  frame  building;  its  seating  capacity  500;  approximate  cost, 
$10,000. 

Nov.  19, 1882,  a  mission-school  was  opened  at  Eidgewood, 
which  now  mmibers  over  100;  and  steps  have  already  been 
taken  towards  building  a  church  in  that  neighborhood. 

Pastors:  S.las  Ilsley,  1854;  J.  W.  Daniels,  1856;  W.  H. 
Pendleton,  1857;  J.  B.  Morse,  1861;  G.  W.  Folwell,  1862; 
Matthew  C.  Kempsey,  1863;  Beriah  N.  Leach,  1865;  Henry 
S.  Stevens,  1867;  A.  D.  Gillette,  1872;  A.  Stewart  Walsh, 
1873;  A.  H.  Burlingham,  1878;  Geo.  T.  Stansbury,  1879;  R. 
B.  Montgomery,  1880-'84.  Present  membership  of  Church, 
525. 

First  German  Baptist  Church  of  Williamsburgh  was  or- 
ganized 1853;  recognized  by  council,  Jan.  10,  1854.  Jere- 
miah Grimmell  had  gathered  the  first  members.  He  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Rev.  W.  Fashing  who  was  Pastor  for  two  years. 
It  had  grown  to  70  members  in  1873,  when  Rev.  J.  C.  Grim- 


mell  was  called,  and  the  present  house  of  worship  on  Mont- 
rose ave.  was  secured  for  a  sum  of  $12,000.  The  church 
since  then  has  grown  to  a  membership  of  310,  besides  giving 
letters  of  dismission  to  60  members  now  forming  the  Har- 
rison Avenue  German  Baptist  Church.  Rev.  Zachariali 
Martin  entered  upon  the  pastorate,  Oct.  1,  1883. 

The  East  Brooklyn  Baptist  Church  (Bedford  ave.,  north 
of  Mjrtle)  was  commenceil  by  the  labors  of  Rev.  Mr.  Wil- 
liams, and  afterwards  of  Rev.  Mr.  Ballard,  assembling  first 
at  the  Academy,  and  subsequently  at  Temperance  Hall,  in 
Graham  st.;  was  org.  January  27,  1847. 

In  1852,  the  church  purchased  three  lots  on  Bedford  ave., 
betw.  Myrtle  and  WiUoughby  avenues,  and  erected  thereon 
a  church  edifice,  in  tlie  basement  of  which  they  commence<l 
worship,  Feb.  12,  1853.  The  edifice  was  completed  and  ded- 
icated on  the  11th  of  October,  1855. 

The  following  have  been  Pastors:  Rev.  William  Hutchin- 
son, 1847;  Rev.  Henry  Green,  1847;  Rev.  Arris  Haynos,  1848: 
Rev.  W.  J.  Goodno,  1852;  Rev.  Stephen  Remington,  1854, 
and  the  present  Pastor,  Hiram  Hutchins,  D.  D.,  18.59. 

Lefferts  Park  3Iission  is  also  under  charge  of  this  church. 

The  South  Baptist  Church. — A  church  with  this  name 
was  org.  with  seventy  members,  ]5rincipally  from  the  First 
Baptist  Church,  in  April,  1845 ;  and  a  small  lecture-room 
building  erected  on  Livingston  st.  Tlie  church,  however, 
dissolved  in  the  fall  of  1847. 

The  present  South  Baptist  Church  is  the  youngest  Baptist 
Church  of  this  city.  At  a  meeting  of  the  Lee  Avenue  Bap- 
tist Chui-ch,  of  which  Rev.  J.  Hyatt  Smith  was  Pastor, 
held  January,  1882,  a  unanimous  call  was  extended  to  Rev. 
N.  B.  Thompson,  late  of  Newport,  R.  I.  The  call  was  ac- 
cepted at  a  meeting  held  Febnaaiy  93,  1882.  The  Lee  Ave- 
nue Baptist  Church  adjourned  sine  die.  The  body  pres- 
ent, without  Christian  organization  or  name,  was  at  once 
called  to  order;  and,  upon  the  election  of  proper  officers  for 
such  a  meeting,  the  same  body  at  once  declared  themselves 
by  vote  and  the  permission  of  the  Law  of  the  State  as  the 
South  Bap.  Church  of  Brooklyn.  Services  were  held  in  the 
building  on  Lee  ave.  until  July,  when  the  church  held  service 
in  the  chapel  of  All  Souls'  Universalist  Ch.  until  Sept.  Then 
Knickerbocker  Hall,  on  Clymer  St.,  near  Bedford  ave., was  se- 
cured, where  the  church  continued  to  worship.  In  the  mean- 
time, the  jirojierty  of  the  Fifth  Bap.  Ch.,  corner  of  Hooper  st. 
and  Harrison  ave.  was  jiurchased  and  occupied  Sept.  1,  1883. 
The  building  is  of  stone,  substantially  built;  will  seat  about 
500  people.  It  cost  the  South  Church  $3,200.  There  are  336 
names  on  church  roll,  and  a  Sunday-school  of  nearly  200 
members. 

The  Central  Baptist  Church,  Bridge  St.,  between  Myrtle 
ave.  and  WiUoughby  st.,  was  org.  4th  of  October,  1847,  with 
90  members,  a  Sabbath-school  having  been  formed,  and 
preaching  services  and  prayer-meetings  sustained  since  the 
early  part  of  the  preceding  spring.  The  congregation,  which 
had  previoush'  occupied  the  second  floor  of  "  Granada  Hall," 
on  Myrtle  ave.,  between  Bridge  and  Duffield  sts.,  secured 
during  its  first  year  the  lots  which  it  now  occupies,  and  erec- 
ted a  lecture  room,  sixty-two  by  thirty-two  feet,  at  the  rear 
of  the  property;  the  main  building,  fifty-eight  by  sixty-eight 
feet,  being  finished  about  the  end  of  the  second  3'ear,  the 
whole  costing  about  $18,000. 

John  Wesley  Searles,  D.  D.  was  Pastor  of  this  church  till 
1879.  Rev.  Theo.  A.  K.  Gessler  assumed  the  pastorate  Jan.  1, 
1880;  since  which  time  about  one  hundred  persons  have 
been  added  to  the  membership  of  the  church.  During 
the  summer  of  1882  the  church  building  and  lecture-room 
were  improved  and  enlarged,  at  an  expense  of  about  $5,000; 
and  the  present  estimated  value  of  the  property  is  $35,000. 


ECCLESIASTICAL    OR GANIZA TIONS. 


1011 


CENTRAL    UAPTI8T   CHUKOH,    E.    D.    (See  page  1081 

No.  of  scholar.-;  i;i  SuiicUiy-scliool,  CfiO;  Nn.  cf  officers  and 
teachers,  31. 

Rev.  Tiieodoi:e  A.  K.  Gessler  was  bora  in  Phila.,  1841; 
grad.  Lewisburg  Univ.,  18G4;  Pres.  N.  J.  Bapt.  S.  H.  Union, 
1874-'80;  located  at  "West  Farms,  N.  Y.,  1864-'68;  Elizabeth, 
N.  J.,  1868-'80;  enlisted  in  invasion  of  Pa.,  18G3. 

The  Strong  Place  Baptist  Church. — In  the  month  of 
Octoljer,  1847,  some  of  the  residents  in  South  Brooklyn,  then 
a  rapidly  growing  section  of  the  city.  estabUshed  a  Sunday- 
school  in  a  vacant  house  on  Degraw  st.,  near  Columbia. 
Among  them  were  Wm.  M.  Price,  Truman  Richards,  Dr. 
A.  C.  Burke,  Mrs.  D.  P.  Richards,  Mrs.  A.  T.  and  Miss  M. 
Downer;  and  Mr.  Geo.  M.  Vanderlip,  a  licentiate  of  the 
Oliver  St.  B.  Ch.  and  student  in  the  University  of  New  York, 
preached  for  them  during  the  year  18J8.  In  Oct.,  1848,  the 
church  was  duly  org.,  with  Edwin  C.  Burt,  James  E.  South- 
worth  and  E.  Darwin  Littlefield  as  trustees.  This  was  the 
beginning  of  the  Strong  Place  Baptist  Church,  the  organiza- 
tion of  which  was  completed  in  1849.  Most  of  the  members 
at  its  organization  were  from  the  Pierrepont  Street  Baptist 
Church.  In  tliat  j'ear,  a  lecture-room,  on  the  corner  of 
Strong  place  and  Dograw  st.,  was  so  far  completed  that  ser- 
vices were  held  therein  in  January,  1849.  This  continued  to 
be  the  place  of  worsliip  till  185G,  when  the  present  church 


edifice  was  erected  in  front  of  the  lecture- 
room,  wliich  was  enlarged.  This  church  is  a 
brown-stone  structure,  finished  in  the  Gothic 
style.    The  church  has  :io  debt. 

In  1858,  a  number  of  members  of  this  church 
were  dismissed,  to  form  the  Greenwood  Bap- 
tist Church,  and  in  1863,  fifty -five  were  dis- 
missed to  particiiiate  in  the  formation  of  the 
Tabernacle  Baptist  Church. 

The  first  Pastor  was  Rev.  E.  E.  L.  Taylor, 
in  Nov.  1848,  who  resigned,  on  account  of 
iU  health,  after  serving  the  clmrch  eiRciectly 
during  many  years.  He  was  succeeded  by 
Rev.  Dr.  Wayland  Hojt,  who  remained  six 
years,  and  was  followed  by  Galusha  Ander- 
son, D.  D.,  who  resigned,  after  a  pastorate  of 
three  years.  Mr.  Hoyt  then  became  Pastor 
again.    ^ 

In  Feb.,  1883,  Rev.  T.  H.  Kerfoot,  D.  D., 
accepted  a  unanimous  call.  During  the  nine 
years  Rev.  Dr.  Kerfoot  has  been  actively 
engaged  in  the  work  of  the  ministry,  he  has 
acquired  a  national  reputation  as  a  learned 
and  eloquent  preacher;  and,  from  the  outset  of 
bis  career,  he  has  exerted  an  influence  of 
ijiore  than  ordinary  weight  in  the  denomi- 
nation of  which  he  is  now  conceded  to  be 
one  of  th(>  leaders.  He  has  been  honored  by 
being  elected  President  of  the  Southern  Bap- 
tist Convention.  During  liis  five  years'  labors 
ill  Baltimore  the  Eutaw  Church  grew  so 
1  apidly  that  two  new  churches  were  sent  out, 
and  great  success  attended  his  efl'orts  in  other 
directions. 

The  Strong  Place  Church  is  large  and  influ- 
ential, having  a  menabership  of  900  persons, 
and  there  are  no  pecuniary  incumbrances  on 
its  property.  It  has  a  large  and  well  organ- 
ized Sunday-school,  and  in  addition  to  other 
l)eneficent  \vorks  the  members  of  the  Strong 
P];ice  Church  contribute  the  money  necessary 
for  the  maintenance  of  the  Carroll  Park  Mis- 
sion Chapel.  ^ 
Strong  Place  (formerly  known  as  Carroll  St.)  Mission  was 
established  by  this  church  at  an  early  da}'.  The  Chapel  of 
the  Slission,  on  Carroll  st.,  near  Hoyt,  was  dedicated  on  the 
17th  of  January,  1864.  It  is  a  Gothic  structure  of  brick,  cap- 
able of  holding  500  persons.  Its  arrangements  are  for  con- 
venience rather  than  architectural  beauty.  Its  cost  was 
$6,400,  and  it  was  dedicated  free  from  debt. 

The  Washington  Avenue  Baptist  Church  originated  in  the 
efi^orts  of  Deacon  Hepburn  Clark,  at  whose  house  meetings 
were  first  held.  In  1851,  the  property  of  a  Dutch  Reformed 
Church,  on  the  corner  of  Washington  and  Gates  aves. ,  was 
purchased  for  $7,000,  and  the  church  was  fully  organized  in 
December  of  that  year.  A  church  edifice  was  erected  adjoin- 
ing the  lecture-room  in  which  the  clmrch  had  worshiped, 
and  it  was  dedicated  in  February,  1860.  In  1865,  the  old  lec- 
ture-room was  taken  down,  and  in  its  jilace  was  erected  a 
chapel  combining  Sunday-school  room,  church  parlor  and 
other  rooms.  In  addition  to  their  own  Sunday-school  this 
chui-ch  has  supported  the  Van  Biiren  St.  and  the  Herkimer 
St.  Mission  Schools.    > 

In  1873-'4,  the  exterior  of  the  church  building  was  com- 
pleted, by  the  erection  of  two  graceful  spires;  and,  since  that 
time,  much  has  been  expended  in  beautifying  the  interior  of 
the  church.     The  structure  has  a  seating  capacity  of  1,650. 


iC/g 


BISTORT   OF  KINGS    COUNTY. 


WASHINGTON    AVENFE    BAI'll.-l'    i  HI  liCII. 

The  church  lias  no  debt,  and  during  many  years  it  has  dis- 
pensed large  sums  for  charitable  and  benevolent  purposes. 
Its  donations  sometimes  reach  the  amount  of  $100,000  in  a 
year. 

In  1872,  the  Marcy  Avenue  Mission  was  established  by  this 
church,  and  it  soon  became  an  independent  church. 

lu  April,  188L,  a  colony  from  this  church  was  organized  as 
the  Emmanuel  Baptist  Church. 

Ministry:  Rev.  J.  L.  Hodge,  Sept.,  18.5  \  to  Dec,  1856;  Rev. 
Courtland  D.  Anable,  Dec.  11,  18.56,  to  March  1,  1864;  Rev. 
David  Moore,  Jr.,  March  1,  1864^'77;  Rev.  Emory  J.  Haynes, 
1877-84. 

Rev.  Emory  J.  Haynes,  born  at  Cabot,  Vt.,  1846;  grad. 
Wesleyan  Univ.,  1867;  special  four  year  course  in  theol. ; 
Author  of  Are  These  Things  So9  and  The  Fairest  of  Three; 
located  at  Norwich,  Ct.,  Fall  River,  B'klyn,  1872-84. 

The  Tabernacle  Baptist  Church  was  organized  June  26, 
1862.  It  occupied  the  edifice  on  the  corner  of  Rapelyea  and 
Hicks  sts.,  until  it  built  the  structure  now  standing  on  the 
corner  of  3d  place  and  Clinton  st.  The  first  Pastor  was  Rev. 
T.  Edwin  Brown,  D.  D.,  from  November,  1862,  to  October, 
1869.  Rev.  A.  C.  Osborn,  D.  D.,  December,  1869,  to  October, 
1873;  May,  1874,  to  April,  1878,  Rev.  Thomas  Rambaut,  D.  D. 
December,  1878,  the  present  Pastor,  Rev.  Frank  Rogers 
Morse,  D.  D.,  assumed  charge  of  the  church. 

Since  its  organization  this  church  has  had  connected  with 
its  membership  nearly  1,400  different  persons;  and  it  has 
raised,  for  all  purjioses,  nearly  $200,000.  It  has  always  sus- 
tained a  lar^e  and  flourishing  Sunday-school.  For  many 
years  its  superintendeut  has  been  Deacon  Theodore  Shotwell, 
a  well-known  citizen  of  our  city.  The  President  of  its  Board 
of  Trustees  is  George  B.  Forrester,  Esq.,  a  prominent  Baptist 
layman,  and  a  rising  business  man. 

Rev.  Frank  Rocsers  Morse,  bom  in  Warner,  N.  H.,  1839; 
grad.  Dartmouth  Coll.,  1861;  Newton  Theol.  Sem.,  Mass., 
1865;  previous  locations,  Cambridge,  Lowell,  Fall  River,  Al- 
bany; is  editor-m-chief  of  A',  i'.  Watch  Tomer;  came  to 
B'klyn,  1878. 


Hanson  Place  Baptist  Church. — In  the  latter  part  of  18.53, 
a  Sunday-school  was  commenced  in  a  vacant  store  on  the 
south  side  of  Atlantic  ave.,  near  Nevins  street.  Fi-om  this 
beginning  resulted  the  Atlantic  Street  Baptist  Church,  which 
was  organized  June  18,  1854,  with  twenty-five  members.  The 
congi-egation  immediately  proceeded  to  erect  a  chapel  on 
Atlantic  st  ,  near  Powers,  at  a  cost,  including  site,  of  |6,000. 
It  w-as  dedicated  May  1,  1855.  It  was  a  brick  structure,  with 
300  sittings. 

Four  years  later  lots  were  purchased  at  the  corner  of  Han- 
son place  and  Portland  ave. ,  and  a  large  structure  was  erected 
there.  It  was  dedicated  in  November,  1860.  On  its  removal 
to  its  new  location,  the  congregation  assumed  its  piesent 
name  of  Hanson  Place  Baptist  Church. 

To  enlarge  the  auditorium  the  partition  walls  between  it 
and  the  lecture  and  Sunday-school  rooms  were  removed,  the 
floors  were  lowered,  and  galleries  were  constructed,  and  the 
audience-room  is  now  capable  of  seating  2,000  jieraons.  A 
lecture  and  Sunday-school  room  stand  on  the  easterly  side  of 
the  house,  and  connected  with  it. 

The  first  Pastor  was  Rev.  Marvin  C.  Hodge,  who  entered 
on  his  labors  in  November,  1854.  His  successors  have  been 
Revs.  Robert  Lowry,  1861;  George  F.  Pentecost,  1869;  Justin 
D.  Fulton,  D.  D.,  1873;  Alexander  McFarlanc,  1.877,  and 
Henry  M.  Gallaher,  LL.  D.,  1879,  who  resigned  in  1883. 

Greenwood  Baptist  Church. — In  1856,  Rev.  Herry  Brom- 
ley, a  missionary  from  Strong  Place  Baptist  Church,  with  a 
few  co-laborers,  opened  a  Sunday-school  and  established 
religious  services  in  a  hall  on  Third  ave.  Their  work  was  so 
successful  that,  on  the  28th  of  September,  1858,  thirty-one 
persons  united  in  a  church  organization,  under  the  name  of 
the  Greenwood  Baptist  Church. 

Rev.  H.  T.  Love  was  chosen  Pastor;  followed,  December  5, 
1859,  by  Rev.  E.  H.  Page.  Ground  was  bought  on  IStli  st. 
and  Fourth  ave.,  and  the  erection  of  the  present  lecture- 
room  begun.  September,  1,  1864,  Rev.  A.  P.  Graves  became 
Pastor;  succeeded,  March,  1,  1867,  by  Rev.  A.  G.  Lawson, 
who  still  remains.  A  brick  chapel  on  15th  st.  was  dedicated 
in  April,  1803;  and  the  growth  of  the  church  was  such  that 
the  corner-stone  of  a  new  edifice  was  laid  August  4,  1874, 
which  was  dedicated,  February  22,  1875.  It  is  located  on 
4th  ave.  and  15th  st.,  and  is  built  of  brick,  trimmed  with 
Coignet  stone;  the  auditorium  is  70  by  72  feet,  semi-circular, 
with  bowled  floor,  and  a  seating  capacity  of  about  800. 
The  entire  property,  2  buildings  and  ground,  100x225  feet,  is 
free  from  debt,  and  valued  at  |70,000. 

Fi-om  1  school  and  87  scholars,  there  are  now  3  schools  and 
1,000  connected;  from  31  members,  the  church  has  grown 
to  700,  and  only  20  non-resident.  In  25  years  but  one  officer 
has  died.  Of  31  constituent  members,  22  now  live,  and  in 
the  25  years  only  71  have  died;  less  than  3  a  year,  with  an 
average  membership  of  over  400. 

The  church  is  noted  for  its  steady  growth,  its  temperance 
and  missionary  work;  Dr.  Lawson,  the  Pastor,  being  especially 
active  as  a  temperance  editor  and  speaker. 

Rev.  Albert  G.  Lawson,  D.  D.,  born  at  New  Hamburgh, 
N.  Y.,  June,  1842  ;  was  Sec.  Bapt.  Nat'l  Conference,  1882  : 
Clerk  L.  I.  Bapt.  Assn.,  1869-"83  ;  Moderator,  1873;  located  at 
Perth  Amboy,  1862-'6  ;  Po'keepsie,  1866-7;  B'klyn,  1867-'83 ; 
author  of  Church  Temperance  Work,  1877  ;  ITie  Holy  Spirit, 
1880  ;  Ambition  in  the  Ministry,  1883  ;  is  temp.  Ed.  of  Na- 
tional Bapt.,  Phila. 

Clinton  Avenue  Baptist  Church  (near  Myrtle  ave.)  owes  its 
origin  to  the  benevolence  of  the  late  Wm.  D.  Mangam,  a 
successful  and  liberal  merchant  of  New  York,  who  died  at 
his  residence  on  Clinton  ave.,  April  3,  1868.  His  life,  after 
his  conversion,   was  marked   by   the  noblest  generosity  to- 


ECCLESIASTIC  AT.    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1079 


GREEXWOOD    liAl'TIST    CIIUiiCH.    (See  provlous  i.agei. 


warils  all  religious  and  charitible  causes;  and,  hearing  about 
1807,  that  a  lad.r  of  Brooklyn  had  oflfered  to  the  Baptist  de- 
nomination a  valuable  lot  on  Clinton  ave.,  if  they  would 
build  a  chapel  thereon,  Mr.  51.  bought  eight  lots  adjoining, 
and  at  once  proceeded  to  build  a  chapel.  It  was  his  purpose 
to  erect  the  main  church  edifice,  with  the  proceeds  of  his 
business,  on  the  lots  adjoining  the  chapel,  and  towards  this 
lie  worked  diligently  and  energetically,  but  death  claimed 
him  before  his  work  was  completed.  His  family,  however, 
took  up  the  work  he  had  commenced,  and  finished  the 
chapel,  wliich  is  one  of  the  most  complete  in  the  country, 
being  a  brick  structure,  50  by  90  feet  in  size,  with  brown- 
stone  trimmings,  and  of  remaikable  simplicity  and  beauty 
of  finish.  Its  cost,  including  that  of  groimds,  was  $70,000. 
Rev.  E.  T.  Hiscox,  D.  D.,  was  Pastor.  He  was  succeeded  by 
Rev.  S.  H.  Pratt. 

By  reason  of  an  imperfection  in  the  title,  the 
church  lost  its  property,  and  disbanded.  The  mem- 
bers united  with  others  from  the  Hanson  Place 
B.aptist  Church,  and  formed  the  Centennial  Baptist 
Church,  which  was  organized  December  14,  1875, 
with  185  members.  The  present  Pastor,  J.  D.  Fulton, 
D.  D.,  was  called  and  entered  upon  his  duties  January 
1, 187G. 

The  property  on  Clinton  ave.  was  purchased,  and 
here  the  congregation  worshiped  till  1879,  when  the 
Brooklyn  Rink,  on  Clermont  ave.,  near  MjTtle  (the 
cost  of  which  was  $127,000),  was  purchased  for 
§50,000,  and  fitted  up  for  a  free  house  of  worship,  at 
an  expense  of  f  9,000.  It  was  dedicated  in  December 
of  that  year. 

Rev.  Justin  D.  Fdlton,  D.  D.,  came  to  Brooklyn, 
in  1873,  as  Pastor  of  the  Hanson  Place  Church. 
Having  his  own  views  as  to  the  manner  of  reaching 
the  people,  and  not  meeting  with  the  favor  which 
he  desired,  he  resigned  and  org.  the  Centennial 
Baptist  Chm-ch.  In  1879,  the  Rink  was  bought  and 
refitted  for  a  place  of  worship.  The  church  numbers 
BOO  members,  the  Sabbath-school  about  the  same. 
The  work  of  the  church  is  supported  entirely  by 
voluntary  contributions. 


Sands  Street  Mission.  In  1858,  Peter 
Balen  hired  a  room  over  a  cooper's  shop,  in 
Jolm  St.,  near  Bridge,  and  established  a  mis- 
sion school  there.  The  mission  was  taken 
in  chai-ge  by  the  Pierrepont  Street  Baptist 
Chm-ch,  and,  after  two  years,  was  removed 
to  a  house  iu  Prospect  st. ,  that  had  been  used 
as  a  dance-house. 

It  then  took  the  name  of  Prospect  Street 
Mission.  In  the  midst  of  vile  surroundings, 
the  mission  I'ontinued  its  work  till  1868, 
when  the  biuldiug  was  sold  to  the  Board  of 
Education,  and  the  children  were  taken  to  the 
church  school,  cor. Pierrepont  and  Clinton  sts. 
In  18G9,  Rev.  John  Toomath,  a  blind  man, 
who  had  been  a  missionary  here  since  1862, 
en,i;'aged  a  room  iu  Sands  6t.,  that  had  been 
used  as  a  lager  beer  and  billiard  saloon  ;  and 
the  mission  was  removed  to  this  place, 
where  it  has  since  continued. 

The  Supei'intendents  of  this  mission,  from 
the  first,  have  been :  John  L.  Plummer, 
Thomas  Vernon.  Isaac  Davis,  J.  Leland, 
Richard  Oliver,  E.  H.  Loud,  E.  Sniffen,  W. 
R.  Anderson,  W.  J.  Oliver,  J.  Schriever, 
ami  tlie  present  Sujj't,  Richard  Oliver. 
Herkimer  Street  Baptist  Church  originated  iu  a  Sunday- 
school  that  was  established  b}'  Washington  Avenue  Church, 
iu  Fulton  St.,  near  Troj'  ave.,  about  1861.  A  chapel  was 
erected  for  this  mission  at  the  corner  of  Troj^  ave.  and  Her- 
kimer st. ,  and  in  this  the  Herkimer  Street  Baptist  Church 
was  organized  in  1865.  In  the  summer  of  1876,  this  chapel 
was  enlarged  to  meet  the  growing  wants  of  the  congrega- 
tion, and  it  now  has  a  seating  capacity  of  435.  It  is  a  wooden 
structure  on  a  brick  basement. 

The  Pastors  of  this  church  have  been-  Revs.  Giscard, 

Baker,  D.D.,  Henry  Waring,  Wm.  Reid  and  John  Evans. 

Rev.  William  Reid,  born  in  Ayrshire,  Scotland.  1812; 
grad.  1839,  Conn.  Literary  Institution;  located  at  Wethers- 
field,  1839-40;  Tariflfville,.1840-"44;  Bridgepoit,  1845-'o4;  New 
London,  185t-'61;  Grcenpoint,  1861-7;  New  York,  1867-75; 
Brooklj-n,  1876-'83. 


CENTENNIAL    EAETIST    CHlUlt'll. 


HISTORY   OF  KINGS   COUNTY. 


.-IXTH     AVKNTID    llAPTIST    (-IIIKCH. 

Sixth  Avenue  Baptist  Church. — The  nucleus  of  tliis  church 
was  a  mission  Sunday-school,  wliich  was  established  in  1864, 
at  195  Flatbush  ave.,  by  a  few  members  of  the  Hanson  Place 
Baptist  Church.  Soon  afterward,  two  lots  on  the  corner  of 
Sixth  ave.  and  Lincoln  place  were  purchased,  at  a  cost  of 
.^4,000,  and  a  chapel  was  erected  at  an  expense,  including 
furniture,  of  about  .$6,000.  Preaching  was  added  to  the  Sun- 
day-school services,  and  Rev.  Henry  Bromley  became  preacher 
and  missionary. 

January  16,  1873,  the  church  was  organized  with  4.3  mem- 
mers;  and  re-organized  Feb.  8,  1872. 

Pastors:  J.  B.  Cleaver,  Feb.  13,1872,  to  Oct.  23,  1874; 
Rev.  Rufus  B.  Kolsay  (the  present  pastor),  D.  D.,  Nov.  1, 
1875.  The  present  edifice  commenced  March  17,  1880;  ded. 
Dec.  28,  1880;  of  brick,  with  stone  trimmings,  100  by  110  feet, 
and  Beating  6.^0  persons;  value,  $55,000.  Present  membership, 
260.  The  Sunday-school,  org.  1865;  has  37  officers  and  teachers; 
400  scholars  on  the  roll;  average  attendance,  251;  566  ^■ols. 
in  library. 

Rev.  R.  B.  Kels.\t,  D.  D.,  born  in  New  Jersey,  1842; 
studied  with  Rev.  Samuel  Haren,  and  theology  with  Rev. 
Daniel  Kelsay;  previous  locations,  Meadville,  1864-'7;  Balti- 
more, 1867-70;  Albany,  1870-2;  Passaic,  1872-'5;  came  to 
Brooklyn  in  1875;  in  late  war,  was  captain  for  short  time. 

Marcy  Avenue  Baptist  Church. — When  the  Washington 
Avenue  Baj^tist  Church  had  appointed  a  committee  to  survej' 
the  field  and  look  out  for  a  favorable  opening  to  begin  a  new 
enterprise  in  the  then  Twenty-first  Ward,  the  Centi-al  Con- 
gregational Church  intimated  a  willingness  to  convey  their 
mission  interest  to  the  Baptists.  The  property,  corner  of 
Marcy  ave.  and  Monroe  St.,  consisting  of  lots  50x190  feet, 
with  the  chapel  and  Sunday-school  furniture,  was  conveyed 
to  the  Washington  Avenue  Baptist  Church,  for  .|5,000. 

Mr.  Theodore  M.  Bauta  became  superintendent  of  the  mis- 
sion. The  first  regular  session  of  school  was  held  on  the  7th 
day  of  July,  1872,  with  9  teachers  and  officers  and  55  scholars. 

On  Tuesday  evening,  July  2,  1872,  the  first  prayer-meeting 
was  held.  The  services  were  conducted  by  Rev.  A.  A.  Fin- 
ney, and  the  following  were  present,  namely:  Henry  A, 
Caldwell,  Ganet  Ditmars,  H.  B.  Porter,  Wm.  S.  Dm-brow, 
Wm.  C.  Chapman,  Theodore  M.  Banta,  L.  P.  Brockett,  Geo. 
R.  Graves,  Myron  Tanner,  and  George  S.  Farmer,  the  six  first- 
named  becoming  identified  as  members  with  the  chnrch  sub- 
quenth' organized.  September  29lh,  1872,  preaching  sei-vices 
were  held  for  the  first  time  by  Rev.  Dr.  Moore,  of  the  Wash- 


ington Avenue  Baptist  Church.  January,  1873,  arrange- 
ments were  made  with  Rev.  J.  A.  Ajipleton  to  preach  every 
Sabbath  evening  until  the  fii'st  of  May.  Subsequently, 
Brother  Delavan  DeWolf,  was  engaged  for  six  months  to 
preach  every  Sabbath  evening,  and  take  general  chai'ge  of 
the  interest.  In  October,  1878,  the  prospects  appeared 
sufficiently  encouraging  to  warrant  the  formation  of  a  chui'ch. 
On  the  evening  of  November  10,  1873,  a  meeting  was  held, 
whereat  forty-five  persons  presented  letters  of  dismission 
from  various  Baptist  churches  (twent.y-seven  being  from 
Washington  Avenue  Church). 

An  organization  was  effected  under  the  name  of  the  Marcy 
Ai-cnue  Baptist  Church  of  Brooklyn;  and,  at  an  adjourned 
meeting,  held  one  week  subsequently,  Brethren  Edwin  Ives, 
Garret  Ditmars,  and  William  B.  Fox  were  elected  Deacons. 
H.  A.  Caldwell  was  elected  Treasurer,  and  Eollin  O.  Smith, 
clerk.  December  2,  1873,  an  election  for  Tnistees  A\'as  held, 
whereat  the  following-named  persons  were  chosen:  Henry 
A.  Caldwell,  John  Hills,  John  T.  Davies,  Chas.  B.  Wyckoflf, 
and  Theodore  M.  Banta. 

At  a  meeting  held  December  8,  1873,  to  consider  the  subject 
of  calling  a  Pastor,  Rev.  Dr.  Jeffery  received  the  unanimous 
vote  of  all  present,  and  he  entered  upon  the  pastorate  the 
following  Sabbath,  December  14,  1873. 

The  next  evening,  December  15,  a  council  was  held  in  the 
chapel,  composed  of  delegates  from  all  the  Baptist  churches 
of  the  city  and  vicinity,  which  recognized  the  church  as  a 
regular  Baptist  church,  and  the  hand  of  fellowship  was  ex- 
tended to  the  church,  through  its  Pastor,  by  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Moore,  of  Washington  Avenue  Church. 

In  Januarj-,  1874,  it  was  determined  to  enlarge  the  church 
accommodations.  Three  additional  lots  were  purchased, 
giving  125  feet  on  Marcy  avenue,  by  100  feet  on  Monroe  street, 
and  a  commodious  chapel  was  erected  by  Deacon  Garret 
Ditmars,  under  the  plans  and  superintendence  of  Wm.  B. 
Ditmars.  The  chapel  was  dedicated  on  the  11th  day  of 
October,  1874.  The  property  cost,  for  lots,  buildings,  and 
furniture,  |21,000,  and  consists  of  lots,  163  feet  on  Marcy 
avenue,  by  100  feet  on  Monroe  street,  with  a  frame  building, 
76  feet  wide  and  100  feet  deep,  the  whole  costing  over  |32,000. 

Ministry :  Rev.  Dr.  Jeflfery,  1873-'80  ;  H.  O.  Pentecost, 
1881-'83. 

Present  number  of  church  members,  894  ;  in  sunday-school, 
1,018. 

The  First  German  Baptist  Church  of  South  Brooklyn 
was  organized  in  1873.  The  first  place  of  worship  was  a  liall 
on  22d  St.,  near  3d  ave.  This  building  was  j^tu'chased  in 
1873,  and  converted  into  a  chui-ch.  In  1877,  this  property 
was  abandoned,  and  the  congregation  removed  to  Strong 
Place  Chapel,  in  Can-oil  sti'eet,  near  Hoyt,  where  they  wor- 
shiped till  1881,  when  they  I'emoved  to  a  building  on  the  cor- 
ner of  Si-xtli  and  Prospect  aves. 

The  first  Pastor  was  Rev.  R.  Hofflin;  followed,  in  1876,  by 
Rev.  C.  Damm,  and  he,  in  1881,  hj  the  present  Pastor,  Rev. 
Hironemus. 

Calvary  Baptist  Church  (colored). — Marion  Street  Mission 
was  first  estabUshed  in  East  New  York  in  1875;  and  during 
the  same  year  Calvary  Church  was  organized.  In  the  spring 
of  1879,  the  congregation  removed  to  210  Marion  st.,  where 
they  have  since  worshiped. 

The  first  Pastor  was  Rev.  Oscar  Ritter,  succeeded,  in  1879, 
by  tlie  present  Pastor,  Rev.  Josiah  Jolmson. 

Trinity  Baptist  Church  was  organized  in  1875,  with  about 
tliu'ty  members,  many  of  whom  were  from  the  WiUoughby 
Ave.  Baptist  Chui-ch.  They  first  worshiped  in  Ridgewood 
Hall,  at  the  junction  of  Broadway  and  Lexington  and  Ralph 
aves.     In  1877,  the  present  house  of  worehip  was  built  on 


ECCLESIASTICAL    OR GANIZA  TIONS. 


Greene  ave. ,  between  Patchen  ave.  and  Broadway.  It  is  a 
wooden  chapel,  capable  of  seating  450. 

Rev.  Dr.  Hodge  was  Pastor  during  a  year  after  the  organi- 
zation of  the  chui'ch;  followed,  in  1876,  by  the  present  Pastor, 
Rev.  O.  E.  Cox.     The  church  has  been  uniformly  prosperous. 

First  Church  of  Christ. — A  few  yeais  since,  a-  number  of 
Baptists  withdrew  from  their  churches,  to  organize  a  society 
on  a  more  liberal  basis.  This  organization  was  effected,  with 
Rev.  J.  B.  Cleaver  as  Pastor.  Their  first  place  of  worship 
was  a  chapel  in  Lincoln  place,  near  Sixth  avenue.  Here  the 
congregation  worshiped  till  the  autumn  of  1881,  when  they 
purchased  the  house  of  worship  of  Grace  M.  E.  Church,  in 
Sterling  place,  near  Seventh  avenue.  It  is  a  brick  structure 
with  a  brown-stone  front,  and  it  has  a  seating  capacity  of 
about  1,000.     Its  estimated  value  is  $65,000. 

Emmanuel  Baptist  Church  was  organized  in  October,  1881. 
It  consists  of  ~00  members,  mostly  from  the  Washington 
Avenue  Baptist  Church.  Their  present  place  of  worship  is 
Adelphi  Academj',  on  Lafayette  Avenue,  corner  of  St.  James' 
place.  The  church  has  purchased  lots  on  Lafayette  avenue, 
opposite  this  Academy,  at  a  cost  of  $60,000,  whereon  to  erect 
a  churcli  building  in  the  near  future. 

Pastors:  J.  Wheaton  Smith,  D.  D.,  of  Philadelphia,  until 
1883  ;  Rev.  John  Humpstone  until  present  time. 

Rev.  John  Humpstone  received  his  education  at  Madison 
Ijniversity  and  the  Crozer  Theological  Seminary  at  Upland, 
Penn.  Ho  has  presided  over  churches  in  Philadelphia  and 
Albany  with  rare  acceptability,  and  has  a  reputation  for  elo- 
quence and  scholarship  not  wholly  confined  to  the  ecclesias- 
tical organizations  which  he  has  heretofore  rei^resented. 

The  Central  Baptist  Church,  So.  5th  st.,  cor.  8th,  E.  D.  In 
June,  1805,  forty  persons  obtained  letters  of  dismission  from 
the  First  Baptist  Church,  AVilliamsburgh,  for  the  purpose  of 
organizing  a  new  church.  July  7th  the  church  organized 
under  the  name  of  "  The  Central  Baptist  Church,  AVilliams- 
bm-gh.    (See  illustration,  page  1077.) 

The  first  Pastor  was  Rev.  Thomas  S.  T.  Hanna,  who  began 
his  pastorate  Aug.  1st,  1866.  He  was  ordained  Sept.  13th,  in 
the  house  of  worship  previously  owned  by  the  Reformed 
Church,  on  the  corner  of  So.  2d  and  4th  streets,  which  the 
church  had  previously  purchased.  JIi'.  Hanna  resigned  his 
pastorate  in  March,  1870. 

The  church  united  with  the  Hudson  River  Association 
South,  June  18th,  1866;  but  united  with  the  Long  Island  Bap- 
tist Association  at  the  time  of  its  organization,  June  27th, 
1867. 

The  Rev.  John  Duncan,  D.  D.,  of  Fall  River,  Mass.,  became 
Pastor  of  the  chm-ch  July  3d,  1870,  and  remained  in  that  posi- 
tion until  May,  1873. 

The  church  edifice  and  lots  were  sold  in  May,  1873,  from 
which  date  services  were  held  in  the  hall  over  the  gas  com- 
pany's office,  corner  of  So.  2d  and  4th  streets,  until  May, 
1874. 

Rev.  Clu-istopher  Rhodes,  of  New  York  city,  became  Pastor 
Jan.  1st,  1874.  At  that  time  the  church  numbered  147  mem- 
bers. The  congregation  becoming  too  large  for  the  hall,  a  tent 
was  erected  the  following  ilay  on  Broadway,  in  which  the 
church  met  during  the  summer. 

Ground  was  broken  for  the  new  meeting-hoiise  corner  of 
So.  5th  and  8th  streets,  May  4th.  The  corner-stone  was  laid 
June  1st.  The  first  service  was  held  in  the  lecture-room,  Sun- 
day Sept.  27th,  and  the  house  was  dedicated  April  13th,  1875. 
The  house  is  of  Gothic  style  of  architecture,  60  by  100  inside; 
is  of  Phila.  pressed  brick,  trinmied  with  light-colored  stone; 
seats  850;  and  cost,  with  the  adjoining  parsonage,  $85,000. 

The  church  numbers  550  communicants.  The  Sunday- 
school,  of  which  F.  C.  Linde  is  the  superintendent,  numbers 


629  scholars,  and  59  officers  and  teachei-s,with  an  average  at- 
tendance of  470. 

The  church  contributes  liberally  to  various  benevolent  ob- 
jects, being  exceeded  in  the  amount  of  its  contributions  by 
six  only  of  the  churches  in  the  L.  I.  Association. 

The  church  entered  their  new  house  with  about  200  mem- 
bers, with  a  debt  of  $45,200.  The  debt  has  been  reduced  grad- 
ually to  $3,000,  all  of  which  will  be  paid  in  Sept.  next. 

Rev.  Cheistopheb  Rhodes,  bom  in  Providence,  R.  I.,  1831; 
located  in  Phenix,  R.  I.,  1855-'61;  Providence,  1861-4;  New 
York,  1866-'74;  Brooklyn,  1874-'84;  author  of  address  bef.  N. 
Y.  S.  S.  Assn.  Semi-Centen.  Sermon  of  Stanton  street  Church, 
New  York. 


GREENPOINT    BAPTIST    CHURCH,   105   NOBLE    STREET. 

The  First  Baptist  Church,  Greenpoint. — In  1847,  there  were 
about  thirteen  Baptists  living  in  Greenpoint,  who,  feeling  the 
need  of  worshiping  according  to  Baptist  usage,  organized  a 
church  with  nine  members  in  the  old  Origen  house  in  Frank- 
lin avenue.  Rev.  Mx.  Jones  and  others  supplied  the  pulpit 
until  1849,  when  a  small  house  was  built,  costing  about  $700, 
seating  one  hundred  persons.  Preaching  was  continued  for 
two  years.  Mr.  Peter  Boyce  officiated  from  July,  1851,  to 
April,  1853,  when  he  desired  to  relinquish  the  charge;  but  the 
church  voted  that  "Mi\  Peter  Boyce  be  continued  as  our 
Pastor  for  an  unlimited  time."  Mr.  Boyce  was  ordained 
Feb.  23d,  1855,  but  resigned  soon  after.  During  his  ministry 
the  house  was  enlarged  to  40  by  80  feet,  at  a  cost  of  $800,  and 
the  membership  increased  to  41.  Rev.  J.  Y.  Aitchison  was 
Pastor  from  July,  1855,  to  Sept.,  1856;  Robert  Carr  to  Sept., 
1857,  Kelsy  Walling,  to  Sept.,  1859;  Alfred  Harvey,  1860-1; 
William  Reid,  Sept.,  1861,  to  March,  1857;  during  his  pastor- 
ate new  lots  were  secured,  and  a  neat  brick  edifice  built,  and 
large  numbers  added  to  the  church.  He  was  succeeded  by 
Rev.  J.  W.  T.  Boothe,  from  1867  to  1875,  and  the  present 
Pastor,  Rev.  D.  Henry  Miller,  D.  D.,  from  1875  to  1884.  The 
church  numbers  about  500  members,  besides  a  large  and 
flourishing  Sabbath-school.     It  sustains  several  missions. 

Rev.  D.  Henry  Miller,  D.  D.,  was  born  in  the  Isle  of  Jer- 
sey, 1837;  was  educated  in  High  school,  Boston,  and  Phiner's 
Clas.  Acad.;  grad.  Wesleyan  Univ.,  1845;  Pastor  at  No. 
Stonington,  Ct.,  1847-9;  Yonkers,  1849-'57;  Meriden,  1857-63; 
Trenton,  1864-'7;  Elizabeth,  1867-'73;  Lowell,  1873;  New  York, 
1873-5;  Brooklyn,  1875-84.  He  was  in  service  as  Chaplain  of 
15th  Conn.  Vols.,  1863-'4.  Editor  Baptist  Memorial  several 
years;  author  of  History  of  Early  Baptists  of  Mercer  County. 

Concord  Baptist  Church  (Colored)  was  organized  May,  1847, 
in  the  house  of  Mrs.  Maria  Hampton,  then  residing  in  Fair  st. 
The    membership   consisted  of  five  persons  only,  and  Rev. 


HISTORY  OF  KlirOS  COUNTY. 


Sampson  AVhite  was  their  Pastor.  They  hired  the  Uris  Hall, 
then  opposite  the  City  Hall,  for  about  a  year.  Lots  were 
iKiught  on  Concord  st. ,  where  a  meeting-house  was  erected 
which  yet  remains. 

The  membership  increasing  beyond  the  limits  of  the  old 
bviilding,  the  church,  in  1873,  pui-chased  their  present  property 
on  Canton  St.  of  the  Central  Baptist  Church,  at  a  cost  of 
$8,000,  and  renovated  and  fxirnished  it  anew.  The  member- 
ship, Dec,  1883,  is  560,  with  a  very  interesting  Sunday-school. 
Tliere  is  also  connected  with  the  church  a  Female  Home 
Missionary  and  Dorcas  Society,  a  Jlutual  Relief  Society,  a 
Young  People's  Social  Union,  and  a  Foreign  Jlission  Society. 

The  Pdslorn  have  been  :  Revs.  Sampson  White,  whose 
pastorate  commenced  in  1847;  Leonard  Black,  1851;  Simon 
Bundick,  1853;  Sampson  White,  1857;  Wm.  J.  Barnett,  1863; 
and  the  present  Pastor,  William  T.  Dixon,  1868. 

Rev.  William  T.  Dixon,  born  in  New  York  ;  licentiate  of 
Abyssinian  Bap.  Ch.,  N.  Y.;  located  Bklyn,  1863;  Cor.  Sec. 
N.  E.  Bapt.  Mission  Convention. 

The  Harrison  Ave.  German  Baptist  Church,  originated 
in  a  Mission  Sunday-school,  undertaken  by  some  of  the  mem- 
bers of  the  German  Baj).  Ch.,  of  New  York,  in  a  private 
house  on  Harrison  ave.,  E.  D.  In  1878,  they  rented  the 
chapel — specially  built  for  their  use — which  they  still  occupy. 
The  pulpit  was  supplied  by  Rev.  C.  Damm,  then  Pastor  of 
the  Ger.  Ch.  of  Soutli  Brooklyn;  and  by  other  preachers 
from  New  York  city.  Although  few  in  numbers  and  weak 
in  means,  they  finally  called  the  Rev.  H,  Trumpp,  Pastor  of 
the  Ger.  Bap.  Ch.,  in  Albany,  N.  Y.,  who  entered  upon  this 
charge  May  1,  1881.  On  the  23d  of  same  month,  they  org.  as 
a  church,  with  47  members;  and  in  the  next  month  were 
duly  recognized  by  a  council  of  the  Bap.  Church  of  Brooklyn 
and  vicinity.  The  growth  of  the  church,  since  that  date,  has 
been  very  steady  and  encouraging.  The  membership  is  now 
(July,  1883)  99.  The  cliapel  seats  about  200;  but  is  too  small 
and  insufficient  for  their  purposes.  The  Sunday-school  is  in 
a  flourishing  condition,  with  an  enrollment  of  250  scholars 
and  24  teachers;  and  would  be  larger,  if  it  had  larger  accom- 
modations. The  church  is  a  self-sustaining  one — united  in 
action — m  much  need  of  a  larger  edifice,  and  deserving  of 
tlie  sympathy  of  its  sister  churches. 

First  Swedish  Baptist  Church  of  Brooklyn  was  organized 
Jan.,  1884,  witli  a  membership  of  94,  who  withdrew  from  the 
Swedish  Baptist  Church  in  New  York  to  organize  a  church 
of  their  own  in  Brooklyn.  Services  are  held  in  a  hall  at  16 
Smith  street.     Rev.  Mr.  Lundin  is  the  Pastor. 

The  First  Baptist  Church,  Brooklyn,  E.  D.,  was  formed 
March  19,  1839;  of  14  members.  Rev.  John  Jones  was 
Pastor,  1839-'40,  and  Rev.  C.  F.  Frey,  1840-'41,  the  church  at 
that  time  numbering  30  persons.  Meetings  were  held  in  the 
District  School-house,  and  the  Village  Court-house,  until  a 
frame  structure  was  erected  on  the  corner  of  5th  and  South 
1st  streets,  and  dedicated  June  29,  1843. 

Ministry ;  Rev.  Lawson  Muzzey,  Sept.  15,  1841,  to  Nov.  8, 
1843;  Rev.  A.  P.  Mason,  1844-49.  Under  his  ministry,  the 
church  erected  the  fine  strvicture  on  the  corner  of  5th  and 
South  5tli  sts..  Dr.  Spencer  H.  Lowe  preaching  the  sermon  of 
dedication  June  1,  1849;  Morgan  J.  Rhees,  D.  D.,  1850-'53; 
Samuel  Baker,  D.  D.,  1854-'65;  John  B.  Brohett,  D.  D.,  1865 
-'73;  Daniel  Read,  LL.  D.,  1877-'80;  Daniel  C.  Eddy,  1881- 
'84. 

In  1883,  the  church  purchased  lots  of  land  on  Lee  ave., 
corner  of  Keap  street,  where  it  proposed  at  once  to  erect  a 
new  church  edifice. 

The  present  membership  of  the  church  is  531.  The  church 
edifice  is  valued  at  $40,000;  will  seat  800  persons;  is  of  gothic 
style,  and  has  all  the  conveniences  of  such  a  structure.     The 


FIRbT    BAPTIST    CHURCH,    aTH    AND    SOUTH    5th    STS. 

church  supports  the  Hope  Mission,  and  a  flourishing  Sunday- 
school  in  a  chapel  on  Maujer  street. 

The  following  Baptist  Clergymen  are  residents  of  BrooklyiK 

Rev.  RuFi'S  Lewis  Perry,  born  in  Tenn.,  1834;  studied  at 
Kalamazoo  Coll.,  Mich;  grad.  Kal.  Theol.  Sem.,  1860;  located 
at  Ann  Arbor,  Mich.,  1861;  St.  Catherine's  (Ont.),  1863-4; 
Buffalo,  1865;  Editor  and  pub.  of  National  Monitor,  formerly 
Ed.  of  People's  Journal  and  American  Baptist,  N.  Y. ;  located 
in  B'klyn,  1868. 

Rev.  D.  C.  Hughes,  born  in  Great  Britain;  grad.  from 
Madison  Univ.,  N.  Y.,  1877;  previous  locations,  Glens  Falls,  N. 
Y.,  1860-3;  Oswego,  N.  Y.,  186G-'9;  Newark,  N.  J.,  1869-'74; 
Brooklyn,  1874-"84;  author  of  Studies  in  Mark;  contributor 
to  Honiiletic  Monthly,  N.  Y. 

Rev.  Samuel  Williams,  born  in  Cornellsville,  Pa.,  1802; 
grad.  West  Theo.  Sem.,  Allegheny  (Pa.),  1830;  located  Pitts- 
burgh; Akron,  O. :  Springfield,  O. ;  was  School  Director,  Pitts- 
burgh, Pa. ;  author  of  Mormonism  Exposed,  On  Baptism,  and 
other  works:  ed.  Christian  Witness,  Pittsburgh. 

Rev.  Jeremiah  B.  Taylor,  born  in  New  York; grad.  N.  Y. 
Univ.  1848;  was  engaged  in  Mission  Work  in  Kansas,  1860-'7; 
Author  of  Berean  Articles,  1875-'83. 

Rev.  Francis  Arthur  Douglass  was  born  in  Ticonderoga, 
N.  Y.,  1824;  grad.  Amherst  Coll.  1851,  and  Newton  Theol. 
Sem.  1854  ;Sec.  Amer.  &  Foreign  Bible  Soc,  1879-83;  previous 
locations,  Nellore,  India,  1855-65;  Champlain,  N.  Y.,  1865-'9; 
Piqua,  0.,  1869-'73;  Lebanon,  0.,  1873-'5;  Cincinnati,  1875-'9; 
came  to  Brooklyn  1879. 

Rev.  Joseph  B.  Breed,  born  in  Salem,  Mass.,  1807;  grad. 
Newton  Theol.  Sem.  1839;  located  Virginia,  New  York,  New 
Hampshire,  Rhode  Island  ;  came  to  Brooklyn  1877. 

Rev.  Henry  L.  Morehouse,  born  in  Stanford,  N.  Y.,  1834; 
grad.  Univ.  Rochester,  1858;  Rochester  Theol.  Sem.,  1864; 
Trustee  of  Kalamazoo  Coll.,  1870;  Cor.  Sec.  N.Y.  Bapt.  Union 
for  Ministerial  Education,  1877-'9;  Cor.  Sec.  Amer.  Bapt.  Home 
Mission  Soc,  1879;  located  E.  Saginaw,  Mich.,  1864-73; 
Rochester,  1873-9;  Brooklyn,  1879-'84;  author  Baptist  Home 
Missions  in  America. 

Rev.  Halsey  W.  Knapp,  D.  D.,  born  in  New  York;  grad. 
Comi.  Lit.  Inst.,  Suffield;  was  trustee  of  Madison  Univ.,  1859- 
'68;  locatedat  West  Farms,  1858;  Jersey  City,  1859-'65;  New 
York,  1865-'70;  Brooklyn,  1875-'83. 

Rev.  Henry  Bromley,  born  in  Norwich,  Ct.,  1813;  grad. 
Hamilton   Lit.  and  Theol.  Inst.,  1838;  located  in  Conn.   15 


EGCLESIASTtCAL   OUGANIZATIONS. 


1083 


years;  80  years  ia  New  York,  Philadelphia  and  Brooklyn; 
engaged  in  Church  extension  and  Sunday-school  work. 

Rev.  C.  G.  Roberts,  born  in  Savannah,  Ga. ,  1842;  grad. 
Liberia  Coll.,  1863;  located  at  Sinoe,  Liberia,  1878-'80;  came  to 
B'klyn,  1880;  pastor,  1880-'4. 

Rev.  John  Flavel  Bioelow,  A.  M.,  (Roch.  Univ.,  1856), 
D.  D.  (Vermont  Univ.  1864);  was  born  inPaxton,  Mass.,  1818; 
studied  Brown  Univ.,  Columbia  College,  and  Univ.  Berlin, 
Germany;  located  Bristol,  R.  I.,  1848;  Middleboro,  Mass., 
1855;  Keeseville,    N.  Y.,  1860;   St.   Albans,  Vt.,  1866;  was 


Pres.  Ti'ustees,  Pierce  Acad.,  Mass.,  and  other  institutions; 
Assistant  Prin.  Athenreum  Sem.  for  Y'oung  Ladies,  B'klyn, 
1868-'80;  author  of  pub.  sermons  and  Synthetic  Method  of 
Study. 

Rev.  J.  D.  Bengless.  born  Del.  Co.,  Pa.,  1836;  grad.  Lewis- 
burg  (Pa.)  Univ.,  18G0;  Pres.  New  York  Cremation  Society, 
1881-'3;  located  Pawtuxet,  R,  I.;  Chaplain  2d  R.  I.  Vol.  Inf.. 
1864.  Chaplain  U.  S.  Navy,  1864-'84;  author  oi  Islam  and 
Ottoman  Empirt,  1876,  Incineration,  1883;  located  Brooklyn, 
Sept.,  1877. 


EVANGELICAL    AND    LUTHERAN    CHURCHES. 


The  German  Evangelical  Church,  Schermerhorn  Street. — 
In  1843  a  few  German  residents  of  Brooklyn  began  religious 
services  in  their  own  language  at  the  Brooklyn  Institute. 
From  this  beginning  sprang  the  first  German  church  in  the 
city,  which  was  org.  in  1845,  under  the  above  name;  the 
members  being  from  the  Lutheran  and  German  Reformed 
denominations.  During  their  occupancy  of  the  Brooklyn 
Institute,  a  house  of  worship  was  erected  on  Schermerhorn 
street,  near  Court,  of  brick,  and  seating  300.  In  1863  the 
building  was  enlarged  to  45  by  80  feet,  increasing  the  sittings 
to  500. 

Pastors :    Walzer,   Dr.    Winklemann,    1845 ;  Revs. 

Miller,  1846  ;  Herman  Garbechs,  1847-65  ;  J.  Bank,  1866-'71  ; 
C.  F.  Hausmann,  1871-'75  ;  and  the  present  Pastor,  Theodore 
Dresel,  1875-'84. 

The  basement  is  occupied  by  an  English  Sunday-school,  on 
Sunday  morning,  with  300  scholars,  and  by  a  German  Sunday- 
school  in  the  afternoon,  with  200  scholars.  A  private  German 
and  English  day-school  is  kept  by  L.  Goebel,  with  50  to  60 
scholars.  ^ 

St.  Johannes'  Evangelical  Lutheran  Church,  cor.  Graham 
avenue  and  Ten  Eyck  street,  org.  1843,  by  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Delke.  At  first  the  congregation  worshiped  in  the  Pastor's 
house.  No.  128  Scholes  street.  In  1844  they  met  in  a  wooden 
building,  at  the  corner  of  Graham  avenue  and  Remsen  street. 
In  1846  funds  were  raised  for  a  new  chm'ch,  mostly  from  the 
congregation  itself,  and  the  building  completed  in  1847. 

In  1883  the  corner-stone  of  a  new  church  on  Maujer  street, 
near  Humboldt,  was  laid,  which  is  of  Philadelphia  brick,  in 
pure  Gothic  style,  60  by  100  feet,  with  belfry  and  spire  165 
feet  high.  The  ulterior  is  severely  Gothic,  with  hardwood 
finish.    The  cost  was  |50,000. 

Ministry :  Revs.  Delke,  1843  ;  Schwarz,  1843-'50  ;  Beisel, 
Mengat,  1850  ;  Pole,  1850-'04  ;  Christian  J.  Weisel,  1854-'76  ; 
Tucker,  1876-'78  ;  P.  Beyer,  1880-84. 

Rev.  C.  J.  Weisel  was  a  man  of  deep  piety  who  had  felt  it 
his  duty  to  go  out  into  the  world  and  preach  the  gospel  to 
every  creature,  and  went  as  a  missionary  among  the  Jews  of 
New  York.  In  1854  he  was  called  as  Assistant  Pastor  to  St. 
Johannes'  Church;  misunderstandings  arose,  so  that  Rev. 
Pole,  with  a  portion  of  the  congregation,  withdrew  in  1855, 
and  formed  a  new  church  on  the  corner  of  Scholes  street  and 
Union  avenue,  leaving  Rev.  Mr.  Weisel  Pastor  of  the  old 
church.  He  served  with  great  acceptance  for  24  years,  and 
died   April   12,  1876,   universally  mourned. 

A  large  school  is  connected  with  the  church,  of  which  G. 
Oexle,  Wm.  Grietzmacher,  C.  Leune  and  Mr.  Use,  have  been 
the  teachers. 

The  St.  John's  Evangelical  Lutheran  Congregation  was 
organized  in  1867.     Some  of  the  more  active  members  were  : 


Christian  Koch,  Henry  H.  Lettmann,  Henry  Feis,  James  L. 
Jensen,  David  Plath  and  Henry  Gundlach.  They  at  first 
held  divine  services  in  Union  Hall,  on  Manhattan  avenue ; 
then  in  a  small  church  on  Leonard  street.  In  1869  the 
foundation  of  their  church  was  laid ;  material,  wood ;  cost, 
.^16,000;  seating  capacity,  850;  church  membership,  about 
600  communicant  members;  Sunday-school,  300. 

Ministry :  Rev.  O.  Kaselitz,  1867-'76 ;  Rev.  Theo.  Heisch- 
mann,  1876-'83;  Rev.  F.  W.  Oswald,  1883. 

There  is  also  a  parochial  school,  having  60  scholars  and  2 
teachers.  Since  April,  1883,  services  are  held  in  the  English 
language  on  Sunday  evenings.  A  Ladies'  Missionary  Society 
is  also  connected  with  the  church. 

The  Zion  German  Evangelical  Lutheran  Church,  Henry 
street,  near  Clark,  resulted  from  the  efforts  of  Rev.  Frederic 
William  Tobias  Steimle,  aided  by  Jacob  Goedel.  A  room 
for  worship  was  first  hired  in  Franklin  Building,  cor.  Nassau 
and  Fulton  streets,  in  1855;  when  in  1856  more  ample  quarters 
in  the  Juvenile  High  School  on  Wasliington  street,  and  then 
Concert  Hall  oa  Henry  street,  was  purchased,  and  dedicated 
November  30,  1856.  The  cost  of  this  building  was  $14,000; 
and  about  |12,000  were  expended  on  repairing  and  refitting 
it.  Mr.  Steimle  was  Pastor  till  his  death,  Feb.,  1879.  In  the 
following  June  the  present  Pastor,  Rev.  J.  F.  C.  Henuicke, 
was  called.  A  school  has  been  maintained  (both  in  German 
and  English)  in  connection  with  this  church. 

St.  Matthew's  English  Lutheran  Church,  corner  of  Clin- 
ton and  Amity  sts.,  was  organized  in  1858,  and  first  wor- 
shiped in  a  hall;  then  in  the  church  building  on  Atlantic 
ave. ;  then  in  State  st.  Having  purchased,  in  1879,  the  build- 
ing corner  of  Clinton  and  Amity  sts.,  from  the  South  Pres- 
byterian Church,  they  now  hold  regular  services.  The  fol- 
lowing have  been  its  Pastors  :  Revs.  William  Hull,  1858-'61  ; 
John  Kuhns,  1861-'3;  I.  K.  Funk,  D.  D.,  1868-'72;  A.  Stewart 
Hartman,  1872-4;  J.  I.  Burrell,  1874-'6;  M.  W.  Hamma,  D.D., 
1877-'82  ;  J.  C.  Zimmerman,  since  December,  1882.  Seating 
capacity,  800.  Present  membershiij,  about  200.  The  Sunday- 
school  numbers  over  200.  This  church  has  English  services, 
and  belongs  to  the  General  Synod  of  the  United  States.  Tlie 
American  Lutheran  Chui-cli  accepts  the  Augsburg  Confession 
as  a  correct  exhibition  of  its  creed.  This  church,  though 
conservative,  is  evangelical  and  progressive,  being  identified 
with  the  cause  of  Home  and  Foreign  Missions,  and  taking  an 
active  part  in  questions  of  moral  reform.  Its  j>resent  Pastor, 
Rev.  J.  C.  Zimmerman,  was  born  in  Ohio,  1851  ;  grad.  Mt. 
Union  (O.)  Coll.,  1874,  and  Wittenberg  Sem.,  1876  ;  previous 
location,  Osborne,  O.,  1876-83;  came  to  Brooklyn  in  1882. 

On  Nov.  10,  1883,  the  400th  Anniversary  of  Martin  Luther's 
Birthday  was  celebrated  in  this  church,  in  which  many 
Protestant  clergymen  of   Brooklyn  participated.     The  call 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUlTtT. 


sr.    ;.).^iiHoUb    ENGLISH    LUTHERAN    CIIl'KCH. 

was  signed  by  300  ministers.  Rev.  Henry  Ward  Boecher, 
Drs.  Thomas,  Peck,  and  Behrends  made  tlie  principal  ad- 
dresses on  the  hfe  and  work  of  the  great  Reformer.  The 
church  was  too  small  for  the  large  audience,  and  many  were 
turned  away. 

St.  John's  German  Evangelical  Lutheran  Church  was  or- 
ganized in  1866.  The  congregation  worshiped  in  a  Methodist 
church  in  Third  ave.,  till  1867,  when  their  present  house  of 
worship  was  completed  and  dedicated.  This  is  in  Prospect 
ave.,  between  Fifth  and  Sixth  aves.  It  is  a  wooden  struc- 
ture, with  a  brick  basement,  which  is  used  for  a  parochial 
school.     The  church  has  a  seating  capacity  of  350. 

The  first  Pastor  was  Rev.  A.  Reidenbacli,  followed,  in  1868, 
by  Rev.  E.  J.  Geise,  and  he,  in  1873,  by  the  present  Pastor, 
Rev.  J.  Helmuth  Sommer. 

Tlie  parochial  school  was  established  in  1866.  Instruction 
is  given  in  both  the  German  and  English  languages,  and  it  is 
both  relgious  and  secular  in  character.  The  average  attend- 
ance is  125.  -^ 

St.  Peter's  German  Lutheran,  Walworth  st.  and  DeKalb 
ave.,  was  organized  in  1865.  Services  were  first  held  in  a 
small  chapel  in  Skillman  st.,  near  Park  ave.  In  1868,  the 
church  removed  to  Park  Avenue  Chapel.  The  present  church 
edifice  was  bought  in  May,  1870,  from  the  Puritan  Congrega- 
tional Society.  It  is  a  frame  structure,  50  by  110  feet,  in- 
cluding the  school  building  in  the  rear,  and  has  a  seating 
capacity  of  600.  The  number  of  communicants  is  about  900. 
There  are  two  Sunday-schools  of  over  500  children.  In  1879, 
a  gallery  and  organ-loft  were  added,  and  a  new  organ  pur- 
chased.    In  1880,  the  auditorium  vi^as  frescoed  and  decorated. 

In  1868,  a  parochial  school  was  established  ;  and,  in  1878,  a 
new  school  building  erected,  adjoining  the  church.  This 
school,  in  English  and  German-  has  3  teachers  and  100 
scholars.  *^ 

Ministry:  Revs.  John  Zapf,  1865--8;  Dr.  Schubert,  Jan.- 
Oct.,  1868;  Robert  C.  Beer,  1868-'9  ;  Clias.  Goehling,  1869-'78  ; 
John  J.  Heisohmann,  1878-'84. 


Rev.  John  J.  Heischmanh,  bom  in  Lyons,  N.  Y.,  1858; 
grad.  Bloomfield  (N.  J.)  CoU.,  1876,  and  Phila.  Theol.  Sem., 
1879  ;  is  Sec'y  of  Home  Mission  Soc.  of  Luth.  Ch.,  of  N.  Y.; 
editor  of  B'klyn  Luth.  Ch.  News,  lS78-'83;  European  Letters, 
1882;  located  in  B'klyn,  1878. 

St.  Luke's  German  Evangelical  Lutheran  Church  was  or- 
ganized in  1870.  The  first  place  of  worship  was  a  hall  in 
Cumberland  st. ,  bet  wen  DeKalb  and  Lafayette  aves.  During 
the  year  1870,  the  congregation  purchased  from  the  Simpson 
M.  E.  Churcli,  for  114,000,  the  church  building  on  Carlton 
ave.,  near  Jlyrtle.  Tliis  building  was  repaired  and  renovated 
at  an  expense  of  about  .$3,500,  and  an  organ  was  purchased 
at  a  cost  of  ){;2,000.  In  1879,  §1,000  were  expended  on  the 
Smiday-school  rooms. 

A  parochial  school  was  commenced  in  1870  ;  and,  in  1878, 
a  school-house,  adjoining  the  church,  was  built,  at  a  cost  of 
|5,000.  In  this  school,  instruction  is  given  in  German  and 
English.  The  school  has  four  teachers  and  seventy  scholars. 
Rev.  J.  H.  Baden  has  been  the  Pastor  from  the  organization 
of  the  church. 

St.  Paul's  Lutheran  Church  was  organized  in  1872.  Its 
first  place  of  worship  was  a  hall  in  (Columbia  street,  near 
Woodhull.  In  1876,  a  church  edifice  was  erected  at  the  corner 
of  Henry  street  and  Third  place.  It  is  a  brick  structure  with 
a  seating  capacity  of  000.  Its  cost,  including  site,  was 
$15,000. 

The  first  Pastor  was  Rev.  Robert  Neumann,  who  was  suc- 
ceeded in  1878  by  the  present  Pastor,  Rev.  John  Huppen- 
bauer. 

The  Norwegian  Seamen's  (Lutheran)  Church  was  organ- 
ized in  July,  1878.  The  first  place  of  worship  was  a  hall  on 
tiie  corner  of  Van  Brunt  and  President  streets.   In  February, 

1879,  the  church  property  of  the  William  street  M.  E.  Church, 
between  Richard  and  Van  Brunt  streets,  was  purchased  for 
about  $11,000. 

In  addition  to  the  church  services  a  reading-room  is  main- 
tained here  for  sut^li  Norwegian  sailors  and  others  as  may, 
from  time  to  time,  be  in  the  port.  Here  they  are  kept  from 
the  e^il  influences  that  so  generally  surround  that  class  of 
people. 

Rev.  O.  Asperhem  was  the  first  Pastor,  succeeded  August, 

1880,  by  the  present  Pastor,  Rev.  A.  Slortensen. 

Our  Saviour's  (Danish)  Evan.  Luth.  Church,  for  Brooklyn, 
New  York  and  vicinity.  The  Danish  Evan.  I,uth.  Slission 
had  its  beginning  in  July,  1872,  when  the  Rev.  A.  L.  J. 
Soholm,  from  Denmark,  org.  a  congregation  at  Perth  Amboy, 
N.  J.  His  labors,  though  extended  to  various  places  in  the 
States  of  N.  Y. ,  N.  J.  and  Mass. ,  were  yet  mostly  devoted  to 
this  Perth  Amboy  enterprise,  and  to  the  Danish  emigrants 
arriving  at  Castle  Gardeur  In  Perth  Amboy,  a  little  frame 
church  (St.  Stephen's  Danish  Luth.)  was  erected;  and  Mr.  S. 
labored  there  until  May,  1878,  when  he  removed  to  Wau- 
paca, Wis.,  to  take  charge  of  the  Danish  Luth.  Church  there. 
He  was  succeeded  at  Perth  Amboy  by  Rev.  R.  Andersen;  but 
as  the  congregation  had  mostly  gone  to  the  West,  the  church 
there  was  broken  up.  Mr.  Andersen,  therefore,  turned  his ' 
attention  to  Brooklyn,  where  he  held  his  first  mission  ser- 
vice to  his  countrymen,  July  10,  1878,  in  a  house  (previously 
used  as  a  Ger.  Bap.  Church),  No.  137  Twenty-second  st.,  near 
3d  ave.  Sept.  15,  he  opened  a  mission  in  Harmonia  Hall, 
Van  Cott  avenue,  Greenpoint,  E.  D.,  preaching  also  in  N.  Y. 
to  emigrants  and  seamen.  Subsequently  the  Greenpoint 
meetings  were  held  in  St.  Johannes"  Ger.  Evan.  Luth.  Church, 
in  Leonard  street,  between  Greenpoint  avenue  and  Colyer  st. 
In  the  Spring  of  1879,  he  commenced  mission  meetings  in  22d 
street,  Brooklyn,  in  a  hall  called  "Augsburg  Chapel,"  occu- 
pied by  the  Mission  S.   S.  of  the  Eng.  Luth.  St.  Matthew's 


ECCLESIASTICAL    Oil GANIZA  TIONS. 


Church  in  Amity  street.  Mr.  Andersen  went  to  Denmark  in 
Jan.,  1881,  returning  in  May  to  the  care  of  the  "Augsburg 
Chapel "  mission  (which  was  afterwards  transferred  to  the 
Dutch  Ref.  denomination  in  connection  with  the  13th  St.  Ref. 
Cluirch)  and  the  Greenpoint  Mission.  In  1882,  a  regular  mis- 
sion was  begun  in  Jersey  city,  and  in  the  same  year  the 
' '  Augsburg  Cliapel "  enterprise  became  estalilished  in  its  own 
building  (a  two-story  brick  house).  No.  193  Ninth  street,  the 
first  floor  being  converted  into  a  neat  little  church,  and  the 
second  floor  occupied  as  a  jjarsonage.  This  new  home  was 
dedicated  under  its  present  name,  on  Sunday,  Feb.,  1883;  and 
at  the  tirst  confirmation  held  within  its  walls,  April  15,  four 
l)ersons  were  confirmed.  Two  days  later  the  mission  was  duly 
org.  as  a  congregation,  which  was  incorporated  June  6th,  and 
now  numbers  about  40  families  and  some  single  persons.  Its 
nicmbersliip  extends  over  New  York,  Brooklyn,  Greenpoint, 
Iloboken,  etc.,  and  its  affairs  are  managed  by  nine  trustees. 
The  church  scats  100  persons,  and  though  plainly  furnished, 
possesses  (hy  gift  of  a  friend)  a  fine  altar-piece^ etc.  There  is, 
also,  a  jirosperous  Sunday-school.  ^ 

This  church  stands  in  connection  with  tiie  uanish  Luth. 
Church,  both  in  Denmark  and  America,  and  with  the  Luth. 
Church  in  general.  Its  work  is  primarily  among  the  Danish 
and  Swedish  chiu'ches,  and  those  who  remain  about  the  ports 
of  New  York,  Brooklyn  and  Jersey  city  for  awhile,  before 
going  West. 

Rev.  Rasmus  Andersen,  born  1848,  at  Vedelshave,  Den- 
mark; grad.  High  school  in  Ryslinge,  1871;  came  to  this 
land  in  June,  1871,  as  the  missionary  of  "the  Society  for 
Preaching  the  Gospel  to  Danes  in  America,"  and  a  similar 
society  for  preaching  to  Danish  saUors;  completed  his  theol. 
education  at  the  Augsburg  Sem.  at  Marshall,  Wis.;  was 
ordained  June  26,  1872;  was  one  of  the  founders  of  Danish 
Evang.  Luth.  Church  in  America,  1872;  and  Secretary  of 
Synod  for  some  years  ;  author  of  History  of  Evang.  Church: 
formerly  in  Waupaca  and  Three  Rivers,  Wis.,  1873-'78; 
teltled  in  Brooklyn  Sfptendjer.  1878. 

Grace  English  Evangelical  Lutheran  Church,  at  present 
worshiping  in  a  haU  on  the  N.  E.  cor.  Broadway  and  4th 
St.,  was  org.  March  17,  1881.  It  is  the  only  .Engrfe/i  Luth. 
Chui-ch  in  Eastern  Dist.,  and  the  second  in  Brooklyn;  St. 
Idatthew's  being  the  other.  The  communicant-members 
number  about  iiO,  although  a  much  larger  congregation  is  in 
regular  attendance.  Sunday-school  has  about  50  scholars, 
and  is  growing.  The  church  is  connected  with  the  Synod  of 
N.  Y.  and  N.  J.,  and  is  supported  by  the  Home  Mission 
Board  of  the  Gen.  Sjniod  of  the  Evan.  Duth.  Ch.  Officers  : 
Rev.  G.  F.  Belu'inger,  Pastor;  John  Brissell,  J.  Fred.  Van- 
denfauge,  Elders;  Geo.  Meier,  Jacob  MoUer,  Geo.  Tonjes, 
Charles  Niemeyer,  Deacons;  L.  R.  Stegman,  C.  R.  Henry,  J. 
H.  Fahrenliolz,  J.  A.  Beyer,  G.  Tonjes,  H.  Dick,  Trustees. 
Sunday-school:  Supt.,  G.  F.  Bahringer;  Asst.  Supt.,C.  R. 
Henry;  Sec,  Geo.  Meier;  Treas.,  Chas.  Niemeyer. 

Rev.  Geohoe  F.  Behringer,  born  in  New  York,  Oct.,  1846; 
grad.  Cornell  Univ.,  1869,  and  Univ.  Leipzig,  1873;  was  Ass't 
Prof.  German,  etc.,  at  Cornell,  1869-'70,  and  Prof.  Rhetoric 
at  Howard  Univ.,  1874^'75;  previous  locations,  Indianapolis, 
lS77-'78;  Des  Moines,  1879-81;  author  of  Life  of  Luther; 
came  to  Brooklyn,  1881.  - 

Harrison  Ave.  Church  of  the  Evangelical  Association  of 
North  America  was  org.  January  10, 1876,  through  the  labors 
of  Rev.  E.  Glaesen,  Missionary,  who  preached  at  first  in 
Winter's  Hall  in  Harrison  ave.  Messrs.  G.  A.  Sebolmer, 
Philip  Stark.  Ernest  Boelun,  F.  Boyen  and  Ulrich  Barth  were 
its  founders  and  first  trustees.  Tlu-ee  lots  were  secured  in 
Harrison  avenue,  between  Gwinnett  and  Middleton  streets, 
March  1,  1876;  and  the  erection  of  thejiresent  ijarsonage  com- 


menced (cost  $3,500),  in  the  second  floor  of  which  church- 
services  were  held.  These  accommodations  soon  proving  too 
small,  a  church  edifice,  90  by  42  feet,  frame,  in  a  partly 
Gothic  style,  was  erected.  The  comer-stone  was  laid  July  S, 
1877,  and  the  chui-ch  ded.  Sept.  12,  1878.  It  has  a  seat- 
ing capacity  of  500,  and  cost  about  $12,000.  The  first  Pastor, 
Ml'.  E.  Glaesen,  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  J.  P.  Schnatz,  May  1, 
1879.  He  remained  two  years,  during  which  the  church 
prospered;  and  was  followed  by  Rev.  F.  Kurtz,  the  present 
Pastor;  the  congregation  having  increased,  in  two  years, 
from  120  to  170  members.  Tlie  church  sustains  a  Sunday- 
school  of  over  400  children.  The  services  are  all  in  the 
German  language.  , 

St.  Mark's  Evangelical  Lutheran  Church,  Evergreen  ave., 
op.  Jefferson,  org.  1868.  The  church  is  a  wooden  structure, 
seating  500  persons,  with  a  parsonage;  is  worth  about 
$20,000,  and  is  free  from  debt.  Rev.  G.  A.  Schmitli,  Pastor, 
from  1868  to  March,  1871;  Rev.  August  E.  Frey,  from  March, 
1871,  to  1884.  The  church  has  prospered,  and  numbers  now 
1,000  communicants;  500  Sunday-school  scholars;  sustaining 
St.  Slark's  pai'ochial  school  of  six  teachers  and  300  scholars. 

Mr.  Frey,  a  native  of  Germany,  born  in  1844;  educated  in 
Basse,  Switzerland.  He  was  first  located  in  Ghent,  Columbia 
Co.,  N.  Y.,  1868-'71.  He  is  the  author  of  Chrstl.  Volks- 
Biblidheh  and  Missions  Bihliothelc,  History  of  the  Reforma- 
tion, also  Editor  of  the  Evang.  Luth.  Mission  Blait  for  8 
years,  and  otVcrgissmeinnicht. 

Evangelical  Lutheran  Emmanuel  Church  was  foimded  in 
January,  1875,  by  Rev.  F.  T.  Koerner,  witli  twenty  members. 
Services  were  first  held  in  Tuttle's  building;  afterwards  the 
church  on  South  Eighth  and  First  streets  was  purchased.  It 
is  a  brick  structure,  35  by  50  feet,  and  had  been  first  a 
Presbj'terian  and  next  a  Jewish  church. 

The  edifice  was  refitted,  and  the  congregation  now  number  v 
six  Inindi-ed;  while  the  Sunday-school  has  two  hundred  and 
fif  tj'  membex-s,  and  the  day  school  has  a  hundred  pupils. 
The  congregation  helps  support  the  German  Home  for  the 
Destitute  and  Hospital,  at  East  New  York,  and  Mr.  Koerner  is 
a  member  of  the  Board  of  both  Institutions.  The  church  i 
belongs  to  the  Sj-no<l  of  Missouri,  Ohio,  and  other  States,  | 
which  includes  about  a  thousand  ministers.  ^ 

German  Evangelical  Mission  Church  in  Hopkins  St. — The 
first  attempt  for  the  gathering  of  a  German  mission  in  the| 
21st  Ward  in  Brooklyn  was  made  in  the  year  1868.  InJ 
Tlu-oop  ave.,  between  Hopkins  and  Ellery  sts.,  the  English^ 
brethren  have  a  Mission  Chapel  (Sunday-school  building) 
which  they  offered  to  the  (iermans  for  their  services.  Mis- 
sionary Hones  was  called  to  the  work,  but  he  was  not  suc- 
cessful. Tlie  second  attempt  was  made  on  tlie  5th  of  July, 
1868,  when  Rev.  Henry  Loesch  was  called  as  a  minister; 
but  he  had  to  resign  in  a  short  time  (Feb.  10,  1870),  for  want 
of  hearers  and  success. 

On  the  15th  of  July  the  present  Pastor,  Rev.  John  Meury, 
accepted  the  call.  He  is  a  man  of  uncommon  energy,  pow-i 
erful  oratorical  talent,  and  high  cultivation,  together  with 
personal  cheerfulness  and  piety.  He  went  to  work  with  zeal 
and  courage.  The  meetings  and  services  were  attended  with, 
growing  interest,  and  soon  the  locality  was  too  small  to  holdj 
the  hearers.  On  Jan.  6th,  1871,  the  session  resolved  to  biiild 
a  church  edifice.  In  May,  1871,  the  congregation  was  incor-: 
porated under  its  present  name.  Three  lots  in  Hopkins  St.,  be- 
tween Throop  and  Sumner  aves.,  were  purchased,  and  the 
Ijuilding  commenced.  On  the  23d  of  Feb.,  1872,  the  new 
church  was  consecrated  and  occupied.  The  building  is 
constructed  in  the  most  solid  manner,  thorouglily,  of  brick, 
50x85.  The  spacious  main  hall  has  wide  galleries  all  around 
and  can  accommodate  14,000  persons.   The  basement  consists 


1086 


SISTORT  OF  KIN^GS  COtTlTTT. 


of  large  lecture-room,  and  two  school-rooms  for  160  scholars 
of  the  j)arochiaI  school.  The  congi-egation  also  owns  a  par- 
sonage, 20x50;  l)rick  bmlding  with  Frencli  roof.  TJie  church 
and  parsonage  were  erected  at  the  cost  of  $40,800.  The  con- 
gregation numbers  .at  the  present  time  about  675  members. 
The  Sunday-school  is  regularly  attended  by  700-800  children. 
The  parochial  school,  with  a  German  and  an  English  teacher, 
has  180  scholars  now.  Tlie  church  is  connected  with  the 
Presbytery  of  Brooklyn;  is  in  a  flourishing  condition,  and 
fully  self-sustaining. 

Other  Lutheran  clergymen  residing  in  Brooklyn  are: 

Rev.  J.  P.  Beyer,  born  in  (rermany,  1833;  grad.  Concordia 

(Mo. )  College,  and  St.  Louis  Theol.  Sem.,  1855;   was  Pres.  of 

Eastern  District  Synod  of  Missouri;    formerly  at  Memj)his, 

Tenn.,  1855-'.58;  Altenburgli,  ilo..  lS58-'63;  Chicago.  186.3-TO: 


Pittsburgh.  1870-'80;  Brooklyn,  April  8,  1880-'84;  editor  Lu- 
theran Child's  Paper. 

Rev.  H.  Daegener,  born  in  Brunswick,  Germany,  1833; 
grad.  Holzminden,  1841;  and  in  theol.  at  Univ.  Gottingen, 
1844;  Memb.  Exam.  Com  of  Ministerium  of  New  York. 
Pastor  St.  Mark's,  N.  Y.,  1856-'82;  in  Brooklyn  as  Emeritvis, 
Oct.,  1883. 

Rev.  Caklslen  Hausleen,  born  in  Norwaj",  1856;  grad. 
Christiana  Coll.,  1874,  and  Christiana  Univ.,  1880;  located 
Brooklyn,  1883. 

Rev.  Andreas  Mortensen,  born  in  Norway,  1849;  grad. 
Giertsen's  Coll.,  Christiana,  1873;  in  theol.  at  Royal  Fredrik's 
Univ.,  1877;  teacher  of  Theol.  Hist,  and  Lang.,  Christiana; 
Pastor  Norweg.  Luth.  Seamen's  Ch.,  in  New  York,  1880. 

Rev.  Albert  Rodell,  bom  at  Grand  Island,  N.  Y.,  1853; 
grad.  Augustana  Coll.  (111.),  1875,  and  Augustana  Theol.  Sem.. 
1877;  editor  Augustana  Observer,  New  York;  located  in  Kan- 
sas City,  Mo.,  1877-80;  Brooklyn,  1880-'84. 


UNITARIAN    CHURCHES 


CHURCH     OF     THE     SAVIOUR,    (unitarian.) 

First  Unitarian  Congreg-ational  (Church  of  the  Saviour), 
north-east  cor.  Pierrepont  st.  and  Monroe  PI.  Unitarian  ser- 
vices were  first  held  in  Brooklyn  in  1833,  before  which  time, 
those  of  liberal  religious  views  were  accustomed  to  attend  the 
First  Unit.  Ch.  in  Chambers  st..  New  York.  Several  meetings 
of  those  interested  were  held  in  the  summer  of  1833,  and  a 
church  org.,  comprising  the  following  among  its  members: 
Josiah  Dow,  Seth  Low,   John  Frost,  W.  H.    Cary,    AI?x.    H. 


Smith,  Wni.  H.  Hale,  Chas.  Woodward,  Henry  Leeds, 
Thos.  Woodward,  Geo.  Blackburn,  Geo.  S.  Cary,  P.  G. 
Taylor,  Rich.  W.  Dow,  Jas.  Walters,  Joshua  Jolford 
and  Geo.  B.  Archer.  The  first  public  services  were 
held  Aug.  17,  in  Classical  Hall,  Washington  st.  Rev. 
David  Hatch  Barlow  was  installed  Pastor  Sept.  17, 
1834.  He  was  a  graduate  of  Harvard;  "a  preacher 
and  poet  too,  of  no  ordinary  gifts.  Able,  cultured 
and  graceful,  he  won  sincere  respect  for  his  talents, 
as  also  affectionate  esteem  for  his  devotion  to  his 
jiarishioners."  Ill  health  compelled  him  to  resign  in 
July,  1837.  He  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  Fiederick 
West  Holland,  from  April  1,  1838,  to  April  1,  1842; 
wlu)  also  was  a  graduate  of  Harvard  and  of  Cambridge 
Divinity  School,  "and  by  excellent  gifts,  intellectual 
attainments,  earnest  piety  and  great  energy,  was  well 
fitted  for  his  work  in  life."  Meanwhile,  through  some 
differences  which  had  arisen,  a  Second  Unitarian 
Society  was  formed  Dec.  3,  1840,  by  twenty-two 
persons,  in  the  Brooklyn  Lyceum.  Rev.  F.  A.  Farley 
was  installed  Pastor  of  the  new  society  Aug.  1,  1841  ; 
.and  it  was  incorporated  Nov.  1,  1841,  with  these 
Trustees:  Wm.  H.  Cary,  Chas.  Woodward,  Thos.  A. 
Morrison,Geo.  C'oUins,  Ben.  Blossom,  Wm.  K.  Tucker, 
L.  W.  Thomas,  Joshua  Atkins  and  Joseph  L.  Brigham. 
Mar.  33,  1842,  the  two  churches  were  united  under 
Dr.  Farley  as  Pastor  and  worshiped  in  the  Hall  of 
the  Brooklyn  Institute  until  April  2,  1844.  The 
Trustees  of  the  United  First  Unitarian  Church  were: 
Seth  Low,  President;  William  H.  Cary,  Peter  G. 
Taylor,  Davit  Felt,  Charles  M.  Olcott,  L.  W.  Thomas, 
Joseph  L.  Lord,  John  Greenwood  and  George  B. 
Granniss.  A  plot  of  land  on  PieiTepont  st.  and 
Monroe  Place  had  been  purchased,  and  a  new  and  elegant 
church  erected,  which  was  consecrated  April  24,  1844,  as  the 
Church  of  the  Saviour.  In  Nov.,  1863,  Dr.  Farley  preached 
his  farewell  sermon,  after  twenty  years'  pastorate.  His  suc- 
cessor. Rev.  A.  P.  Putnam,  the  present  incumbent,  was 
installed  Sept.  28,  1864.  In  1865  the  society  established  its 
Furraan  st.  Mission  School,  and  about  the  same  time,  aided 
largely  in   forming  the   Bi"ooklyn  Christian  Liberal  Union. 


ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1087 


In  1865-'6,  a  beautiful  chapel  adjoining  the  church  was 
erected,  at  an  expense  of  $30,000,  besides  extensive  repairs 
to  the  church.  In  1867,  it  dismissed  a  number  of  its  families, 
for  the  purpose  of  establishing  a  new  society  of  its  faith  in 
South  Brooklyn,  and  gave  |10,000  for  the  erection  of  Unity 
Chapel.  It  has  about  300  communicants  and  a  Sabbath- 
school  (if  thirty  teachers  and  300  scholars. 

Rev.  Frederick  Augustus  Farley,  born  in  Boston  1800; 
grad.  at  Harvard  1818;  studied  law;  admitted  to  the  bar  1821; 
grad.  Harvard  Divinity  School,  1827;  settled  at  Providence 
1828-'41;  came  to  Brooklyn  1841;  author  of  Unitarianism  in 
U.  S. :  Vnitaricuiis)ii.  Defined;  History  of  Brooklyn  and  L.  I. 
Sanitary  Fair,  1804;  i-esigned  pastorate  1863. 

Second  Unitarian  Church. — The  society  org.  Nov.  5,  1850; 
held  its  first  pviblic  service  April  20,  1851,  in  the  Brooklyn 
Female  Academy,  and  continued  to  meet  there  until  the 
l)uilding  was  burned  in  January,  1853.  The  society  then 
occupied  tlio  Brooklyn  Institute  for  a  few  months;  and  next 
the  Brooklyn  Athena?um,  until  March,  1858,  when  a  church 
edifice  on  the  corner  of  Clinton  and  Congress  streets  was 
completed.  Of  cruciform  shape,  in  the  Anglo-Italian  style, 
with  fine  stained  windows  and  beautiful  interior  decorations, 
it  is  an  attractive  building,  and  was  the  first  departure  in 
Brooklyn  from  conventional  church  architecture.  Rev. 
Samuel  Longfellow,  a  younger  brother  of  Henry  W.  Long- 
fellow, served  as  Pastor,  with  great  acceptance,  from  Oct.  36, 
1853,  till  April  29,  1860,  when  he  resigned  for  rest  and  re- 
cuperation. Rev.  N,  A.  Staples  succeeded  him  Nov.  6,  1861, 
and  served  as  Pastor  iinlil  his  death  in  Feb..  1864.  Rev.  John 
W.  Chad  wick  was  ordained  and  installed  as  Pastor  in  Dec, 
1864,  and  continues  to  officiate  till  the  present  time.  His 
ministry  has  been  highly  successful  and  the  church  is  pros- 
perous. This  society  has  always  represented  the  more  ad- 
vanced and  rationalistic  element  of  Unitarianism. 


Rev.  John  White  Chadwick  was  born  in  Marblehead, 
1840:  grad.  Bridgewater  Normal  School  1859:  Cambridge 
Theol.  gem.  1804;  author  of  The  Man  Jesus;  Faith  of  Reason; 
Bible  of  To-Day;  Some  Aspects  of  Relic/ion  ;  Belief  and  Life; 
Origin  and  Destiny;  Book  of  Poems. 

Third  Unitarian  Congregational  Society  (Unity  Chapel). 
— September  30,  1807,  thirteen  j^ersons  assembled  at  a  private 
house  in  Ryerson  st.  (to  take  the  initiatory  steps  towards  the 
establishment  of  a  society  of  the  Liberal  Faith  in  Central 
Brooklyn),  in  response  to  a  call  published  by  the  Rev.  A.  P. 
Putnam,  Pastor  of  the  First  Unitarian  Society.  The  first 
Sunday  services  were  held  October  6,  1867,  in  an  upper  room, 
over  a  fish  market,  on  the  corner  of  Classon  and  Fulton 
aves..  Rev.  Dr.  F.  A.  Farley  preaching  in  the  morning  to  an 
audience  of  fifty,  and  Rev.  A.  P.  Putnam  in  the  evening,  to 
about  the  same  number.  At  the  same  place,  on  Dec.  3,  1867, 
some  thirty  persons  org.  the  Third  Unitarian  Society.  A 
Sunday-school  had  been  organized  on  the  29th  of  October 
previous. 

Revs.  E.  J.  Galvin  and  H.  C.  Badger  supplied  the  church 
during  its  earlier  months.  The  preaching  of  Rev.  Robert 
Collj-er,  Oct.  11,  1868,  gave  impetus  and  influence  to  the  new 
organization.  It  was  materially  aided  by  the  First  Unitarian 
Societ}',  in  its  beginnings.  Seven  lots  on  Classon  ave.  and 
Leflerts  st.  were  purchased,  and  the  corner-stone  of  Unity 
Chapel  was  laid  Sept,  4,  1868.  The  dedication  services  were 
held  Dec.  9,  1868.  The  chapel  and  lots  cost  $35,716.  Rev. 
Stephen  H.  Camp  was  installed  as  the  first  Pastor,  Oct.  6, 
1869,  and  has  since  continued  to  ofliciate  in  that  capacity 
with  marked  success. 

Rev.  Stephen  H.  Camp  was  born  in  Windsor,  Ct. ,  1837  ; 
grad.  Meadville  (Pa.)  Theol.  Sem.,  1863;  Pastor,  Toledo,  O., 
1864-'9 ;  came  to  Brooklyn,  1869 ;  was  Chaplain  Corps 
d'Af  rique  in  late  war. 


UNIVERSALIST    CHURCHES. 


For  many  years  ])revious  to  the  establishment  of  a  Univer- 
salist  church  in  Brooklyn,  there  were  those  here  who  be- 
longed to  the  society  and  congregation  in  New  York  city, 
and  for  whose  convenience  meetings  were  held  from  time  to 
time,  on  this  side  of  the  river,  under  the  ministry  of  the  Rev. 
Messrs.  Mitchell,  Sawyer  and  others.  Finally,  in  1841, 
Messrs.  William  Burbank,  Hiram  K.  Haskins,  Wm.  Raynor, 
Edwin  Smith,  and  Monis  Reynolds  decided  to  rent  a  hall,  on 
the  corner  of  Fulton  and  Cranberry  sts.,  owned  by  Hon. 
Creorge  Hall,  which  they  occupied  for  several  Sabbaths,  with 
preaching  by  Mr.  Sawyer  and  others.  This  experiment 
proving  successful,  they  applied  for  the  rent  of  the  hall  for 
the  term  of  a  year.  By  this  time,  however,  much  opposition 
had  been  aroused  among  the  orthodox  denominations  in  the 
city,  and  the  further  use  of  the  hall  was  denied  them  by  its 
owner,  on  the  ground  that  "  Brooklyn  was  bad  enough  with- 
out having  Universalism  preached  in  it."  At  this  juncture, 
however,  the  First  Unitarian  Society  offered  the  use  of  their 
church,  a  small  frame  building,  in  Adams  St.,  with  organ 
and  furniture  included.  This  was  accepted  ;  and,  under  the 
preaching  of  Rev.  Abel  C.  Thomas,  the  society  gained  mem- 
bers, and  determined  to  have  a  building  of  their  own.  Not 
being  strong  enough  to  effect  this,  however,  eight  gentle- 
men, viz.,  Abner  Chichester,  A.  C.  Thomas,  Wm.  Burbank, 
Wm.   Raynor,   Hiram  K.   Haskins,    E.   Winchester,   B.   A. 


Brewster,  and  Morris  Reynolds,  acting  on  the  suggestion  of 
the  last  named,  purchased  lots  on  the  north-west  corner  of 
Fulton  and  Pineapple  sts.,  on  which,  in  January,  1843,  they 
commenced  the  erection  of  a  building,  the  lower  part  of 
which  was  used  as  stores  ;  and  the  upper  jjart,  including  a 
small  building  adjoining,  for  Sunday-school  purposes,  was 
leased  to  the  society  for  twenty-one  years,  with  renewals,  at 
ifeOO  per  annum.  This  building  was  first  opened  and  occu- 
pied June  33,  1843,  by  the  newly  incorporated  society. 

The  First  Universalist  Soci;ty  (Church  of  the  Restora- 
tion).—The  Rev.  Abel  C.  Thomas  officiated,  from  the  Fall  of 
1842,  until  about  1844,  and  was  succeeded  by  the  Rev.  T.  B. 
Thayer.  Li  the  great  fire  of  1848,  the  building  was  burned  ; 
and  the  society,  having  disposed  of  their  lots  on  favorable 
terms,  purchased  lots  and  erected  an  elegant  new  edifice,  on 
the  south-cast  corner  of  Monroe  place  and  Clark  st.,  at  a 
cost,  including  lots,  furniture  and  organ,  of  about  $30,000. 
In  1851,  Rev.  Mr.  Thayer  was  succeeded  in  the  pastorate  by 
Rev.  H.  R.  Nye,  who  remained  until  1857,  and  was,  in  turn, 
succeeded  by  Rev.  Henry  Blanchard.  During  the  early  part 
of  his  ministrj',  another  Universalist  Society,  called  the 
Church  of  the  Redeemer,  was  formed  by  some  of  the  younger 
portion  of  the  society.  In  the  early  part  of  1868,  a  removal 
farther  up  town,  and  nearer  the  centre  of  the  parish,  was 
deteiTJiined  upon;  and,  in  October  of  the  same  year,  the  edi- 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


flee  was  sold  to  the  Swedenborgians  for  ^40,000,  leaving  the 
society  with  a  net  balance  of  about  |30,000.  Mr.  Blanchard 
resigned  the  charge  of  tlie  society,  January  1,  1869. 

The  Church  of  Our  Father.— In  1868,  the  Fourth  Society 
(or  Church  of  the  Redeemer)  became  consolidated  with  the 
first  society  under  this  name.  In  the  Spring  of  that  year, 
Rev.  E.  C.  Bolles  became  Pastor,  and  a  chapel  was  erected 
on  Clermont  ave.  He  resigned  in  1869,  and  Rev.  H.  R.  Nye 
was  recalled  in  1870.  In  1879,  the  chapel  was  sold  to  the 
Classon  Avenue  Presbyterian  Church,  and  a  church  building, 
on  State  St.,  near  Hoyt,  was  occupied  during  one  year.  In 
1880,  Mr.  Nye  resigned,  and  the  congregation  removed  to  the 
Conservatory  Building,  corner  of  Fulton  si.  and  Bedford 
ave.,  where  they  have  since  worshiped. 

Lots  were  jjurcliased  at  the  comer  of  Lefferts  place  and 
Grand  ave. ,  and  a  line  church  edifice  erected  in  1883.  The 
main  audience-room  is  70  b\-  80  feet,  and  the  vestry,  or 
Sunday-school  room,  30  by  60  feet ;  and,  as  the  latter  is  so 
arranged  that  it  can  be  made  a  part  of  the  main  room,  the 
total  seatings  will  accommodate  1,300  persons.  The  pews  are 
arranged  on  the  amphitheatre  plan.  The  style  of  architec. 
ture  is  Byzantine;  the  material  used,  Trenton  pressed  brick, 
terra  cotta  trimmings,  and  ornamental  stone.  The  roof  is  of 
slate,  and  the  ceiling  of  iron,  resting  on  columns.  The  pews 
and  all  interior  fittings  are  of  hard  wood.  The  walls  and 
ceilings  are  tastefullj-  decorat-d,  and  the  windows  of  stained 
glass.  The  church  includes  in  its  plan  commodious  parlors, 
dining-room  and  kitchen.  The  architect  is  Mr.  L.  B.  Valk, 
whose  system  of  ventilation  is  used  in  the  building.  A 
square  tower,  100  feet  in  height,  rises  from  the  Fulton  st. 
side  of  the  building.  The  entire  cost  is  alxiut  |3.5,000.  The 
present  Pastor,  Rev.  A.  J.  Canfield,  entered  on  his  duties  in 
May,  1881.     The  condition  of  the  society  is  prosperous. 

About  the  year  1870,  a  mission  was  established,  and  a 
chapel,  called  The  Centenary  Cha^Jel,  was  erected  in  Nos- 
trand  avenue;  and  here  services  were  held  during  several 
years.  This  mission  finally  became  united  with  the  Church 
of  Our  Father,  and  a  mission  school  was  established  in 
Broadway. 

Mr.  CA^fF^ELD  was  born  in  Broome  county,  N.  Y.,  1840  ; 
grad.  Union  Coll.  Theol.,  Canton,  N.  Y.;  ord.  1863  ;  previous 
location,  Concord,  N.  H. ;  frequent  contrib.  to  Tlie  Leader, 
etc.,  etc. 

All  Souls'  Universalist  Church,  South  9th  st.,  near  Fourth. 
— This  societj",  originally  known  as  the  First  Universalist  So- 


ciety of  Williamsburgh,  was  started  with  nineteen  members, 
in  April,  1845,  thi'ough  the  efforts  of  a  few  residents  of  the 
village  of  Williamsburgh,  who  had  formerly  been  connected 
with  the  Orchard  St.  (N.Y.)  Society,  of  which  Rev.  Dr. Thomas 
J.  Sawyer  was  then  Pastor.  The  first  services  weie  held  in  a 
small  chapel  on  Second  street.  The  little  band  worshiped 
there  for  three  years,  growing  in  numbers,  until,  in  1848,  at 
a  cost  of  $7,000,  a  church  was  erected  at  the  corner  of 
Fourth  and  South  Third  streets. 

The  first  Pastor  was  Rev.  Henry  Lyon,  who  served  till 
1849,  succeeded  by  Rev.  Day  K.  Lee,  until  1854.  In  1856, 
Rev.  Bernard  Peters,  of  Cincinnati,  was  called  and  served 
with  much  efficiency  until  1863.  Rev.  A.  J.  Canfield  served 
as  Pastor  for  five  years,  and  was  followed,  in  1870,  bj'  Rev. 
Almon  Gunnison,  who  yet  occupies  the  pastorate. 

In  May,  1873,  the  present  church  edifice,  known  as  All 
Souls'  Church,  was  dedicated.  Two  years  later,  a  new  chapel 
was  erected.  The  church  property  extends  through  the  entire 
block,  the  church  facing  on  South  Ninth  st.,  the  chapel  on 
South  Tenth,  the  two  joined  together  in  the  rear.  The  build- 
ings are  commodious,  having  all  the  apijointments  necessary, 
and  were  erected  at  an  expense  of  eighty  thousand  dollars. 
They  are  free  from  debt. 

The  first  trustees  of  the  society  were  :  George  Ricard, 
William  B.  Miles,  Joseph  Stanley,  William  Dillingham, 
Theophilus  W.  Smith,  Milton  Wooley,  Amos  Smith. 

The  first-named  of  these,  George  Ricard,  was  elected  Presi- 
dent of  the  Board,  holding  the  office  for  thirty-five  years  until 
his  death.  A  marble  memorial  tablet  was  erected  by  his  rela- 
tives in  the  church,  commemorative  of  his  life  and  works. 

The  church  organization  has,  at  the  present  time,  upwards 
of  three  hundred  members,  the  Sunday-school  numbering 
four  hundred. 

The  following  are  the  present  oflScers  of  the  church  :  Rev. 
Almon  Gunnison,  D.  D.,  Pastor;  B.  W.  Wilson,  Wm.  H. 
Gaylor,  E.  S.  Seeley,  George  H.  Fisher,  Wm.  E.  Bailey, 
Clarence  E.  Lyon,  James  B.  Perkins,  Trustees. 

B.  W.  AVilson,  George  E.  Jloulton,  Mrs.  S.  A.  Jarvis, 
Supts.  of  the  Sunday-school.  A  Young  People's  Association, 
and  other  auxiliary  organizations,  are  maintained. 

Rev.  Almon  Gunnison,  D.  D.  (St.  Law.  Univ.),  was  born 
in  Hallowell,  Me.,  1844;  grad.  Tuft's  Coll.  and  St.  Lawrence 
Univ.  Theol.  Dept.,  1868;  is  Trustee  of  St.  Law.  Univ.; 
located  at  Bath,  Me.,  1868-'71;  B'klyn,  1871-84;  author  of 
Rambles  Overland,  1883;  Assoc.  Ed.  of  Christian  Leader. 


JEWISH    SYNAGOGUES. 


Congregation  of  Beth  Israel. — To  obviate  the  incon- 
venience of  crossing  to  New  York  to  attend  worship,  a  small 
num!)er  of  Israelites,  in  1856,  organized  an  independent  con- 
gregation in  Brooklyn,  with  M.  Erlich  as  President.  A  room 
was  hired,  and  services  were  conducted  by  such  clergymen  as 
could  be  procured,  till  Rabbi  Joel  Alexander  became  Pastor. 
A  building  for  a  synagogue  was  erected  during  the  presi- 
dency of  Solomon  Furst,  Esq. ,  on  the  corner  of  State  st.  and 
Boerum  pi.,  at  a  cost  of  $10,000.  It  was  completed  and 
dedicated  Aug.  31,  1862. 

A  school  was  established  for  the  instruction  of  children  in 
the  Hebrew  language,  and  it  has  continued  at  intervals  since. 

The  congregation  was  at  first  strictly  orthodox ;  but,  in  1879, 
it  adopted  certain  reforms.  Rabbi  Alexander  was  succeeded 
by  Rabbi  Adolph  Ressler. 


The  Congregation  of  Beth  Elohira,  founded  iu  Oi  tooer, 
1861,  by  a  secession  from  the  Congregation  Israel,  is  mainly 
composed  of  German  Israelites.  Shortly  after,  they  pur- 
chased the  edifice  formerly  known  as  Calvary  Protestant 
Episcopal  Church,  in  Pearl,  between  Concord  and  Nassau 
streets,  at  a  cost  of  $5,100;  which,  together  with  an  expense  of 
13,000  for  alterations,  was  cheerfvdly  borne  by  acongregation 
of  only  fifty  members.  This  edifice  was  dedicated  March  30, 
1863;  and  in  February,  1870,  the  fine  edifice  previously  oc- 
cupied by  the  Central  Presbyterian  Church,  in  Schermerhorn^ 
between  Powers  and  Nevias  streets,  was  purchased,  at  a  cost 
of  $55,000.  Previously  to  this  time,  also,  the  congregation  had 
cx)uducted  their  religious  services  according  to  the  orthodox 
ritual;  but  they  adopted,  and  on  the  19th  of  February,  1870, 
inaugurated  the  moderate  reform  services. 


ECCLESIASTICAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


In  1871,  the  building  was  repaired  and  remodeled,  and 
family  pews  were  substituted  for  the  former  seats.  An  organ 
was  at  this  time  purchased.  George  Brandenstein  has  been 
tlie  Rabbi  in  charge  from  the  founding  of  the  congregation; 
aud  to  Moses  Hess,  Samuel  Hess  and  S.  Rosenburg,  this  con- 
gregation is  largely  indebted  for  its  prosperity. 

Temple  Israel,  in  Greene  ave.,  bet.  Carlton  and  Adelphi.  — 
A  number  of  intelligent  Hebrews  of  Brooklyn  assembled 
Nov.,  1869,  at  30  Douglass  street  (A.  Fleischauer's),  and  or- 
ganized a  temple  whose  services  are  ia  English,  except  the 
Psalms.  Their  first  place  of  worship  was  the  rooms  now 
occupied  by  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.,  Fulton  ave.  and  Gallatin  place, 
occupied  Jan.  1,  1870.  The  present  temple  was  purchased 
from  the  "Church  of  the  Redeemer  "in  1878.  Its  seating 
capacity  is  800.  The  membership  is  about  70  families.  The 
Sunday-school  has  100  children.  The  first  Rabbi  was  Rev. 
B.  C.  Lewin,  succeeded  by  Rev.  ]\Ir.  Lasker,  1874-'76;  Rev.  S. 
Moshe,  1876-'80;  Rev.  E.  M,  Chapman,  1880-'84. 

Rev.  Edward  Mauiuce  Chapman,  born  in  London,  Eng., 
1854;  grad.  Jews'  Coll.  inTheol.  and  London  Univ.,  1874;  was 
Prof,  of  Hebrew,  East  London  College,  1872;  Asst.  Supt.  Heb. 
Orphan  Asylum,  New  York,  1877-'78;  located  at  Hartford, 
Ct.,  187S-'S0;  B'klyn,  1880-84. 

Congregation  Temple  Beth  Elohim,  Brooklyn,  E.  D. — 
The  congregation  Beth  Elohim,  now  worshiping  in  the 
beautiful  Temple  on  Keap  st.,  Brooklyn,  E.  D.,  was  started 
about  30  years  ago,  by  1.5  Israelites,  wlio  met  every  Sabbath 
and  holidays,  in  a  modest  place  of  worship  on  the  North  side 
of  Williamsburgh,  for  which  the  annual  rent  of  $150  was 
paid.  To  become  a  member  of  that  religious  society,  the 
payment  of  an  initiation  fee  of  $3,  and  the  annual  contribu- 
tion of  $6,  was  required.  The  first  officiating  Hasan  (Reader) 
of  the  Congregation  was  Mr.  Barnard. 

As  tlie  Jewish  population  increased  in  Williamsburgh, 
this  Congregation  became  stronger  in  membership,  till  they 
were  able  to  buy,  in  1860,  the  building  on  the  corner  of  South 
First  and  Eighth  sts.,  now  the  German  Lutheran  Church 
"Emanuel."  This  the}' reconstructed;  and  it  served  to  the 
Congregation  as  a  Synagogue  till  1876,  when  it  was  sold  to 
the  above-named  congregation,  and  the  Temple  on  Keap  st. 
was  dedicated. 

In  the  old  Synagogue,  Mr.  Eiseman,  an  old  member  of  the 
Congregation  performed  the  ministerial  duties  for  a  number 
of  years;  and  then,  in  succession.  Revs.  Gotthold,  Rubin  and 
others  officiated.  Tlie  form  of  worship  was  conducted  ac- 
cording to  the  orthodox  ritual.  When  the  Congregation 
resolved  to  adopt  the  ritual  of  the  modern  reform  school,  a 


considerable  number  of  the  conservative  members  withdrew, 
and  formed  a  separate  orthodox  Congregation,  whose  Syna- 
gogue is  on  Johnson  ave.  Since  that  time  a  new  era  has 
begun  for  the  Beth  Elohim  Congregation.  The  new  Temple 
on  Keap  St.,  near  Division  ave.,  was  erected  at  a  cost 
of  ij!50,000;  its  size,  60x100  feet;  its  seating  capacity  about 
800;  and  its  material,  Philadelphia  brick,  with  brown-stone 
trimming.  It  is  the  largest  and  finest  Jewish  house  of  wor- 
ship in  Brooklyn,  and  is  counted  among  the  handsomest 
edifices  of  the  "  City  of  Churches." 

The  first  regular  Rabbi  and  preacher  of  this  Congregatic  >n 
was  Rev.  Dr.  Grossman,  who  was  succeeded  by  Dr.  Schwal), 
who  resigned  to  accept  a  ministry  in  St.  Joseph,  Mo.  The 
present  Rabbi  of  the  Temple  is  the  Rev.  L.Wintner,  Dr.  Ph., 
who  has  occupied  the  Beth  Elohim  pulpit  since  October,  1878, 
and  is  also  the  Superintendent  of  the  Sabbath-school. 

The  number  of  Sabbath-school  pupils  has  increased,  mak- 
ing necessary  alterations  in  the  lower  part  of  the  Temple  for 
the  purpose  of  more  school-room  accommodations:  and  re- 
quiring also  more  salaried  teachers. 

The  present  officers  of  the  Congregation  are  :  Pres.,  Moses 
May;  V.  Pres.,  M.  Hessberg;  Treas.,  N.  Bernstein;  Secy,  H. 
Meyers.  Trustees :  M.  Kessel,  Morris  Adler,  Ph.  Strauss,  I. 
Igelheimer,  Henry  Newman,  M.  Levy.  Rabbi,  Rev.  L. 
Wintner,  Ph.  Dr.;  Header,  Rev.  E.  Halff;  Sexton,  I. 
Smith. 

Rev.  L.  Wintner,  Ph.  D.,  A.  M.,  born  in  Hungary,  1834, 
studied  in  Imp.  Univ.,  Vienna,  and  Jena  Univ.,  Germany, 
and  Rabbinical  schools  ;  grad.  Univ.  Tubingen,  Germany; 
came  to  America  1863;  teacher  theol.  and  modern  languages 
in  Mobile,  Louisville,  Jackson  and  St.  Paul;  minister  in  St. 
Paul,  1871-'3;  and  Detroit,  1873-6  ;  was  in  Europe,  1876-'8; 
came  to  Brooklyn,  1878. 

Other  Rabbis  residing  in  Brooklyn  are:  Rev.  Dr.  I.  Mayer, 
born  1809,  in  Bavaria;  grad.  Theol.  Sem.  at  Frankfort-on-the- 
Main,  1834  ;  former  locations  Cinciimati,  Rochester,  Hart- 
ford, 1870;  author  of  Ben  Sirah,  1853;  Hebreiv  Grammar, 
1856 ;  Source  of  Salvation,  1874  ;  located  in  Brooklyn,  May, 
1883. 

Rev.  Sal.  Moshe,  born  in  Germany,  1843;  grad.  from 
Royal  Sem.  1860,  and  Theol.  Sem.  at  Breslau,  1862;  previous 
locations,  Germany  and  New  Orleans,  La. ;  came  to  Brooklyn 
1874. 

Ahavis  Achim. — A  society  of  reformed  Jews  of  the  Eastern 
District  was  established,  and  their  Sepher  Tore,  or  Book  of 
the  Law,  dedicated  at  the  hall,  corner  of  Meserole  and  Ewen 
streets,  August  31,  1869 


MISCELLANEOUS. 


Christian  Church  of  the  Evangel. — In  1860,  a  movement 
was  inaugurated  in  the  Sevsnteenth  Ward  of  Brooklyn,  then 
the  village  of  Greenpoint,  to  establish  a  religious  body  which 
should  be  independent  of  existing  sects,  and,  at  the  same 
time,  thoroughly  in  sympathy  with  all  Christians  and  Chris- 
tian work. 

Through  the  efforts  of  Mr.  W.  H.  Corwith  and  others,  an 
organization  was  effected  under  the  name  of  the  Oreenjjoint 
Missio7i  Society,  which  lield  its  first  meeting  in  a  carpenter's 
shop  in  Eckford  st.,  on  June  24,  1860. 

A  Sabbath-school  was  connicted  with  the  enterprise,  and  a 
number  of  ])ei-sons  became  identified  with  it  by  letter  and 
profession  of  faith.     Elder  Moses  Cummings  was  connected 


with  the  society  for  a  year  and  a  half,  after  which  his  place 
was  supplied  by  Rev.  I.  C.  Ti-yon  and  others  until  August  8, 
1862,  when  E.  W.  Lockwood  was  cho'^en  to  preach.  About 
this  time  the  old  house  standing  on  the  cor.  of  Leonard  and 
Collyer  sts.,  formerly  owned  by  the  Baptist  Church,  was 
hired  by  the  society,  which  on  Jan.  5,  1863,  directed  its  pur- 
chase. On  March  1,  1863,  the  trustees  were  authorized  to 
buy  two  lots  in  Leonard,  near  Meserole  st.,  and  move  the 
building  thereon.  This  having  been  effected,  the  house  was 
repaired,  and  on  April  11,  1863,  ded.  At  the  same  time 
E.  W.  Lockwood  was  ordained  to  the  ministry.  He  re- 
signed June  12,  1864.  Rev.  S.  S.  Nason  commenced  his  work 
in  June,  1865,  but  died  in  the  following  August.     Rev.  E.  G, 


HISTORY  OF  KIH-GS  COUNTY. 


Hauleubeck,  of  Xew  York  City,  preached  six  months,  begin- 
ning with  January,  1866. 

In  July,  1866,  the  society  secured  Mr.  Martyn  Summerbell 
for  the  remainder  of  the  year;  Dec.  20,  1867,  he  was  or- 
dained; ^lay  4,  1868,  five  persons  were  baptized  (by  immer- 
sion) by  the  Pastor. 

To  promote  acquaintance  in  tlie  now  growing  congrega- 
tion, a  "Ladies'  Social"  was  inaugurated  on  Juh"  15,  and 
Nov.  10,  1869.  May  23,  1869,  under  a  decree  of  the  Supreme 
Court,  the  Longregatioa  adopted  tlie  legal  title  of  the  First 
Chrxstmn  Cong.  Ckurch,  of  Greenpoint,  and  was  consolidated 
with  the  Suffolk  St.  Church  of  New  York  City. 

In  Nov.,  1872,  the  church  adopted  its  present  Manual, 
ani.  with  permission  of  the  Sujireme  Covirt,  received  its 
present  name.  The  Christian  Church  of  the  Evangel. 

From  this  time  forward  the  growth  of  the  churcli  under 
Mr.  Summcrbell's  pastorate  was  constant  and  healthful.  In 
1875,  it  was  decided  to  erect  a  new  edifice.  In  1876,  the  old 
house  was  removed  to  the  rear  and  remodelled;  and  on  Sept. 
28,  1876,  the  corner-stone  of  the  new  building  was  laid,  the 
51  isonic  Order  and  the  New  York  State  Christian  Asso.  par- 
ticipating in  the  ceremonies.  Tlie  plan  of  building  only  as 
the  bills  were  met  was  strictly  adhered  to;  and,  on  Clmstmas, 
1878,  the  edifice,  furnished  and  carpeted,  was  formerly  ded. 
for  worship  The  building  is  semi-Gothic,  covering  two  city 
lots,  and  will  seat  about  400.  It  is  substantially  constructed, 
with  frame  filled  to  the  jjlates  with  brick,  and  finished  out- 
side with  wood.  The  inside  finish  is  of  hard  wood,  chestnut, 
odk  and  black  walnut.  It  is  conveniently  supplied  with 
bajttistcry  infant  class,  and  retiring  rooms,  and  is  connected 
with  the  chapel  at  the  rear.  The  tasteful  effect  of  its  interior 
furnishings,  contrasting  well  with  the  stained-glass  windows, 
is  much  admired.  The  tower,  surmounted  with  belfry  and 
gilded  cross,  rises  to  the  altitude  of  nearly  one  hundred  feet. 

In  July,  1880,  Mr.  Summerbell  resigned  to  take  pastoral 
charge  of  the  Franklin  St.  Christian  Church  in  Fall  River, 
Mass.,  after  a  service  of  exactly  fourteen  years.  In  Septem- 
ber, 1880,  Rev.  E.  A.  Hainer  commenced  his  labors  and  still 
remains  Pastor. 

Rev.  Edwix  a.  Hainer,  born  in  Burford,  Ont.,  1856;  grad. 
New  Market  High  Sch.,  1874;  Christian  Bib.  Inst.,  1880;  lo- 
cated New  Market,  1874;  West  Eimelburg,  1875;  Franklin, 
1876;  Brooklyn,  1880. 

Other  ministers  of  the  Christian  denomination  are: 

Rev.  John  Ball  Cook,  born  at  Livingston,  N.  J.,  1804; 
grad.  Succasunna  Acad.,  N.  J.,  1829;  and  Newton  Theol. 
Sem.,  1833;  located  Cincinnati,  Middletown,  Rochester, 
Binghamtoa,  Brooklyn,  1869;  author  of  Reviews,  Tractj, 
and  Diagram  of  Prophecy. 

The  Brooklyn  Society  of  the  New  Jerusalem  (Svyedenbor- 
gian). — Lay  services  were  commenced  at  private  jiarlors  in 
April,  1856,  by  some  twenty-five  Swedenborgians,  and  con- 
tinued for  about  a  year.  In  ilay,  1857,  the  hall  of  the  Acad- 
emy on  Clinton  street,  near  Pierrepont,  was  secured  as  a 
place  of  worship,  and  the  occasional  services  of  a  minister 
were  enjoyed.  In  Oct.,  1858,  Mr.  James  B.  MiUs,  a  licentiate, 
of  Boston,  became  minister,  and  a  society  under  the  above 
name  was  organized  June  15,  1859.  The  increase  of  members 
rendered  a  removal  to  the  Athenaeum  building,  corner  of 
Clinton  and  Atlantic  streets,  necessary  in  1860;  and,  at  tlie 
same  time,  a  society  that  had  worshiped  at  Dodsworth's 
Academy  united  with  this.  June  5,  1861,  Mr.  Mills  was  in- 
stalled Pastor.  The  society  was  accepted  as  a  member  of  the 
General  Convention  in  1862.  In  Oct.,  1863,  Mr.  Mills  resigned, 
and  for  a  year  lay  services  were  held,  with  occasional  preach- 
ing. January  8,  1865,  the  present  Pastor,  Rev.  J.  C.  Ager, 
entered  on  his  duties.     In  February  of  the  same  year,  the  in- 


crease of  the  congregation  necessitated  another  removal,  and 
the  chapel  of  the  Polytechnic  Institute  was  secured.  Here 
the  congregation  worshiped  during  four  years.  The  Churcli 
of  the  Restoration,  corner  of  Monroe  place  and  Clark,  was 
purchased,  with  organ  and  furniture,  at  $40,000,  and  upward 
of  .§6,500  expended  in  repairing  and  decorating  the  interior, 
and  Feb.  21, 1869,  the  edifice  was  dedicated.  Dr.  R.  C.  Moffat 
has,  from  the  beginning  of  the  society,  been  a  prominent  and 
active  member,  and  its  leader  whenever  without  a  Pastor. 

Rev.  John  Curtis  Ager,  born  1835,  at  Warner,  N.  H. ; 
grad.  Urbana  (O.)  University,  1858;  studied  at  Newton,  Mass. 
Theol.  Sem. ;  was  Prof.  Mental  Phil,  and  Eng.  Lit.  at  Urbana, 
1858-61;  previous  location,  Brooklino,  Mass.,  1861-"4;  Editor 
Neic  Jerusalem  Messenger;  located  ia  Brooklyn,  18C5. 

Rev.  JOH.v  EscHMANN,  born  in  Zurich,  Switzerland,  1817; 
grad.  City  Gymnasium,  1835;  Zurich  Theol.  Sem.,  Switzer- 
land, 1839;  located  New  York,  1845;  and  East  New  York, 
1869;  was  itinerant  missionary  in  North-west;  author  of  pub. 
eermons,  catechism  and  several  translations. 

The  First  Moravian  Church  of  Brooklyn  was  organized  in 
1854,  by  some  members  of  the  Moravian  Church  in  New  Ycrk 
city,  who  had  become  residents  of  Brooklyn.  In  that  year  a 
frame  building  was  erected  on  Jay  street,  near  Myrtle  avenue, 
and  consecrated  September  10th.  September  24,  1868,  it  was 
destroyed  by  fire,  and  the  present  brick  church  structure, with 
a  parsonage,  was  at  once  erected  on  its  site,  at  an  expense  of 
^24,000.    It  was  dedicated  Oct.  10th,  1869.   It  has  400  sittings. 

The  Pastors  of  this  church  have  been:  Revs.  Joseph  Rum- 
mer, 1854-'8,  Edward  Kluge,  1859-'60;  Edwin  E.  Reinke,  part 
of  1860;  Herman  Brickenstein,  1861-'4;  Isaac  Prince,  1865; 
Edward  Ronthaler,  1860-73;  Charles  B.  .Schultz,  1874-'7; 
Charles  Ricksecker,  1878:  Wm.  Henry  Rice,  1879-'80;  and 
the  present  Pastor,  Edward  S.  WoUe,  1880. 

The  Church  of  the  Blessed  Hope. — This  society  was  org. 
in  1879.  The  members  had  belonged  to  other  Advt  nt  churches; 
but  they  organized  this  society  in  accordance  with  views 
which  they  had  come  to  hold,  different,  in  some  respects,  from 
those  of  other  adventists.  Their  jjlace  of  worship  is  a  chapel 
in  Cumberland  street.  Rev.  J.  B.  Cook  has  been  the  Pastor 
from  the  organization  of  the  society. 

Rev.  Georoe  R.  Kramer,  born  in  Baltimore,  1839;  educated 
Dickinson  Seminary,  Pa;  located  in  Augusta,  Ga. ;  Staunton, 
Va. ;  Wilmington,  Del.;  built  Independent  Church  in  latter 
place;  came  to  Brooklyn,  1882;  author  of  pub.  sermons  and 
poems. 

Life  and  Advent  Church  was  organized  about  1879.  Ls 
place  of  worship  has  been  Brooklyn  Institute,  on  Washington 
street.  It  has  had  no  settled  Pastor,  but  has  maiotained  regu- 
lar worship.  The  pulpit  has  been  supplied  by  Revs.  F.  D. 
Burbank,  W.  N.  Pile,  Brown  and  others.  There  are  in  Brook- 
lyn several  small  societies  of  Adventists  termed  "Brethren," 
who  maintain  worship  in  accordance  with  their  views. 

Union  Chapel  was  first  established  as  Columbia  Union  Mis- 
sion in  1848,  in  a  hall  on  the  corner  of  Smith  and  Butler 
streets.  In  1852,  it  was  removed  to  a  small  hall  in  Union 
street,  and  during  the  warm  part  of  the  year,  services  were 
held  in  a  tent  on  a  vacant  lot.  In  1854,  the  mission  was 
burned  out,  and,  during  two  years,  services  were  held  in 
Hamilton  avenue,  in  a  room  furnished  by  Anson  Blake,  Esq. 

Thence  it  was  removed  to  Columbia  street,  near  Summit, 
where  services  are  still  held.  It  is  non-sectarian  in  its  char- 
acter, and  during  its  long  existence  it  has  accomplished  much 
good.  From  the  organization  of  the  mission  till  1881,  a  period 
of  more  than  thirty  years,  it  has  been  under  the  pastoral 
charge  of  Rev.  Josiali  West.  He  and  his  wife  have  given  a 
large  jiortion  of  their  lives  to  this  self-denying  work.  The 
mission  is  now  known  by  the  name  of  Union  Chapel. 


HISTORY 

OF    THE 


SUNDAY-SCHOOL    WORK 

IN 

BROOKLYN. 


THE  development  of  the  Sunday-school,  as  an  institution 
for  teaching  the  Heaven-revealed  truths  of  the  Bible, 
has  occupied  for  both  hemispheres  but  a  little  more 
than  a  hundred  years;  sixty-six  of  these  3  ears  have 
received  the  thoughts  and  the  activity  of  the  gentleman 
whose  portrait  is  on  the  opposite  page. 

The  Sunday-school  in  a  New  England  country  town,  in 
1816,  had  strength  enougli  to  tempt  the  lad  of  eleven  years 
to  engage  in  its  ever-increasing  work;  and  as  age  matured 
judgment  and  strengthened  reflection,  tliis  institution  per- 
meated his  life  with  its  influence,  and  caused  him  to  devote 
tlio  whole  of  his  time,  talents  and  substance,  in  later  yeai-s,  to 
tlie  Sunday-school  cause. 

While  it  is  no  part  of  the  design  of  these  volumes  to  write 
history,  much  less  biography,  beyond  tlie  events  that  have 
acted  and  reacted  upon  our  city  life  and  development,  society 
and  character,  so  subtle  are  these  influences,  and  so  inter- 
twined that  it  is  impossible  to  set  forth  either  without  tracing 
them  to  some  extent  from  their  source  to  their  issue.  This 
alone  justifies  a  narration  here  of  such  examples  as  are 
capable  of  imitation  by  any  and  every  layman  who  would 
mingle  his  higher  obligations  with  the  every-day  transac- 
tions of  his  life. 

The  individual  who  directs  his  efforts  to  the  promotion  of 
the  higher  interests  of  his  race  is  the  only  person  who  occu- 
pies a  normal  position  in  society.  It  is  the  glory  of  the 
Sunday-school  system,  as  it  is  of  the  Gospel  method,  to  mul- 
tiply moral  teachers;  nay,  to  virtually  resolve  the  community 
into  two  classes — teachers  and  taught.  Lessons  are  drawn 
directly  from  the  only  text-book  which  contains  motives  of 
sufficient  power  to  restrain  the  passions  or  affect  the  will. 

Unfortunately,  all  human  experience  has  shown  how  diffi- 
cult is  the  task  of  influencing  the  adult  mind  in  a  way  con- 
trary to  cherished  wrong  oi)inions,  and  of  changing  long- 
fixed  evil  habits  of  thought  or  action.  It  is  obvious,  there- 
fore, that  the  Gospel  teachings  must  be  brought  to  bear  upon 
the  minds  and  hearts  of  the  young,  before  evil  has  gained 
supremacy  there.  The  steel  must  be  forged  while  it  is  plas- 
tic, the  streamlet  must  be  turned  before  it  has  become  the 
river.  Whether  the  first  attempts  to  gather  in  the  children 
for  Sabbath  instruction,  a  hundred  years  ago,  were  inspired 
more  by  pity  for  their  neglected  condition  or  by  a  desire  to  do 
good  for  the  blaster's  sake,  the  result  exceeded  even  the 
hopes  of  the  pioneers. 

Not  speaking  of  the  scliools  of  the  catechumens,  Luther's, 
Knox's,  Borromeo's  or  Haecker's,  none  of  which  were  Sun- 
day-schools in  the  modern   sense,  the   first   organization  in 


which  the  teaching  was  done  by  the  lay  dement  was  founded 
by  Robert  Raikes  in  1780,  at  Gloucester,  England,  where  he 
at  first  placed  twenty  children  under  the  care  of  Mrs.  King, 
for  Sunday  instruction,  in  her  cottage  in  Catherine  street. 

The  progress  of  the  Sunday-school  system,  from  that  small 
beginning  to  this  present  time,  when  fifteen  millions  of 
scholars  are  under  religious  instruction  on  the  Lord's  day, 
has  been  truly  marvelous.  The  advance  that  has  taken  place 
from  the  "shilling-a-day  teachers,"  employed  by  Raikes,  to 
this  period,  at  which  something  near  two  millions  of  volun- 
tary teachers  are  engaged  in  Sunday-school  instruction,  is 
the  most  wonderful  movement  of  the  nineteenth  century. 
Its  origin  was  humble;  it  owes  its  success  neither  to  lavish 
expenditure,  love  of  display,  or  the  patronage  of  the  gi-eat. 
It  is  the  result  of  Christian  devotion  consecrating  the  Sab- 
bath to  the  religious  education  of  the  young.  Its  greatest 
glory  is  that  it  is  voluntary;  free  and  Scriptural.  Starting  iu 
Gloucester,  England,  it  has  been  carried  to  every  quarter  of 
the  civihzed  globe,  itself  being  the  greatest  of  civilizing 
agencies  and  the  means  best  adapted  to  that  universal  dif- 
fusion of  Christianity  which  is  to  usher  in  its  ultimate 
triumiih.  It  has  brought  about  the  unprecedented  recogni- 
tion of  the  influence  and  importance  of  childhood  that 
characterizes  this  century.  Robert  Raikes  and  his  com- 
peers, mindful  of  the  command — "Feed  my  lambs" — began  to 
pay  attention  to  the  wants  of  children;  true  religion  in- 
creased; the  world  grew  more  spiritual  as  the  Sunday-school 
work  took  hold  of  the  people's  time,  thought  and  energies; 
until  after  a  single  century.  Pastor,  adults  and  children  meet 
to  study  the  Word  of  God,  binding  by  one  topic  and  one 
text  the  nations  of  the  world  in  the  international  lessons. 

The  Sunday-school  germ  soon  extended  to  America,  where 
schools  are  said  to  have  been  established  by  Bishop  Asbury, 
in  Virginia,  in  1786;  by  Bishop  White,  in  Philadelphia,  in 
1791;  by  Katy  Ferguson,  a  colored  woman,  in  New  York,  in 
1793;  and  by  Mrs.  Graham,  in  1801,  who  had  seen  the  schools 
in  England,  and  on  returning,  taught  poor  children  in  her 
own  house  in  New  York. 

About  1809  the  churches  in  America  assumed  charge  of  the 
schools  and  made  the  instruction  more  exclusively  religious. 
Since  1848  special  attention  has  been  given  to  planting  and 
sustaining  Mission  schools. 

Brooklyn  Sunday-School  Union  Society.  A  meeting  wa  1 
held  March  27,  181G,  to  organize  a  society  in  the  village 
of  Brooklyn,  similar  to  the  Sunday-School  Union  Society  in 
New  York,  whose  object  was  to  give  gratuitous  religous  in- 
struction to   children  on    the   Sabbath   day,   and    to  unitj 


1092 


HISTORY  OF KIJSTGS  COUNTY. 


Christians  in  tliis  benevolent  undertaking.  As  a  result  of 
this  meeting,  the  Brooklyn  Sunday-School  Union  Socwtyvras 
formed,  adopted  a  constitution  April  8th,  and  subsequently 
a  code  of  rules,  issued  by  Joshua  Sands,  President :  Andrew 
Mercein  and  Abraham  Remsen,  Vice-Presidents;  Thomas 
Sands,  Treasurer;  Rev.  John  Ireland,  Secretary;  William 
Cornwell,  Robert  Bache,  David  Anderson,  Jonathan  G. 
Pray,  Joseph  Harris,  Robert  Snow,  and  Alexander  Young, 
Directors.  In  July,  1821,  circulars  were  issued,  inviting  the 
people  to  join  the  Brooklyn  Sabbath  Union  for  the  promotion 
of  Sunday-schools,  offering  instruction  to  all  without  price; 
great  attention  was  jiromised  to  the  "  manners  and  morals  of 
scholars."  The  first  celebration  of  the  Union  was  held  in 
1839,  at  the  Sands  Street  Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  In 
1838,  Messrs.  Charles  Clark,  R.  J.  Thorn,  I.  Peet,  and  some 
others  of  different  denominations,  arranged  to  hold  a  Monthly 
Teachers'  Concert  for  Prayer,  Reporting  and  Conference, 
which  was  sustained  for  many  years.  Cyrus^  P.  Smith  was 
President  of  their  organization,  Jno.  N.  Wyckoff,  Jno.  Dike- 
man,  Vice-Presidents,  and  Wm.  E.  Whitney,  Treasurer. 

As  before  noted,  these  earlier  schools  were  largely  missions, 
to  which  business  men  gave  of  their  time  and  means;  while 
delicate  ladies  did  not  hesitate  to  explore  lanes  and  tenement 
houses  in  search  of  new  members  for  the  schools.  ' '  Tliou- 
sands  of  dollars  were  expended  for  clothing  and  food  for 
destitute  children.  Thanksgiving  day  was  celebrated  with 
the  zeal  of  which  only  the  poor  and  hungry  were  capable. 
It  was  not  unusual  to  see  a  mission-school  boj-  leave  such  an 
entertainment  with  a  lot  of  apples  inside  his  shirt,  belting  his 
body  just  above  the  waist-band,  while  caps  were  often  util- 
ized for  secreting  cake,  candy,  and  even  pumpkin  pies;  for 
home  consumption."  Some  of  these  schools  still  exist,  while 
many  have  gone  into  permanent  church  organizations,  such 
as  the  Prmee  Street  Mission  of  1832,  from  which  came  in  1847 
the  church  which  is  now  the  Brooklyn  Tabernacle;  the  Soutli 
Brooklyn  Mission  of  1840,  out  of  which  grew  the  South 
Presbyterian  Church;  the  Kavy  Mission  of  1844,  now  merged 
into  Mayflower  Mission;  the  Bethel  Mission  of  1841,  now  in 
a  commodious  building  on  Ilicks  st.,  near  Fulton;  the  Warren 
Street  Mission,  begun  in  Freeman's  Hall,  Amity  St.,  1847,  now 
the  Pilgrim  Chapel  ;  the  City  Park  Chapel,  organized  as  a 
mission  in  1841;  the  Bonder  Mission,  now  Olivet  Chapel ;  the 
Throop  Avenue  Presbyterian  Mission ;  the  Rochester  Avenue 
Mission,  now  the  Church  of  the  Mediator;  besides  manj' 
others  that  luiglit  bo  named.  '^  ( 

The  Sunday-School  Union  was  reorganized  in  1854  upon 
a  different  basis,  and  took  substantially  its  present  form.  It 
was  divided  into  committees,  thus  : — Albert  Woodruff,  Chair- 
man, Congregational;  John  R.  Monis,  Secretary,  Presby- 
terian ;  J.  M.  B.  Bogert,  Josepli  H.  Field,  Ellis  S.  Potter, 
Reformed;  Thomas  R.  Harvey,  E.  Marx,  Moravian;  A.  D. 
Matthews,  John  C.  Smith,  R.  S.  Slocum,  Protestant  Epis- 
copal ;  Peter  Balen,  Geo.  W.  Bleecker,  J.  Y.  HaiTiott,  Bap- 
tist ;  A.  A.  Smith,  J.  W.  Judson,  F.  A.  Fisher,  Chas.  Clark, 
C.  C.  Mudge,  R.  M.  Hubbard,  Presbyterian ;  Silas  Daven- 
port, Sidney  Sanderson,  H.  N.  Holt,  Congregational ;  Samuel 
Carter,  Wm.  Edsall,  Wm.  H.  Brown,  Methodist. 

The  presiding  officers  have  been  as  follows  :  Albert  Wood- 
mff,  1854-'6  ;  E.  A.  Lambert,  1856;  Andrew  A.  Smith,  1857- 
'67;  S.  L.  Parsons,  18G7-8;  James  McGee,  1869;  A.  B.  Cas- 
well, 1870-'l;  Israel  Barker,  1872-7;  Benjamin  Baylis,  1878- 
'82;  George  A.  Bell,  1883-'4.  The  present  officers  are:  George 
A.  Bell,  Pres.;  Silas  M.  Giddings,  Vice-Pres.;  Edwin  Ives, 
Cor.  Sec;  John  R.  Morris,  Bee.  Sec;  James  R.  Lott,  Treas.; 
R.  H.  Underbill,  Counsel.  Monthly  meetings  have  been 
held,  at  which  reports  of  the  work  of  the  Union  are 
given. 


Systematic  Visitation.  —  This  important  work  of  the 
Union  was  carried  into  effect  for  several  years,  begin- 
ning in  1854,  and  with  excellent  retults,  under  the  direc- 
tion of  Mr.  Albert  Woodruff,  Chairman  of  the  Missionary 
Committee.  The  city  was  divided  into  districts  and  assigned 
to  the  different  churches,  so  that  each  visitor  had  the  super- 
vision of  eight  or  ten  families,  and  every  family  had  the 
help  of  a  sympathetic  friend.  Many  neglected  children  were 
gathered  into  Sunday-school,  and  the  word  of  God  carried 
to  those  wlio  did  not  attend  church  services;  Uie  Christian 
activity  of  the  churches  was  greatly  quickened  and  re- 
warded, and  a  wonderful  outpouring  of  the  Spirit  followed. 
The  work  was  so  practical,  so  well  adapted  to  engage  and 
reward  Christian  labor,  to  reach  those  who  need  to  have  tho 
gospel  brouglit  to  them,  that  its  equalhasnot  yet  been  found. 
We  look  in  vain  to  a  Bureau  of  Relief,  to  ingenious  methods 
of  avoiding  imposition,  t<i  outside  associations  of  any  kind, 
however  wisely  and  benevolently  designed  to  take  the  place 
of  the  body  of  Christ  in  bringing  about  the  talvation  of  any 
community.  Of  late  years,  however,  systematic  visitation 
has  given  place  to  the  work  of  the  Board  of  City  Missions 
and  its  missionaries. 

An  interesting  feature  of  the  Sunday-School  Union  has 
been  its  anniversary  celebration  and  parade.  The  first  was 
held  Tuesday,  June  26th,  1838,  -when  nineteen  schools  took 
part;  George  Hall,  the  first  Mayor  of  Brooklyn,  was  chairman 
of  tlie  committee  on  arrangements.  At  the  Jlay  parade  of 
1883,  sixty  thousand  children  were  in  line,  from  172  schools. 
In  the  spring  of  1864  the  Union  was  incorporated,  and  b)' 
special  act  of  tiie  Legislature,  in  1871,  it  was  authorized  to 
erect  and  maintain  a  public  building  for  its  uses.  It  is  pro- 
posed to  unite  with  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association 
in  erecting  an  edifice  suitable  for  tlie  accommodation  of  both. 

The  Union  is  conducted  by  a  board  of  thirty-six  managers 
divided  into  ten  standing  committees  of  six  each,  which  have 
their  separate  sj^ecial  work  for  the  year.  The  value  of  the 
chapels  and  buildings,  used  almost  exclusively  for  the 
schools  connected  %vith  the  Union,  is  many  hundred  thous- 
and dollars.  TIio  libraries  at  last  report  numbered  86,219 
volumes,  and  cost  not  less  than  $50,000,  while  the  money  an- 
nually contributed  for  benevolent  purposes  reaches  a  large 
amount.  The  Sunday-school  scholars  of  Brooklyn  are  as  one 
in  seven  of  the  population,  in  New  Yorlc  as  one  in  eleven. 

Mr.  Albert  Woodruff's  interest  in  Sunday-schools  was 
earl}-  awakened.  When  he  came  from  his  Massachusetts  home 
to  New  York  City,  in  1827,  to  begin  his  long  and  prosperous 
career  as  a  merchant,  he  also  entered  into  the  Sunday-school 
work.  First,  he  became  Superintendent  of  the  Sunday- 
school  in  Dr.  Spring's  Cliurch,  in  Beekman  St.,  then  of  the 
one  in  Public  School  No.  1,  Centre  St.,  near  the  present  site 
of  the  Hall  of  Records.  It  is  worthy  of  note,  that  in  this 
school  were  first  heard  some  of  the  popular  Sunday-school 
songs  that  have  since  sung  themselves  around  the  world.  A 
little  hymn-book  was  published  containing  the  words  and 
music  of  "I  want  to  be  an  Angel,"  "There  is  a  Happy 
Land,"  "I  think  when  I  read  that  sweet  story  of  old,"  and 
"  We  won't  give  up  the  Bible."  Then  crossing  tlie  river  lie  was 
superintendent  in  the  Chvircli  of  the  Pilgrims;  tlien  of  Mari- 
ners' Church  School  in  Main  st. ;  of  the  one  in  Granada 
Hall;  then  Warren  St.  Mission;  several  of  these  schools  were 
organized  by  him.  Mr.  Woodruff  was  diligent  in  business; 
and  his  firm,  which  was  first  E.  P,  &  A.  Woodruff,  and 
then  Woodruff  &  Robinson,  became  one  of  the  foremost 
in  their  line.  Mr.  Woodruff  had  tlius  come  into  prominence 
as  a  Sunday-school  worker;  he  was  connected  with  the  New 
York  Sabbath-School  Union;  was  a  long  time  Vice-Presi- 
dent of  the  American  Szmday-School  Union,  and  was  the 


SUNDAYS CHOOL    WORK  IN  BROOKLYN. 


first  President  of  the  Brooklyn  Sabbath-school  Union,  as  else- 
where stated;  but  for  the  past  twenty  years,  lie  is  best  known 
by  his  work  in  connection  with  tlie 

Foreign  Sunday-School  Association.— In  1856,  Mr.  Wood- 
rulf  laid  aside  the  cares  of  business  for  a  time,  and,  with  his 
family,  made  a  pleasure  tour  in  Europe;  expecting,  at  the 
same  time,  to  observe  the  moral  condition  of  the  people 
among  whom  he  traveled,  and  to  sow  good  seed  by  the 
way.  In  Paris,  he  remarked  the  universal  desecration 
of  the  Sabbath,  both  by  the  government  in  carrying  on 
public  works,  and  the  people  in  their  jmrsuit  of  business 
and  i>Ieasure.  Knowing  the  futility  of  any  appeal  to  adults, 
he  felt  it  a  duty,  as  well  as  a  privilege,  to  introduce  into 
pleasure-loving  France  the  Sunday-school  methods  that  had 
proved  so  powerful  for  good  in  England  and  America.  There 
were  but  few  Protestant  Sunday-schools  in  all  France,  and 
they  imperfectly  organized,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that 
eighty  years  had  elapsed  since  such  schools  had  been  opened 
across  the  channel.  Mr.  Woodruff  procured  from  America 
a  supply  of  oiu-  Sunday-school  music,  children's  papers,  and 
Sunday-school  books  adapted  for  use  in  France  ;  and,  during 
his  stay  of  six  months,  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing  six  schools 
in  active  operation  as  the  result  of  his  efforts,  and,  which  was 
even  better,  the  attention  of  French  Protestants  awakened 
to  the  wondrous  possibilities  of  the  Sunday-school  system. 
Their  gratitude  to  Mr.  Woodruff  took  the  form  of  a  public 
farewell  meeting,  just  previous  to  his  return  to  America. 

In  18(51,  he  again  visited  Europe,  for  the  jmrposo  of  estab- 
lishing Sunday-schools,  remaining  more  than  two  years,  ex- 
tending his  travels  through  several  countries,  and  establish- 
ing schools  wherever  practicable. 

Italy  was  then  ripe  for  the  new  movement,  because  of  her 
emancipation  from  the  temporal  power  of  the  Pope,  and  the 
progi'ess  of  civil  and  religious  liberty,  but  there  was  not  a 
Protestant  Sunday-school  witliin  hei;  borders,  and  Sabbath 
instruction  by  lay  teachers  was  unknown.  Mr.  Woodruff 
established  the  first  Sunday-school  in  Naples,  in  connection 
wiih  a  little  Scotch  assembly,  whose  Pastor,  Mr.  Buscarlet, 
said:  "Your  Sabbath-school  is  just  what  I  want.  I  have 
been  praying  to  the  Lord  these  eight  or  ten  weeks  past,  tliat 
He  would  show  me  liow^  to  set  my  people  at  work,  and  here 
I  have  the  answer."  At  the  firat  meeting,  the  American  mode 
of  conducting  Sunday-schools  was  described  through  an 
interpreter,  and  a  number  of  young  men  and  women  signified 
their  willingness  to  become  teachers.  A  school  was  formed, 
which  soon  increased  to  eighty  pupils,  mostly  boys  ;  for,  at 
that  day,  few  women  or  girls  could  be  persuaded  to  attend  a 
Protes'ant  meeting  of  any  kind.  Afterwards,  an  association 
of  young  people  commenced  a  systematic  visitation  from 
house  to  house,  and  gathered  together  another  school.  In 
Florence,  the  Italian  patriot,  Gavazzi,  was  preaching  the 
Gospel  in  his  own  hired  house.  He  kindly  acted  as  inter- 
preter to  the  meeting  that  was  called  ;  and,  from  his  knowl- 
edge of  the  schools  in  England  and  America,  assisted  mate- 
rially in  organizing  a  school. 

Anti-Protestant  bigots  afterwaids  prevented  the  securing 
of  a  suitable  place  for  holding  meetings;  and,  during  Gavaz- 
zi's  absence,  the  congregation  and  Sunday-school  were  scat- 
tered. Another  school  that  was  opened  in  Florence  was  in 
connection  with  a  day-school.  The  teacher,  Damiano 
Bolognini  acted  as  interpreter  in  presenting  the  Sunday- 
school  idea  to  the  people;  became  the  Superintendent  of  the 
school,  and  afterwards  editor  of  the  Youth's  Journal,  called 
the  Scuola  della  Dominica,  or  "  Sunday-school,''  a  little 
weekly  sheet,  for  whose  publication  Mr.  Woodruff  provided, 
that  soon  attained  a  large  circulation,  and  was  of  material 
assistance  in  extending  the  new  work. 


After  the  beginning  thus  made  in  Italy,  Mr.  Woodruff 
passed  through  Southern  Germany  to  MuuicJi.  He  found  the 
German  nation,  so  great  in  numbers,  power,  learning  and 
genius,  to  be  sadly  wanting  in  spiritual  life.  In  his  attempts 
to  establish  a  school  in  Munich,  he  met  with  the  strongest 
opposition.  One  said:  '  Such  scliools  cannot  be  wanted  i;i 
Germany;  our  children  hate  the  name  of  school,  for  they  arc 
compelled  to  go  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet  all  the  week,  and  lo 
the  catechism  on  Sunday  besides."  At  Heidelberg.Mr.  Brockel- 
mann,  the  interpreter,  exclaimed:  "This  Sunday-school 
is  what  we  want  to  give  religious  life  to  Germany.  This  will 
cure  Germany  of  its  s.icial,  jjolitical  and  skeptical  evils.''  So 
strongly  was  he  impressed  that  he  devoted  himself  wholly  (o 
the  Sunday-school  cause,  acting  as  interpreter  for  Mr. Wood- 
ruff through  the  remainder  of  his  travels  in  that  country. 

In  Stuttgart,  a  German  friend  was  requested  to  call  to- 
gether some  Christians,  that  they  might  learn  the  American 
method  of  conducting  Sunday-schools.  When  he  was  asked 
why  no  ladies  attended  the  meeting,  he  said  in  astonishment: 
"  Is  it  contemplated  to  make  women  teachers  of  religion  in 
Germany?"  "Yes,  certainly,"  was  the  reply.  "  In  England 
and  America  they  do  more  than  half  the  teaching."  "  Butit 
would  not  be  German  to  invite  them,"  he  answered,  "and 
would  not  lie  jjermitted." 

In  Halle,  the  effort  to  establish  a  school  was  successfully 
made.  Two  hundred  girls  were  soon  under  instruction. 
There  was  at  the  University  of  Halle,  a  theological  student 
from  New  England,  who  had  not  lost  sight  of  the  children, 
but  boldly  putting  his  hand  to  the  work,  soon  brought  in  a 
hundred  boys  to  the  same  school.  This  union  of  the  sexes, 
for  educating  the  conscience  under  the  restraint  of  religion, 
was  quite  a  new  thing  in  Germany. 

In  Berlin,  the  highest  preacher  in  the  realm  gave  a  lettir 
recommending  Mr.  Woodruff  to  his  clergymen,  some  of  whom 
called  together  their  best  membership,  both  men  and  women, 
to  inquire  of  them  whether  lay-teaching  and  Sabbath-seliools 
were  a  possibility  in  Germany.  One  lady  of  benevolent  dis- 
position had  invited  the  servant  girls  of  the  neighborhood  to 
spend  an  hour  each  Sunday  in  social  enjoyment,  light  work 
and  reading.  Among  them  was  made  the  first  attempt  in 
Berlin  to  organize  a  Sunday-school.  It  failed,  but  the  good 
woman  caught  the  idea  and  spirit  of  the  work,  invited  in  her 
friends  for  teachers,  and  the  youth  as  pupils,  and  still  le- 
mains  the  successful  superintendent  of  a  large  and  flourishing 
scliool.     Similar  incidents  occurred  in  various  places. 

Although  Germany  is  the  home  of  music,  l.er  i  eligiou.s 
songs,  for  adults  and  children  alike,  were  in  heavy  chorals. 
Mr.  Woodruff  urged  repeatedly  that  the  Sunday-schools 
must  be  enlivened  by  the  introduction  of  the  American  soul- 
stin-ing  melodies,  but  met  the  reply  "  that  would  not  be  Ger- 
man, and  cannot  be."  "  But,"  he  insisted,  "these  melodies 
have  stirred  the  whole  religious  world  through  the  Sunday- 
schools."  "  No  matter,"  was  the  answer,  "  they  are  only  fit 
for  our  beer-shops;  nay,  it  was  thence  you  Americans  and 
English  imi)orted  them."  "But,"  returned  Mr.  Woodruff. 
"  we  have  baptized  them;  and  your  own  Luther  says:  the  devil 
must  not  have  all  of  the  best  music."  A  visit  to  the  great 
organist,  Haupt,  won  from  him  the  opinion  that  "religious 
worship  by  children  was  most  appropriately  performed  in 
melodies,"  which  he  consented  might  be  publi-shed  in  the 
children's  paper,  althougli,  as  he  said,  "it  will  bring  the 
musical  wrath  of  Germany  upon  me."  Marx,  the  great, 
vocalist,  approved  the  religious  melodies  like  "There  is  a 
happy  land,"  which  was  soon  published  in  Die  Sonntaij--^- 
schule,  with  the  tune  also  of  "  I  want  to  be  an  angel;"  and 
now  the  children  throughout  Germany,  where  there  are  to-day 
about  3,000  schools,  30,000  teachers,  and  300,000  scholars,  arc 


1094 


HISTORY  OF  KlJSrOS   COUNTY. 


singing  Sunday-school  melodies.  Money  was  needed  for  the 
support  of  the  Sabbath-school  paper.  "  Could  it  be  raised  in 
Berlin  V"  '•  No,  not  in  all  Germany,"  was  the  reply.  "  Ger- 
mans do  not  give  money  to  such  things."  But  a  few  days' 
effort,  and  the  help  of  some  English  architects,  procured  the 
necessary  funds,  and  to-day  the  paper  is  more  than  self-sus- 
taining. Mr.  AVoodnitT  remained  longer  in  Germany  than  in 
any  of  the  other  European  countiies,  because  of  the  import- 
ance of  tlie  fie)d.  The  geographical  position  of  Germany,  her 
political  prominence  and  influence,  the  extent  and  proft)und- 
iiess  of  her  literature,  her  increasing  commerce  and  her  insti- 
tutions generally,  are  all  favorable  for  a  restoration  of  those 
evangelical  principles  which  once  placed  her  in  the  front  rank 
of  refornaing  nations. 

In  Holland,  a  great  deal  of  interest  was  felt  upon  the  sub- 
ject. One  lady  had  just  published,  at  her  own  expense,  a 
Sabbath-school  hymn  book,  containiug  some  twenty  tunes, 
but  not  one  of  them  had  a  note  iu  it  shorter  than  the  semi- 
breve.  A  large  and  influential  assemblage  gathered  in 
Amsterdam  and  resolutions  were  passed,  since  pretty  well 
kept,  that  Sabbath-schools  should  be  introduced  into  every 
city  and  village  iu  Holland.  At  Rotterdam,  a  Ralibath-school 
was  established  in  the  same  room  where  the  meeting  was 
held.  While  these  meetings  were  held  iu  the  evenings,  the 
days  were  pleasantly  and  profitably  spent  with  groups  of 
earnest  individuals,  anxious  to  learn  all  that  could  be  known 
by  di  scription  of  these  schools.  A  Sunday-school  Union  is 
now  at  work  in  Holland  to  give  the  system  to  the  Nether- 
lands, where  the  seeds  of  civil  and  religious  liberty  were 
germinated  for  the  blessing  of  mankind. 

In  Switzerland,  Mr.  Woodruff  found  that  rationalism  had 
spread  like  a  blight  over  the  land  of  Zuingle  and  Calvin. 
Through  his  exertions,  several  well-organized  schools  were 
established.  There  a  Union  committee  was  enabled,  with  the 
help  of  Rev.  Mr.  Jaulmes-Cook  and  his  good  lady,  to  extend 
Sabbath-schooU  over  the  Canton  de  Vaud  and  afterwards 
over  other  parts  of  Switzerland.  In  Geneva,  was  organized 
a  school  of  more  than  a  hundred  boys  and  girls,  superin- 
tended by  the  pious  and  gifted  wife  of  Merle  d'Aubigne,  the 
liistoiian  of  the  Reformation.  Later,  the  Sabbath-school 
Union  was  placed  among  the  National  Societies,  and  its 
meetings  called  together  one  of  the  largest  religious  assem- 
blies in  Switzerland. 

Mr.  Woodruff's  return  to  America  in  no  degree  diminished 
his  interest  in  the  foreign  work  that  had  been  so  happily 
begun,  and  he  was  appointed  by  the  Board  of  the  American 
Foreign  and  Christian  Union  an  Associate  Secretary,  with 
special  reference  to  the  Sabbath-school  Department  which 
they  crea'.ed  at  the  same  time. 

The  value  placed  on  Mr.  Woodruff's  labors  by  those  among 
whom  he  labored  is  best  shown  by  the  spontaneous  utter- 
ances of  various  Continental  speakers  at  the  Sabbath-school 
Centennial,  held  in  London  in  1880. 

Dr.  J.  Prochnow,  of  Berlin,  traced  the  rise  of  secular  Sun- 
day-schools in  Germany,  from  the  Revolution,  through  the 
age  of  Voltaire,  when  they  died  out.  He  told  how,  through  a 
long  and  dark  period,  the  nation  passed,  till  Mr.  Woodruff 
came,  and  enlisting  the  sympathy  of  three  clergymen,  started 
the  organization  that,  in  spite  of  much  difficulty  and  oppo- 
sition has  kept  on  growing  until  the  present  day,  as  shown 
by  statistics  below. 

Speaking  of  Sunday-schools  in  France,  Rev.  H.  Paumier 
said:  "Since  the  fii"st  visit  of  our  dear  friend,  Mr.  Woodruff, 
there  are  1,115  schools  in  France,  with  more  than  40,000  chil- 
dren." Rev.  Mr.  Brockelmann,  from  Germany,  said:  "For 
many  years  it  was  considered  highly  improper  in  German)' 
for  anybody  but  clergymen   and  school-masters  to  explain 


the  Bible  to  children;  but,  in  1863,  a  Sundaj-jchool  man 
from  the  new  world,  Mr.  Albert  Woodruff  of  Brooklyn, 
came  over  to  Germany  and  blew  the  trumpet  of  Sunday- 
schools  from  one  end  of  the  country  to  the  other,  stirring, 
cheering,  explaining  all  about  the  system,  how  to  start  a 
Sunday-school  and  so  on.  Mr.  Woodruff  was  a  ijractical 
Christian.  He  resembled  those  heroes  in  history  who 
conquered  the  world,  because  they  did  not  come  before 
their  time  nor  behind  then-  time,  but  just  at  the  right 
time.  Meanwhile,  Mr.  Woodruff  succeeded  in  establishing 
the  Foreign  Sunday-school  Association  at  Brooklyn,  which 
had  afforded  most  useful  help  by  appointing  the  ladies  of 
their  committee  to  keep  up  a  most  encouraging  correspond- 
ence with  German  Sunday-school  teachers,  and  to  assist 
them  when  needed.  Next  to  our  gracious  Lord,  Germany 
owes  the  mtroduction  of  Sunday-schools  to  Mr.  Albert 
Woodruff,  and  to  the  Sunday-school  Union  of  England." 

Said  Pastor  Basche:  '  While  at  the  baths  in  Bohem'a  for  my 
health,  I  became  acquainted  with  an  American  family  who 
told  me  of  a  girl  who  was  very  fond  of  Sunday-schools. 
Some  weeks  afterwards  I  received  a  letter  from  the  young 
lady  herself,,  urging  on  me  the  duty  of  establishing  a  Sun- 
day-school. Afterwards  she  wrote  again,  and  at  length  1 
determined  to  make  the  attempt.  We  established  one  Sun- 
day-school, and  the  Lord  has  been  with  us." 

At  another  time.  Dr.  Prochnovr,  from  Berlin,  paid  a  tribute 
of  praise  to  the  work  that  was  done  by  Mr.  Woodruff, 
stating  that  when  he  went  to  Germany  some  year's  ago, 
there  were  only  three  clergymen  to  look  after  the  children, 
whereas,  on  a  recent  Sunday,  7,000  children  assembled  in 
one  church  to  celebrate  the  centenary." 

On  Mr.  Woodruff's  way  home  from  his  field  of  labor  in 
Continental  Europe,  he  tarried  awhile  in  London,  urging  the 
Sabbath-school  LTnion  of  that  city  to  co-operate  in  furnishicg 
the  continent  with  Sunday-schools.  After  several  interviews, 
that  noble  union  of  workers  appointed  nine  members  to  co- 
operate with  the  American  friends, who,  ever  afterward,  have 
heartily  continued  their  labors. 

After  Mr.  Woodruff's  return  to  America,  liis  interest  in  the 
European  work  so  auspiciously  opened,  led  to  the  frequent 
interchange  of  letters  with  the  newly-awakened  workers 
there,  which  came  from  beyond  the  sea,  some  with  joyful 
tidings,  and  some  with  appeals  for  help,  a  vast  freight  of 
hopes  and  fears.  So  fast  did  they  accumulate,  and  in  such 
diverse  languages,  that  recourse  was  had  to  the  lady  teachers 
in  Packer  Institute,  Dr.  West's,  and  other  schools,  for  assist- 
ance in  translating  and  answering  them.  The  growing  in- 
terest and  demands  of  the  work,  its  wonderful  expansion, 
necessitated  the  organization  of  a  society  devoted  exclusively 
to  the  foreign  Sunday-school  work.  Therefore,  in  18G8,  Mr. 
Woodruff  withdrew  from  the  Runday-School  Department  of 
the  Foreign  Christian  Union,  and,  with  other  earnest  friends 
of  the  cause,  organized 

The  Foreign  Sunday-School  Association,  which  was  in- 
corporated April  4,  1878,  with  Mr.  Woodruff  as  President, 
and  a  large  membershiii  among  the  best  people  in  the  cit}'. 
It  aims  to  extend  to  foreign  countries  the  institution  of  the 
Sabbath-school,  which  has  quickened  t'hristian  faith  and 
zeal  so  mightily  in  Great  Britain  and  America.  There  is  in 
every  foreign  country  a  scattered  number,  who  in  one  way 
or  another,  have  become  Christians,  and  in  some  degree  have 
yielded  to  convictions  of  self-restraint  and  duty.  To  search 
out  these,  wherever  they  are,  and  set  them  to  teaching  in 
cellars,  parlors  and  garrets,  or  in  the  open  air,  on  the 
Sunday-school  theory,  and  finally  to  work  with  them,  is  the 
central  idea  of  the  Foreign  Sunday-school  Association. 
Written  communications  with  these  scattered  workers  are  the 


SUNDAY-SCHOOL    WORK  IW  BROOKLYN. 


most  available  means,  wherefore  it  becomes  a  prominent 
aim  of  the  Association  to  restore  the  letter-writing  system 
of  tlie  New  Testament,  which  is  itself  so  largely  composed  of 
letters  written  to  stir  up,  to  exhort,  to  rebuke,  to  instruct, 
and  above  all,  to  encourage,  comfort  and  cheer  the  believers 
who  have  jielded  to  the  force  of  Truth,  and  started  on  the 
Heavenly  way. 

Tiie  result  of  its  work  to  April,  1884,  is  shown  iu  the  follow- 
ing partial  statistics  :  In  Germany  and  German-Switzerland, 
there  are:  Sunday-schools,  3,915;  teachers,  17,643;  scholars, 
328,677.  There  are  7,735  Svmday-school  scholars  in  Italy; 
and  in  Bohemia,  93  schools,  225  teachers  and  2,875  scholars. 
Lato  statistics  from  t)ther  foreign  countries  where  the  work 
is  equally  prosperous,  have  not  yet  been  received. 

The  officers  of  the  Association  for  1883-84  are  as  follows: 
President,  Albert  AVoodruff;  Treasurer,  C.  B.  Davenport; 
Cor.  Secretaries,  l^ev.  O.  C.  Morse  (Cleveland,  O.),  Rev.  H.  C. 
Woodruff  (Black  Rock,  Ct.);  Rec.  S,:o.,  Miss  M.  E.  Thal- 
heimer;  Asst.  Sec.  Miss  Sadie  Woodruff;  Sec.  of  Committees, 
Miss  H.  A.  Dickinson. 

After  this  cursory  glance  at  the  rise  and  progress  of  the 
all-i  tuportant  Sunday-school  uiovement  in  our  own  and  in 
foreign  lauds,  which,  it  is  hoped,  will  be  of  interest  to  the 
churches,  it  only  remains  to  look  briefly  at  the  beginning  and 
growth  of  this  divine  institution  in  the  City  of  Brooklyn, 
with  the  hope  that  historians  to  come  may  be  able  to  chronicle 
a  future  increase  even  more  wonderful  than  the  past  growth 
of  the 

Sunday-schools  in  Brooklyn. — From  a  pa])er  read  by  Mr. 
John  R.  Morris,  we  take  the  following  account  of  early 
schools  in  Brooklyn: 

In  the  Long  Island  Star  of  ]\Ian;li  20,  1816,  appeared  this 
advertisement: — 

'•  Brooklyn  SuNDiY-soHOOL.  The  attention  of  the  enlight- 
ened and  benevolent  inhabitants  of  Brooklyn  are  particu- 
larly invited  to  this  institution.  It  is  now  in  operation;  the 
number  of  scholars  is  upward  of  seventy.  The  school  is  un- 
der the  management  of  four  superintendents,  a  standing 
committee  of  seven,  and  a  number  of  male  and  female  teach- 
ers who  have  kindly  volunteered  their  services.  As  it  is  the 
design  of  this  institution  to  combine  religious  and  moral  in- 
struction with  ordinary  school  learning,  it  is  expected  that 
parents  and  guardians  will  give  proper  advice  to  their  child- 
en  as  to  tlieir  behavior  at  school;  to  forward  them  in  study 
at  home;  to  send  them  to  the  school  in  jiroper  season;  and 
particularly  expres.s  Their  wishes  as  to  what  catechism  they 
will  have  them  to  learn.  It  is  requested  that  children  may 
be  sent  to  school  .'is  neat  and  clean  as  circumstances  may 
permit.  A  subscription  has  lieen  made  to  purchase  a  num- 
ber of  books,  slates,  etc.;  stUl  they  fall  short.  Whatever  the 
citizens  may  contribute  will  be  thankfully  received  by  any 
of  the  subscribers.  The  superintendents  likewise  invite 
those  wlio  will  assist  as  teachers  to  make  their  intentions 
known  and  their  offer  will  be  accepted.  The  average  num- 
ber of  children  is  about  seventy.  The  managers  hope  to  be 
able  to  educate  a  much  greater  number;  they,  therefore,  re- 
quest the  citizens  of  Brooklyn  generalh-  to  exert  their  influ- 
ence with  the  poor  especially  to  persuade  them  to  send  their 
children;  a  number  of  poor  children  will  be  taken  from  that 
most  destructive  of  all  places  to  the  morals  of  30uth — we 
.  mean  the  street — on  Sabbath-day.  We  ought  to  have  ob- 
served that  children  are  taught  to  spell,  read  and  write. 
They  will,  likewise,  be  taken  to  such  church  as  their  parents 
may  choose  on  the  Sabbath-day." 

This  document  is  signed  by  Andrew  Mercein,  Robert  Snow, 
Joseph  S.  Harrison  and  John  Murphy. 

In  the  school  district  there  were  978  children  between  the 
agea  of  five  and  sixteen  years. 

In  the  Star  of  March  25,  1816,  an  advertisement  appeared 
as  follows: — 

"Notice  is  berebv  given  that  at  7  o'clock  on  Wednesday 
evening,  27th  inst.,  "in  the  school-room  of  Mr.  Evan  Beynan, 
will  be  held  a  public  meeting,  at  which  Christians  of  every 


denomination  in  Brooklyn  are  invited  to  attend.  The  design 
of  these  meetings  is  to  organize  a  rocjety  in  the  village  simi- 
lar to  tlie  Sunday-school  Society  of  Now  York,  and  the  ob- 
ject of  tlie  society  will  be  to  establish  a  school  in  which  child- 
ren or  adults  shall  bo  tau£;ht  gialtiitousiv,  on  the  Sabbath- 
day,  to  read  the  Holy  Scriptures,  and  shall  receive  other  re- 
ligious instruction.  Monthly  meetings  of  the  society  will  be 
held,  and  quarterly  meetings,  at  whi.'Ii  reports  as  to  the  con- 
dition of  the  school  and  class'es  will  be  given.  If  the  scliola-  s 
are  disorderly  or  profane  in  their  language,  and  if,  after  be- 
ing admonished,  ihey  continue  the  offense,  they  will  be  ex- 
pelled from  the  school." 

The  officers  of  this  society  were:  Joshua  Sands,  President: 
Andrew  Mercein  and  Abraham  Mercein.  Vice-Presidents; 
Thomas  Sands,  Treas.;  Rev.  John  Ireland,  Sec;  WilH;im 
Cornvk-ell,  Robert  Bache,  David  Anderson,  Jonathan  G. 
Pray,  Joseph  Harris,  Robert  Snow  and  Alexander  Young, 
Examining  Committee. 

In  the  Star  of  April  10,  1816,  is  tlie  Constitution  and  By- 
laws of  the  Brooklyn  Sunday-school  Union  Society,  adopted 
April  6.  The  school  was  divided  into  classes,  graduated 
according  to  the  pupils'  knowledge;  first  class,  those  who 
knew  not  the  alphabet;  second,  those  who  could  spell 
words  of  two  or  more  letters;  third,  those  who  could  read 
one  or  two  syllables;  fourth,  those  who  could  spell  three  or 
more  syllables;  fiftli,  of  those  who  could  read  sentences; 
sixth,  of  tlrose  who  were  capable  of  reading  the  New  Testa- 
ment. 

The  school  up  to  this  time  had  been  held  in  Thomas  Kirk's 
printing  office — a  long,  narrow,  two-story  frame  edifice  c^n 
the  westerly  side  of  Adams  st.,  between  Higii  and  Sands — 
but  was  afterwards  removed  to  the  district  school-house.  No. 
1,  cor.  Adams  and  Concord  sts.  Robert  Snow  was  superin- 
tendent; succeeded  by  Joseph  Herbert.  In  1817,  St.  Ann's 
Sunday-school  was  first  organized,  Rev.  Hugh  Smith  being 
Rector.  The  school  was  held  in  a  school-house  some  distance 
from  the  church,  so  that  it  was  found  impracticable  to  con- 
tinue its  sessions  during  the  winters  of  1818  and  1819,  on  ac- 
count of  the  inclement  weather.  Its  membership  in  the  fall 
of  1818  numbered  187;  Rev.  James  P.  L.  Clarke,  Superin- 
tendent. Rev.  H.  W.  Onderdonk,  D.  D.,  who  was  Rector  of 
St.  Ann's  from  December,  1819,  to  October,  1827,  was  not  an 
advocate  of  the  Sunday-school,  so  after  a  few  years  the 
school  was  discontinued.  He  had  regular  catechetical  in- 
struction of  the  children  of  the  parish  on  Sunday  afternoons. 
After  his  resignation.  Rev.  Mr.  Mcllvaine  became  Rector  in 
1828.  On  Sunday,  May  11th,  the  school  was  opened  in  the 
Dutch  Consistoiy  rooms,  on  Middagh  st.  Fourteen  adults 
and  twenty  children  assembled  at  the  first  session. 

May  13th  the  Constitution  and  By-laws  were  adopted,  in 
part,  as  follows;  "  This  school  shall  consist  of  male  and 
female  scholars  four  years  old  and  upwards.  Its  object  shall 
be  to  instruct  youth  in  the  knowledge  of  God's  word,  and  it 
shall  embrace  children  of  all  classes  without  distinction. 
Yearly  selections  of  Scriptures  and  catechetical  lessons  shall 
he  arranged  by  the  Rector  and  the  Superintendents  for  the  use 
of  the  school,  so  that  every  class  of  readers  shall  receive  in- 
struction in  the  same  lesson  and  at  the  samj  time." 

May  13th,  Frederick  T.  Peet  was  elected  Superintendent; 
George  A.  Bartow,  Secretary,  and  a  committee  of  seven  were 
chosen  to  look  after  the  school.  As  it  increased,  it  was 
found  necessary  to  look  for  new  quarters.  The  vestry  ap- 
pointed a  committee,  consisting  of  Messrs.  Bache  and  Van 
Bokelin,  to  co-ojierate  with  tlae  committee  from  the  Sunday- 
school,  and  the  property  cor.  Washington  and  Prospect  sts. 
was  bought.  A  building  was  erected  which  cost  about 
$1,500  and  occupied  in  1829.  Frederick  T.  Peet  was  superin- 
tendent from  1828  to  1845,  and  A.  D.  Matthews  from  1845  to 
Oct.  30,  1870,  when  old  St.  Ann's  School  was  closed.     The 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


present  Superinteudent  of  St.  Ann's  Sunday-school  is  Mayor 
Low. 

Before  dismissing  the  subject  of  the  early  organization  of 
this  Pchool,  it  may  be  interesiing  to  (juote  one  of  the  rules, 
whicli  provided  that  ' '  No  teacher  shall  appear  with  a  rod  or 
cane  in  his  or  her  class,  but  order  shall  bo  maintained  in  the 
several  classes  by  the  most  temperate  means.  They  shall 
deliver  over  disorderly  scholars  to  the  superintendents." 

In  1824,  the  only  Sunday-school  was  the  School  Union,  cor. 
Adams  and  Concord  sts.  It  ii  supposed  that  this  school  was 
in  existence  until  1824,  when  the  various  denominations  sep- 
arated and  organized  schools  in  their  different  churches.  As 
most  of  those  engaged  ia  llie  Union  School  were  Methodists, 
it  has  been  allowei  that  Sands  St.  is  the  oldest  school,  but  its 
o:irly  records  were  destroyed  i  i  the  great  fire.  The  Superiii- 
t;\ndent3  have  been:  Robert  Snow;  Joseph  Herbert;  Thomas 
Mercein;  M.  F.  Odell  (died  Juno  13,  186G);  John  Collier 
to  Jan.  21,  1867;  S.  U.  F.  Odell  (died  May  6,  1875);  Samuel  S. 
Utter,  until  May  15,  1877;  Henry  G.  Fay,  until  Feb.  19,  1878; 
AVm.  I.  Preston  and  John  M.  Espencheid,  from  Oct.  24,  1882. 

In  1819,  Mr.  Nebemiah  Denton  org.  a  Sunday-school  in  the 
kitchen  adjoining  his  dwelling,  near  the  old  Yellow  Mill  on 
Gowanus  creek,  which  was  removed  after  a  year  or  two  to 
the  school-house  at  the  foot  of  the  Post  Road,  cor.  of  Gow- 
anus lane;  it  merged  in  the  school  on  Third  ave.  and  after- 
wards in  what  is  now  the  Twelfth  St.  Church.  This  school 
still  has  the  old  banner  painted  in  1829.  Between  tlie  years 
1822  and  1827,  schools  were  also  formed  in  the  school-house 
at  lower  Gowanus,  at  the  foot  of  Pope's  Lane,  with  Albert 
Van  Brunt.  Sujierintendent;  also  one  in  the  school-house  at 
Bedford,  and  another  in  the  school-house  at  Wallabout. 
There  was  also  a  school  for  a  few  years  in  the  old  lecture- 
room  of  the  First  Reformed  Ch.,  then  in  Middagh  st.,  where 
Public  School  No.  8  now  is. 

In  1829,  the  First  Reformed  Dutch  Church  built  a  frame 
lecture-room  on  Joralemon  street,  in  the  rear  of  the  City 
Hall,  in  wliich  a  Sunday-school  was  organized,  witli  Andrew 
Hegeman,  Superintendent,  till  1839;  Samuel  Smith  and  Mar- 
tinus  Schoonmaker,  Assistant  Superintendents;  Thos.  Hege- 
man, Sec'y;  Mrs.  Mary  Van  Brant,  Female  Superintendent, 
and  Miss  Harriet  Silliman,  assistant.  Among  tlie  teachers 
were:  John  W.  and  Archibald  T.  Lawrence,  James  M.  Duf- 
field,  Abraham  J.  Beekman,  John  D.  Prince,  Joseph  Hege- 
man, iMiss  Mary  Moon,  Miss  Alice  and  Miss  Cornelia  Moon, 
Miss  Aurilia  Silliman  and  others.  Other  superintendents:  A. 
J.  Beekman,  till  1848;  Samuel  Sloan,  Roswell  Graves,  Stephen 
H.  Wheeler,  Henry  D.  Van  Or  Jen,  till  1865;  Bookman,  1865-8; 
Gustavus  A.  Brett,  Henry  V.  Gilbert,  Mervin  Rushmore, 
William  H.  Dike,  Frederick  B.  Schenck,  Rev.  S.  S.  Wood- 
hull,  Abraliam  Remsen,  David  Anderson  and  Abraham  Van- 
derveer,  members  of  First  Reformed  Church,  were  workers 
in  the  old  Union  School  in  Adams  street.  Mr.  Beekman  com- 
menced his  Sunday-school  work  in  1820  in  a  wheelwright  shop 
in  Greggstown,  Somerset  county,  New  Jersey,  established  to 
teach  slaves;  in  1828,  lie  removed  to  Brookhm.  The  Central 
Dutch  Reformed  Sunday-school  was  organized  in  1837,  and 
when  the  Reformed  Church  on  the  Heights  was  built,  the 
school  was  re-organized.  East  (now  Bedford)  Reformed 
Sunday-School  was  organized  in  1854.  Isaac  Brinkerhoff  was 
Superintendent  in  1858.  This  school  afterwards  moved  from 
its  old  building  to  one  nearly  opposite  on  Bedford  avenue. 
The  present  Superintendent  is  5Ii-.  Henry  Howland.  The 
Xorth  Reformed  Sunday-school,  Clermont  avenue,  was  or- 
ganized in  1851,  with  E.  S.  Potter,  Superintendent  for  many 
years.  The  Twelfth  Street  Reformed  was  formerly  on  Third 
avenue  and  Twenty-third  street.  It  has  now  a  membership 
of  1,400;  Mr.  C.  H.  Buckley,  superintendent. 


The  First  Presbyterian  School  was  organized  in  a  building 
on  the  site  of  the  lecture-room  of  Plymouth  Church,  :"n  1824. 
Many  of  the  teachers  and  scholars  had  been  in  t'le  Union 
School.  The  first  Sujierintendent  was  Nathan  W.  Sanford. 
Miss  Margaret  Cunningham,  was  Assistant  Superintendent; 
Marvin  McNulty,  Secretary.  The  school  used  t')  unite  with 
the  schools  in  New  York,  on  anniversary  day,  at  Castle 
Garden.  The  Superintendents  were:  Professor  Greenleaf, 
R.  J.  Thorn,  George  B.  Ripley.  Robprt  C.  O.^don  and  E.  S. 
Potter.     Mr.  R.  D.  Dodge  is  now  Sui)eiintendeut. 

In  1838,  owing  to  a  division  in  the  church,  another  school 
was  organized,  called  the  First  Presbyterian  Sunday-school. 
It  was  on  the  corner  of  Pineapple  and  Fulton  streets,  but 
moved  afterward  to  the  corner  of  Remsen  and  Clinton  streets. 

Nov.  13th,  1831,  a  colony  went  out  from  the  first  church 
and  organized  a  church,  and  afterwards  a  Sunday  school, 
known  as  the  Second  Presbyterian  School.  The  school  met 
in  Classical  Hall,  Washington  street,  near  Concord.  John 
Morris  was  Superintendent,  assisted  by  John  Alexander;  Sir. 
Henry  Hadden,  Secretary;  James  Spies,  librarian;  willi 
eighteen  teachers;  and  at  the  first  session  there  wei'e eighteen 
scholars.  About  1832,  it  moved  to  Gothic  Hall,  Adams  street, 
between  Nassau  and  Concord  streets;  and  in  1835  moved  to 
Clinton  street,  junction  of  Fulton.  Rev.  Dr.  Sjjencer  became 
Pastor  of  this  church  in  1832.  Among  those  who  have  acted 
as  Superintendents  of  this  school  are:  John  Wright,  Charles 
Clark,  Myron  Goodman,  Andrew  A.  Smith  and  Jasper 
Corning. 

When  this  school  united  with  the  Third  Presbyterian,  Jlr. 
AV.  H.  Hurlbut  became  Superintendent,  and  remained  so 
until  his  death.  It  was  united  with  the  Clinton  Street  Prcs- 
by,.erian,  1883,  and  known  as  the  Second  Presbyterian. 

In  1831,  another  school  was  organized  in  Nassau  street, 
corner  Hudson  avenue.  W.  H.  Hurlbut,  with  a  few  others, 
left  the  First  Presbyterian  Sunda5--school,  which  aftervvards 
became  the  Third  Presbyterian  Church  and  school.  Mr. 
Hurlbut  then  connected  himself  with  that  church,  and  be- 
came the  Superintenilent  of  the  school. 

The  First  Presbyterian  was  organized  about  1841.  It  occu- 
pied the  building  corner  Willoughby  and  Pearl  streets,  where 
Joseph  Hegeman's  auction-room  now  is.  In  1847,  this  school 
was  disbanded. 

In  1835,  the  first  mission  school  was  organized.  Mr.  John 
Morris,  who  organized  the  Second  Presbyterian  Sunday- 
school,  leased  the  ground  (where  Prince  street  now  is)  of 
Messrs.  Sackett  &  Fleet.  A  school-house  seating  250  was 
built  on  it,  costing  about  |500.  Myrtle  avenue  was  not  then 
cut  through,  and  there  was  not  a  house  within  a  quarter  of  a 
mile.  Tlie  school  was  opened  July  19,  1835;  Mr.  Morris  was 
its  first  Superintendent.  It  was  known  as  the  Prince  Street 
Mission  Sunday-school,  and  was  under  the  care  of  the  Second 
Presbyterian  Church.  For  the  first  three  or  four  years,  how- 
over,  it  was  mainly  supported  by  voluntary  contributions. 
The  first  teachers  were:  Daniel  Colt,  James  B.  Cochran,  Isaac 
Jaques,  Augustus  Butler.  Elias  Edwards,  Joseph  W.  Camp- 
bell, James  Lawson,  William  Phraner,  Louis  Wheaton,  Mrs. 
Elizabeth  Wheaton,  Miss  Sarah  Smith,  Elizabeth  and  Maria 
Campbell,  Mrs.  S.  A.  Butler,  Sarah  and  Jane  Wheaton.  Two 
years  later  Mr.  Morris  retired,  and  Mr.  Augustus  Butler  was 
elected;  in  1842,  Mr.  C.  C.  Mudge  succeeded  him. 

After  MjTtle  avenue  and  the  other  streets  were  cut  through, 
the  building  was  moved  to  Myrtle  avenue,  between  Prince 
and  Carll  streets. 

In  1847,  a  building  was  erected  in  Prince  street,  now  known 
as  Siloam  Presbyterian  Church,  in  which  the  Central  Presby- 
terian Church  was  organized,  the  teachers  and  scholars  mov- 
ing from  the  old  school-house. 


SUNDAY-SCHOOL    WORK  IW  BROOKLYN: 


1097 


The  church  known  as  the  Fifth  Presbyterian,  corner  Wil- 
loughby  and  Peaal,  was  offered  to  the  Central  Society  for 
$5,000,  and  was  bought.  Preaching  services  commenced 
there  in  April.  Rev.  N.  C.  Locke  was  the  first  Pastor.  The 
school  flourished  under  the  administration  of  Mr.  Mudge, 
Rev.  Mr.  Sloan  and  others.  Finally,  the  building  was  sold, 
and  scliool  and  cliurch  moved  to  Schermerhorn  street,  occu- 
pying a  temporary  building,  corner  State  and  Nevins  street, 
until  the  Tabernacle  was  built,  of  wliich  Rev.  Dr.  Talniage  is 
Pastor.  From  the  Prince  Street  Mission  many  teachers  have 
gone  out  and  organized  other  schools  and  churches. 

In  1842,  Rev.  Jonathan  Greenleaf  organized  a  school  iu  the 
Wallaliout  in  Franklin  avenue,  now  known  as  the  Franklin 
Avenue  Presbyterian  Sunday-school. 

In  1840,  a  mission-school  was  organized  in  Pacific  street, 
which  afterwards  became  the  South  Presbyterian  Church. 

Of  the  schools  of  the  Baptist  denomination,  the  first  is  the 
First  Baptist,  organized  in  1824,  holding  its  sessions  in  the 
public  school  building  on  Middagh  street,  on  the  site  now 
occupied  by  school  No.  8,  also  in  jiublio  school  building,  first 
district,  corner  Concord  and  Adams  streets.  The  first  youths' 
missionary  society  organized  in  connection  with  the  school 
was  in  1831.  Officers:  Pres.,  Robert  Raymond;  Vice-Pres., 
Elijah  Lewis;  Sec,  Alexander  Lewis;  Treas.,  Joseph  Kutz. 

In  June,  1873,  the  school  and  the  Pierrepont  street  Baptist 
were  united,  adding  about  120  teachers  and  scholars.  The  first 
Superintendent  was  Eliakim  Raymond.  He  served  two 
years,  succeeded  by  the  following  persons:  Elijah  Lewis, 
John  Bigelow,  John  Clark,  E.  L.  Brown,  Isaiah  \V.  Raymond, 
Sylvanus  White,  D.  W.  C.  Taylor,  J.  D.  Reid,  H.  C.  S.  Jervis, 
J.  W.  S.  Harding,  and  at  present  H.  C.  S.  Jervis  is  Superin- 
tendent. In  the  early  history  of  the  school,  it  occupied  the 
building  in  Pearl  street,  where  the  Jewish  Synagogue  now  is. 
Pierrepont  Street  Baptist  Sunday-school  was  organized  in  1838. 
This  church  organized  a  mission  in  South  Brooklyn,  from 
which  sprung  the  Strong  Place  Baptist  Sunday-school;  it  also 
had  a  mission  in  John  street  for  many  years.  After  a  number 
of  yeai's  strong  Place  Baptist  established  a  mission  in  Colum- 
bia, street,  near  Hamilton  avenue,  now  known  as  the  Taber- 
nacle Baptist;  also  a  mission-school  in  Gowanus,  now  known 
as  Greenwood  Baptist.  The  Tabernacle  Baptist  started  a 
mission  in  Hamilton  avenue,  which,  after  a  few  yeai-s,  dis- 
banded. Strong  Place  Baptist  now  supports  a  mission  called 
Carroll  Park.  Hanson  Place  Baptist  was  organized  in  1853; 
it  first  met  iu  Atlantic  avenue,  near  Fourth.  East  Brooklyn 
Baptist  was  organized  in  1846.  The  Pierrepont  Street  Bap- 
tist established  mission-schools  and  w^as  the  means  of  organ- 
izing large  churches  in  South  Brooklyn.  The  largest  school 
in  that  denomination  is  the  Marcy  Avenue  Baptist. 

York  Street  M.  E.  Sunday-school  was  organized  in  1830.  A 
Mr.  Booth  was  the  first  Superintendent,  succeeded  by  Alfred 
Mulford,  George  Hunt,  Hon'  Samuel  Booth,  Joshua  Rogers, 
Jr.,  and  others.  Samuel  Booth  was  Superintendent  thirty- 
nine  years,  leaving  York  st.,  in  1858,  to  take  charge  of  Han- 
son Place  M.  E.  Hon  John  French  was  Superintendent  of 
Hanson  Place  for  nearly  twent\--five  years. 

\Vashin(jton  St.  was  the  third  Methodist  school  organized. 
Judge  Dykeman  took  an  active  part  in  the  work,  and  Jere- 
miali  Mundell  N\as  never  absent  from  school  but  twice  in 
twenty  years. 

After  1832,  schools  began  to  multiply.  The  first  Congrega- 
tional school  was  the  Pilgrim.  In  1846,  a  school  was  org.  in 
the  Mariners'  Clim-ch,  Main  st.,  near  Front,  an  old  wooden 
building.  Mr.  John  P.  Elwell  was  the  first  Superintendent, 
and  the  school  moved  from  there  to  the  old  Fulton  Market, 
James  st.,  in  1844,  and  this  school  is  now  the  Bethel  in 
Hicks  st. 


The  Navy  Mission  was  situated  on  the  comer  of  Green  lane 
and  Front  st.  Wlien  it  was  first  started,  so  strong  was  the 
opposition  that,  when  meetings  were  held  on  Sunday  even- 
ings, it  was  hardly  safe  to  pass  through  the  street.  Stones 
would  often  be  thrown  against  the  door.  Members  of  the 
Second  Presbyterian  Church  would  stand  outside  the  door  to 
watch  the  boys. 

The  first  Unitarian,  school  was  in  1838  ;  the  Universalist 
about  the  same  time;  the  first  Roman  Catholic  in  1828.  There 
are  five  Jevyish  schools,  numbering  about  one  thousand 
scholars. 

The  first  Lutheran  Sunday -scliool  was  started  in  AVilliams- 
burgh,  in  1847.  The  Moravian  Sunday-school  was  organized 
in  1854.  In  1853  in  a  small  cottage,  near  where  the  present 
chapel  of  Lee  Avenue  Congregational  now  stands,  was  or- 
ganized the  Lee  Avenue  Reformed  Sunday-school.  There 
were  no  houses  in  the  vicinity  for  a  mile  or  more ;  on 
either  side  open  fields  met  the  eye.  The  beginning  was 
feeble,  consisting  of  three  teachers  and  eight  scholars.  The 
whole  enterprise  grow  slowly  for  the  first  two  years,  when, 
in  1858,  it  numbered  1,350,  officers  and  teachers,  Mr.  Jere- 
miah Johnson,  Jr.,  being  its  Supt.  They  were  the  first 
schools  that  had  class  banners.  So  noted  was  this  school  that 
strangers  came  to  visit  it. 

St.  John's  P.  E.  Sunday-school  was  org.  in  1827,  in  Mr. 
Kingsley's  school-room,  Adams  St.,  near  Johnson.  Judge 
Morse  was  Supt.,  and  John  T.  Moore,  Sec'.v.  Some  of  the 
teachers  were:  Mr.  William  Hunter,  Hon.  John  W.  Hunter, 
John  H.  Baker,  Miss  Hester  Strang,  Misses  Ryerson,  Rowley, 
and  Moysers;  and  some  of  the  scholars,  John  Folk,  John 
Wiggins,  Dr.  Watson,  Samuel  Booth,  Stephen  Kidder, 
Howard  C.  Cady,  Mrs.  Alfred  Emanuel.  That  jear  they 
joined  the  schools  in  celebrating  the  anniversary  at  Castle 
Garden.  Tlie  banner  carried  on  that  occasion  was  a  white 
silk  one,  having  the  picture  of  an  open  Bible. 

In  1828,  they  moved  to  the  new  school-room,  corner  John- 
son and  Washington  sts.  About  two  hundred  scholars  were 
then  in  attendance.  The  following  persons  have  been  Super- 
intendents :  Rev.  D.  V.  51.  Johnson,  Rev.  Henry  Spafard, 
Mr.  S.  D.  C.  Van  Bokelin,  up  to  the  time  of  their  removal 
from  Johnson  st.  to  St.  John's  place. 

The  second  school  of  St.  Ann's  was  organized  August  80, 
1830;  Mr.  Charles  Gongdon,  Supt;  Mr.  Wm.  H.  Carter,  Sec'y, 
with  twelve  teachers.  In  1845,  Rev.  Charles  Bancroft  was 
Supt;  H.  P.  Morgan,  Sec'y;  Henry  G.  Nichols,  Librarian;  and 
Abraham  Halsey,  Asst.  Librarian. 

Kings  County  Sunday-School  Union,  organized  1829. — In 
the  Long  Island  Star  of  April  8,  1829,  mention  is  made  of  a 
meeting  iu  the  Apprentices'  Librar}^  held  the  6th  inst.,  when 
it  was  determined  to  establish  a  Sunday-school  society  for 
Kings  county,  auxiliary  to  the  Southern  Sunday-School 
Union  of  New  York.  The  following  gentlemen  were  elected 
Officers:  Nehemiah  Denton,  Pres.;  J.  Terhune,  N.  W.  San- 
ford,  Vice-PresV s ;  Rev.  E.  51.  Jolmson,  Sec;  Abraham  Van- 
derveer,  Treas.  Managers  :  For  Brooklyn,  Rev.  Mr.  Rouse, 
Rev.  Sir.  Carroll,  Eliakim  Raymond,  Adrian  Hegeman, 
Henry  White;  Flatbush,  Rev.  Mr.  Strong,  John  Lefferts,  Dr. 
Vander\-eer;  Flatlands,  Rev.  Mr.  Crookshank,  David  Neefus, 
James  Remsen;  Qravcseml,  Bernardus  C.  Lake,  John  S.  Gar- 
ritson  ;  Bushwick,  Rev.  Mr.  Jleeker,  Peter  WyckofE,  James 
Halsey;  Neiv  Lots,  John  Williamson,  Jno.  Vanderveer;  New 
Utrecht,  Rev.  Mr.  Beattie  and  M.  j\llen;  also  the  gentlemen 
who  are  Superintendents  of  schools,  in  connection  with 
American  Sunday-School  Union,  are  also  ex-officers  and 
managers. 

In  the  Star  of  June  20,  1830,  notice  is  given  of  a  meeting 
of   the  Kings  County  Sunday-School   Union,  at  Flatbush. 


1098 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


The  churcli  was  crowded  with  the  scholars  and  teachers 
and  friends,  banners  hung  around  the  church,  and  a  proces- 
sion of  600  children  took  place. 

June  3,  1830,  a  public  meeting  was  held  in  the  Sunday- 
school  room  of  St.  Ann"s  Church,  for  the  purpose  of  estab- 
lishing an  African  Infant  Class  Association.  The  object  was 
to  establish  an  infant  school  for  African  children.  P.  W. 
Radclifif  was  Pres. ;  F.  C.  Tucker  and  Robert  Snow,  Vice- 
Prest's;  W.  H.  Van  Sinderen,  Sec;  Charles  J.  Aiding,  Treas, 
and  fourteen  Directors.  The  first  colored  school  oiganized 
was  in  High  st.     Tlierc  arc  now  iibout  ten  colored  schools. 

Sunday-school  Statistics  for  1883. — There  are  279  Sunday- 
schools  in  Kings  county,  containing  a  total  membershij)  of 
100,597  officers,  teachers,  and  scholars.  These  schools  are 
divided  as  follows:  Presbyterian,  30;  Reformed,  33;  Baptist, 
34;  Congregational,  28;  Methodist,  61;  Protestant  Episcopal, 
47;  Reformed  Episcopal,  3;  Lutheran  and  Evangelical,  15; 
Friends.  2;  Moravian,  1,  Christian,  3;  Union  Mission,  15; 
Unitarian,  4;  Universalist,  3;  Reformed  Catholic,  1.  The 
total  average  attendance  of  the  schools  for  the  full  term  was 
57,762,  and  the  number  of  conversions  or  confirmations, 
2,676.  The  moneys  contributed  during  the  year  by  various 
schools,  for  benevolent  and  other  purposes,  amounted  to 
$81,589.80,  the  Methodist  giving  the  largest  part  or  |17,303.09 
of  that  sum.  The  fifteen  Union  Mission  Schools  gave 
§3,417.95  during  the  same  period. 

The  following  are  some  of  the  veterans  in  Sunday-school 
service  in  Kings  county: 

Andrew  A.  Smith.— Born  at  Berlin,  Ct.,  1817;  came  to 
New  York  in  1834,  and  entered  Dr.  Erskine  Mason ".s  Pros. 
Sunday-school;  visited  Grand  Rapids,  Mich.,  in  1836;  no 
Sunday-school,  and  stores  open  on  Sundays;  established  a 
Sunday-school  in  store  loft,  also  a  Sabbath  service,  reading- 
room,  etc.,  and  very  soon  gathered  a  regular  congregation; 
a  church  was  org.  and  jjastor  called;  tlie  place  grew  to  be  a 
moral,  religious  community,  now  a  large  city  noted  for 
churches,  etc. ;  returned  to  Brooklyn  in  1838;  was  a  teacher  in 
Dr.  Spencer"s  Church  and  Mission  School;  while  teaching  a 
Bible  class  was  called  persistently  to  take  charge  of  Bethel 
Mission  Sunday-school  (now  Bethel  of  Plymouth  Church):  in 
this  work  fifteen  years;  left  Bethel  to  build  uj)  City  Park 
Mission,  now  in  Concord  st.,  where,  after  a  year  or  two,  he 
broke  in  health,  and  was  compelled  to  leave  and  rest  from  all 
Sunday-school  work. 

He  was  President  of  the  Brooklyn  Sunday-school  Union 
some  twenty  years;  also  President  of  ths  Hamilton  Literary 
Association,  and  aided  to  organize  the  Young  Men's  Christian 
Association ;  was  its  first  president  for  three  years;  also 
aided  in  organizing  State  Sunday-school  Convention;  was 
elected  Superintendent  of  Dr.  Duryea's  Church  Sunday-school; 
employed  there  some  two  years,  and  then  in  prison-work 
three  or  four  years,  till  seized  with  rheumatic  fever  con- 
tracted there;  is  now  Supt.,  and  active  in  the  Chinese  mission- 
school  on  DeKalb  ave. 

AzEL  D.  Matthews.— Born  in  Hinsdale,  Mass.,  1809;  when 
the  Sunday-school  was  first  introduced,  in  1820,  he  became  a 
scholar  in  the  Congregational  Church.  In  1828,  came  to  this 
city  and  connected  himself  with  the  church  and  Sunday-school 
of  the  First  Pres.  Church,  in  Cranberry  st.  In  1833  removed 
church  and  school  relations  to  St.  Ann's  Prot.  Ei>is.  Church, 
continuing  there  as  teacher  and  Superintendent  until  1872; 
then  removed  to  St.  Peter's  Epis.  Church,  and  now  is  teacher 
of  a  young  men's  Bible  class,  not  having  left  the  Sunday- 
school  since  1830.  He  has  been  a  manager  of  the  Brooklyn 
Sunday-school  Union  since  its  organization;  was  Vice-Presi- 
dent of  the  Union  for  a  number  of  years;  was  foremost  in  the 


organization  and  support  of  the  State  Sunday-school  Associa- 
tion, and  County  Secretary  for  a  number  of  years. 

Charles  C.  Mudqe. — Born  in  1806;  in  1837  ho  entered  the 
Sunday-school  as  a  teacher  of  one  of  the  younger  classes; 
this  school  was  situated  in  the  rear  of  the  Quaker  Meeting- 
house in  Rose  st.,  New  York  City,  his  class  being  composed 
of  three  colored  persons — father,  son,  and  grandson — all 
learning  their  letters;  about  two  years  later  lie  entered  the 
Sunday-school  of  Dr.  Romeyn's  Cedar  St.  Pres.  Church, 
where  he  continued  as  scholar,  Ass't  I^ibrarian  and  teacher 
until  1830,  when  he  took  a  class  in  a  mission  school  in 
Duane  st.,  near  Church.  In  1841  he  entered  the  Prince 
Street  Mission  Sunday-school,  Brooklyn,  connected  with 
the  Rev.  Dr.  Spencer's  Second  Pres.  Church;  this  was 
the  first  7mssion-school  started  in  Brooklyn,  and  was 
originated  by  Mr.  John  Morris ;  he  was  Superintend- 
ent from  1843  until  the  school  developed  into  the  Cen- 
tral Pres.  Church  (1847),  now  the  Tabernacle,  and  con- 
tinued as  its  Superintendent  until  1856;  shortly  after  this  he 
.started  a  niission-scliool  at  317  Altantic  st.,  and  now  known 
as  the  Pacific  Street  Chapel,  under  the  care  of  Dr.  Van  Dyke's 
Church;  resigned  in  1863,  on  account  of  ill  health. 

In  the  fall  of  1866  he  entei'ed  a  mission-school  connected 
with  Dr.  Cuyler's  Church,  now  the  Memorial  Presbyterian; 
he  continued  as  Superintendent  about  two  years  after  the 
church  was  organized;  was  one  of  the  managers  of  the 
Sunday-school  Union  almost  uninterruptedly  since  its  organi- 
zation; early  in  its  history  he  was  Recording  Secretary,  and  at 
a  later  period  for  many  years  its  Treasurer;  he  died  in  1883. 

John  R.  Morris. — Born  in  New  York  City,  1833;  entered 
the  Sunday-school  of  the  First  Pres.  Church,  Brooklyn,  in 
1828:  took  a  olass  in  Prince  Street  Mission  1843;  in  1853  was 
elected  Secretary  of  the  Brooklyn  Sunday-school  Unio)i ;  the 
management  then  was  by  an  Executive  Committee,  consist- 
ing of  one  from  each  denomhiation;  subsequently  the  Board 
was  increased  to  33  members,  and  then  to  36,  and  he  served 
as  Assistant  Secretary;  in  1868  was  elected  one  of  the 
Managers,  and  in  1873  its  Recording  Secretary;  has  been 
County  Secretary  over  eight  years;  has  been  gathering 
statistics  for  thirty  years,  and  Secretary  of  the  State  Con- 
vention six  years;  was  a  scholar  when  there  were  but  six 
Sunday-schools  in  Brooklyn;  was  one  of  the  visitors  when 
all  Brooklyn  was  districted  out  for  systematic  visitation, 
twenty-five  years  ago,  when  every  house  was  visited  to  see 
who  attended  Sunday-school  and  who  did  not;  he  is  still  one 
of  the  Managers  of  the  Sunday-school  Union,  and  its  Record- 
ing Secretary,  and  County  Secretary  vinder  the  State  Asso- 
ciation of  Sunday-school  Teachers. 

Rev.  Samuel  Bayliss  came  to  Brooklyn,  in  1853,  as  Pastor 
of  the  Warren  St.  Mission,  formerly  a  Sunday-school  which 
met  in  Freeman's  Hall  (cor.  of  Columbia  and  Amity  sts.), 
the  school  became  a  church,  with  a  membership  of  o^er  175, 
He  was  always  present  at  the  sessions  of  the  school  and  at  the 
weekly  teachers'  meetings,  and  also  habitually  attended  the 
meetings  of  the  Brooklyn  Sunday-school  Union.  In  1868  or 
1870,  he  became  Secretary  and  Manager  of  the  Association 
for  Improving  the  Condition  of  the  Poor.  His  death  took 
place  Feb.  12,  1879,  in  his  68th  year.  Mr.  Bayliss  frequently 
visited  the  Sunday-schools  of  the  city.  His  son,  Benj.  Bayliss, 
was  President  of  Brooklyn  Sunday-school  Union,  from  1877 
to  1883;  is  still  a  Manager;  has  been  for  13  years  Supt.  of  the 
Memorial  Presbyterian  Sunday-school  of  Brooklyn.  He 
worked  with  his  father  many  years  as  Superintendent  of  the 
Warren  St.  Mission, 


SUNDAY-SCHOOL    WORK  IX  BROOKLYN: 


Jeebmiah  Johnson,  Jr.,  born  June  37th,  1837,  at  the 
Wallabout,  Brooklyn;  he  is  the  son  of  Barnet  Johnson  and 
the  grandson  of  Gen.  Jeremiah  Johnson.  May  1st,  1853,  he 
org.  the  Lee  Ave.  Sunday-school  in  a  small  cottage  in  the 
vacant  lots,  cor.  Bedford  ave.  and  Hewes  st.,  with  three 
teachers  and  8  scholars.  During  his  thirteen  years'  ser\-ice 
as  Superintendent,  he  was  absent  but  four  Sundays.  He 
witnessed  the  growth  of  the  Sunday-school  from  eight  to  two 
thousand  scholars,  and  the  erection  of  the  present  commodious 
and  substantial  buildings,  largely  through  his  own  efforts 
and  liberality.  He  was  Supt.  of  the  First  Pres.  Sunday- 
school,  Rahway,  N.  J.,  for  six  years.  He  was  Supt.  of  the 
Madison  Ave.  Ref.  Sunday-school  for  three  years,  from  Dec, 
1873,  and  secured  the  erection  of  a  fine  Sunday-school  room 
on  57th  street. 

He  was  elected  Supt.  of  the  Brooklyn  Tabernacle  Sunday- 
school  (Rev.  Dr.  TalmaRp'o):  served  two  years  and  then  in 
October,  1883,  resigned  to  become  Supt.  of  the  Lee  Ave.  Sun- 
day-school, then  somewhat  demoralized,  but  now  numbering 
1,500.  Mr.  Johnson  is  a  man  remarkable  for  activity  and 
energy,  which  he  has  a  great  faculty  of  infusing  into  his 
Sunday-school  work. 

William  M.  Pibrson.  — Born  1808,  in  Westfield,  N.  J.;  his 
first  recollection  of  the  Sunday-school  is  the  gathering  of  a 
class  of  six  on  Sunday  afternoon,  his  mother — the  teacher — 
and  four  brothers  and  one  sister,  forming  it,  the  Bible  and 
the  "Westminster  Shorter  Catechism  the  text-books:  in  1829 
entered  tlie  York  Street  Methodist  Sunday-school  as  a 
teacher;  in  1835  connected  himself  with  the  Prince  Street 
Mission;  continued  here  until  the  Central  Pres.  Church  was 
organized,  Sept.  5,  1847,  and  in  this  school  (now  the  Taber- 
nacle) he  has  continued  up  to  the  present  time;  Superintend- 
ent one  and  one-half  years;  teacher  of  Bible  class;  had  charge 
for  four  or  five  years  of  tlie  .Sunday-scliool  of  the  Protestant 
Orphan  Asylum,  in  Cumberland  st. 


Henky  R.  Pieecy.  Born  in  1798;  in  1826  entered  the 
Sunday-school  Union  School,  held  in  district  school-house  on 
Concord  st. ;  this  school  consisted  of  members  of  the  different 
evangelical  denominations;  it  soon  became  too  large  for  the 
building,  and  it  was  deemed  advisable  to  separate  and  have 
the  schools  in  their  respective  churches;  he  was  Superin- 
tendent of  Sunday-schools  thirty-six  years;  is  now  teaching 
in  the  Union  Congregational  Church,  State  st. 

Samuel  L.  Parsons.— Born  1817,  in  West  Springfield,  Mass. ; 
entered  Sunday-school  in  1837  or  1838;  removed  to  Marshall, 
Mich.,  in  1837,  where  he  was  Secretary  of  a  Sunday-school; 
for  two  years  he  occupied  similar  i)Osltions  in  Pahuyra,  Mo.; 
for  two  years  from  1843  he  did  tlie  same  work  iu  Springfield, 
Mass. ;  in  1845  he  was  for  four  years  .Secretary  and  Superin- 
tendent; removed  to  Brooklyn  in  1851;  served  twenty  years 
as  Supt.  of  Church  schools,  and  five  in  a  mission  school;  was 
President  of  the  Sunday-school  Union  from  1867  to  1869. 
During  this  period  he  spent  all  liis  Sabbaths  iu  visiting  the 
schools  of  the  Union.  In  1S79  Im  opened  a  scliool  for  the 
Chinese  in  rooms  of  A^oung  Men's  Christian  ^Association, 
where  he  gathered  a  goodly  number  of  Chinamen  to  study 
the  Bible. 

Israel  A.  Barker.— Born  in  New  York  City  1820;  entered 
the  Sunday-school  of  the  Willet  Street  M.  B.  Church  in  1837; 
came  to  Brooklyn  in  1842,  and  joined  the  Centenary  M.  E. 
Sunday-school;  was  teacher  and  secretary  until  1848,  when, 
with  about  one  hundred  otliers,  left  the  M.  E.  Church  and 
organized  a  Congregational  Metliodist  Clmrcli,  corner  Law- 
rence and  Tillary  sts.,  where  lie  served  as  trustee  of  the 
church  and  secretary  of  tlie  .Sunday-school;  went  into  the 
Sunday-school  and  became  Superintendent  till  1865;  was 
elected  one  of  the  Managers  of  the  Brooklyn  Sunday-school 
Union  iu  1863;  now  belongs  to  the  Park  Congregational 
Churcli,  and  teacher  of  a  class  of  young  ladies,  and  still  one 
of  the  Managers  of  the  Sunday-school  Union, 


TlIK   old  .Siiyilain  house,  of  which  a  cut  is  given  here- 
with, is  still  standing,  in  good  repair,  and  occupied 
as  a  residence  by  Hon.  A.  M.  Suydara.     It  is  on  the 
corner   of    Evergreen    and   Woodbine    avenues,  and    wis 
probably   built  in   the   early    part    of    the    last    ceiituiA 
since  it  was  considered  an  old  house  in  1760,  when  Jacoli 
Suydam  bought  the  farm  on  which  it  stood,  and    he    ic 
shingled  and  repaired  it  then.     During  the  Revolutionaiy 
War  it  was  used  by  the  British  troops  as  their  winter  quai 
ters  for  a  time.     It  is  built  of    stone  gathered    from  thi 
surrounding  fields,  which  are  covered  with  cement.     Th< 
door  is  in  two  sections,  an  upper  and  a  lower.     The  ^n 
dows  have  the  small  lights  and  heavy  sash  of  the  olden 
lime.     It  was  erected  in  the  clearing,  before  any  roads  weiL 
laid    out   in    that   part   of    Bushwick;    afterwards  the    old 
"  Bushwick  road,"  now  Evergreen  avenue,  was  put  through 
from  the  little   village   beside   East    River   to    Platbush 
The  old  house  has  been  the  home  of  three  gcnerixtions  (  I 
Suydams.      (See  biography  of  A,  M.  Suydam,  page  iiOl.) 


ULD    DUVUAil    HObs-b. 


MISSIONARY.    BIBLE.    TRACT 

AND 

OTHER     ORGA-NIZATIONS 

FOR     CHRISTIAN     WORK. 


THE  practical  fniits  of  Christianity  are  seen  in  the  many 
charities  of  the  city,  and  the  benevolent  organizations 
which  look  after  the  spiritual  and  temporal  welfare 
of   the  needy.     Brooklyn,    "the  city    of    churches," 
is  well  supplied  with  these  charitable  societies.     One  of  the 
oldest  is 

The  Brooklyn  City  Mission  and  Tract  Society,  which 
was  organized  July  33,  182!).  in  tlio  Apprentices'  Library.  It 
is  wholly  undenominational,  and  has  steadily  pursued  its 
work  of  ministering  to  tlie  spiritual,  and  often  to  the  tempo- 
ral, wants  of  the  destit-ute.  Up  to  1848  the  Society  main- 
tained its  existence  only  by  hard  struggles. 

From  that  time  new  efforts  were  made  bj'  its  friends  to 
enlarge  its  resources,  and  extend  its  operations.  The  follow- 
ing year  three  missionaries  were  employed  ,  the  numljer  of 
visitors  was  increased  to  354,  and  tlie  collections  amounted  to 
$3,134.46.  In  18.50,  four  missionaries  were  employed,  with 
407  visitors,  and  |3,011.48  were  received  into  the  treasury. 
In  1858,  the  constitution  was  amended,  and  the  society  was 
named,  in  accordance  with  what  it  had  in  fact  become,  "  The 
Brooklyn  L'ity  Mission  and  Tract  Society."  The  employment 
of  missionaries,  in  distinction  from  the  simple  circulation  of 
religious  tracts,  became  thenceforth  its  principal  work;  and 
the  happj'  effect  of  the  change  upon  its  resources  and  opera- 
tions, and  on  the  interest  felt  in  it  by  tlie  churches,  at  once 
became  apparent.  It  has  since  gone  on  with  continually  in- 
creasing prosperity  and  power.  The  first  number  of  its 
journal  was  issued  in  Januar}',  1862 

The  society  has  had  as  Presidents :  Rev.  (since  Bishop)  C. 
P.  Mcllvaine,  1829-'33;  Rev.  I.  S.  Spencer,  D.  D.,  1832-8;  Rev. 
B.  C.  Cutler,  D.  D.,  1838-'45;  Jasper  Corning,  Esq.,  :845-'7; 
Rev.  B.  C.  Cutler,  D.  D.,  a  second  time,  1847-03;  Rev.  R.  S. 
Storrs,  Jr.,  D.  D.,  1863-74;  Wm.  W.  Wickes,  Esq.,  1874-80; 
Alfred  S.  Barnes,  Esq.,  1880-4.  Owing  to  hard  times,  from 
1874  to  1880,  the  work  was  suspended,  but;  resumed  in  the 
latter  year.  Fifteen  missionaries  are  now  employed,  besides 
a  large  number  of  helpers  and  visitors. 

In  1847  Mr.  C.  C.  Mudge  (see  biography,  p.  1098),  became 
General  Agent  and  missionary  of  this  society.  If  the  Sunday- 
school  work  was  his  hobby,  the  tract  work  was  his  life-work, 
to  which  he  devoted  himself  with  unfailing  love  and  faith- 
fulness, winning  for  himself  not  only  resiject  and  esteem,  but 
the  deep  affection  and  love  of  Ids  visitors  and  associates. 

Soon  after  his  connection  with  this  society,  as  a  natural 
outgrowth  of  his  work  and  the  Bible  work  in  connection  with 
it,  he  was  appointed  Depositary  and  Secretary  of  the  City 
Bible  Society.     In  these  two  societies  he  served  with  loyalty 


and  devotion,  till  the  Master  said:  "Stand  aside  and  wait 
awhile.'  Then  followed  fovu-  years  of  gentle  submission  to 
God's  will,  when,  on  the  33d  of  September,  1888,  four  days 
before  the  comjjletion  of  his  77th  year,  the  call  came  and  he 
entered  into  rest.     "  And  his  works  do  follow  him." 

The  Brooklyn  City  Bible  Society  was  formed  m  1841,  as 
auxiliary  to  the  Long  Ishaid  Bible  Society.  Its  first  Offi- 
cers were  :  James  Ruthven,  President :  Edward  Corning, 
David  Stamford,  Thomas  Kirke,  Geo.  L.  Sampson,  Adrian 
Hegeman.  D.  H.  Arnold,  David  Coope  and  J.  A.  Sperry, 
Vice-Presidents;  Rev.  M.  W.  Jacobus,  Cor.  Sec.:  Henry  C. 
Bowen,  Rec.  Sec.:  Henry  Young,  Treas.;  and  a  board  of 
twenty  managers.  The  first  year's  receipts  were  |469.09; 
expenditures,  |406.83,  and  1,701  bibles  and  testaments  dis- 
tributed. In  1849,  the  Society  became  auxiliary  to  the  Amer- 
ican Bible  Society ;  in  1848,  1856  and  1867,  the  whole  city  was 
thoroughly  canvassed;  and,  in  1867,  the  affairs  of  the  society 
were  committed  to  the  control  of  an  executive  committee  of 
twenty.  Presidents  :  Geo.  L.  Sampson,  1843-'3;  A.  R.  Moen, 
1844  ;  Daniel  Ayres,  1854-'8  ;  Chandler  Storr,  1849-57 ; 
Daniel  Ayres,  1857-'69  ;  Richard  P.  Buck,  1860-'9 ;  Rev. 
N.  H.  Schenck,  D.  D.,  1870-3;  Rev.  W.  I.  Budington,  1873; 
Rev.  David  Inglis,  1874-77;  Rev.  Dr.  A.  S.  Hunt,  1878-'84. 
The  present  Vice-Presidents  are :  Sidney  Sanderson  and 
John  Barnier;  Cor.  Sec,  Rev.  Henry  J.  Van  Dyke,  D.  D.; 
Treas.,  E.  B.  Wood.  Mr.  Chas.  C.  Mudge  was  Rec.  Sec.  from 
18b4  till  nis  aeatli. 

The  Brooklyn  Woman's  Bible  Society,  auxiliary  to  the 
above,  was  founded  in  1850;  also  a  North  Brooklyn  Bible  So- 
ciety was  established  in  1845. 

Brooklyn  Young  Men's  Christian  Association,  designed 
to  improve  the  siiiritual,  intellectual  and  social  condition  of 
young  men,  to  bring  them  under  Christian  influence,  and  to 
stimulate  tlieiu  to  Christian  effort,  found  inception  at  a 
convention  of  some  three  hundred  young  men  connected 
with  the  several  evangelical  denominations  in  this  city,  in 
June,  1853.  It  was  organized  September  15,  1853,  with  two 
hundred  and  seven  members  ;  a  certificate  of  incorporation 
was  filed,  and  a  suite  of  rooms  rented  in  the  Washington 
Building,  corner  of  Court  and  Joralemon  sts.,  the  regular 
monthly  and  other  public  meetings  being  held  in  the  lecture- 
rooms  of  the  Pilgrim  Congregational  Church,  and  the  Henry 
St.  Presbyterian  Church.  Here  a  library  and  reading-room  was 
established  and  opened,  free  to  all  young  men,  irrespective 
of  membership  in  the,  association;  while  a  Literary  Society, 
course  of  free  popular  lectures  by  eminent  speakers,  monthly 
meetings  for  social  reunions,  stated  conference  and  prayer- 


MISSIOJSTAE r  AND    TRACT  SOCIETIES. 


meetings,  educational  classes,  etc.,  lent  their  aid  to  further 
the  objects  of  the  association.  In  1854,  the  association  inter- 
ested it.self  largely  and  practically  in  the  work  of  tract  dis- 
tribution and  of  mission-school  enterprises,  of  which  there 
were,  at  that  time,  twenty  in  operation  in  this  city.  In 
April,  1859,  the  Association  removed  to  the  Brooklyn  Institute 
building,  and  remained  until  their  removal,  in  Augvist.  1865, 
to  the  building  on  the  corner  of  Fulton  ave.  and  Gallatin 
place.  After  that  time,  the  work  of  the  Association,  in  all 
its  departments,  received  a  wonderful  impetus,  and  its  labors 
were  attended  witli  a  commensurate  amount  of  good  to  the 
community. 

In  August,  1872,  the  Association  removed  to  the  opposite 
corner  of  Fulton  and  Gallatin  place,  which  was  fitted  up 
with  a  large  gymnasium,  a  lecture-room  seating  500,  a  libra- 
ry of  6,600  volumes,  and  a  reading-room  containing  two 
hundred  current  journals  and  magazines,  with  cheerful  par- 
lors, reception  and  class  rooms. 

Of  the  great  work  that  has  been  accomi)lished  by  the 
Young  Men's  Christian  Associations  in  this  country,  the 
Brooklyn  society  has  done  its  full  share.  It  now  provides  a 
course  of  lectures,  literary  entertainments,  instruction  in 
French,  German,  penmanship,  book-keeping,  phonography, 
elocution,  vocal  music,  and  other  subjects. 

In  1869,  a  charter  was  obtained,  framed  with  a  view  to  the 
erection  of  a  large  building  for  the  uses  of  the  Association, 
on  the  plan  of  tlie  Cooper  Institute  in  New  York. 

The  bequest  of  the  late  Frederick  Marquand,  Esq.,  gave  to 
the  Association  $200,000  for  a  new  building,  on  condition 
that  the  further  sum  of  $150,000  should  be  raised  by  the 
members  as  an  endowment  for  the  Association.  The  condi- 
tion is  so  nearly  met  that  plans  have  been  adopted  for  a  new 
building,  to  be  erected  during  1884,  on  Bond  st.,  near  Fulton, 
with  an  entrance  on  the  latter  street.  It  will  be  of  brick, 
four  stories  and  basement,  100  by  125  feet,  with  a  25  feet 
wide  extension  to  Fulton,  conveniently  arranged  and  espe- 
cially adapted  to  the  uses  of  the  Association. 

Its  Presidents  have  been:  Andrew  A.  Smith,  1 853-'56 ;  James 
McGee,  1856-'57;  George  A.  Bell,  1857-'58;  John  M.  Double- 
day,  1858-'59;  Henry  H.  Lloyd,  M.  D.,  1859-60;  Robert  S. 
Bussing,  1860-61;  James  M.  Ives,  1861-62;  O.  Vincent  Coffin, 
1862-63;  O.  Vincent  Coffin,  Charles  A.  Righter,  1863-'64; 
William  Edsall,  1864-C8;  Wm.  W.  Wickes,  1868-'69;  Joseph 
T.  Duryea,  D.  D.,  1869-'70;  D.  G.  Eaton,  1870-73;  WiUiam 
Edsall,  1873-'74;  D.  H.  Cochran  and  Tasker  H.  Marvin, 
1874-'76;  D.  D.  McWilliams,  1876-'77;  John  P.  Adams,  1877 
-'78;  B.  H.  Dillingham,  1878-79;  D.  D.  McWilliams,  William 
Taylor,  1879-'80;  R.  Fulton  Cutting,  1880-83;  Edwin  Pack- 
ard, 1883-'84. 

Officers,  1884:  Pres.,  Edwin  Packard;  Vice-Presidents, 
Henry  DaUey,  Jr.,  F.  H.  Stuart,  M.D.;  Treas.,  Daniel  W. 
McWilliams;  AssH  Treas.,  Henry  G.  Fay;  Rec.  Sec,  F.  A. 
Parsons;  Oen.  Sec,  Thos.  J.  Wilkie;  Ass't  Sec,  Wallace 
McMuUen;  Librarian,  J.  Harry  Gould. 

BOAKD  OF  Directors:  SUas  M.  Giddings,  Alanson  Trask, 
A.  A.  Raven,  Henry  G.  Fay,  E.  W.  Hawley,  Wm.  Peck 
Smith,  Edwin  Packard,  Alonzo  Alford,  A.  J.  Newton,  J. 
H.  Righter,  M.  II.  Dorman,  David  A.  Boody,  F.  A.  Parsons, 
Willoughby  Powell,  Jas.  R.  Cowing,  F.  E.  Bassett,  Edw.  A. 
Lovell,  Noah  Tebbetts,  D.  W.  McWiUiams,  John  J.  Vail,  F. 
H.  Stuart,  M.  D.,  A.  Augustus  Low,  Henry  Dallej',  Jr., 
Oliver  G.  Gardner,  W.  P.  Gill,  R.  E.  Beers,  Clias.  L.  Bonnell, 
M.  D.,  Geo.  F.  Peabody,  F.  B.  Schenck. 

Board  of  Trustees:  Alanson  Trask,  A.  S.  Barnes,  John  T. 

Martin,  Jolni  A.  Tucker,  George  I.  Seney,  Thomas  S.  Moore. 

The  East  Brooklyn  Young  Men's  Christian  Association, 

Library  and   Free  Reading  Room,    held  its  first  meeting, 


October  9,  1866,  at  the  residence  of  Dr.  Alexander  Hutchins. 
Its  first  rooms  were  at  675  Myrtle  avenue,  whence  in  May, 
1868,  it  removed  to  No.  693.  The  first  number  of  the  East 
Brooklyn  Gazette  (monthly)  was  issued  by  the  Association 
in  October,  1867.  Presidents:  1866,  Alex.  Hutchins,  M.  D.; 
October,  1867,  Rev.  John  W.  Leek;  January,  1868,  C.  H.  H. 
Pannell;  March,  1868,  Alex.  Hutchins,  M.  D.;  July,  1868, 
Rev.  D.  O.  Ferris;  June,  1869,  Edgar  A.  Hutchins. 

Union  for  Christian  Work  was  formed  in  1866,  under  the 
name  of  the  Broolchjn  Liberal  Christian  Union,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  uniting  all  denominations  of  Christians,  without  ex- 
ception, in  the  work  of  mutual  improvement  and  practical 
beneficence.  It  first  established  its  head-quarters  in  the 
Hamilton  Buildings,  corner  of  Court  and  Joralenion  streets, 
wliere  it  opened  a  free  reading-room,  with  a  good  library  of 
six  hundred  volumes,  mostly  the  gifts  of  friends,  and  a  large 
variety  of  religious  and  secular  magazines  and  papers;  also 
with  suitable  means  for  innocent,  rational  amusement.  As 
the  institution  grew  in  favor  with  the  public,  it  was  found 
necessary  to  seek  for  it  ampler  accommodations.  Its  head- 
quarters were  accordingly  transferred,  Feb.,  1870,  to  the  new 
and  handsome  edifice,  known  as  Baxter's  Building,  131 
Fulton  ave.,  opposite  Elm  place,  the  second,  third  and  fourth 
stories  of  which  it  devoted  to  the  purposes  of  library  and 
reading-rooms,  and  apartments  for  gymnastics  and  various 
other  kinds  of  recreations.  Tliese  quarters  were  dedicated  to 
tlie  work  of  the  union  by  public  exercises  on  the  evening  of 
February  14,  1870,  when  tlie  organization  assumed  its  present 
name  and  adopted  a  new  constitution. 

In  the  spring  of  1870,  the  Union  rented  and  fitted  up  the 
"  Smith  Mansion,"  on  Smith  st.,  near  Fulton;  a  library  and 
reading-room  were  jtrovided,  also  separate  rooms  for  games, 
conversation  and  correspondence.  On  the  second  floor  are 
the  rooms  for  boys'  evening  school  and  gii-ls'  sewing  school. 
An  employment  bureau,  industrial  and  relief  departments 
have  been  successfully  conducted,  and  various  courses  of 
lectures  given  from  time  to  time.  The  Union  is  entirely  un- 
sectarian  and  undenominational,  inviting  all  to  enter  its 
membership,  and  at  an  annual  fee  so  low  as  to  be  within  the 
means  of  the  poor.  Consequently,  its  rooms  are  largely  fre- 
quented by  young  and  old,  while  its  general  operations  have 
become  much  extended.  The  first  Pi-esident  was  Isaac  H. 
Frothingham;  his  successors  have  been  :  Robert  Foster, 
Charles  P.  Gerrish,  Ripley  Ropes,  Josiah  B.  Blossom,  and 
Robert  Foster;  the  Officers  for  1883-'84  are:  Robert  Foster, 
Pres.;  Joseph  R.  Blossom,  Alex.  Forman,  Vice-Presidents; 
Wm.  C.  Gardner,  Sec;  Isaac  H.  Gary,  Jr.,  Treas.;  Wm.  A. 
Butler,  Supt. 

The  German  Evangelical  Aid  Society.— A  number  of 
Christian  German  ladies  organized  September  21st,  1877,  a 
Ladies'  Mission  Society,  to  alleviate  the  misery  of  destitute 
Germans  in  the  city.  In  their  work  they  found  many  per- 
sons who  were  too  old  and  feeble  to  work,  friendless,  and 
without  means  in  a  strange  land.  These  ladies  determined 
to  found  a  Christian  Home  for  the  aged,  helpless,  worthy 
German  Protestants  of  both  sexes.  They  issued  an  appeal  for 
contributions,  which  met  with  a  hearty  response.  Soon  a 
meeting  of  the  German  Evangelical  Pastors  of  Brooklyn  was 
held  to  further  the  object.  An  organization  was  perfected 
and  incorporated  in  April,  1877,  as  the  German  Evangelical 
Aid  Society  of  Brooklyn.  Fourteen  lots,  at  the  corner  of 
Bush  wick  ave.  and  Fairfax  st. ,  were  purchased  for  .f  45, 000, 
on  which  suitable  buildings  are  in  course  of  construction. 
Meanwhile,  the  house.  No.  79  Himrod  St.,  was  rented,  and  is 
occupied  by  15  inmates.  The  society  is  governed  by  a  council 
of  Pastors  of  German  churches  and  a  Board  of  Managers, 
consisting  of  ladies. 


HISTORY  Oi  KINGS  COUNTY. 


ELI     ROBBINS. 


Eli  Robbins. — Among  the  men  who  have  helped  to 
make  Brooklyn  respected  as  a  residential  city  of 
merchant  princes,  a  high  rank  is  due  to  the  memory  of 
Eli  Rohbins,  the  subject  of  this  sketch. 

Mr.  Robbins  came  of  a  stock  in  which  some  of  the 
best  qualities  of  the  New  England  character  existed  in 
their  happiest  combination.  Towards  the  close  of  the 
last  century  Puritanism  in  ISTew  England  had  laid  aside 
much  of  its  sternness  and  intolerance,  and  had  com- 
menced to  reconcile  itself  with  the  milder  charities  of 
life;  retaining,  however,  amidst  all  classes  of  the  popu- 
lation, as  much  patriarchal  simplicity  of  manners  as 
probably  ever  existed  in  a  modern  civilized  community. 
The  Robbins  homestead  was  situated  in  West  Cam- 
bridge, now  Arlington,  Massachusetts,  on  the  road 
rendered  historic  by  the  celebrated  ride  of  Paul  Revere. 
The  patriotism  of  the  family  is  indicated  by  the  fact 
that  the  name  of  Robbins  is  found  four  times  on  the 
roll  of  Captain  Parker's  company  of  "  embattled 
farmers,"  who  faced  the  British  at  the  famous  Concord 
fight.  After  the  Revolution  and  the  restoration  of 
social  order,  the  qualities  above  mentioned  speedily 
adapted  themselves  to  their  new  environment,  especially 
in  the  vicinity  of  Plarvard  College.  The  original 
Colonial  custom  of  providing  variety  for  the  table,  by 
a  neighborly  interchange  of  agricultural  commodities, 
called  "  barter,"  gave  place  to  a  more  systematic 
method  of  distributing  produce,  and  public  markets 
were  substituted  for  the  primitive  pork-barrel  and 
private  poultry-bin. 

Nathan  Robbins,  the  father  of  the  present  genera- 
tion of  that  name,  was  among  the  earliest  to  engage  in 
the  regular  market  business,  by  exchanging  meat  for 
other  merchandise,  such  as  shoes,  snuff,  cigars,  choco- 
late, and  Continental  money.  In  accordance  with  the 
domestic  regulations  of  those  days,  his  home  was  en- 
livened by  the  successive  advent  of  nine  children,  the 
youngest  of  whom  was  Eli,  who  was  born  September 
22,  1821.  He  was  not  a  strong  child,  but  being  healthy 
and  self-reliant,  he  soon  mastered  the  rudiments  of 
such  knowledge  as  was  convenient  to  his  circumstances, 
and  began  his  business  career  at  an  early  age,  by  pro- 
viding a  horse  and  wagon  for  himself,  and  purchasing 
poultry  of  the  neighboring  farmers,  which  he  dressed 
with  his  own  hands  and  carried  to  Boston  for  customers. 
Meanwhile,  his  brothers  had  established  themselves  in 
Faneuil  Hall  market,  and  were  building  up  a  profitable 
trade  in  the  same  kind  of  produce. 

About  the  year  1836,  Simeon  Boyden,  who  kept  the 
Tremont  House  in  Boston,  and  had  a  high  appreciation 
of  these  industrious  young  men,  became  proprietor  of 
the  Astor  House,  then  the  principal  hotel  of  New  York 


city.  He  made  overtures  to  Nathan,  the  eldest,  by 
remarking  on  the  dearth  of  first-class  poultry  in  Fulton 
market,  and  suggesting  that  there  was  a  fine  opening 
for  some  New  England  man,  who  could  attend  to  busi- 
ness and  keep  out  of  bad  company.  This  was  exactly 
what  the  Robbins  boys  knew  how  to  do;  and  Amos, 
the  next  older  than  Eli,  at  once  departed  for  the 
metropolis.  Three  years  later,  in  1839,  Eli  followed 
his  brother  to  Fulton  market,  at  first  as  an  employee; 
but  in  1841  they  entered  into  partnership,  under  the 
firm  name  of  "A.  &  E.  Robbins,"  which  has  since 
become  familiar  to  all  frequenters  of  the  streets  of 
New  York.  It  was  a  small  beginning — two  country 
boys,  aged  18  and  21,  with  a  capital  of  only  236  dollars 
each.  But  they  had  an  advantage  in  the  superior 
style  in  which  they  dressed  their  poultry,  and  they 
were  not  ashamed  to  work.  Add  to  this  their  deter- 
mination not  to  speculate  nor  run  into  debt,  and  the 
result  might  easily  have  been  predicted.  They  soon 
distanced  all  competitors,  and  for  more  than  forty 
years  have  stood  at  the  acknowledged  head  of  that 
line  of  business  in  the  United  States,  thus  affording  a 
notable  instance  of  conspicuous  success,  attained  solely 
by  honorable  enterprise  and  strict  integrity. 

On  the  13th  of  May,  1845,  Mr.  Robbins  married  Miss 
Maria  C.  Farmer,  of  his  native  town,  a  young  lady 
with  whom  he  had  been  acquainted  from  childhood, 
and  whose  subsequent  devotedness,  as  wife  and  mother, 
amply  justified  the  projjhetic  foregleams  of  his  youth- 
ful affection.  Her  love,  like  a  jewel,  hung  for  eight 
and  thirty  years  about  his  neck,  yet  never  lost  its 
lustre.  Possessed  of  a  modest  dignity,  which  created 
an  atmosphere  of  sweet  content,  and  artless  as  a  child, 
she  sought  her  own  delight  in  making  all  around  her 
bright  and  happy.  The  abundant  means  which  her 
husband  furnished  enabled  her  also  to  gratify  every 
hospitable  impulse  and  refined  taste.  Their  first  home 
in  Brooklyn  was  on  Washington  street,  where  two  dear 
children  came  to  work  their  mission  of  love;  Warren, 
born  September  2l8t,  1846,  and  Clinton,  December 
27th,  1848.  The  birth  of  these  children  was  a  joy 
which  could  only  be  adequately  measured  by  the  terri- 
ble grief  that  followed  their  early  departure.  Clinton 
died  April  26th,  1864,  and  Warren  November  12th, 
1869. 

Mr.  Robbins  had  already  become  a  rich  man,  and 
saw  in  his  offspring  an  adequate  shrine  whereon  to 
lavish  all  his  paternal  love  and  care.  To  this  end  he 
erected  the  spacious  and  elegant  mansion  on  the  corner 
of  Smith  and  Livingston  streets,  which,  although  de- 
prived of  its  expected  chief  attraction,  has  remained 
the  charming  residence  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Robbins,  as 


-^^ 


'//^^-^^ 


^      C     6/ 


> 


HlOGRAPniES. 


1103 


well  as  a  welcome  resort  for  a  host  of  relatives  and 
choice  acquaintances. 

Eli  Robbiiis  was,  by  nature  and  early  training,  in- 
clined to  economy  and  careful  in  his  investments.  Yet 
he  was  not  indifferent  to  any  worthy  cause.  His  bene- 
factions to  private  families  and  individuals  were  so 
secret  and  unostentatious,  that  none  but  those  who  were 
t  he  recipients  of  it  can  compute  the  sums  which  he  an- 
nually bestowed  among  them.  In  religion,  he  was  a 
Universalist.  On  removing  to  Brooklyn,  while  yet  a 
young  man,  he  became  a  member  of  the  First  Uni- 
versalist Society,  and  remained  ever  after  loyal  to  that 
form  of  Christian  faith.  This  furnishes  the  key  to  his 
whole  moral  character.  He  never  sought  for  novelty, 
nor  shrank  from  the  dictates  of  duty.  He  had  the  two 
things  which  make  men  strong — an  intelligent  con- 
science and  the  quiet  courage  to  obey  it.  True  courage 
is  not  noisy.  It  does  not  find  its  expression  in  defiant 
manners  or  vapory  speech  ;  but  it  does  consist  in  a 
quiet-determination  to  do  right,  because  it  is  right,  and 
in  traveling  in  a  straight  though  unpopular  pathway. 

With  such  a  conscience  and  with  such  a  courage,  Eli 
Robbins  entered  ujjon  the  career  which  lay  before  him 
and  followed  it  successfully  to  the  end.     The  end  came 


while  he  was  yet  far  from  being  an  old  man.  He  died 
on  the  morning  of  June  21st,  1883,  in  the  62d  year  of 
his  age,  leaving,  as  the  result  of  his  life,  a  character  for 
business  integrity,  against  which  no  word  of  suspicion 
was  ever  breathed;  a  fortune  approximating  two  mil- 
lions of  dollars,  no  portion  of  which  was  obtained  by 
questionable  means;  a  wide  circle  of  associates  who 
honored  and  trusted  him;  and  a  wife  who,  having  passed 
with  him  through  every  grade  of  society,  is  peculiarly 
qualified  to  be  the  almoner  of  his  generous  intentions. 

His  will,  which  was  written  ten  years  before  his 
death,  disposes  of  some  three  hundred  thousand  dollars 
in  various  bequests,  among  which  are  legacies  to  the 
Church  of  our  Father,  of  this  city,  the  Brooklyn 
Orphan  Asylum,  the  Blind  Asylum  of  New  York, 
the  Unitarian  and  Universalist  Churches  of  Arling- 
ton, Mass.,  and  his  native  town,  to  which  his  body 
was  taken  for  interment. 

The  Montauk  Fire  Insurance  Co.  and  the  Firemen's 
Trust  Insurance  Co.,  of  both  of  which  he  was  a  trustee, 
together  with  the  religious  society  with  which  he  was 
long  and  intimately  connected,  passed  appropriate  res- 
olutions of  regret,  and  all  who  knew  him  were  sincere 
mourners. 


AMOS    ROBBINS. 


Amos  Robbins,  who  is  mentioned  in  the  foregoing 
sketch  of  the  life  of  his  younger  brother,  Eli  Robbins, 
was  born  in  West  Cambridge  (now  Arlington),  Massa- 
chusetts, December  28th,  1817,  and  received  a  limited 
education  in  the  public  schools  of  the  time  and 
locality. 

At  the  age  of  fourteen,  he  came  a  poultry -buyer  and 
dresser  for  his  brother,  Nathan,  who  had  then  been  for 
some  time  established  in  Faneuil  Hall  Market,  in  Bos- 
ton; and  who,  still  living  at  the  age  of  eighty,  has  been 
in  business  sixty  years,  and  is  at  this  time  president  of 
the  Faneuil  Hall  Bank,  besides  being  connected  with 
other  important  interests  in  Boston. 

At  the  age  of  sixteen,  Amos  Robbins  removed  to  Bos- 
ton, and  was  employed  in  his  brother's  business  thei'c 
until  1836,  when,  as  has  been  stated  in  the  foregoing 
article,  he  went  to  New  York  to  prepare  and  furnish  to 
the  tables  of  the  Astor  House  such  poultry  as  was 
desired  by  Mr.  Simeon  Boyden,  who,  at  that  time, 
assumed  the  management  of  that  since  famous  hotel. 


Three  years  later,  when  Eli  Robbins  entered  the  em- 
ploy of  Amos,  the  latter  had  laid  the  foundation  of  the 
subsequent  immense  business  of  the  firm  of  A.  &  E. 
Robbins,  reference  to  whose  almost  unexampled  career 
has  been  made  above.  At  the  death  of  Eli  Robbins, 
in  June,  1883,  he  was  succeeded  in  the  firm  by  his 
nephew,  Milton  Robbins,  son  of  Mr.  Amos  Robbins, 
and  the  style  of  the  firm  was  changed  to  A.  &  M. 
Robbins. 

Mr.  Robbins  was  married,  at  the  age  of  twenty,  to 
Miss  Adelia  Martling,  of  Tarrytown,  N.  Y.,  who  has 
borne  him  two  sons,  and  two  daughters  who  were 
reared  and  mai-ried,  but  who  died  in  early  womanhood. 
Mr.  Robbins,  in  his  declining  years,  is  in  the  enjoyment 
of  well-earned  wealth,  and  such  has  been  his  character 
from  boyhood  that  he  is  held  in  equally  high  regard  in 
business  circles  and  among  his  intimate  friends,  and  is 
esteemed  alike  as  an  intelligent  and  influential  citizen 
and  as  a  friendly  and  whole-souled   Christian  gentle- 


1104 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


FREDERICK    LOESER. 


Frederick  Loesee. — In  the  year  1853,  Mi-.  Loeser, 
impelled  like  many  other  young  men  by  the  desire  of 
getting  a  start  in  the  world,  resolved  to  leave  the  beaten 
track  and  seek  for  better  fortune  in  America.  His 
previous  life  had  been  but  a  repetition  of  an  oft-told 
tale.  Born  in  the  town  of  Mergentheim,  in  the  southern 
part  of  Germany,  the  eldest  son  of  a  poor  silversmith, 
he  found  himself  at  an  early  age  under  the  necessity  of 
earning  his  own  livelihood.  When  only  a  lad  he  lost 
his  mother,  and  was  then  obliged  to  leave  school,  much 
against  his  inclination,  for  his  desire  was  to  become  a 
physician.  He  entered  as  an  apprentice  into  the  store 
of  a  fringe-maker  in  the  town  of  Wiirzburg,  and  lived 
three  years  in  his  master's  family,  but  his  position  there 
was  unenviable;  hard  tasks  and  short  fare  were  the 
rule,  though  of  chidings  and  blows  there  was  no  lack, 
so  those  days  were  a  better  schooling  in  patience  and 
suffering  than  in  the  loom  an'd  shuttle.  His  appren- 
ticeship over,  he  started  on  his  wanderings  in  search  of 
employment,  with  staff  and  knapisack  and  some  ten 
florins  saved  from  his  scanty  earnings.  This  was  the 
course  necessary  for  every  young  artisan  to  pursue  in 
those  days;  ere  he  could  be  counted  among  the 
"masters"  of  any  trade  he  must  have  spent  three  years 
in  wandering  from  place  to  place,  becoming  familiar 
with  the  methods  of  trade  in  different  countries.  To 
meet  the  requirements  of  these  "journeymen,"  a  sort  of 
guild  or  trades-union  existed  throughout  the  cities  of 
the  continent,  which  provided  the  young  fellow  with  a 
position,  helped  him  in  distress  or  sickness,  and  were 
friends  and  home  to  him  wherever  he  might  be. 

Mr.  Loeser's  first  trip  was  by  way  of  Munich,  through 
the  Tyrol  and  northern  Italy  to  Verona.  The  whole 
of  the  journey  had  to  be  performed  on  foot,  for  the 
young  man's  means  hardly  sufficed  to  buy  his  daily 
bread.  Wages  were  small,  and  the  war  with  Austria 
caused  all  German-speaking  persons  to  be  looked  on 
with  disfavor,  so  the  young  man  turned  northward 
through  Lombardy  and  Styria  to  Vienna,  in  1850. 
After  a  year  and  a  half  spent  here  and  two  years  in 
Zurich  and  Berne,  he  returned  to  his  old  home.  He 
had  now  reached  the  age  when  all  able-bodied  young 
men  were  compelled  to  enter  the  army,  but  as  he  could 
ill  afford  to  call  on  his  father's  treasury  for  five  years, 
and  be  no  better  off  at  the  end  of  that  time,  he  resolved 
to  leave  for  America.  Sailing  from  Havre,  November 
Ist,  1853,  he  arrived  in  New  York  after  a  short 
passage,  with  a  capital  of  two  and  a  half  dollars  and  a 
silver  watch.  As  nothing  was  then  known  of  fringe- 
making  in  the  city,  he  resolved  to  go  west  and  find 
other  employment.  In  Morganfield,  Ky.,  he  found 
some  distant  relatives,  and  there,  after  trading  in  furs 


for  a  year,  he  earned  enough  to  open  a  small  country 
store  at  Smith's  Mills,  Henderson  county,  Ky.  His 
prospects  brightened,  though  after  a  time  both  he  and 
his  clerk  were  taken  ill  with  chills  and  fever.  For- 
tunately their  days  of  sickness  alternated,  so  that  one 
or  the  other  could  be  in  the  store  every  day.  In  1855, 
he  sold  out  and  went  to  Louisville  for  a  couple  of 
years,  and  then  to  New  York  city,  where  he  obtained  a 
position  with  S.  M.  Peyser,  the  leading  trimming  and 
worsted  store  in  the  city. 

In  1800,  he  married,  and  the  same  year  went  into 
business  with  Moritz  Dinkelspiel  upon  a  capital  of  $1 ,200, 
opening  a  store  at  No.  :i77  Fulton  street,  Brookljm,  with 
a  small  stock  of  worsteds,  embroideries  and  trimmings. 
Matters  progressed  well  until  the  rebellion  broke  out, 
and  injured  business  for  a  time.  In  1863,  Mr.  J.  W. 
Jones  entered  the  firm,  and  a  branch  store  was  opened 
at  No.  737  Broadway,  New  York.  In  1866,  Mr.  Loeser 
sold  his  interest  in  the  New  York  business,  and  bought 
out  his  partners  in  the  Brooklyn  enterprise.  In  addition 
he  started  a  button  factory  on  Fulton  street,  Brooklyn, 
which  was  very  successful,  but  which  other  business 
cares  compelled  him  to  dispose  of  after  a  few  years.  In 
1870,  the  store  was  removed  to  its  present  site,  Mr. 
Louis  Liebmann  was  received  as  partner,  and  the  stock 
of  dry  goods  was  largely  increased.  In  1872,  his 
brother,  Mr.  Hermann  Liebman  joined  the  firm,  and  in 
1876,  Mr.  Gustav  Loeser  was  admitted  as  a  member. 
The  public  of  Brooklyn  has  always  been  appreciative 
of  their  enterprise,  Mr.  Loeser  says,  and  ready  to  re- 
spond to  the  efforts  of  the  firm  to  keep  the  trade  at 
home.  Through  its  liberal  patronage,  they  are  enabled 
to  give  employment  to  nearly  seven  hundred  men  and 
women,  while  their  establishment  ranks  as  one  of  the 
leading  retail  houses  in  the  city. 

It  is  mainly  due  to  Mr.  Frederick  Loeser's  energy 
that  the  business  has  been  developed  to  so  large  an  ex- 
tent. His  close  watch  of  the  demands  of  trade,  his 
thorough  system  introduced  into  all  departments,  and 
his  careful  attention  to  details,  have  enabled  him  to  suc- 
ceed where  so  many  have  failed.  His  features  indicate 
the  possession  of  a  strong,  positive  character,  though 
not  haughty  or  self-willed;  his  courteous  bearing  marks 
the  gentleman,  while  his  social  qualities  make  him 
highly  esteemed  among  a  large  circle  of  friends  and  ac- 
quaintances. 

Notwithstanding  the  demands  of  business,  Mr.  Loe- 
ser finds  time  to  gratify  his  literary  taste  ;  his  resi- 
dence contains  a  well-selected  library ;  he  is  con- 
versant with  current  events,  alive  to  the  questions  of 
the  day,  thorough-going  and  honorable,  and  secure  in 
the  confidence  and  esteem  of  the  community. 


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t  I  open  a  small  counti 

■rson   county,  Ky.     1\ 

ifter  a  time  bath  be  an 

';  chills  and  fever.   ^Fo: 

alternated,  so  t!  "■ 

i    re  every  day.     J 

j    ijouisville  for  a  cou|i(    < 

V  ork  city,  where  he  obtained 

•    'hi'  leading  triramiDg  ai 

III',  the  same  year  went  in t 
cispiel  upon  a  capital  of  $1 ,2 ( i I 
Fulton  street,  Brooklyn,  wii 
,  embroideries  and  triinming 
■Tfii  the  rebellion  broke  on 
ae.     In  1863,  Mr.  J.  V 

..  branch  store  was  open; 

uadway,  New  York.    In  1 866,  Mr.  Loes 
,_!est  in  the  New  York  business,  andbougi 
))ai'tner8  in  the  Brooklyn  enterprise.  In  additJi 
.ted  a  b.ntton  factory  on  Fulton  street  Two:'!;! 
liich  was  vet-y  successful,  but  which  o! 
.■;•  s  oompelle.<i  him  to  di.-uose  nT  after  a  '■ 

he  store  was  rt  i  j  present  .•■; 

■  ^'Nin'uiri  wa*  i\'-;  ^.  ■■ucv,  ari'l  ( 

■eiy   mcreii 
,i'1;iuan  joii; 

;  admitted  as  a  memb' 
:ray=;   beon  appreclTt".- 


_   ,  they  are  enabi 
hundred  men  ai; 
.ill  ranks  as  on^ 

1  'ck  Loeser's  euei  t^ 

1  to  so  large  an  ■ 

ui   the  demands  of  trade,  Ir 

i^ed  into  all  departments,  ar 

-  have  enabled  him  to  sn 

d.   His  features  indica 

ij,,  positive  character,  thou. 

1;  his  courteous  bearing  mar. 

il','    his   social  qualities   make  he 

nonga  large  circle  of  friends  and  a 

leraands  of  business,  Mr.  Lo 

y  his  literary  taste  ;   his  re-' 

selected   library;    he   is   coi 

cuij  em   events,  alive  to  the  questions  « 

jugh-going  and  honorable,  and  secure 


iMMMMMiii 


THE    PROGRESS 


DRAMA,    OPERA,    MUSIC    AND    ART 

IN    BROOKLYN. 


BY 


THE  PROLOGUE.— There  are  few  cities  in  any 
part  of  the  civilized  world  where  the  Drama  had 
a  longer  or  a  harder  struggle  to  obtain  a  foot- 
hold than  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn.  To  impute  this  to 
the  want  of  taste  on  the  part  of  its  inhabitants,  would 
be  incorrect.  The  fact  of  Brooklyn  being  so  adjacent 
to  the  great  metropolis  was  really  the  cause.  For 
many  years  after  Brooklyn  was  looked  upon  as  a  city 
of  considerable  magnitude,  its  inhabitants  favored 
New  York  for  almost  everything,  whether  it  belonged 
to  commerce  or  amusements.  The  habit  once  formed, 
it  still  continued  long  after  Brooklyn  was  acknowl- 
edged a  great  city  in  many  respects.  Even  at  the 
present  day,  there  is  a  prejudice  so  strong  in  favor  of 
everything  in  New  York  that  it  is  detrimental,  not  only 
to  those  who  cater  for  the  amusement-seeking  portion 
of  the  public,  but  to  many  in  all  other  branches  of 
business.  With  a  population  of  over  six  hundred 
thousand,  and  ranking  in  numbers  a.s  the  third  city  in 
the  Union — there  are  but  three  places  of  amusement 
that  can  be  looked  upon  as  respectable  in  arcb.itectural 
proportions,  or  class  of  amusements  furnished  for  the 
people;  these  are  the  Brooklyn  Academy  of  Muaic, 
Park  Tlieatre,  and  Brooklyn  Theatre,  the  first 
named  being  only  occasionally  used  for  either  the 
opera  or  the  drama.  The  Park  and  Brooklyn  theatres 
are  invariably  closed  during  the  summer  months,  and 
yet  thousands  of  Brooklynites  crowd  the  ferry-boats  to 
attend  places  of  amusement  in  New  York.  There  is 
really  more  cause  for  this  at  the  present  period  than 
twenty  years  ago.  The  great  improvements  in  con- 
veyance from  the  several  ferries  in  New  York  to  the 
up-town  theatres,  requiring  but  fifteen  minutes  by 
elevated  railway,  and  the  great  variety  and  superior 
manner  in  which  pieces  are  placed  upon  the 
metropolitan  stage,  both  in  actors  and  artistic  details, 
must  be  admitted  as  great  inducements.  Many  argue 
that  Brooklyn  would  not  support  what  might  be 
termed  a  first-class  theatre — like  Wallack's — with  a 
picked  company  of  artists,  and  months  of  preparation 


for  the  production  of  a  single  play.  This  is  not  so; 
for  these  very  people  who  go  to  New  York  are  the  most 
intelligent  and  respectable  class  of  amusement-seekers, 
and  visit  Wallack's,  the  Union  Square,  and  the  Fifth 
Avenue  theatres  for  the  reason  that  whatever  they  go 
there  to  see,  is  sure  to  be  well  done  in  every  par- 
ticular. 

The  Drama  can  only  be  built  up  to  itshighest  condi- 
tion by  a  local  growth,  and  when  the  mnnagers  give 
proper  attention  to  all  the  finer  necessities  of  the 
stage,  together  with  a  first-class  company. 

Yet,  with  all  the  drawbacks  and  obstacles  to  a  more 
elevated  condition  of  the  stage  in  Brooklyn,  it  has  a 
dramatic  history  of  great  interest,  arising  from  the 
fact  that  nearly  all  of  the  great  stars  who  have  adorn- 
ed the  stage  of  the  metropolis,  have  appeared  in 
this  city.  But  it  makes  no  difference  what  the  drama 
has  been  in  Brooklyn  :  its  future  must  be  of  necessity 
far  greater  in  many  respects.  The  growth  of  the  two 
cities  is  so  rapid  that  they  are  becoming  farther  apart 
every  year,  and  the  localities  of  the  theatres  must  ad- 
vance with  their  boundaries.  This  will  cause  tiie  Brook- 
lyn people  to  seek  their  amusements  at  home  in  spite  of 
rapid  transit;  and  the  people  will  require  and  demand 
more  than  one  theatre  managed  on  the  principles  of 
Wallack's  or  the  Union  Square. 

DORAN,  in  his  History  of  the  British  Stage,  and 
DuNLAP,  in  his  History  of  the  American  Theatre,  have 
gone  back  as  far  as  they  could  go,  in  the  relation  of  the 
smallest  details  in  connection  with  their  subject.  If  we 
may  be  allowed  the  same  privilege,  we  will  begin  the 
history  of  the  Drama  in  Brooklyn  as  far  back  as  1776. 

"The  Curtain  Up."— After  Washington  had 
made  his  masterly  retreat  to  New  York,  leaving  Bur- 
goyne,  Clinton  and  Howe,  in  disappointment,  to  wonder 
at  the  magic  change  of  scene  made  by  the  ever-watchful 
American  commander  in  the  national  drama  which  they 
had  expected  to  suddenly  conclude;  the  British  army, 
from  Bedford  and  Flatbush  down  to  the  water's  edge, 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


where  now  stands  the  City  of  Brooklyn,  had  a  chance 
for  a  long  rest  on  Long  Island.  With  this  rest  came  the 
necessity  for  amusements  of  some  kind  for  the  officers 
and  men  of  the  invading  foe.  Often  they  resorted 
to  the  drama,  and  rigged  up  a  stage  of  some  kind, 
even  painted  their  own  scenery,  formed  an  orchestra 
out  of  a  regimental  band,  and  performed  some  of  the 
lighter  dramatic  productions.  At  this  period,  Brook- 
lyn became  famous  as  the  camp  of  the  British  army, 
and  soon  followed  all  sorts  of  amusements  at  a  stone 
building  situated  on  the  north  side  of  the  "  old  road  " 
(Fulton  street),  near  the  corner  of  Front  street.  This 
building  had  been  known  for  thirty  years  or  more  as 
"Corporation  House,"  from  the  fact  that  it  belonged 
to  the  Corporation  of  the  City  of  New  York.  The 
building  was  about  seventy  by  sixty  feet,  and  two 
stories  high,  containing  a  large  hall  on  the  second 
floor,  with  a  tavern  and  ferry-rooms  on  the  ground 
floor.  As  soon  as  the  British  got  possession  of  Brook- 
lyn, the  Corporation  House  changed  hands  and  name, 
and  was  known,  as  long  as  the  British  remained  in 
Brooklyn,  as  "  The  King's  Head."  It  was  now  fitted 
up  in  the  most  complete  manner  for  the  attraction  of 
the  officers  and  men.  At  The  King's  Head  all 
sorts  of  games  were  given,  from  bull-baiting  to  lotteries. 
The  King's  birthdays  were  celebrated  by  illuminations, 
and  hundreds  of  i:)eople  came  from  New  York  to  see 
the  different  shows,  and  to  partake  of  first-class  "  fish 
dinners."     In  this  building,  no  doubt,  took  place 

The  First  Performance  in  Brooklyn.— 

Among  the  pieces  performed  was  an  original  farce  sup- 
posed to  have  been  written  by  General  John  Burgoyne, 
who  was  one  of  the  commanders  of  the  British  forces 
on  Long  Island.  This  same  Burgoyne,  after  he  had  re- 
turned to  England,  became  a  dramatic  writer  of  con- 
siderable reputation.  He  was  the  author  of  the  "  Maid 
of  the  Oaks,"  "Lord  of  the  Manor,"  the  fine  farce  of 
"Bon  Ton,"  and  the  excellent  comedy  of  "The 
Heiress,"  which,  at  the  time  of  its  production  in 
London,  stood  almost  as  high  as  "The  School  for 
Scandal." 

The  following  title  of  the  farce  alluded  to  is  from  the 
printed  copy,  published  by  J.  Rivington,  New  York, 
1776: 

THE  BATTLE  OF  BROOKLYN, 

A  Farce  in  Tico  Acts. 
As  it  was  performed  on  Long  Island,  on  Tuesday,  27th  day  of 
August,  1776,  by  the  representatives  of 
— The  Tyrants  of  AirERicA, — 
Assembled  in  Philadelphia. 
Published  by  J.  Eivington,  N.  Y. 
On  the  second  page   of  the   book  is  the  following  list  of  char- 
acters : 
Dramatis  Persona;. 
Men. 
Washington,  ] 
Putnam,         I 
Sullivan,         l^'^'^  ^'"^^- 
Stirling, 


Slasher,  a  Shoemaker  of  New  Y'ork. 

Clark,  a  Retailer  of  Rum  in  Connecticut,  lo  ^ 

Eemsen,  a  Farmer  of  New  Town,  Long  Island,  \  ^'°^°^'^^^- 

Ebenezer  Snuffle,  a  New  England  Parson,  Chaplain  to   General 

Putnam. 
Joe  King,  Servant  to  Stirling. 
Noah,  Servant  to  Sullivan. 

Women. 
Zady  Gates, 
Hetty,  her  Servant. 

OmCEES    AND    SOLDIEBS. 

Scene.— Partly  within  the  Rebel  lines  at  Brooklyn,  and  partly 
at  Gowanus. 

The  piece  is  not  badly  written.  Its  dramatic  action 
is  good,  and  full  of  fun.  It  represents  the  American 
cause  in  the  most  ludicrous  light ;  and,  at  the  end, 
makes  a  somewhat  eloquent  appeal  to  all  Americans  in 
rebellion  against  His  Majesty.  It  does  not  appear  as  to 
who  performed  the  characters,  and,  if  performed  at  all, 
it  must  have  been  in  the  large  hall  at  the  "King's  Head." 
An  original  copy  of  this  scarce  and  remarkable  dra- 
matic production  may  be  found  in  the  Library  of  Con- 
gress. A  reprint  of  it  is  in  the  Library  of  the  Long 
Island  Historical  Society  of  Brooklyn. 

For  many  years  alter  the  conclusion  of  the  Eevolu- 
tion,  the  "King's  Head  "  was  known  as  the  "  Brook- 
lyn Hall.  ' 

1810. — The  next  dramatic  performance  in  Brooklyn 
that  we  are  able  to  record  with  any  certainty,  took  place 
May  5th,  1810,  at  Green's  Military  Garden,  which  was 
situated  where  the  County  Court  House  now  stands. 
The  entertainment  was  given  by  a  "  company  of  gentle- 
men "  from  the  City  of  New  York.  The  following  is 
the  bill  of  performance: 

"The  Wags  op  Windsor." 

Caleb   Quotem Mr.  Biven 

Captain  Beaugard Mr.  Haswell 

with  the  song  of  "Go  to  the  Devil,  and  shake  j'ourself."  After 
which  a  scene  from 

"The  Real  Soldiee." 

Captain  Cringer Mr.   McCready 

Nipperkin Mr.   Biven 

Lenox Mr.    Haswell 

Major   Tactic By  a  young  gentleman 

The  whole  to  conclude  with  a  patriotic  song,  written  and  sung 
by  Mr.  Haswell,  and  a  "  Recitation  upon  the  Relics  of  the  un- 
fortunate Americans  who  perished  during  the  War,  written  and 
spoken  by  Mr.  Haswell." 

1814. — August  4th,  Mr.  Robinson*  and  Mrs.  Ent- 
wistle  gave  an  entertainment  at  Military  Garden,  which 
they  termed  "Dramatic  Olio,"  consisting  of  songs 
and  recitations. 

The  Mrs.  Entwistle  above  named  was  the  cele- 
brated Mrs.  Mason,  who  made  her  first  appearance 
at  the  Park  Theatre,  New  York,  in  1809. 

*  Mr.  RoBrNsoK  was  an  old  member  of  the  Park  Theatre  Company,  New 
York,  and  was  highly  esteemed  as  a  gentleman  and  an  actor.  He  was  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Richmond  Theatre,  Virginia,  at  the  time  it  was  burned  in  1811, 
and  by  his  presence  of  mind  and  noble  daring  he  was  the  means  of  saving 
a  large  number  of  lives.  He  died  in  New  York,  Nov.  10th,  1819,  at  forty- 
eight  years  of  age. 


THE  DRAMA,    OPERA,  MUSIC  AND  ART. 


1107 


1820. — Nothing  further  is  discoverable  of  a  dra- 
matic nature  in  Brooklyn  till  1830,  when  two  promi- 
nent members  of  the  profession  gave  a  performance  at 
"  Morrison's  Hotel"  in  accordance  with  tiie  following 
programme  : 

Positively  for  one  night  only. 
At  Mobeison's  Hotel, 
The   ladies   and   gentlemen   of  Brooklyn   and    its   vicinity   are 
respectfully  informed  that 

Messes.   Kilnek  *  and  Spilleb,  f 
(of  the  New  York  Theatre,) 
at   the   suggestion  of  their  friends  in  the  village,    intend  doing 
themselves  the  honor  to  present  them  on 

Friday  evening,  January  lUh,  1820, 

( — with  a  novel  entertainment  entitled — ) 

"The  Actor's  Ways  and  Means." 

For  particulars  see  small  bills.     Doors  open  at  6  o'clock,  and 

the  performance  to  commence  at  half-past  6.     Admittance  one 

dollar.     Tickets  to  be  had  of  Captain  Young,  J.  K.  Badell,  and 

at  the  office  of  the  Long  Island  Star. 

Mr.  John  H.  Morrison  kept  a  tavern  and  boarding- 
house  at  the  corner  of  Columbia  and  Cranberry  streets. 

1823.— The  Star  of  June  the  5th  stated  that 
Mr.  Duflon,  proprietor  of  the  well-known  "  Military 
Garden,"  was  fitting  up  his  place  as  a  summer  theatre, 
where  music,  recitations  and  theatrical  pieces  would  be 
performed.  The  garden  opened  on  the  14th  of  June, 
with  a  concert ;  nothing  was  said  as  to  stage  or  dramatic 
pieces.  The  Garden  is  advertised  as  a  "delightful 
resort,  about  three-quarters  of  a  mile  from  Fulton 
Ferry."  It  was  situated  on  the  spot  of  ground  now 
occupied  by  the  County  Court  House  and  other  public 
buildings.  At  that  time  it  took  up  the  whole  of  tlie 
block  bounded  by  Joralemon,  Boerum,  Court  and 
Livingston  streets.  The  entrance  to  the  garden  was 
where  the  County  Court  House  now  stands.  It  consisted 
of  a  long  frame  building,  three  stories  high,  entirely 
void  of  any  ornamentation,  through  the  centre  of  which 
was  a  broad  hallway  to  the  garden.  The  writer  used 
to  visit  this  beautiful  resort,  when  quite  young,  with 
his  New  York  chums,  among  whom  was  the  well- 
known  James  T.  Brady. 

1825.— December  15th,  Mr.  Hewlett,  the  "col- 
ored tragedian,"  J  informed  the  "  Ladies  and  Gentlemen 

*  Mr.  Thomas  Kilner  was  born  in  England  ;  made  his  first  appearance 
on  the  American  stage  at  the  old  Park  Theatre,  New  York,  in  1816,  where  he 
was  a  favorite  aetor  in  such  parts  as  "  hearty  old  men."  He  became  man- 
ager of  the  Federal  Street  Theatre.  Boston,  Mass.,  and  also  was  acting  and 
stage  manager  for  Barrere.  who  first  put  up  the  "  Chatham  Theatre,"  New 
York,  in  1824.  He  retired  from  the  stage  in  1831,  and  lived  on  his  farm  in 
Ohio  for  many  years,  where  he  died. 

t  Mr.  Spillkr  was  born  in  England,  and'  made  his  debut  at  the  "  Hay- 
market  Theatre."  London  ;  first  appeared  in  New  York,  April  20th,  1811,  at 
the  Park  Theatre,  as  Frednrick  in  •'  Lovers'  Vows  ;"  died  in  New  York  in  1827. 
Mr.  Spiller  was  a  man  of  fine  literary  abilities.  He  was  an  actor  most  at 
home  in  eccentric  characters. 

t  Hewlbtt  was  a  mulatto.  His  histrionic  education  was  canght  up  by 
being  an  attendant  to  the  celebrated  Cooper  and  Cook  when  traveling 
through  the  country  on  their  starring  trips.  His  imitations  of  all  of  the 
great  performers  were  recognized  as  correct,  and  evincing  great  discrimina- 
tion and  dramatic  genius.  He  was  born  at  Rockaway,  Long  Island,  and 
died  somewhere  in  Europe. 


of  the  village  that  he  would  give  an  intertainment  at 
the  Military  Garden,  consisting  of  Scenes  from  Plays, 
in  imitation  of  the  celebrated  Cooper,  Kean,  Kemble, 
and  Matthews;  interspersed  with  songs  from  favorite 
operas."  He  styled  himself  "  Shakespear's  Proud  Ee- 
presentative." 

1826. — This  year  was  made  somewhat  memorable 
by  the  fact  that  Mr.  Roberts*  and  other  actors  from  the 
Chatham  Theatre,  New  York,  aj^peared  with  stage  and 
scenery  at  Mrs.  Chester's  Hall  and  Exchange  Coffee 
House.  The  performance  took  place  on  March  3d. 
The  pieces  were  Matthew's  "  Mail-Coach  Adventure," 
and  "Sylvester  Daggerwood ;"  Sylvester,  Mr.  Rob- 
erts; Fustian,  Mr-HnrnhuW;  Jo/<»,  Mr.  Wray.  Tickets 
50  cents,  to  be  had  at  the  bar.  Open  at  half-past  six, 
commence  at  seven  o'clock. 

The  most  complete  dramatic  performance  up  to 
this  time,  in  Brooklyn,  took  place  on  the  10th  of 
March.  The  following  is  a  faithful  copy  of  the  printed 
jj]  ay-bill : 

BROOKLYN  THEATRE. 

At  Mrs.  Chester's  Hall. 
The  Chatham  Theatre  Company  of  Comedians  beg  leave  to  in- 
form the  ladies  and   gentlemen  of  Brooklyn   and  vicinity  that 
they  will  open  a  Theatre  in  the  above  Hall, 
Feidat,  March    10,  1826, 
With  Stage,  New  Scenery,  Decorations,  &c.,  &c.,  &c. 
The  evening's  entertainment  will  commence  with  an  admired 
Tragedy,  called 

"DoCGI^AS." 

Young  Mrval  (Douglas) Miss  Riddle. 

As  performed  by  her  at  the  Chatham  Theatre,  New  York. 

Glenavan Mr.  Scott 

Lord  Randolph Mr.  Walstein 

Old  Norval Mr.  Herbert 

Officer Mr.   Elting 

Trembling  Coward Mr.   Jones 

Lady   Randolph Mrs.  Entwistle 

^„,j(l Mrs.  La  Combe 

After  which,  a  comic  song  by  Mr.  Roberts,  called  the  "Smok- 
ing Club,  or  Puff!  Puff!" 

A  Song,   by Mrs.  La  Combe 

A  Comic  Song,  by Mr.    Wray 

The  above  to  conclude  with  the  laughable  Farce,  in  Two  Acts, 

called 

"  The  Review," 

Or  the  Wags  of  Windsor. 

Captain  Beaugard Mr.  Walstein 

Looney  McTwalter Mr.  Andrews 

As  performed  by  him  at  Chatham  Theatre,  New  York. 

John  Lump Mr.   Herbert 

Dohbs Mr.   Wray 

Deputy  Bull Mr.  Turnbull 

*  Mr.  KoBEKTS  made  a  great  reputation  in  New  York  by  his  excellent 
performance  of  Bo6  ioj/i'c  in  the  comedy  of  "Tom  and  Jersey."  He  made 
his  first  appearance  in  America,  at  the  old  Circus  in  New  York,  on  the  east 
side  of  Broadway,  between  Grand  and  Howard  streets,  in  1823.  He  was  so 
attractive  at  one  time  as  a  comedian,  that  the  manager  of  the  Bowery 
Theatre.  New  York,  paid  one  thousand  dollars,  the  penalty  attached  to  his 
articles  of  agreement  with  the  Chatham  Garden  Theatre,  to  secure  his  ser- 
vices in  1826.  He  was  born  in  Scotland  in  1798,  and  died  in  Philadelphia 
in  1833. 


l\0> 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Caleb  Quotem Mr.  Roberts 

(As  performed  by  him  at  the  Chatham  Theatre,  with  the  songs 
of  "  The  Life,  Birth,  and  Parentage  of  Caleb  Quotem,"  and  the 
"  Nightingale  Club.") 

Zucy Miss  Riddle 

Grace  Gaylove Miss  La  Combe 

Tickets  fifty  cents,  to  be  had  at  the  bar.  Children  half 
price.  Doors  open  at  6,  and  performance  to  commence  at  7 
o'clock.  A  band  of  musicians  from  the  Chatham  Theatre  will 
perform.  No  postponement  on  any  account.  Places  may  be 
secured  from  2  until  fi  o'clock  on  the  day  of  the  performance. 

The  old  Brooklyn  Star,  a  weekly  paper,  spoke  of  the 
hall  having  been  fitted  up  with  stage,  scenery,  &c.,  &c , 
aud  said  the  part  of  Lady  Randolph  was  sustained  with 
great  ability  by  Mrs.  Entwistle,  and  that  Miss  Eiddle, 
as  young  Norval,  was  indeed  interesting,  and  gave 
promise  of  great  excellence  in  the  future.  Mr.  Roberts 
was  highly  extolled  as  Caleb  Quotem,  and  the  whole 
performance  spoken  of  as  a  great  success. 

On  Monday  evening,  March  13  th,  the  house  was 
filled  to  overflowing.  "The  Soldier's  Daughter"  was 
performed  with  great  applause.  Mrs.  Eutwistle*  was 
the  lively  widow,  and  Mr.  Scott,  as  "  Frank  Hartall," 
sustained  his  reputation  as  a  fine  actor,  while  Roberts 
took  the  house  by  storm  in  his  comic  songs.  "  The 
Spoiled  Child"  was  the  after  piece,  with  Miss  Eiddle,f 
as  "Miss  Pickle."  On  Tuesday  evening,  March  14th, 
'•The  Stranger"  and  "Lover's  Quarrels"  made  up 
the  bill.  Thursday,  March  16th,  the  tragedy  of  "Jane 
Shore"  and  "Animal  Magnetism"  were  performed, 
with  Mr.  ScottJ  as  "  Lord  Hastings,"  Walstein  §  as 
"Gloucester,"  Wray  as  "  RadcliflF,"  Elting  as  "  Cates- 
by,"  TurnbuU  as  "Lord  Derby,"  Herbert  as  "Du- 
mont,"  Andrews  as  "  Belmour,"  Cadwell  as  "Officer," 
Mrs.  Eutwistle  as  "Jane  Shore,"  and  Mrs  Walsteinjl 
as  "  Alicia." 

March  18th,  the  same  names  filled  up  the  cast  of 
"John  Bull,"  and  a  favorite  farce.  At  the  bottom  of 
the  bills  it  was  advertised  that  the  horse  boats  would 
be  in  readiness  at  the  Catherine  Ferry,  from  8  to  12 
o'clock,  to  convey  parties  back  to  New  York. 

*  We  regret  that  we  have  not  the  space  to  speak  of  Mrs.  Entwistle  in  pro- 
portion to  her  great  merits.  She  made  her  first  appearance  in  America  at 
the  Park  Theatre,  23d  of  October,  1809,  as  "  Mrs.  Beverly,"  in  the  tragedy  of 
"  The  Cjamester."  She  was  at  that  time  Mrs.  Mason,  and  was  the  leading 
favorite  in  comedy  aud  tragedy  for  many  years.  Her  polished  and  elegant 
deportment  in  her  performances  ot  women  of  fashion  was  extremely  fascina- 
ting. There  was  nothing  forced,  nothing  studied,  nothing  which  the  most 
fastidious  taste  would  wish  altered,  nothing  of  the  common-place  artifice 
called  stage  trick,  none  of  that  daubed  over-doing  which,  like  caricature  in 
painting,  raises  the  coarse  merriment  at  the  expense  of  the  natural  pro- 
priety and  truth,  but  was  of  the  refined,  polite,  yet  natural  and  pungent 
quality  of  humor  which  casts  a  mild  sunshine  over  the  heart,  tilling  it 
with  pure  enjoyment.  She  was  born  in  England,  and  died  in  New  Or- 
leans.  La.,  1835. 

1  Miss  Riddle  made  her  debut  in  the  WaUmt  Street  Theatre,  Philadelphia, 
in  18*23.  After  playing  many  seasons  in  New  York,  Boston,  and  other  cities, 
as  a  great  favorite,  she  retired  from  the  stage  for  several  years,  but  returned 
to  it  at  Laura  Keeue's  Theatre,  in  1856,  as  Mrs.  .Smith.  Her  last  engagement 
was  at  Howard's  Athenaeum,  Boston,  where  she  died  in  1861.  She  was  a  lady 
of  eminent  and  spotless  character. 

t  Mr.  Scott  was  a  very  large  man,  and  was  known  among  the  playgoers  as 
"  Fatty  Scott."  He  was  a  fine  actor,  as  the  writer  can  testify,  as  he  has 
often  seen  him  on  the  stage  of  the  old  Chatham  Theatre,  where  Scott  made 
his  appearance  on  the  10th  of  May.  1825.    He  often  performed  the  part  of 


Thus  we  have  the  record  of  the  first  dramatic  per- 
formance in  the  City  of  Brooklyn,  with  stage,  scenery 
and  decorations  in  full,  and  for  a  consecutive  number 
of  nigiits  with  success. 

Mrs.  Chester's  cotfee-house  was  situated  on  Front 
street,  east  side,  aud  was  known  at  the  time  as  28  and 
30  Front  street.  The  coffee-house  consisted  of  two 
frame  buildings,  made  into  one,  with  a  large  room  on 
the  second  floor,  which  was  appropriated  for  balls  and 
public  meetings  and  the  same  as  was  used  on  the  occa- 
sion of  the  dramatic  performances  above  mentioned. 

1828.— The  Amphitheatre.— The  next  event 

of  importance  in  the  dramatic  history  of  Brooklyn  was 
the  erection  of  an  Amphitheatre,  on  leased  ground  in 
Fulton  street,  east  side,  between  Nassau  and  Concord 
streets.  The  ground  was  broken  for  this  building 
on  the  22d  of  May,  1828.  Its  front  was  of  brick, 
while  the  theatre  itself  was  mostly  of  frame.  It  was 
erected  by  Charles  W.  Sandford,  lawyer,  of  New 
York  City,  and  for  many  years  Major-General  of 
the  First  Division  of  the  New  York  State  Militia. 
At  the  time  he  erected  the  Amphitheatre  he  was  the 
manager  and  owner  of  the  Lafayette  Theatre  and  the 
Mount  Pitt  Circus,  New  York.  His  object  in  the 
erection  of  the  Brooklyn  theatre  was  to  find  use  at 
times  for  a  portion  of  his  over-full  company.  This  was 
the  first  building  ever  erected  in  Brooklyn  for  theatrical 
purposes.  The  wife  of  Mr.  Sandford  was  an  actress  of 
superior  ability,  and  a  vocalist  of  remarkable  skill  and 
sweetness  of  voice.  Her  representation  of  the  part  of 
Clari  in  Payne's  opera  of  "The  Maid  of  Milan  "  was  a 
splendid  performance,  and  was  repeated  many  times  to 
crowded  houses  in  the  City  of  New  York. 

The  above  Amphitheatre  was  first  opened  to  the 
public  on  the  evening  of  July  17th,  1828,  with  great 
feats  of  horsemanship.  Among  the  company  were  the 
celebrated  Richie,  De  Forest,  Wliittaker  and  Master 
Alexander ;  boxes  50  cents,  pit  25  cents ;  open  at  7, 
commence  at  8  o'clock.  The  Brooklyn  Star  remarks 
that  the  new  theatre  "was  a  plain  building,  suited  to 
convenience  rather  than  show.  The  drop  curtain  was 
beautiful  and  the  scenery  very  fine.  The  ring  for  the 
horsemanship  was  directly  in  front  of  the  orchestra, 
while  the  seats  for  the  occupants  of  the  pit  were  under 
the  boxes."  On  the  evening  above  mentioned,  the  melo- 
drama of  the  "  Broken  Sword  "  was  performed.  "  It 
was  well  done,  and  attracted  the  silent  and  orderly 
attention  of  the  audience."    The  performances  were 

"  Fitz  James,"  to  H.  Wallack's  "  Roderick  Dhu,"  in  the  drama  of  •'  The 
Lady  of  the  Lake."  Scott  was  born  in  Philadelphia,  and  died  in  New  York, 
in  1849.    He  was  not  related  to  the  celebrated  J.  R.  Scott. 

§  Mr.  Walstein  was  born  in  New  York,  made  his  first  appearance  at  the 
Chatham  Garden  Theatre  in  1826.  He  was  a  good  actor  and  had  a  fine  per- 
sonal appearance  for  the  sta^e.    He  died  in  Philadelphia  in  1836. 

II  Mrs.  Walstein  was  the  sister  of  the  celebrated  Mrs.  Barnes.  She  made 
her  debut,  at  the  Old  Park  Theatre,  New  York,  April  17th,  1816,  in  the  char- 
acter of  the  "  Nurse."  in  •*  Romeo  and  Juliet."  She  became  so  large  a  person 
that  she  was  unfitted  for  the  stage.  She  retired  from  the  profession  Janu- 
ary the  8th,  1839,  and  died  in  New  York,  April  Ist,  1856. 


TSE  DRAMA,   OPERA,  MUSIC  AND  ART. 


1109 


given  two  or  three  times  a  week,  and  for  a  while  did 
rather  well,  through  the  attendance  of  country  people 
of  the  Island  coming  in  to  see  the  circus.  On  August 
14th,  Mr.  Richie  took  a  benefit.  This  was  the  last  night 
of  the  season.  September  5th,  the  place  re-opened 
as  the  Brooklyn  Theatre.  The  ring  was  removed  ;  the 
company  was  excellent.  The  following  pieces  were 
performed,  commencing  with  the  musical  drama  of 
"  The  Poor  Soldier,"  and  the  ibilowing  cast : 

Patrick  (with  songs),  Mr.  Gainer;  Darby  (with  two  songs),  Mr. 
Koberts;  Dermoni  (with  a  song),  Mr.  Blakely;  Captain  Fltzroy,  Mr. 
Neilson;  Father  Luke,  Mr.  Quin;  Bagatelle,  Mr.Walstein;  Boy,  Miss 
Fisher;  Norah  (with  songs),  Mrs  Sandford;  Cathleen,  Mrs.  Fisher; 
after  which  the  laughable  farce  of  the  "  Sleep  Walker  " :  Somino, 
Mr.  Koberts  (in  which  character  will  be  given  imitations  of 
Messrs.  Kean,  Macready,  Hilson,  Simpson  and  Cooper)  ;  Sir 
Patrick  Magidre,  Mr.  De  Camp  ;  Scilly,  Mr.  Blakely;  Squire 
Mattlepate,  Mr.  WoodhuU;*  Mrs.  De  C,  Mrs.  Walstein;  Ellen,  Mrs. 
Fisher. 

The  Miss  Fisher,  mentioned  in  the  above  cast  be- 
came the  well-known  favorite,  Miss  Alexina  Fisher, 

*  Jacob  Woodhdll,  whose  real  name  was  Hull,  was  at  one  time  one  of 
the  most  noted  and  remarkable  men  connected  with  the  drama  in  New 
York.    He  made  his  lirtt  appearance  upon  the  public  stage  at  the  old  Park 
Theatre,  in  181G,  in  the  character  of  JaJJier,  in  "Venice  Preserved,"  made  a 
success,  and  soon  became  a  valuable  addition  to  the  Park  company.     He 
was  an  educated  and  lively-hearted  gentleman,  and  of  ver.satilo  talents, 
always  ready  to  do  a  iavor,  and  made  every  one  his  friend  whom  he  met. 
One  of  the  best  critics  of  New  York  remarked  "  that  no  one  man  on  the 
stage  could  possibly  fiU  Mr.  WoodhuU's  place  as  a  versatile  actor,  and  that 
while  he  was  one  of  the  most  useful  men  to  a  manager,  still  he  was  the 
most  ill-used  actor  that  ever  trod  the  boards  of  a  theatre.    His  good  nature 
was  imposed  upon,  as  he  would  consent  to  perform  any  part  that  would 
accommodate  the  management.    He  played  the  blood-thirsty  villain,  misers 
and  young  spendthrifts,  graybeards  and  lovers,  walking  gentlemen,  soldiers, 
sailors.  Irishmen,   Scotchmen,    Dutchmen,  Jews,  Gentiles,  Turks,  Indian 
savages,  the  heroes  of  dramas,  and  aU  with  perfect  satisfaction  to  his  audi- 
ence.   Week  after  week,  month   after  month,  and  year  after  year,  he  went 
through    his    performances    of   all    these    various    characters,  with    more 
propriety  and  rationality  than  many  would-be  stars."    Mr.  WoodhuU  pos- 
sessed a  remarkable  memory,  an   assertion  which  one  anecdote  told  of  him 
will  serve  to  illustrate.   "  One  evening,  after  the  performance,  while  standing 
in  a  saloon  with  some  gentlemen,  enjoying  a  social  intercourse,  one  of  the 
party  inquired  of  Mr.  WoodhuU,  "  How  is  it  possible  to  commit  to  memory 
so  many  parts  in  so  short  a  time  1"    WoodhuU  replied  it  gave  him  no  trouble 
whatever  ;  that  he  had  frequently  committed  a  character  by  once  reading 
it.  This  the  gentleman  doubted  so  emphatically  that  Mr.  WoodhuU  immedi- 
ately offered  to  wager  a  champagne  supper  for  the  party  there  and  then  on 
the  spot,  that  after  reading  a  column  of  advertisements  from  any  newspaper 
only  once  over  he  could  repeat  the  whole  letter-perfect.     The  wager  was 
accepted,  and  Mr.  WoodhuU  was  the  winner."    On  another  occasion,  one  of 
the  actors  faUing  to  appear  at  night  to  perform  the  character  of  Ludouico,  in 
Sheilds'  tragedy  of  "  Evadne,"  he,  on  arriving  at  the  theatre,  was  requested 
to  take  the  deUnquent's  place.    He  consented  to  do  so  it  the  management 
would  keep  the  curtain  down  while  he  had  time  to  read  over  the  words  of 
the  first  act,  and  so  on.  between  each  act,  that  he  might  have  a  chance  for 
study.    This,  with  the  Uttle  time  he  had  between  the  scenes  in  which 
Lttdovico  does  not  appear,  was  all  the  time  he  had  to  commit  this  difficult 
blank  verse  part,    .ind  yet  it  is  stated  that  he  not  only  performed  the  part 
without  a  single  prompting,  but  to  the  applause  of  the  audience  and  the 
astonishment  of  aU  the  company  around  him.     It  was  for  Mr.  WoodhuU's 
benefit  at  the  Park  Theatre,  New  York,  in  1826,  that  Edwin  Forrest  made  his 
first  appearance  before  a  New  York  audience.     He  performed  the  part  of 
OUiello,  and  carried  the  house  by  storm.    He  was  at  that  time  a  stock  actor 
at  Albany,  N.    Y.,  and  was  aUowed   this    opportunity  to   do  his    friend 
WoodhuU  a  service.     The    occasion    made    Forrest,  as  it  was    not   long 
after  he  was    prevailed  on   to  play  a  star    engagement    at    the    Bowery 
Theatre,  whore  he  made  a  great  success,  and  soon  had  his  pay  raised  from 
forty  doUars  a  week  to  two  hundred  dollars  a  night.    Mr.  Forrest  himself 
told  the  writer  these  facts,  and  spoke  of  WoodhuU  in  high  praise.    Mr. 
WoodhuU  left  the  Park  company  in  1832,  and  went  with  Mr.  Barns  as  stage 
manager  of  the  Eichmond  Hills  Theatre,  N.  Y.,  but  the  cholera,  whose  first 
terrible  visitation  occurred  in  that  year,  caused  his  death  on  the  31st  of 
August,  when  he  was  only  forty  years  of  age.    He  was  born 
street.  New  York  City,  1792. 


,  Greenwich 


and  turned  the  heads  and  hearts  of  all  the  men  who 
saw  her.  They  became  wild  in  admiration  of  her 
beauty,  fine  acting  in  comedy,  and  sweetness  of  voice 
in  singing. 

It  appears  that  a  company  from  New  York  advertised 
a  performance  to  take  place  at  the  Amphitheatre  on 
the  night  of  Sept.  23d;  money  was  taken  in  at  the 
doors,  and  the  audience,  after  waiting  for  nearly  an 
hour  for  the  curtain  to  go  up,  discovered  that  neither 
actors,  or  treasurer  could  be  found  ;  on  which  the  en- 
raged audience  took  satisfaction  by  commencing  to  pull 
the  building  to  pieces,  and  did  much  injury  before  the 
constables  could  quell  the  disturbance.  The  advertise- 
ment did  not  mention  who  were  the  managers.  The 
press  and  people  of  Brooklyn  looked  upon  it  as  a  shame- 
ful swindle.  This  had  the  effect  of  keeping  all  man- 
agers away  from  Brooklyn,  and  nothing  occurred  in 
the  dramatic  line  for  a  number  of  years.  The  Amphi- 
theatre was  numbered  among  the  things  of  the  past, 
and  so  ended  the  first  attempt  to  give  the  drama  a 
local  habitation  in  Brooklyn. 

1840.— Colonnade  G-arden.— A  new  place  of 

amusement  made  its  appearance  in  Brooklyn  under  this 
name,  and  was  located  on  Brooklyn  Heights,  on  Col- 
umbia street,  opposite  to  Pineapple  street,  on  August 
Gth.  The  vaudeville  of  "The  Lady  and  the  Devil  " 
was  presented,  with  Mr.  Graham  and  Mr.  Charles  in 
the  cast.  "  The  Rendezvous "  was  the  after-piece. 
The  stage  and  scenery  of  this  place  was  of  temporary 
construction.  Several  performances  were  given  by  good 
actors,  but  the  dramatic  part  of  the  garden  soon  came 
to  a  final  exit. 

1842. — June  29th,  Mr.  Walcott*  made  an  at- 
tempt to  introduce  the  drama  at  the  Colonnade,  and 
appeared  as  "  Hector  Timid,"  in  the  "Dead  Shot." 
Mr.  Collins,  the  Irish  comedian,  also  appeared  on  the 
same  little  stage. 

1844. — Some  actors  from  Few  York  fitted  up  the 
long  room  at  City  Hotel,  Fulton  street,  with  some 
scenery,  and  performed  the  drama  of  the  "  Drunkard;" 
the  enterprise  was  a  failure.  The  drama  in  Brooklyn 
now  became  perfectly  dead,  until 

1848. — When,  in  November,  Mr.  George  Waldo 
Hill,  a  personal  friend  of  the  writer,  made  an  attempt  to 
establish  the  drama  in  Brooklyn.  He  became  the 
lessee  of  the  large  frame  building  that  stood  in  the 
grounds  of  "  Military  Garden,"  Duflon's  old  place,  and 
known  at  the  time  as  the  "City  Hotel."  The  beauty 
of  the  old  garden  had  been  destroyed  for  many  years 

*Mr.  Walcott  was  a  great  favorite  at  Mitchell's  Olympic  Theatre  in  New 
York;  was  for  several  years  a  member  of  Mr.Wallack's  Company.  His  perform- 
ance of  "  Lavator,"  in  Planche's  comic  drama  of  that  name,  was  a  master 
performance.  He  was  the  author  of  "Hiawatha,  or  the  Ardent  Spirits," 
and  "Laughing  Water,"  "Washington,"  "Giovanni  in  Gotham."  "David 
Copperfleld,"  "  Richard  the  Third  to  KiU,"  "  The  Customs  of  the  Country," 
and  "  Snips  Snaps,"  all  oxceUent  burlesques.  He  was  born  in  London,  Eng- 
land, 1816,  and  died  in  Phihidelphia,  May  13,  1868. 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


past  by  the  eucroachmeat  of  buildings  on  the  adjucoufc 
streets,  which  had  left  only  the  centre  part,  containing 
a  few  bushes  and  the  building  alluded  to.  Mr.  John 
Tremble,  the  celebrated  theatre  architect,  transformed 
this  building  (known  as  the  Assembly  Rooms)  into 
a  beautiful  little  theatre,  with  a  parquette  and  a 
balcony  circle,  with  seats  for  six  hundred  people. 
Mr.  Hill  was  under  the  impression  he  could  make 
the  place  pay  under  the  form  of  a  "Dramatic  Asso- 
ciation."' There  were  a  few  unprofitable  performances 
given,  when  he  closed  the  place  for  a  few  weeks  and 
re-opened  it  as  a  theatre,  on  the  19th  of  December, 
with  a  small  stock  company  of  but  little  merit. 
This  second  attempt  soon  became  a  failure,  and  the 
place  remained  closed  until 

1849. — When,  June  11th,  it  was  opened  with  a 
good  company.  The  pieces  were  the  '•  Youthful 
Queen,"  Count  De  Odenstein,  by  Mr.  Bass.  On  the 
12th,  "  Charles  the  II,"  Bass  as  Captain  Copp.  On 
the  16th, "  The  Dead  Shot"  and  "Wandering  Minstrel," 
with  Bass  in  the  leading  characters.  On  the  18th, 
Mr.  Walcott,  of  "Mitchell's  Olympic  Theatre,"  New 
York,  appeared  as  "Jeremiah  Clip"  in  "  The  Widow's 
Victim."  Friday,  the  22d,  Miss  Fanny  Wallack  ap- 
peared as  "Pauline,"  in  the  "Lady  of  Lyons,"  with 
John  Dyott  as  "  Claude,"  and  Bass  as  "Col.  Dumas;" 
this  was  a  splendid  cast.  Saturday,  28th,  "  Naval  En- 
gagements." On  the  26tli,  "  The  Married  Rake  "  and 
"Brooklyn  in  Slices,"  with  T.  B.  Johnston  in  the 
casts.  As  a  summer  season  experiment,  it  was  a  fail- 
ure. September  29th  the  place  was  opened  again,  with 
Baruey  Williams  as  "O'RafiTerty,"  in  "Born  to  Good 
Luck,"  and  the  after-piece  of  the  "Secret,"  with  the 
celebrated  George  Holland  as  "Thomas."  This  was 
the  gentleman  whom  a  professed  Christian  minister 
refused  to  do  funeral  service  over,  because  he  was  an 
actor,  and  whose  name  became  prominently  associated 
with  "The  Little  Church  Around  the  Corner."  On 
the  24th  of  September,  J.  R.  Scott*  made  his  first  ap- 
pearance before  a  Brooklyn  audience.  He  performed 
the  character  of  "  Michael  "  in  the  drama  of  the 
"Adopted  Child."  There  were  not  over  a  dozen  per- 
formances given,  and  the  place  was  closed  as  an  utter 
failure. 

In  November,  1849,  the  writer  was  induced  to  play 
six  nights.  The  engagement  was  accepted  with  the 
understanding  that  they  should  be  made  subscription 
nights  and  giving  two  performances  a  week.  The 
plan   was  adopted,  and   made  to  pay.     The  piece  se- 


*  J.  R.Scott  was  an  actor  of  splendid  ability.  In  such  characters  as  ■' Bob 
Key,"  and  "William,"  in  "Black  Eyed  Susan,"  he  was  unsurpassed.  He 
had  a  splendid  stage  appearance,  and  one  of  the  finest-shaped  heads  that 
ever  sat  upon  an  actor's  shoulders,  ms  voice  was  full  and  flexible,  and  he 
always  gave  evidence  of  close  study  in  the  characters  he  performed.  He 
was  born  in  Philadelphia,  and  died  there  March  22d,  1856.  Fanny  Wal- 
lack. Dyott,  and  Bass  were  all  prominent  members  of  the  New  York  theatres, 
whose  interesting  biographies  must  be  sought  for  elsewhere,  as  our  Umited 
space  will  not  allow  us  to  do  them  justice  here. 


lected  for  the  opening  night  was  the  tragedy  of 
"Evadne": 

Ltidovico,  Gabriel  Harrison;  Colonna,  Mr.  McDonald;  Kinr;  of 
Naples,  Mr.  Connor;  Vicmtio,  Mr.  De  Forest  ;  Spalalro,  Mr. 
Eogers;  Evadne,  Miss  Mason;   Olivia,  Miss  Norton. 

On  the  second  night,  "  Damon  and  Pythias,"  with  McDonald 
as  "Damon,"  and  Harrison  as  "Pythias  "  Third  night, 
"  Eolla,"  Mr.  Harrison;  "  Pizzaro,"  Mr.  McDonald.  Fourth 
night,  "The  Wife,"  with  Mr.  Harrison  as  "Julian  St.  Pierre." 
Fifth  night,  Harrison  as  "William  Tell."  Sixth  night,  as 
"  Carwin." 

1850.— The  Brooklyn  Mnseum.— Messrs. 

Chanfrau*  and  Burke  (according  to  their  advertisement) 
"  caused  to  be  erected  "  a  large  brick  building  on  the 
northwest  corner  of  Fulton  and  Orange  streets,  at  a 
cost  of  ten  thousand  dollars,  which  they  called  the 
"Brooklyn  Museum,"  containing  a  collection  of  pic- 
tures, stuffed  beasts  and  birds.  On  the  top  floor  was  a 
room  fitted  up  with  a  stage  and  scenery,  styled  a 
"lecture  room,''  for  the  representation  of  "  chaste  and 
moral  dramas.  This  "lecture  room"  was  nothing 
less  than  a  pretty  little  theatre.  The  M  useum  opened 
its  doors  for  the  first  time  on  Monday  evening,  July 
1st,  1850,  with  the  following  company  and  pieces: — 
"  The  Gambler's  Fate." 

Mr.  Derance,  Mr.  C.  Burke;  Augustus,  Mr.  D.  P.  Bowers; 
Amelia,  Mrs.  D.  P.  Bowers;  Louisa,  Miss  Smith.  Concluding 
with  the  Farce  of  "The  Dumb  Belle."  Fiuian.,  Mr.  Bowers;  0' Smirk, 
Mr.  Burke;  Eliza,  Mrs.  Bowers.     Price  of  admission,  25  cents. 

On  the  second  day  of  the  opening,  performances 
were  given  on  afternoon  and  evening.  The  manage- 
ment continued  the  stock  company  till  July  29th. 
Mr.  Couldock  commenced  a  star  engagement  as  "The 
Stranger,"  with  Mrs.  Bowers  as  Mrs.  Haller.  He 
played  for  a  few  nights,  when  the  Museum  suddenly 
closed  its  doors  for  the  want  of  support.  The  edifice 
was  the  finest  place  of  amusement  that  had  hitherto 
been  given  to  the  Brooklyn  public,  and  deserved  a  far 
better  success.  The  building  was  owned  by  Mr.  Cam- 
meyer.  "  Kimberly's  Minstrels"  reopened  the  place 
on  the  26th  of  August,  with  little  or  no  success. 

Chanfrau  and  Burke  made  another  attempt  at  the 
management  of  the  Museum,  and  re-opened  it  Septem- 
ber 9th,  with  a  splendid  stock  company.  Charles  Dib- 
din  Pitt  played  a  star  engagement  for  one  week,  open- 
ing in  "  Hamlet ;"  on  September  16th,  Mr.  Charles 
Kemble  Mason  appeared  as  a  star.  September  23d,  on 
the  same  night,  T.  D.  Rice  gave  the  people  of  Brooklyn 
a  taste  of  his  peculiar  genius  in  the  character  of 
"Jumbo  Jum."  On  the  30th,  Mr.  W.  H.  Reeves,  an 
English  singer  of  fine  ability,  appeared  in  scenes  from 
the  operas  of  "Maritana"  and  the  "Love  Spell." 

*  Mr.  Chanfrau  was  born  in  New  York,  1824.  He  commenced  his  dra- 
matic life  at  the  bottom  of  the  ladder,  and  by  his  talents  and  industry  he  soon 
advanced  to  higher  positions.  He  made  a  great  hit  in  the  character  of 
"Mose."  a  local  drama  written  by  Mr.  Ben  Baker,  entitled  "Life  in  New 
York."  He  performed  this  character  to  crowded  houses  for  a  whole  season 
at  Mitchell's  Olympic  Theatre,  New  York.  He  was  a  man  of  versatile  talent, 
and  in  every  way  a  credit  to  the  profession  of  his  choice. 


THE  DRAMA,    OPERA,   MUSIC  AND  ART. 


October  7th,  James  E.  Mnrdock*  made  his  entree  on 
the  Brooklyn  stage.  He  performed  "  Hamlet,"  "  Olaiul," 
"  Beverly,"  and  his  other  best  characters.  Murdock 
was  followed  by  John  Brougham.  On  Saturday,  No- 
vember 2d,  Miss  Mary  Taylor,  once  famous  at  Mitchell's 
Olympic  Theatre,  New  York,  appeared  in  the  after- 
piece of  "Jenny  Lind."  She  made  a  hit  with  her 
audience.  She  appeared  in  "Cinderella"  fortwelve  nights. 
She  proved  the  only  great  success  that  had  as  yet  ap- 
peared at  the  Museum,  in  spite  of  the  fact  of  many 
other  superior  artists  that  had  gone  before  her.  At 
the  conclusion  of  her  engagement,  Chanfrau  and  Burke 
wisely  gave  up  the  management,  with  what  little  cash 
they  had  made.  November  33d,  the  names  of  Lovell 
and  King  appear  at  the  head  of  the  bills  as  managers, 
with  Mary  Taylor,  continuing  her  engagement  till 
November  30th.  Monday,  December  2d,  the  celebrated 
elder  Booth  appeared  for  the  first  time  in  Brooklyn. 
The  piece  selected  was : 

"New  Wat  to  Pay  Old  Debts." 
Sir   Giles  Overreach,  Mr.  Booth;  Lord  Lovell,  Mr.  Jjindon;  All- 
worth,  Mr.  Lovell;  Justice  Greedy,  Mr.  King;  Marall,  Mr.   Kent; 
Margaret  Overreach,  Mrs.  Lovell. 

The  newspapers  hailed  Mr.  Booth's  appearance  in 
Brooklyn  with  much  favor.  The  Star  remarked  the 
next  day,  "that  this  child  of  true  genius  renewed  their 
old  impressions  of  his  former  days." 

"  Tuesday,  December  10th." 

"  The  Ikon  Chest." 

Sir  Edward  Mortimer,  Mr.  Booth;   Wilford  (his  first  appearance 

*  James  E.  Murdock  was  one  of  the  finest  actors  America  has  produced. 
As  a  light  comedian,  in  his  own  day  he  had  not  his  superior.  As  a  tragedian 
he  was  flue,  and  of  the  Cooper  school.  He  was  a  man  of  marked  poetic  feel- 
ing, and  an  unusually  mature  scholar.  His  love  of  the  dramatic  art  was  a 
love  for  its  elevation.  He  was  a  student  of  close  application,  and  his  repre- 
sentation of  characters  an  intellectual  treat.  He  had  a  flue  figure,  a  rich 
sonorous  voice,  was  graceful  in  action,  and  with  the  exception  of  Edwin 
Forrest,  the  finest  elocutionist  on  the  American  stage.  It  is  an  unusual 
thing  to  find  actors  and  actresses  accomplished  elocutionists,  for  most  of 
them  treat  this  branch  of  their  profession  with  too  much  neglect. 

Mr.  Murdock  was  born  in  Philadelphia  in  1812.  He  made  his  first  appear- 
ance at  the  Arch  Street  Theatre,  that  city,  as  "Frederick"  in  "Lovers' 
Vows,"  In  1838  he  appeared  as  "  Benedict,"  and  made  a  fine  impression. 
About  1842,  he  withdrew  from  the  profession  for  the  purpose  of  completing 
a  college  education,  and  after  three  years'  hard  study,  he  reappeared  upon 
the  boards  of  the  Park  Theatre,  in  New  York,  Tuesday,  October  21st,  18i5. 
On  this  occasion  the  writer  performed  the  part  of  the  "  King  "  to  his  ''Ham- 
let "  He  had  a  splendid  audience,  and  performed  a  week's  engagement  with 
great  success.  In  1856  he  went  to  England,  and  appeared  for  the  first  time 
before  a  select  British  audience,  September  22d,  at  the  Haymarket,  London 
as  "Young  Mirable,"  in  which  character  he  made  a  fine  impression.  He 
performed  the  part  of  'Young  Rapid,"  in  "  Cure  for  the  Heart  Ache,"  for 
many  consecutive  nights  to  crowded  houses.  In  1857  he  returned  to  the 
United  States,  and  performed  in  all  the  principal  theatres  throughout  the 
country,  making  admirers  wherever  he  went.  Mr.  Murdock  was  also  a 
patriot,  as  the  following  anecdotes  will  show: 

During  the  rebellion,  and  while  he  was  playing  an  engagement  at  Milwau- 
kee, hearing  that  his  son  had  joined  the  Union  troops  and  was  on  his  way  to 
Washington,  he  immediately  gave  up  his  engagement,  joined  the  army,  and 
declared  he  would  not  act  again  tiU  the  war  was  over.  His  health  failing 
him,  he  was  forced  to  give  up  the  active  service  of  the  field,  and  devoted  his 
four  years  to  the  cause  by  attending  to  the  sick  and  wounded  soldiers  in  the 
different  hospitals  ;  while  doing  so,  he  frequently  gave  readings  for  the 
amusement  of  the  soldiers,  and  for  the  benefit  of  the  Sanitary  Commission  in 
Washington  and  other  cities.  He  was  appointed  Volunteer  Aid  on  the  staff 
of  General  Rousseau.  After  the  war  he  reappeared  upon  the  stage,  and 
performed  several  brilliant  engagements.  For  several  years  past  he  has  not 
appeared  upon  the  stage  as  an  actor,  but  occasionally  gives  public  readings. 
At  this  time  he  still  lives,  honored  and  respected  in  his  old  age. 


on   any  stage),   Master  Edwin  Booth;     Wenterton,   Mr.   C.  W. 
Taylor;  Lady  Helen,  Mrs.  Lovell. 

It  will  here  be  observed  that  Edwin  Booth,  the 
famous  tragedian,  made  his  first  attempt  as  an  actor 
upon  the  Brooklyn  stage.  Through  the  indisposition 
of  Mr.  Booth,  he  was  prevented  from  filling  out  his 
week's  engagement.  In  fact,  the  houses  were  so  poor 
that  it  was  not  worth  the  great  actor's  exertions  to 
continue.  A  few  more  nights  of  ill-success,  and  it  was 
found  necessary  for  some  of  the  prominent  and  liberal- 
minded  citizens,  headed  by  the  ever  noble-spirited  gen- 
tleman and  editor  of  the  Star,  Alden  J.  Spooncr,  to 
give  the  manager,  Mr.  Lovell,  a  complimentary  benefit. 

This  took  place  on  December  the  20th, and  we  might 
say  that  here  the  ill-fated  Museum  closed  its  public 
career. 

Upon  the  stage  of  the  Brooklyn  Museum,  within  a 
few  months,  appeared  the  finest  dramatic  talent  of  the 
country,  and  yet  the  managers  and  actors  did  not  meet 
with  a  success  that  might  be  expected  in  any  country 
town  of  five  thousand  inhabitants;  Brooklyn's  popula- 
tion at  the  time  was  two  hundred  thousand.  The  only 
solution  we  can  give  of  this  singular  neglect  to  support 
a  well-regulated  place  of  amusement  is  in  the  sup- 
position that  Brooklyn  was  too  convenient  to  New 
York,  where  abounded  theatres  and  opera-houses  of 
more  gorgous  proportions,  and  performances  of  greater 
attractions. 

1851, — February  7th,  some  of  the  principal  citiz- 
ens of  Brooklyn  and  New  York  gave  a  complimentary 
benefit,  at  Burton's  Chambers  Street  Theatre,  New 
York,  to  Dr.  Nokthall,  of  Brooklyn,  the  dramatic 
author.  They  were  John  C.  Vanderbilt,  Gen.  George  P. 
Morris  the  poet,  Hon.  Samuel  Johnson,  Hon.  Edward 
Copeland,  Hon.  John  Greenwood,  Hon.  John  A.  King, 
Hon.  Henry  C.  Murphy,  Arthur  James,  Alden  J. 
Spooner,  and  many  others.  The  bill  offered  for  the 
occasion  was  Dr.  Northall's  dramatization  of  "David 
Copperfield."  The  cast  of  characters  comprised  the 
names  of  William  E.  Burton,  Rufus  E.  Blake,  Lester 
Wallack,  T.  B.  Johnston,  Mrs.  Russell,  (Mrs.  Hoey), 
Mrs.  Hughes,  Mrs.  Skerret  and  Miss  Hill  (afterwards 
Mrs.  W.  E.  Burton).  The  after-piece  was  a  burlesque 
from  the  pen  of  Dr.  Northall*  entitled  "  Lucy-did- 
Sham-Amour."  Miss  Caroline  Chapman  appeared  in 
her  original  character  of  Lucia. 

*  Dr.  William  Knight  Northall  was  the  son  of  WiUiam  Knight  Northall 
of  England  ;  his  father  came  over  to  Brooklyn  in  1830,  and  finding  here 
a  promising  field,  sent  for  his  son,  who  had  been  educated  for  a  surgeon- 
dentist.  The  Doctor  soon  got  into  an  extensive  practice,  interrupted,  how- 
ever, by  sickness  and  nervousness,  which  forced  him  at  times  to  seek  relief 
in  opium.  He  soon  began  to  display  his  accomplishment  as  a  writer,  and 
was  the  first  editor  of  the  "  Brooklyn  Daily  Advertiser."  Subsequently  he 
engaged  as  dramatist  with  Mr.  Mitchell,  manager  oftheN.  Y.  Olympic 
Theatre,  and  Mr.  Burton,  of  the  Chambers  Street  Theatre,  N.  Y.  He  wrote 
travesties  for  these  managers,  all  of  which  met  with  great  success.  Many  of 
them  embraced  Shakespeare's  plays.  He  had  also  great  aptitude  for  sketch- 
ing, as  his  capital  portrait  of  Jacob  Patohen,  "The  last  of  the  leather 
breeches,"  now  in  the  rooms  of  the  Long  Island  Historical  Society  wiU 
attest.    Besides  editorials  and  plays  in  great  numbers,  he  wrote  the  life  of 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


During  the  winter  and  spring  of  1851,  several  other 
attempts  were  made  to  revive  the  Museum,  with  J.  R. 
Scott  in  some  of  his  best  parts,  and  Chanfrau  as 
*'  Mose,"  but  to  no  effect. 

On  December  7th,  several  members  of  the  profession 
gave  the  Fire  Department  a  benefit,  on  which  occasion 
0.  W.  Clark,  Gabriel  Harrison,  Mr.  Macdonald,  Conner, 
Mrs.  J.  R.  Scott  and  Miss  Mestayer  appeared.  It  was 
a  success,  turning  in,  as  it  did,  over  two  hundred  dol- 
lars. 

1852. — The  Museum  now  fell  into  the  hands  of 
the  amateurs,  with  an  occasional  performance  by  jjro- 
fessionals. 

1853. — "The  Bbooklyk  Athenaeum"  opened 
its  doors  for  the  first  time  on  May  2d.  The  building, 
a  very  tine  structure,  stands  on  the  northeast  corner  of 
Atlantic  and  Clinton  streets.  It  contains  a  fine,  large 
lecture  and  concert  room,  with  a  small  stage  and  drop 
curtain,  but  not  convenient  for  dramatic  j^erform- 
ances. 

During  the  early  part  of  September,  1853,  the  writer 
proposed  and  organized  a  society,  called  the  Brooklyn 
Dramatic  Academy.  The  object  of  the  association  was 
to  educate  ladies  and  gentlemen  for  the  stage,  and  give 
private  performances  twice  a  month.  The  Museum 
was  taken  for  the  purpose,  and  after  some  renovation 
they  gave  their  first  performance  to  a  crowded  and  select 
audience.  Among  the  members  were  several  profes- 
sional gentlemen,  who  had  partly  retired  from  the 
stage.  The  organization  had  a  prosperous  existence 
for  several  years.  The  press  of  Brooklyn  spoke  of  the 
Society  in  the  highest  terms,  and  on  the  day  after  its 
first  performance,  one  of  the  Brooklyn  papers  made 
the  following  remarks  :  "  The  first  dramatic  perform- 
ance of  the  '  Brooklyn  Dramatic  Academy'  took  place 
last  night,  and  was  attended  by  an  overflowing  audience. 
The  stage  and  boxes  were  beautifully  decorated  for  the 
occasion.  In  front  of  the  stage  hung  a  large  wreath 
of  flowers,  in  the  center  of  which  were  the  words,  '  The 
Drama.''  The  columns  on  each  side  of  the  stage  bore 
the  names   in  gold  of  the  most  celebrated  American 

George  Frederick  Handel  Hill  (the  Yankee  comedian),  and  lectures  on  den- 
tistry. He  at  length  accepted  an  invitation  to  visit  New  Orleans,  and  take 
a  position  as  one  of  the  editors  of  the  "  Delta."  He  was  there  a  short  time 
when  the  cholera  appeared,  and  he  attempted  to  return  home  to  Brooklyn, 
by  steamer:  when  a  few  days  out  ho,  with  several  others,  was  seized  with  the 
frightful  malady,  and  died.  The  Itoctor  was  a  most  excellent  companion. 
His  wit  was  always  genial  and  playful.  Miss  .Julia  Northall,  so  well  known 
for  a  time  as  an  admirable  vocalist,  was  his  sister.  He  was  for  several 
years  a  member  of  the  Brooklyn  Hamilton  Literary  Association,  and  some 
of  his  piquant  papers  are  noted  in  its  early  records.  He  was  a  most  excel- 
lent dramatic  critic,  and  was  doubtless  the  best  adapter  of  humorous  pieces 
at  the  time  the  stage  had  in  the  country.  He  was  the  first  Brooklyn  man 
noted  as  a  dramatist,  and  this  (too  iuadetiuate)  sketch  of  him,  in  connection 
with  the  progress  of  the  drama  in  Brooklyn,  is  eminently  proper.  Ho  was 
the  author  of  the  following  pieces  ;  •' David  Copperfleld,"  "She's  come," 
"Musical  Arrivals."  "Macbeth  Travestie,"  "  Virginius  Travestie,"  "  Old 
King  Cole,"  "Magic  Arrow,"  "Taming  a  Tartar,"  "  Mount  Cristey,"  "Lucy- 
did-sham-amour,"  "  Here  and  There,"  "Jenny  Phobia,"  "  Arrival  of  the 
Kings  of  Europe,"  "Now  York  in  Slices,"  "Three  Gifts,"  "Two  Dukes." 
"  Magic  Horse,"  and  several  laughable  pieces  for  the  negro  minstrel  stage. 


and  European  dramatic  authors.  The  scenery  and  all 
the  stage  appointments  were  the  finest  ever  wit- 
nessed in  Brooklyn.  The  opening  play  was  'William 
Tell,'  with  Gabriel  Harrison  as  'Tell.'  The  characters 
were  well  cast,  and  the  performance  excellent  through- 
out. Perhaps  the  organization  will  be  able  to  accom- 
plish its  main  object  in  trying  to  create  a  taste  for  the 
drama  in  Brooklyn.'' 

1854. — About  the  only  thing  of  any  note  in  the 
way  of  the  drama  that  was  done  in  this  year,  was  a 
benefit,  given  by  the  members  of  the  "  Dramatic  Acad- 
emy," for  the  widows  and  orphans  of  the  firemen  who 
lost  their  lives  at  what  was  called  the  "Jennings 
Fire  "  in  New  York.  The  result  yielded  several  hun- 
dred dollars. 

1855. — -The  Howards  took  the  old  Brooklyn 
3Iuseum,  and.  prodiiced  "Uncle  Tom's  Cabin,"  with 
little  Cordelia  Howard,  the  original  Bva,  and  Mrs. 
Howard,  the  original  Topsy,  in  the  cast.  It  had  a  suc- 
cessful twelve  nights'  run. 

After  a  few  weeks'  absence,  the  Howards  reappeared 
at  the  Museum  in  "The  Lamplighter,"  with  little 
Cordelia  as  the  attractive  feature  of  the  play.  The 
drama  in  Brooklyn  was  now  dead  in  almost  every  par- 
ticular. In  1856-'57  and  '58,  there  were  some  few  at- 
tempts at  the  drama  on  the  little  stage  of  the  Brooklyn 
Athenseum.  The  only  prominent  dramatic  feature 
that  occurred  there,  was  on  February  2d,  1858,  when 
Mrs.  Frances  Ann  Kemble  read  to  a  select  but  small 
audience  Shakespeare's  "  Cymbeline."  On  the  4th  of 
February,  she  read  "  Richard  III,"  and  on  the  6th, 
"  Henry  VIII."  On  the  last  two  nights  the  audience  im- 
proved in  numbers,  and  well  they  might,  or  Brooklyn 
be  eternally  disgraced  for  the  want  of  sufficient  intelli- 
gence to  appreciate  this  woman's  remarkable  genius. 

The  Brooklyn  Academy  of  Music- 
Brooklyn  now  was  growing  rapidly,  and  many  of  its 
citizens  who  did  not  like  going  to  New  York  to  seek 
dramatic  entertainment,  began  to  talk  about  the  want  of 
a  first-class  building  in  Brooklyn,  where  the  opera  and 
the  drama  could  both  be  performed.  The  writer,  in  con- 
junction with  Judge  Greenwood,  Alden  J.  Spooner, 
and  a  few  others  interested  in  the  progress  of  the  drama 
and  music  in  Brooklyn,  called  a  meeting  at  the  old 
Museum  (which  had  now  changed  its  name  to  that  of 
Music  Hall)  for  the  purpose  of  securing  the  erectiou  of 
an  Academy  of  Music. 

The  idea  met  with  general  approval.  Several  other 
meetings  were  called,  and  finally,  on  the  evening  of  Oc- 
tober 22d,  1858,  about  fifty  of  the  first  citizens  of  Brook- 
lyn attended  a  public  meeting  to  consider  the  necessity 
of  a  first-class  building  for  opera  and  concert  purposes. 
Mr.  Whitehouse  was  called  to  the  chair.  Mr.  A.  A. 
Low  and  several  other  gentlemen  made  strong  speeches 
in  favor  of  amusements  in  Brooklyn,  and  Judge  Green- 
wood offered  the  following  resolution  : 


THE  DRAMA,    OPERA,    MUSIC  AND  ART. 


Resolved,  That  the  time  has  come  when  the  citizens  of  this 
rapidly  growing  city  should  have  a  building  where  they  can  ob- 
tain the  benefits  to  be  derived  from  innocent  and  instructive 
amusements.  And  instead  of  being  obliged,  as  they  now  are,  to 
go  beyond  the  bounds  of  their  own  city  for  such  purposes,  a 
building  should  be  immediately  erected  of  sufficient  capacity  to 
accommodate  the  largest  audience  which  will  likely  be  drawn 
together. 

Other  resolutions  provided  for  a  joint  stock  corpora- 
tion, with  a  capital  of  $300,000,  whereon  Mr.  A.  A. 
Low,  Edward  Whitehouse,  Luther  B.  Wyman,  S.  B. 
Chittenden,  Judge  Greenwood,  A.  M.  White,  H.  E. 
Pierrepont,  E.  D.  Plympton,  J.  Carson  Brevoort  and 
others  were  appointed  as  a  committee  to  make  definite 
plans  for  the  object.  On  the  19th  of  March,  1859,  the 
act  of  coiporation  was  passed,  authorizing  a  capital  of 
$150,000,  with  power  to  increase  the  sum  to  $200,000  ; 
the  stock  to  be  held  in  shares  of  $50  each,  with  an 
inducement  offered  that  each  subscriber  to  the  amount 
of  ten  shares  should  have  free  admission  to  all  enter- 
tainments without  the  right  to  reserved  seats.  Among 
the  largest  subscribers  were  A.  A.  Low,  S.  B.  Chitten- 
den, Thomas  Hunt  and  H.  E.  Pierrepont.  In  a  few 
weeks  the  desired  amount  was  obtained  ;  and  on  May 
the  18th,  1859,  the  following  gentlemen  were  appointed 
the  Building  Committee  :  A.  A.  Low,  S.  B.  Chitten- 
den, G.  P.  Thomas,  H.  E.  Pierrepont,  Luther  B.  Wy- 
mau,  Arthur  W.  Benson,  and  E.  I.  Lowber.  Mr.  Eidlitz 
was  selected  as  the  architect,  John  French  mason,  I. 
lleeves  carpenter,  and  H.  W.  Calyo  scenic  artist. 
The  work  of  excavation  commenced  on  October  6th, 
1859.  As  the  building  advanced,  the  stock  was  in- 
creased to  $200,000,  which  proved  to  be  the  full  cost  of 
the  edifice  when  completed,  allowing  it  to  start  free  of 
debt,  a  fact  seldom  occurring  in  the  erection  of  an 
opera-house. 

1861.— The  Academy  of  Music  was  duly  inaugu- 
rated by  a  grand  concert  on  Tuesday  evening,  Janu- 
ary 15th,  and  a  ball  on  Thursday  evening,  January 
17th.  On  the  opening  night,  Mr.  S.  B.  Chittenden,  at 
that  time  President  of  the  Board  of  Directors,  delivered 
an  address.  The  Committee  on  Entertainments  were 
Lnther  B.  Wyman,  S.  B.  Chittenden,  A.  Cooke  Hull, 
Judge  John  Greenwood,  W.  M.  Richards,  and  J.  W. 
Degrauw. 

Progkamme 

OF  THE  OPENING  ENTERTAINMENTS, 

Taesday  evening,  Jan.  15,  1861. 

Vocal  and  Instrumental  Concert,  under  the  direction  of  3Ir. 

Theo.  Mxfeld,  conductor. 

The  Committee  of  Arrangements  take  pleasure  in  stating  that 

the  services  of  the  following  eminent  artists  have  been  secured  ; 

Madame  Colson Soprano. 

Signor  Brignoli Tenor. 

' '         Ferri Baritone. 

"         Susini Basso. 

Signor  Muzio,  conductor  of  the  vocal  part. 
Jos.    Noll,   leader  of  the  full  and  complete  orchestra  of  the 
Philharmonic  Society. 
(2) 


Pakt  I. 

Overture— "  Dei-  Preischutz Weber 

Quartette  de  "  /  ParUani,"—"  A  te  Cara  amor  Focoso" 

Madame  Colson,  Brignoli,  Feeki  and  Colletti. 

Aria  de  "  Don  Giovanni  "— "Madamina" Mozart 

Signor  Colletti. 

Belerode,    "  Vespers  Siclliennes" Verdi 

Madame  Colson. 

Duetto   de  "  Don  Pasquale"—E  rimasto  impietrato" 

Madame  Colson,  Brignoli,  Ferei  and  Colletti. 

Part  II. 

Overture— "(?«aaunie  Tell" Eossini 

Duetto  de  "  Don  Giovanni"—"  La  ci  darem  la  mano Mozart 

Madame  Colson  and  Ferei. 

Eomanza  de  "Martha." Floton 

Signor  Brignoll 

Chanson  a  vere  de  "  Manon  L'Escant" Auber 

Madame  Colson. 

Eomanza  de  ' '  Ernani." Verdi 

Signor  Ferei. 

Gran  Finale  de  '■  Lucia." Donizetti 

Madame  Colson,  Brignoli,  Ferei  and  Colletti. 

Duetto  de  "  Belissario"  "  Liberi  Siete" , Donizetti 

Beignoli  and  Ferri. 

"  ScUlkr  March." Meyerbeer 

Second  Entertainment. 
Ihursday  evening,  January  17,   1861. 
A  Grand  Promenade  and  Ball. 
Tickets  of  admission  for  both  evenings,  $5.00. 
Eeserved  seats  to  the  concert  without  extra  charge. 

The  concert  gave  perfect  satisfaction  to  the  audience. 
Although  the  night  was  disagreeable,  yet  the  house 
was  filled  to  overflowing.  At  the  close  of  the  first 
overture  the  drop  curtain,  representing  the  "Temple 
of  Apollo,"was  slowly  let  down  to  the  stage,  in  front  of 
the  crimson  one,  wheii  of  a  sudden  the  full  force  of  over 
a  thousand  jets  of  gas  was  turned  on,  producing  almost 
an  electric  effect ;  illuminating,  as  it  did,  the  fine  ef- 
fort of  the  artist,  and  revealing  more  definitely  the 
splendid  proportions  of  the  house. 

The  Academy  of  Music  fronts  on  Montague  street,  250  feet 
long,  running  parallel  with  the  street,  and  92  feet  wide.  There 
are  seven  entrances  on  Montague  street.  The  main  entrance  is 
at  the  west  end,  towards  Clinton  street.  The  vestibule  which 
leads  into  the  theatre  proper  is  spacious,  and  decorated  in  the 
same  style  as  the  interior,  which  is  a  sort  of  cross  between  the 
Turkish  and  Gothic,  done  in  stencil,  with  the  coloring  sombre 
of  brown  and  low  key  yellows,  not  wholly  appropriate  to  a  build- 
ing of  its  nature.  There  are  three  entrances  Irom  the  vestibule  to 
the  lobby  that  forms  itself  around  the  auditorium.  To  the  left 
and  right  are  two  stairways,  seven  feet  wide,  one  leads  to  the 
gallery  and  the  other  to  the  dress  circle.  There  are  five  en- 
trances from  the  lobby  to  the  parquette,  which  contains  425  arm 

chairs. 

The  balcony  around  the  parquette  seats  460,  and  dress  cir- 
cle about  the  same  number  ;  while  the  gallery  contains  room 
enough  to  make  the  seating  of  the  house  number  2,300.  There 
are  six  large  proscenium  boxes,  several  private  rooms  for  the 
directors  of  the  building,  and  a  large  assembly  room  over  the 
vestibule.  The  stage  of  this  building  is  its  finest  feature,  and 
in  size  is  almost  equal  to  Drury  Lane  or  Covent  Garden  Thea- 
tres London.  The  width  is  90  feet,  depth  86  feet.  The  open- 
ing between  the  proscenium  is  55  feet,  with  a  height  of  over  60 
feet,  while  the  accommodations  of  stage-traps,  green-room,  and 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


dressing-rooms  are  every  ample  for  all  purposes  connected 
wtth  drama  or  opera.  The  wholo  building  is  a  solid  and  fine 
piece  of  masonry,  and  for  its  object  has  not  its  superior  in  the 
cauntry  ;  and,  whatever  may  be  its  faults  as  to  interior  coloring, 
still  it  reflects  the  highest  credit  on  all  concerned  with  its  incep- 
tion and  completion. 

When  this  building  was  first  opened,  it  was  intend- 
ed that  the  drama  should  not  enter  within  its  "sacred 
walls,"  but  that  opera,  concerts  and  balls  would  fully 
occupy  its  stage  and  floor.  This,  however,  proved  to 
be  a  great  mistake  ;  operas,  concerts  and  balls  were  not 
so  plentiful,  or  in  sufficient  demand  to  give  continuous 
support  to  the  building.  Besides,  a  large  and  highly 
respectable  proportion  of  the  public  desired  the  drama, 
and  demanded  it.  Several  of  the  best  managers  of  New 
York  had  made  application  for  the  building  for  a  large 
number  of  nights,  but  their  applications  had  been  re- 
fused, on  the  ground  that  the  building  was  not  intend- 
ed for  dramatic  purposes  ;  while,  at  the  same  time,  it 
had  every  facility  in  scenery,  etc.,  for  opera  or  drama- 
tic performances.  It  was,  in  fact,  a  first-class  theatre. 
Finally,  the  people's  voice  for  the  drama  was  so  strong 
and  the  applications  of  managers  so  numerous  that 
the  matter  forced  itself  before  the  Board  of  Directors, 
and  a  committee  was  appointed,  consisting  of  Judge 
Greenwood,  E.  R.  Raymond  and  Mr.  Lambert,  to  de- 
cide whether  the  drama  should  be  admitted  into  the 
building.  To  their  honor  and  enlightenment  be  it 
said,  they  reported  favorably,  and  saved  the  city  of 
Brooklyn  from  a  lasting  stigma  that  would  have  dis- 
graced the  bigotry  of  the  most  stupid  Puritan.  It  was 
not  long  before  the  utterances  of  the  great  dramatists 
resounded  amid  the  pillars  and  archways  of  this  fine 
temple.  The  celebrated  Hackett  and  Edwin  Forrest 
were  the  first  applicants  to  introduce  the  drama  into 
the  Academy  of  Music.  These  gentlemen  had  been  re- 
fused, while  the  Board  of  Directors  allowed  a  "  horse- 
trainer,"  by  the  name  of  JoJin  S.  Rarey,  to  disgrace  the 
building.  However,  prejudice  soon  hung  her  head  in 
shame.and  the  tragic  and  the  comic  muse,  as  developed 
by  the  genius  of  a  Shakespeare  and  a  Sheridan,  a  John- 
son, a  Garrick,  and  a  Siddons,  were  then  accorded  their 
proper  place  within  the  walls  of  this  splendid  edifice, 
and  did  more  for  its  maintenance  and  success  than 
anything  else  that  occurred  there. 

The  first  performance  after  the  opening  of  the  build- 
ing was  given  by  the  Brooklyn  Philharmonic  Society, 
on  Saturday  evening,  Jan.  10th ;  after  this  many 
operas  and  concerts  followed  in  rapid  succession,  which 
will  be  particularized  in  our  chapter  upon  the  His- 
tory of  Music  in  Brooklyn. 

Brooklyn  at  this  time  had  nearly  400,000  inhabi- 
tants and,  was  still  withouta  permanently  open  theatre. 
This  is  unprecedented  in  the  histories  of  cities  of  the 
same  size  throughout  the  civilized  world.  Yet,  from 
the  fact  of  the  opening  of  the  Academy  of  Music,  we 
shall  find  the  space  at  our  command  crowded  with  a 
larger  number  of  performances  than  hitherto;  and  can 


notice  only  those  entertainments  which  were  of  a  superior 
character;  minor  concerts  and  dramatic  performances 
can  find  no  record  here.  The  beginning  of  the  dramatic 
history  of  any  city  showing  its  struggles  for  advance- 
ment and  recognition,  is  far  more  important  and  inter- 
esting than  its  history  after  it  has  obtained  a  proper  basis. 
The  following  is  acopy  of  the  bill  of  the  inauguration 
of  the  drama  in  the  Academy: 

BROOKLYN  ACADEMY  OF  MUSIC. 
Lesee Henry  C.  Jarrett. 

First  Drmnalic  Peiformatice 

ever  given  in  this  building  will  take  place  on 

Monday  Evening,  December  23d,  1861. 

When  will  be  presented  Shakespeare's  great  Tragedy  of 

"  Hamlet." 

Hamlet,  Prince  of  Denmark MJr.  E.  L.  Davenport 

TJie   Ghost  of  Hamlet's  Father Mr.  J.  W.  Wallace 

Polonius Mr.  Mark  Smith 

Laertes Mr.   J.  H.  Allen 

Horatio Mr.  Henry   Langdon 

First    Gravedigger Mr.    T.   Placide 

Gertrude,  Queen  of  Denmark Mrs.  J.  W.  Wallack 

Ophelia Mrs.   .Julia  Bennett  Barrow 

King Mr.    Kingsland 

Osrick ....Mr.  H.   G.  Clark 

Bernardo Mr.   Matthews 

Francisco Mr.  Proctor 

Actress Miss  Gimber 

Rosencrantz Mr.  Ferguson 

Guildenstein Mr.  Van   Deering 

First  Actor Mr.   Livingston 

Marcellus Mr.   Garland 

Second  Gravedigger Mr.    J.  Sefton 

Prices  of  Admission. 

Secured  seats  in  Parquette  and  Balcony $1.00. 

Balcony,  Parquette,  and  Dress  Circle 50c. 

Family  Circle 25c. 

The  piece  was  well  placed  upon  the  stage  and  well 
performed.  Davenport  and  Wallack  were  fine  in  their 
respective  parts.  The  house  was  crowded  in  every 
part. 

The   Second    Dramatic    Performance 

took  place  on  Tuesday,  December  24th,  on  which  oc- 
casion Sheridan's  great  comedy  of  The  School  for 
Scandal  was  performed,  with  the  following  cast: 

Joseph  Surfaee,  Mr.  J.  W.  Wallack  ;  Charles  Surface,  Mr.  E.  L. 
Davenport ;  Sir  Peter  Teazel,  Mr.  Mark  Smith  ;  Sir  Oliver  Surface, 
Mr.  George  H.  Andrews  ;  Orahtree,  Mr.  Thomas  Placide  ;  Sir 
Benjamin  Backbite,  Mr.  J.  H.  Allen  ;  Careless,  Mr.  Langdon  ; 
Moses,  Mr.  J.  O.  Sefton  ;  [Ladij  Teazel,  Mrs.  J.  B.  Barrow  ;  Mrs. 
Candow,  Mrs.  Brougham  ;  Lady  Sneerwell,  Miss  Irving  ;  Maria, 
Miss  Gimber. 

Ttttrti  Dramatic  Night. — Wednesday,  December  25th,  1861, 
Shakespeare's  tragedy  ot  "Othello,"  with  the  following  cast:  Othello, 
Mr.  E.  L.  Davenport  ;  lago,  Mr.  J.  W.  Wallack  ;  Brabantio,  Mr. 
Mark  Smith  ;  Gassio,  Mr.  J.  H.  Allen  ;  Montana,  Mr.  H.  Lang- 
don; Emelia,  Mrs.  J.  W.  Wallack;  Desdemona,  Mrs.  Julia  B. 
Barrow;  Boderigo,  Mr.  J.  O.  Sefton  ;  Duke  of  Venice,  Mr.  Kings- 
land  ;  Gratiano,  Mi.  Ferguson;  Ludouico,  Mr.  Van  Deering; 
Julio,  Mr.  Matthews  ;  Messenger,  Mr.  Garland. 

The  fourth  performance  was  that  of  London  Assurance ;  the 
fifth  that  of  Damon  ami  Pythias,  concluding  with  the  comedy  of 
the  Honey-moon. 


THE  DRAMA,   OPERA,  MUSIC  AND  ART. 


These  performances  were  great  successes.  Nothing 
further  of  dramatic  importance  occurred  at  the  Aca- 
demy of  Music  in  the  first  season  of  its  existence. 

1862. — Mr.  James  W.  Nixon,  manager,  presented 
the  celebrated  tragedian  Mr.  Edivin  Forrest,  for  eight 
nights,  at  the  Academy  of  Music,  with  new  scenery, 
etc. 

Mr.  Forrest's  first  appearance  here  was  on  Monday, 
February  10th,  1862,  as  King  Zear,  supported  by  John 
McCullongh  as  Edgar,  Miss  Athena  as  Cordelia,  Mad. 
Ponisi  as  Goneril,  and  Mrs.  N.  K.  Forrester  as 
Regan.  The  tragedywas  remarkably  well  placed 
upon  the  stage.  Mr.  J.  R.  Smith,  one  of  the  best 
scenic  artists  in  America  at  the  time,  painted 
several  new  scenes  for  the  piece  ;  and,  indeed,  it 
was  the  first  time  that  any  effort  had  been  made 
to  place  a  performance  on  the  Academy  stage 
with  suflBcieut  attention  to  make  it  worthy  of  public 
remark.  The  house  on  this  occasion  was  crowded  in 
every  part,  and  the  reception  which  the  grand  actor 
received  must  have  been  even  highly  satisfactory  to 
him,  who  had  so  often  stood  before  crowded  audiences 
in  the  largest  theatres  iu  the  world.  On  Wednesday, 
Feb.  12,  he  played  in  Jack  Cade,  supported  by  the 
same  company,  and  with  new  and  appropiate  scenery, 
by  J.  R.  Smith ;  on  Thursday,  February  13,  in  Vir- 
ginius;  on  Friday,  February  14,  in  Richelieu;  on 
Monday,  February  17,  as  Damon  in  Damon  atid  Py- 
thias; on  Wednesday,  February  19,  in  Metamora, 
(never  before  performed  in  Brooklyn),  with  new 
scenery,  etc.;  on  Thursday,  February  20  as  Spartacus 
in  The  Gladiator;  on  Friday  evening,  February 
21,  he  had  a  benefit,  on  which  occasion  he  appeared 
in  the  tragedy  of  Hamlet.  During  Mr.  Forrest's  en- 
gagement the  price  of  admission  was  50c.,  reserved 
seats  50c.  extra. 

Other  combinations  soon  followed,  with  such  stars  as 
John  Gilbert,  John  E.  Owens,  Lester  Wallack,  Miss 
Bateman,  Matilda  Heron,  Hackett  as  Falstaff,  etc., 
etc.  Tuesday,  Dec.  23,  Mr.  Edwin  Booth  appeared 
for  three  nights,  as  Richelieu,  Sir  Edward  Mortimer, 
and  Shylock. 

After  these  performances  followed  all  the  best  drama- 
tic combinations  and  stars.  Mr.  Lester  Wallack  fre- 
quently brought  over  his  company  from  New  York, 
and  presented  tlie  old  Euglish  comedies  with  the  full 
strength  of  his  company.  Joseph  Jefferson  performed 
his  great  cliaracter  of  Rip  Van  Winkle  many  times 
to  crowded  houses.  Miss  Charlotte  Cushman  played 
Queen  Catherine,  Meg  Merrilies,  and  Lady  Macbeth 
with  great  success.  Laura  Keeue  frequently  brought 
over  her  Olympic  company. 

The  Celebration  of  the  300th  Birthday  of 
Shakespeare,  1864.— On  April  23d,  1864,  a  "com- 
plimentary testimonial"  was  given  to  Gabriel  Harrison, 
under  tlie  auspices  of  the  members  of  the  Long  Island 
Historical  Society.   The  date  of  23d  of  April  happening 


to  l)e  tiie  three  hundredth  anniversary  of  Shakespeare's 
birtliday,  Mr.  Harrison  turned  the  occasion  into  a  cele- 
bration of  the  Bard's  birthday,  and,  in  order  to  make 
the  occasion  befitting,  produced  a  series  of  tableaux  vi- 
vants,  illustrating  scenes  from  Shakespeare's  principal 
plays.  The  groupings  contained  over  one  hundred 
personsin  costume.  Between  the  play  and  the  tableaux, 
Sprague's  great  ode  to  Shakespeare  was  read  by  Miss 
Ellen  Grey,  in  the  character  of  Melpomene.  The 
evening's  entertainment  commenced,  for  the  first  time 
in  Brooklyn,  with  Shakespeare's  five-act  comedy  of  the 
Twefth  Night,  with  the  following  cast :  Viola,  Mrs.  Con- 
way; Malvolio,  Mr.  Conway;  Duke  Orsino,  Mr.  J. 
Duff;  Sir  Toby  Belch,  Mr.  A.  Vincent ;  Sir  Andrew 
Aguecheek,  Mr.  C.  W.  Lewis;  Clown,  Mr.  H.  Hawks; 
Antonio,  Mr.  T.  H.  Dow;  Sebastian,  Mr.  H.  S.  Mur- 
dock  ;  Fabian,  Mr.  T.  Duncan  ;  Valentine,  Miss  Bur- 
nett; Roberto,  Mr.  Wilkes;  Friar,  Mr.  Perry;  Olivia, 
Miss  E.  King ;  Maria,  Miss  Mowbray. 

1863,  like  1861,  will  stand  out  in  bold  relief  in 
the  history  and  progress  of  the  Drama  in  the  City  of 
Brooklyn.  Even  the  inauguration  of  the  Academy  of 
Music  had  not  yet  satisfied  the  people,  or  given  them  a 
temple  devoted  to  the  Drama  solely,  where  they  could 
nightly  gather  for  the  enjoyment  of  rational  amuse- 
ment. The  performances  at  the  Academy  were  but 
occasional,  and,  frequently,  the  prices  too  high  to  suit 
all  classes.  Besides,  the  jjlace  became  the  resort  of  the 
fashionable,  who  vied  with  each  other  in  the  display  of 
dress,  which  was  the  means  of  shutting  out  a  large 
number  of  highly  intellectual  people,  who  could  not 
afford  the  display  of  silks  and  velvets,  or  roll  in  fine 
carriages  to  the  Opera,  Grand  Concerts,  or  the  Drama. 
The  public,  however,  by  the  opening  of  the  Academy 
of  Music,  had  been  awakened  to  the  desire  for  the 
Drama,  and  had  tasted  from  the  magic  goblet  of  the 
tragic  muse,  as  presented  by  the  great  Forrest,  with 
his  magnificent  figure,  voice,  passion  and  pathos ;  or 
Matilda  Heron,  in  her  wonderful  rendering  of  Camille, 
with  her  tender  and  mysteriously  sympathetic  depths 
of  human  nature,  and  whose  mantle  as  an  artist  was  fit 
to  adorn  the  shoulders  of  a  Rachel.  Miss  Bateman, 
too,  had  touched  the  hearts  of  young  lovers  of  both 
sexes  by  her  charming  personification  of  Juliet ;  while 
Falstaff,  as  rendered  by  Hackett,  cracked  the  sides  of 
his  audience  by  his  unctuously  told  lies.  Indeed,  a 
new  spirit  was  infused  in  the  people  for  a  theatre 
proper  in  the  city,  and  not  a  building  devoted  to  all 
kinds  of  entertainments.  In  1862  the  upper  part  of 
the  building  at  the  corner  of  Court  and  Remson  streets 
was  fitted  up  in  the  form  of  a  theatre,  and  opened  as 

Hooley's  Opera  House,  and  was  devoted 

wholly  to  negro  minstrel  exhibitions.  This  place  be- 
came a  success  at  the  start,  and  acted  as  another  incent- 
ive for  a  theatre.  The  writer,  who  was  always  anxious 
to  have  a  theatre  in  Brooklyn,  appreciated  these  fiicts, 
at  once  called  on  Buckley  T.  Benton,  Esq.,  who  was 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


filially  induced  to  build  a  tlieatre.  On  the  1st  of 
May,  1863,  the  foundation  for  the  building  was  com- 
menced. The  writer  at  once  became  an  applicant, 
among;  many  others,  for  the  lesseeship,  and  accom- 
plished his  object  at  a  rental  of  $6,500  per  year. 

The  Park  Tlieatre  Opened.— On  Monday 

evening,  September  14th,  1863,  the  first  regularly 
established  Theatre  was  opened  in  the  City  of  Brook- 
lyn. The  writer  named  it  the  "  Park  Theatre,"  after 
the  old  Park  Theatre  of  New  York,  for  many  years  the 
honored  temple  of  the  Drama  in  this  country. 

The  location  of  the  theatre  is  on  Fulton  street,  directly  oppo- 
site the  City  Hall.  The  front  is  of  Xora  Scotia  stone,  presenting 
a  handsome  elevation  of  60  feet,  with  a  width  of  56  feet.  The 
entrance  is  in  the  centre  of  this  building,  while  the  theatre  ex- 
extends  110  feet  along  Adams  street.  The  auditorium  has  a 
parquette  and  a  dress  circle,  or  gallery.  The  theatre  seated 
1,200  people.  Mr.  Gabriel  Harrison  here  introduced,  for  the  first 
time  in  any  theatre,  what  he  termed  "sunken  footlights,"  so  that 
the  front  edge  of  the  stage  was  not  interrupted  by  the  scolloped 
tins,  which  usually  prevented  a  full  sight  of  the  actors'  feet.  This 
was  an  innovation  that  was  soon  followed  by  almost  every  theatre 
in  the  country.  The  ceiling  was  handsomely  frescoed  with  the 
representation  of  the  patron-muses  ;  and,  instead  of  the  usual 
brackets  and  globes  of  light  projecting  out  from  the  side  walls, 
perplexing  the  sight,  a  large  corrugated  reflector  hung  from  the 
ceiling,  imparting  a  mellowness  of  light  that  was  perfectly 
agreeable  to  the  sight.  The  stage  was  GO  feet  broad  by  31  feet 
deep.  There  were  two  private  boxes,  and  the  whole  theatre  had 
a  bright  and  pleasing  effect. 

The  object  of  the  manager  was  to  conduct  the 
theatre  on  the  most  refined  principles,  with  a  stock 
company  of  excellent  artists  for  the  performance  of 
light  and  pleasing  comedies,  dramas,  and  musical 
pieces  of  every  character.  The  following  is  the  bill  for 
the  opening  night: 

PARK  THE.4TRE. 
Fulton  Street,  opposite  City  Hall. 

Lessee  and  Managek Grabriel  Harrison. 

Stage  Manager Mr.  B.  A.  Baker. 

Scenic  Aetist Mr.  George  Tirrell. 

Mr.   Gabriel  Harrison 

Respectfully  informs  the  public  that  this  New  and  Elegant 

Theatre  will  open  for  the 

REGUL.1B  Season 

On  Monday  evening,  September  14th,  1863,  with  a  first-class 
company,  consisting  of  the  following  ladies  and  gentlemen  : 

Miss  Henrietta  Irving From  the  Western  Theatre. 

Miss  Mary  Shaw From  the  Baltimore  Theatre. 

Miss  E.  Couren From  the  Boston  Theatre. 

Miss  E.  Burnett From  Niblo's  Garden. 

Madam  Pozzoni From  the  St.  Louis  Theatre. 

Mrs.  Tyrell From  Laura  Keene's  Theatre. 

Miss  Curtis,  Miss  Singleton  and  Miss  Norton. 

Mr.  George  H.  Andrews From  the  Old  Park  Theatre,  N.  Y. 

Mr.  Delmon  Grace From  Winter  Garden,  N.Y. 

Mr.  George  Metkiff From  Walnut  Street,  Philadelphia. 

Mr.  Walter  Lennox From  Laura  Keene's,  N.  Y. 

Mr.  T.  C.  Gonilay From  Niblo's  Garden,  N.  Y- 

Mr.  George  Rea,  Mr.  S.  Florence,  Mr.  H.  Flood,  and  Mr.  B.  A. 

Baker Of  the  Old  Olympic,  N.  Y. 

Together  -r  ith  a  numerous  Corps  de  Ballet. 

On  this  occasion  will  be  presented  Buckstone's  excellent 
Comedy,  in  three  acts,  entitled 


"  3Iarried  Life." 

Mr.  Coddle Mr.  George  H.  Andrews. 

Mrs.  Coddle Miss  H.  Irving. 

Mr.  Dore Mr.  Walter  Lennox. 

Mrs.  Dore Miss  Mary  Shaw. 

Mr.  Lionel  Lynx Mr.  Delmon  Grace. 

Mrs.  Lionel  Lynx Miss  E.  Couran. 

Mr.  Younghusband   Mr.  Metkiff. 

Mrs.  Younghusband .^ Miss  Burnett. 

Mr.  Dismal Mr.  Gourlay . 

Mrs.  Dismal Mrs.  Tyrell. 

To  conclude  with  the  musical  farce  of 
"  The  Loan  of  a  Looer." 

Peter  Spyke Mr.  Walter  Lennox. 

Captain  Amesfort Mr.  Metkiff. 

Swezsell Mr.  Gourlay. 

Delve Mr.  Rea. 

Gertrude  (with  song) Miss  Mary  Shaw. 

Ernestine Miss  Burnett. 

Orchestra,  of  26  performers,  under  the  leadership  of  John  M. 
Loretz,  Jr. 

Price  of  Admission. 

Private  Boxes $5.00 

Orchestra  Chairs 1.00 

Parquette 75 

Balcony 50 

Family  Circle 25 

No  Extra  Charge  for  Reserved  Seats. 

The  theatre  was  packed  from  parquette  to  gallery. 
The  following  expression  of  the  success  of  the  opening 
we  take  from  the  New  York  Times : 

"The  charming  little  theatre,  the  first  attempt  of  our  sister 
city  in  the  dramatic  line  proper,  was  opened  last  night  to  the 
fullest  house  we  have  ever  seen.  Long  before  the  rise  of  the 
curtain,  the  cheerful  placard  of  '  standing  room  only '  was 
placed  conspicuously  at  the  door,  and  hundreds  were  compelled 
to  go  away  disappointed.  We  have  already  given  a  detailed  de- 
scription of  the  house,  which  for  neatness  and  elegance  of  finish, 
is  a  credit  to  the  city  and  an  exception  even  in  the  long  list  of 
metropolitan  theatres.  The  bill  for  the  first  night  included 
' Married  Life  '  and 'The  Loan  of  a  Lover.'  The  company  in- 
cludes several  well-known  names,  prominent  among  which  are  : 
Mr.  G.  H.  Andrews,  "  Old  Park,"  favorite,  and  Miss  Mary  Shaw, 
sister  to  Mrs.  Hoey  and  Mrs.  Watkins.  It  would  not  be  fair  to 
criticise  closely  the  initial  performance  of  an  opening  night, 
and  yet  it  affords  us  pleasure  to  state  that  Mr.  Harrison's  cast, 
scenery  and  appointments  are  by  no  means  inferior  even  to 
those  which  at  Wallack's  last  season  we  so  pleasantly  remem- 
ber. Mr.  Tirrell's  scenes  are  worthy  of  special  commendation, 
ranking  far  above  those  of  ordinary  establishments,  and  worthy 
really  to  be  examined  as  works  of  art.  After  the  first  piece,  Mr. 
Harrison,  who  was  loudly  called  for,  made  a  neat  and  telling 
speech,  thanking  the  audience  for  their  generous  patronage  and 
promising  to  do  all  in  his  power  to  deserve  a  continuance  of 
public  favor.  The  orchestra,  under  the  direction  of  Mr.  Loretz, 
Jr.,  was  well  balanced,  plastic,  and  practically  useful." 

The  house  was  well  filled  night  after  night  to  wit- 
ness such  pieces  as  "  The  Soldier's  Daughter,"  "  Beauty 
and  the  Beast,"  "John  of  Paris,"  "  Sketches  in  India," 
and  such  light  pieces.  On  Monday  night,  November 
16th,  the  style  of  the  performance  was  changed  to  a 
heavier  class  of  plays,  in  which  the  manager,  Gabriel 
Harrison,  appeared  as  Julieu  St.  Pierre  in  Sheridan 
Knowles'  tragedy  of  "The  Wife,"  in  which  he  was  sup- 
ported by  Miss  Irving  as  Marianne,  with  the  rest  of 


THE  DRAMA,   OPERA,  MUSIC  AND  ART. 


1117 


the  cast  filled  out  to  the  best  ability  of  the  company. 
It  is  always  an  unpleasant  task  to  write  in  the  personal 
pronoun  I,  even  when  used  with  the  greatest  modesty, 
but  as  the  matter  is  one  of  history,  the  writer  shall 
allude  to  himself  as  if  speaking  of  another  person.  On 
Mr.  Harrison's  first  appearance,  the  house  was  crowded 
in  every  part,  and  he  met  with  such  a  success  as  an 
actor  that  he  performed  the  one  character  for  a  whole 
week.  The  second  week  he  performed  the  character  of 
"  Claud  Melnotte  "  in  "The  Lady  of  Lyons;"  third 
week,  "  Carwin  "  in  the  drama  of  "Therese  ;"  fourth 
week,  in  the  drama  of  "  The  Impostor."  This  was  the 
first  production  of  a  Brooklyn  dramatist  on  a  Brooklyn 
stage.  It  was  a  translation  from  the  French,  made  by 
John  J.  Kyan,  one  of  the  editors  of  the  New  York 
Herald,  and  adapted  to  the  stage  by  Gabriel  Harrison. 
This  drama  had  a  run  for  ten  nights,  and  was  with- 
drawn on  account  of  the  illness  of  Mr.  Harrison. 

Tlie  New  Tork  BecaH remarked  that  "Mr.  Harrison  conceived 
and  acted  his  characters  with  great  power.  He  has  a  nervous 
manner  and  an  excellent  voice,  which  he  manages  well.  Per- 
fectly at  ease  on  the  stage,  he  is  also  utterly  without  the  aifected 
poses,  exits  and  other  traditional  nonsense  of  the  profession, 
and  is  a  valuable  addition  to  our  list  of  actors." 

The  Neiv  Yorlc  World  endorsed  the  above  in  saying: 

"  Mr.  Gabriel  Harrison  has  a  firm  appreciation  of  stage  art. 
He  has  a  capital  presence,  enunciates  finely,  and  furnishes 
throiighout  excellent  reading  of  his  text.  His  actions  are  ani- 
mated, easy  and  natural,  and  in  some  scenes  he  is  surpassingly 
fine.  There  is  a  taste  and  a  gentlemanliness  in  all  that  he 
does." 

These  remarks  of  the  press  were  more  than  gratify- 
ing to  the  writer.  Success  and  fortune  seemed  to  be 
extending  their  hands,  but  sunshine  can  be  obscured  in 
the  brightest  day.  Mr.  John  J.  Kyan,  of  the  Herald,  and 
several  other  highly  cultured  gentlemen,  suggested  that 
Mr.  Harrison  should  introduce  the  English  Opera  upon 
the  boards  of  his  theatre.  The  idea  seemed  a  good  one, 
and  Mr.  Harrison  immediately  organized  an  English 
opera  troupe. 

1864:. — After  some  three  weeks'  preparation  of 
new  scenery,  dresses,  &c.,  &c.,  at  an  expense  of  nearly 
$3,000,  he  announced  the  engagement  of  Mad.  Compte 
Borchard,  of  the  Italian  opera,  as  sorprano,  Mr.  Wil- 
liam Castle  as  tenor,  Mr.  S.  C.  Campbell,  baritone,  and 
Mr.  Theodore  Thomas  as  leader  of  the  orchestra. 
Castle  and  Campbell  were  members  at  the  time  of  a 
minstrel  troupe,  and  had  never  before  performed  in 
opera.  The  orchestra  had  thirty  in  number,  and  the 
chorus  thirty-seven  picked  voices. 

Monday  evening,  January  4th,  1864,  was  presented  Balfe's 
opera,  in  four  acts,  entitled  the  Bohemian  Girl,  with  the  following 
cast,  viz:  Arline,  Mad.  Compte  Bochard  ;  Gypsie  Queen,  Miss 
Mary  Shaw;  Thaddeus  (his  first  appearance  in  opera),  Mr.  W. 
Castle  ;  Count  Arnheim  (his  first  appearance  in  opera),  Mr.  S.  C. 
Campbell ;  DevUshoof,  Mr.  Geo.  Kea  ;  Fiorsiein,  Mr.  Pike ; 
(iiptain  of  the  Guard,  Mr.  Florence  ;  Tambourine  Dance,  Miss 
Jennie  Gourley  ;  Conductor,  Mr,  Theodore  Thomas  ;  Master  of 
Chorus,  Mr.  Metzler.     New  scenery,  dresses,  &o.,  &o. 


The  houses  were  crowded  for  a  few  nights,  and  al- 
though the  press  of  New  York  and  Brooklyn  spoke  of 
the  performance  in  the  highest  terms,  still,  with  the 
extraordinary  expenses  of  the  two  companies,  the  man- 
ager found  it  impossible  after  a  few  months'  struggle  to 
keep  his  theatre  open  any  longer.  The  operas  of 
"  Maritani,"  "The  Bohemian  Girl,"  and  "Era  Diav- 
olo  "  had  been  placed  upon  the  stage  in  the  best  pos- 
sible style  to  uo  other  effect  than  the  ruin  of  the 
manager;  and,  in  the  latter  part  of  February,  18G4, 
Mr.  Harrison  retired  from  the  management  of  the  Park 
Theatre.  The  house  was  then  let  out  to  Miss  Fanny 
Herring,  who  performed  for  a  week;  after  her  Mr. 
Hackett  had  the  house  for  a  week,  and  the  theatre 
changed  hands  till  April  2d,  when  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Con- 
way became  the  lessees,  and  opened  with  the  play  of 
Ingomar,  themselves  taking  the  parts  of  Ingomar  and 
Parthenia.  They  met  with  some  success.  Their  sum- 
mer season,  as  they  called  it,  lasted  nineteen  nights, 
when  they  closed  the  theatre  until  the  3d  of  Septem- 
ber, on  which  occasion  they  re-opened  the  Park  Theatre 
with  the  comedy  of  "School  for  Scandal"  to  a  full 
house,  with  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Conway  performing  the 
leading  characters.  The  first  season  of  Mr.  Conway's 
management  was  a  struggle,  but  by  hard  work  and  ex- 
cellent management  (with  an  occasional  introduction 
of  stars)  the  theatre  became  a  marked  success.  At  the 
time  they  took  the  theatre,  the  great  Rebellion  was 
over,  and  the  people  of  the  North  flushed  with  victory, 
and  an  immense  amount  of  money,  put  into  circulation 
by  the  paying  off  of  thousands  of  troops,  gave  the 
masses  means  for  enjoyment,  and  all  kinds  of  places  of 
amusement  gathered  in  rich  harvests. 

The  Brooklyn  Theatre.— The  Con  ways  ex- 
tended their  ambition,  and  after  several  years  of 
brilliant  success  in  the  little  Park  Theatre,  they  felt 
that  they  must  have  a  larger  one.  Upon  their 
application,  Judge  McCue,  Messrs.  Kingsley  and 
Keeney  purchased  the  old  St.  John's  Church  projierty 
on  the  southeast  corner  of  Washington  and  Johnston 
streets,  and  at  once  began  the  erection  of  a  fine  theatre. 
It  had  a  width  of  seventy  feet  on  Johnston  street  and 
one  hundred  and  twenty-eight  feet  deep,  parallel  with 
Washington  street,  with  the  entrance  to  the  auditorium 
on  the  extreme  south  end  on  Washington  street.  This 
entrance  was  28  feet  wide  by  40  feet  deep.  The  face  of 
the  building  was  constructed  of  Philadelphia  brick  with 
brown  stone  trimmings,  with  no  pretension  to  arch- 
itectural beauty.  The  auditorium  was  well  arranged 
and  the  decorations  were  of  the  richest  description.  It 
was  equal  in  this  respect  to  any  of  the  finest  theatres  in 
New  York  City. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  F.  B.  Conway  were  the  lessees,  and  the  doors  of 
the  Brooklyn  Theatre  were  open  for  the  first  time  on  October  2d, 
1871,  with  Lord  Lytton's  admirable  character  comedy  of  Money, 
with  the  following  distribution  of  characters:  Alfred  Evelyn, 
Mr.   Frank  Eoche  ;*    Sir  John  Vesey,  Mr.  F.  Chippendale  ;  Mr. 


1118 


mSTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Graves,  Mr.  E.  Lamb  ;  Sir  Fredrick  Blount,  Mr.  M.  A.  Ken- 
nedy ;•  Captain  Dudley  Smooth,  Mr.  K.  0.  White  ;*  Mr.  David 
Stout,  Mr.  G.  C.  Charles  ;*  Lord  Rosemore,  Mr.  C.  Loveday  ;* 
Old  Member,  Mr.  George  Spear  ;*  Sharp,  Mr.  J.  Mackay  ;  Ser- 
vaiU,  Mr.  F.  Edwards  ;  Toke,  Mr.  A.  S.  Wright ;  Clara  Douglas, 
Miss  Ella  Burns  ;*  Lady  Franklin,  Mrs.  Farren  ;*  Oeorgiana 
Vesey,  Miss  5Iaud  Ernest.*  Prior  to  the  comedy,  an  opening 
address,  written  by  Mr.  John  Brougham,  was  delivered  by  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  F.  B.  Conway,  and  at  the  rising  of  the  curtain  the 
national  ode  of  the  "  Star  Spangled  Banner  "  was  sung  by  the 
entire  company. 

The  house  was  crowded  with  a  brilliant  audience, 
and  the  future  of  the  theatre  promised  prosi^erity;  but 
the  Conways  lost  during  their  management,  up  to  1875, 
over  $12,000.  After  the  deaths  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Con- 
way, which  occurred  within  one  year  of  each  other,  in 
1874:  and  1875,  their  daughters  managed  the  theatre 
for  a  short  time,  but  not  successfully. 

No  two  dramatic  artists  were  ever  connected  with 
the  history  of  the  drama  in  Brooklyn  more  deserving 
of  a  biographical  notice  than  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Conway. 

For  years  they  worked  night  and  day  for  the  ad- 
vancement ot  the  drama  and  the  pleasure  of  the  peo- 
ple, and  we  deeply  regret  that  our  limited  space  will 
not  allow  us  to  do  them  justice  in  full  detail. 

Fredekick  Baktlett  Conway  was  born  in  Clifton,  England, 
February  10,  1819,  and  was  at  the  time  of  his  death  55  years  of 
age.  His  father— known  in  dramatic  history  as  the  Elder  Conway 
—was  an  actor  of  eminence,  one  of  the  proud  names  that  adorn 
the  British  stage.  Frederick,  a  lad  of  unusual  promise,  was  en- 
tered at  Oxford  at  an  early  age,  in  the  expectation  that  he 
would  adopt  the  clerical  profession.  The  histrionic  instinct  of 
his  race  was  strong  within  him,  however,  and  would  not  con- 
form  itself  to  the  vocation  selected  for  him.  He  broke  away, 
and  went  upon  the  stage  as  soon  as  his  majority  was  attained. 
With  that  quick,  manly  intelligence  and  artistic  impulse 
which  were  among  the  distinguishing  features  of  his  subsequent 
career,  his  advancement  was  exceptionally  rapid,  and  at  the 
age  of  24  he  had  become  one  of  the  favorite  impersonators  of 
"leading  juvenile"  characters  in  his  native  country.  He  was 
judged  competent  to  sustain  opposite  parts  to  the  brightest  stars 
of  the  theatrical  firmament,  and  the  record  shows  that  his  pri- 
vate life  was  one  of  moderation,  modest  and  manful  persever- 
ance, and  the  closest  attention  to  the  study  of  an  art  he  held  in 
proiound  reverence.  His  fame  grew  steadily,  and  when,  in 
1851,  he  accompanied  the  eminent  comedian,  Mr.  William  Dav- 
idge,  to  America,  Mr.  Conway  found  that  his  good  name  had 
preceded  him.  His  welcome  in  this  country  was  prompt  and 
cordial,  and  he  at  once  took  high  rank  among  the  most  capable 
and  erudite  members  of  his  profession.  His  first  appearance  in 
America  was  made  at  the  Broadway  Theatre,  New  York,  where 
he  performed  Charles  Surface  in  the  "School  for  Scandal." 

About  this  time  Mr.  Conway  formed  the  acquaintance  of  a 
briUiant  young  actress  just  then  ascending  to  fame.  Miss  Sarah 
Crocker.  The  acquaintance,  promoted  by  an  enthusiastic  devo- 
votion  to  a  common  art-purpose,  speedily  developed  a  tenderer 
feeling,  and  the  beautiful  and  talented  young  artiste  soon  be- 
came Mrs.  Conway.  It  was  a  brilliant  and  prosperous  alliance 
of  hearts,  animated  by  the  generous  impulse  that  leads  to  renown 
—devotion  to  each  other  and  to  their  art.  Mr.  Conway  was 
one  of  the  most  pains-taking  and  sympathetic  artists  that  ever 
supported  a  star  actor.  His  admirable  support  of  Edwin  For- 
rest for  over  one  hundred  nights  at  the  Broadway  Theatre,  New 
York,  met  with  the  full  endorsement  of  the  press.     Mr.  Forrest 


•  First  appearance. 


was  one  of  those  artists  whose  keen,  good  judgment  and  great 
heart  always  raised  him  above  the  pettiness  of  attempting  to  add 
to  his  own  lustre  by  the  aid  of  colorless  surroundings.  That 
great  actor  knew— as  every  truly  great  actor  always  knows — that 
he  shone  best  when  his  support  was  most  competent  and  intel- 
ligent; and  the  writer  takes  great  pleasure  in  stating,  that  two 
years  previous  to  Mr.  Conway's  death,  while  taking  Thanksgiv- 
ing dinner  with  the  great  tragedian,  at  his  residence  in  Broad 
street,  Philadelphia,  Mr.  Forrest  remarked  "  that  he  never  in 
his  life,  as  a  star  actor,  here  or  in  Europe,  met  with  a  more  able 
supporter,  a  more  genial  gentleman,  or  a  more  thorough  dra- 
matic scholar  than  Mr.  Conway,"  and  this  was  perfectly  true.  At 
the  time  of  his  first  appearance  in  this  country,  at  the  Broadway 
Theatre,  in  conjunction  with  Mr.  Davidge,  on  the  19th  of 
August  of  that  year,  when  the  Broadway  Theatre  was  reopened 
by  Marshall,  with  Mr.  G.  Barrett  as  stage  manager,  the  initial 
performance  was  "  The  School  for  Scandal"  ;  Mr.  Conway  play- 
ing the  part  of  Cliarles  Surface.  During  the  season  he  essayed 
the  characters  of  Hamlet,  Macbeth,  Othello,  Claude  Melnotte, 
Captain  Absolute,  and  Doricourt,  in  all  of  which  he  was  emi- 
nently successful.  Tragedy  and  light  comedy  were  equally  con- 
genial to  him,  and  he  soon  became  an  established  favorite. 
He  also  appeared  in  "The  Stranger,"  with  Miss  Charlotte  Cush- 
man  as  Mrs.  Haller,  and  in  "The  Husband  of  My  Heart," 
as  the  Count  de  Fromsac.  In  the  intervals  of  their  engagements, 
Mr.  Conway,  with  his  wife,  made  extended  "  starring  tours," 
visiting  the  principal  cities  of  the  East,  West,  and  South,  and 
meeting  with  favorable  receptions  wherever  they  played.  Ad- 
mirable as  Mr.  Conway  was  as  a  "  star,"  his  greatest  reputation 
was  achieved  while  supporting  Edwin  Forrest,  and  though  en- 
dowed by  nature  and  gifted  in  a  remarkable  degree,  the  secret  of 
Mr.  Conway's  success  rested  in  his  pains-taking  conscientious- 
ness; with  him  whatever  was  worth  doing  at  all,  was  worth 
doing  well.  His  motto  maybe  said  to  have  been,  "Whatever 
thy  hand  findeth  to  do,  do  it  with  all  thy  might."  His  por- 
trayal of  the  character  of  Jacques  was  a  very  fine  performance. 
His  Elgar,  in  "Lear,"  was  unapproachable.  His  Rolando,  in 
"The  Honeymoon,"  as  a  piece  of  epigrammatic  acting,  if  it 
might  be  so  termed,  was  the  best  that  has  ever  been  seen  on  the 
American  stage,  and  was  only  equaled  by  his  representation  of 
Pytliias,  in  '  Damon  and  Pythias."  A  favorite  character  with 
him  was  Malvolio,  in  "The  Twelfth  Night."  In  all  the  attri- 
butes which  form  the  gentleman,  the  actor,  and  the  scholar,  Mr. 
Conway  was  the  peer  of  the  brilliant  galaxy  with  whom  he  was 
contemporary.  His  social  qualities  endeared  him  to  a  large  cir- 
cle of  friends  and  admirers,  who  all  felt  alike  the  loss  of  Fred- 
erick B.  Conway. 

He  died  Sept.  7th,  1874,  in  Manchester,  Mass.,  whither  he  had 
gone  in  quest  of  health  and  strength.  Mr.  Conway  had  been 
in  ill-health  for  nearly  three  years  previously.  His  funeral  took 
place,  Thursday,  Sept.  10th,  from  the  Church  of  the  "Savior." 
The  Eev.  Mr.  Nye  preached  the  funeral  sermon,  and  over  a 
thousand  people  attended  the  service.  He  was  buried  amid 
the  quiet  and  leafy  intervals  of  Greenwood,  and  his  death  was 
sincerely  felt  by  thousands  of  citizens.  The  Edwin  Forrest  Club, 
of  New  Y'ork,  of  which  he  was  a  member,  took  appropriate  action 
in  regard  to  the  loss  which  the  dramatic  profession  had  sustained 
in  the  death  of  this  excellent  artist. 

Mrs.  F.  B.  Conway,  before  meeting  and  marrying  Mr.  Con- 
way, was  known  as  Miss  Sarah  G.  Crocker.  She  was  born  in 
Litchfield,  Conn.,  and  was  the  daughter  of  Kev.  Mr.  Crocker,  an 
Episcopalian  minister  of  that  place.  At  two  years  of  age,  the 
family  moved  to  New  York.  In  this  city  she  imbibed  a  taste 
for  theatricals,  and  at  the  age  of  fifteen  she  entered  the  profes- 
sion of  which  a  sister  had  already  become  a  member.  It  is 
quite  a  coincidence  that  her  first  appearance  upon  any  stage 
was  made  in  this  city,  although  not  a  resident.  This  appearance 
was  made  in  the  theatre  attached  to  Du  Flon's  Military  Garden, 
already  alluded  to.  Whether  this  first  appearance  was  successful, 


THE  DRAMA,    OPERA,  MUSIC  AND  ART. 


1119 


and  whether  she  manifested  the  abilities  which  have  since  won 
her  a  distinguished  place  in  the  American  drama,  the  records 
say  not,  and  the  lady  herself  was  too  modest  to  tell.  It  is  jjre- 
Bumed,  however,  that  she  was  appreciated,  for  she  remained  the 
season  out.  From  thence  she  went  to  Baltimore,  Maryland,  and 
became  a  member  of  the  company  of  which  Mr.  John  E.  Owens, 
the  distinguished  comedian,  was  the  manager. 

Severing  her  connection  with  this  company,  the  lady  joined 
Purdy's  National  Theatre,  in  Chatam  street.  New  York,  then  in 
its  glory,  in  1850.  Playing  here  one  season,  she  is  next  found 
upon  the  boards  of  the  Broadway  Theatre,  where  she  met  Mr. 
Conway,  whom  she  married  during  the  engagement.  The  next 
season,  that  ol  18.52,  she  joined  J.  W.  Wallack's  company,  taking 
the  position  of  leading  lady,  made  vacant  by  the  defection  of 
Miss  Laura  Keene.  The  company  at  Wallack's  at  this  time  was 
one  of  the  best  gathered  under  his  distinguished  management. 
The  cast  of  "  Much  Ado  About  Nothing"  will  give  the  best  idea 
of  the  ability  of  his  company,  and  we  here  present  it :  J.  W. 
Wallack,  Jr.,  Benedick;  Lester  Wallack,  Pedro;  Jno.  Dyott, 
Chiudio ;  F.  Chippendale,  Antonio ;  W.  R.  Blake,  Dogherry;  Chas. 
Hale,   Venjes ;  Mrs.  F.  B.  Conway,  Beatrice;  Mrs.  Hale,  Hero. 

In  this  play  Mrs.  Conway  fairly  divided  the  honors  of  the 
evening  with  Mr.  Wallack.  Here  she  remained,  a  great  favorite 
with  the  critical  audiences  of  this  theatre,  for  one  season,  and 
then  Mr.  William  Wheatly,  having  conceived  the  idea  of  build- 
ing up  a  Wallack's  in  Philadelphia,  leased  the  Arch  Street 
Theatre,  and  engaged  Mr.  and  Mrs.  F.  B.  Conway  as  members. 
The  company  was  exceeding  strong,  and  was  noted  for  the  abil- 
ity of  the  ladies,  and  Mrs.  Conway  was  the  leading  lady.  The 
company  comprised  the  names  of  Mrs.  Conway,  Mrs.  D.  P. 
Bowers,  Mrs.  John  Drew,  Miss  Caroline  Eichings,  Mrs.  Anna 
Cowell,  then  known  as  Miss  Cruise,  Mr.  Conway,  Mr.  H.  Perry, 
Mr.  George  Boniface,  Mr.  E.  F.  Keach,  Mr.  John  and  Frank 
Drew,  and  Mr.  John  E.  Owens.  The  company  separated  at  the 
conclusion  of  the  season,  and  the  subject  of  our  sketch  with 
her  husband  joined  the  fortunes  of  the  Walnut  Street  Theatre. 
At  the  conclusion  of  this  season,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Conway  set  out 
upon  a  starring  tour.  For  ten  years  they  traveled  up  and 
down  the  country,  considered  by  managers  among  the  most 
remunerative  stars  then  before  the  public.  They  added  to  their 
fame  and  fortune,  but  the  romance  of  traveling  soon  wears  out, 
and  ten  years  showed  them  the  vanity  of  wide  spread  fame. 
They  finally  came  to  Brooklyn,  took  the  management  of  the  Park 
Theatre,  opening  on  a  rainy  night  to  a  small  house,  on  April  '2d, 
18G4.  The  first  season  was  gloomy  in  its  prospects  and  very  un- 
profitable, but  pluck,  perseverance,  ability,  and  managerial  tact 
made  the  Park  Theatre  a  success,  and  brought  them  wealth .  The 
funeral  of  Mrs.  Conway  took  place  from  the  same  church  as  did 
her  husband's.  She  died  April  28th,  1874,  forty-two  years  old. 
Her  remains  were  deposited  in  Greenwood,  by  the  side  of  her 
husband. 

And  so,  within  the  little  space  of  one  year,  these  two  busy 
people  of  the  drama,  who  looked  forward  to  wealth  and  dramatic 
triumphs,  were  put  to  silence  by  that  inscrutable  power  as  against 
which  we  are  nothing. 

After  the  daughters  gave  up  the  theatre,  it  was  next 
leased  to  Mr.  Theodore  Moss,  of  Wallack's  Theatre, 
but,  Mr.  Wallack  refusing  to  lend  his  name  to  the  en- 
terprise, Mr.  Moss  forfeited  what  he  had  paid,  and  for 
a  time 'the  theatre  went  begging  until  1875,  when 
Messrs.  Shook  and  Palmer,  of  the  Union  Square 
Theatre,  New  York,  became  the  lessees,  and  continued 
to  run  it  as  a  branch  of  their  New  York  establishment, 
performing  all  of  their  most  attractive  stars  and  pieces, 
with  but  partial  success.  Under  these  managers  oc- 
curred the  most  frightful  calamity  that  ever  took  place 
in  the  history  of  the  drama. 


The  Burning  of  the  Brooklyn  Theatre, 

on  Tuesday  night,  December  5th,  1876. 

The  flames  were  first  seen  creeping  along  one  of  the  flies  on 
the  left-hand  side  of  the  stage,  and  in  less  than  two  minutes  all 
the  drapery  was  in  flames,  and  forked  tongues  of  the  devouring 
element   could  be   seen   creeping   along   through   the  canvas  of 
which  the  roof  of  the  scenic  cabin  was    composed.     Such  scenes 
of  terror  on  the  part  of  a  panic-stricken   audience  and  of  cool 
perseverance  and  courage  on  the  part  of  a  few  others — the  actors 
on  the  stage— have  rarely,  if  ever  before,  been  chronicled,  either 
in  this  or  any  other   city.     The  curtain  had  risen  on  the  last  act 
of  the   drama  of  "The  Two  Orphans."  Miss  Kate   Claxton,  who 
was  acting  the  part  of  Louise,  the  blind   girl,  lay  on  her  pallet  of 
straw  on  the  left-hand  side  of  the  stage,the  scene  being  the  boat- 
house  on  the  river,  the  home  of  La  Frocliard.    Near  stood  Mrs. 
Mary  Ann    Farren,  La  Frocliard.     Mr.   J.    E.  Studley,  who   was 
acting  the   part  of  Jacques   Pi-ochard,  and   Mr.  H.  S.  Murdock, 
Pierre,  the   cripple.     Miss  Claxton  had  already  heard  it  whis- 
pered behind   the  scenes  that  the  theatre  was   on  fire,  but  even 
though   she   could   see  the   flames   directly  over  her,  with   rare 
presence  of  mind  and    courage,  she  went  on   with  the  perform- 
ance of  her  part,  as  did  her  companions,  not  one  of  them  betray- 
ing  by   look   nor  word   the  agitation  felt   by   all.     The   flames 
spread   rapidly,  however,  and  when  the  appalling  fact  could  no 
longer  be  kept  from  the   audience— for  some  of  those  in  the  or- 
chestra chairs  had  already  discovered  it  and  were  starting  up  in 
their  seats— the  actors,  with  one  accord  in  beseeching  tones,  called 
upon  them  for  "  God's  sake  to  disperse  quietly."  Some  person  in 
the  audience  shouted  that  the  theatre  was  on  fire,  and  the  alarm- 
ing cry  of   "Fire  !  Fire  !"  was  caught  up  by  those  in  the  family 
circle  and  the  gallery,  until  it  was  echoed  and  re-echoed  from  pit 
to  dome.    Those  of  the  audience  who  could  retain  their  presence 
of  mind,  in  response  to  the  advice  of  the  actors,  resumed  their 
seats,  but  it  was  only  for  a  few  seconds,  and  then  began  an  in- 
discriminate  rush   for  the   doors.     The  books  of  the   box-office 
show  that  there  were  seated  in  the  theatre  over  one  thousand 
persons,  two  hundred  and  fifty  of  whom  were  seated  in  the  par- 
quet and  orchestra,  three  hundred  and  fifty  in  the  dress  circle, 
and  four  hundred  and  five  in  the  upper  gallery.     Within  three 
minutes  after  the  discovery  of  the  fire,  this   mass  of  human  be- 
ings was  clambering  over  the  seats  and  over  each   other,  in  their 
frantic   endeavors  to   reach  the  exits.     The  entrances  and  cor- 
ridors to  the  lower  part  of  the  house,  which   lead  out   to  Wash- 
ington street,  were  by  no  means  commodious,  but  nevertheless 
the  crush  in  them  was  small  compared  with  that  at  the  exit  from 
the  upper  gallery.     When  the  worst   became  known,  the  ushers 
acted  nobly  and   endeavored  to  quiet  the  terrified  people,  their 
chief,   Mr.   Thomas  Kochford,  going  down  to  and  opening  the 
door  leading  out  from  the  auditorium  to  Flood's  alley,  in  the  rear 
of  the  theatre.     This  door  afforded  a  means  of  escape  for  many 
who  might  otherwise  have  lost  their  lives,  and  in  a  very  short 
time  nearly  every  person  who  had  been  seated  in  the  lower  part 
of  the  house  had  reached  the  street  in  safety. 

This,  however,  was  but  the  beginning  of  the  end,  for  black 
volumes  of  smoke  began  to  roll  from  the  burning  scenery  of  the 
stage  into  the  body  of  the  house,  almost  totally  shutting  off  the 
light  of  the  gas,  and  depriving  those  in  the  house,  for  a  few  mo- 
ments at  least,  of  air  to  breathe.  The  scene  at  this  moment  was 
one  which  beggars  description.  The  actors  had  rushed  from  the 
stage  to  save  themselves,  and  having  managed  to  escape  the 
clutches  of  the  flames,  met  again  in  the  street  in  their  stage  cos- 
tumes and  congratulated  one  another.  The  unfortunate  and 
terrified  people  in  the  dress-circle  and  gallery  were  rushing 
pell-mell  toward  the  one  door  which  gave  egress  from  each,  and 
through  which  only  two  or  three  persons  could  pass  at  one  time. 
The  house  was  filled  with  smoke,  and  the  air  was  almost  stifling. 
Men  shouted  and  rudely  jostled  delicate  women  in  their  efforts 
to  reach  the  doors.  Strong  men  shed  tears,  and  women  and 
boys  screamed  with  fright,  a  large  number  fainting  away  and 


1120 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


being  trampled  under  foot  by  the  rushing  mass.  Thus  far  the 
audience  had  seen  very  little  flame,  but  the  stage  entrances  and 
the  scene  doors  having  opened,  a  strong  current  of  air  was  let 
into  the  rear  of  the  building,  which  drove  the  flames  out  from 
the  stage-enclosure,  and  as  they  licked  up  everything  in  their 
path,  the  whole  interior  of  the  building  was  lighted  up  with  the 
lurid  glare.  Many  of  the  unfortunate  people  who  had,  up  till  this 
time,  preserved  their  equilibrium,  now  broke  forth  with  heart- 
rending cries  for  help.  A  few  there  were  among  this  mass  of 
terrified  and  struggling  humanity  who  made  noble  endeavors  to 
prevent  their  unknown  companions  from  crushing  one  another  to 
death,  but  fell  suffocated  under  the  feet  of  those  whose  lives  they 
were  endeavoring  to  save.  The  flames  roared  and  crackled  as 
they  rushed  upward  toward  the  dome,  and  the  hot,  blinding  and 
suffocating  smoke  poured  down  mercilessly  on  the  poor  unfor- 
tunates, whose  efforts  already  showed  signs  of  weakening.  All 
this,  it  must  be  remembered,  was  only  the  work  of  a  few  min- 
utes, and  still  the  devouring  flames  mounted  higher  and  higher. 
Three  alarms  had  been  rung  in  quick  succession,  and  the  en- 
gines could  be  heard  nearing  the  vicinity.  The  streets  were 
£lled  with  a  throng  of  excited  people,  who  ran  hither  and  thither, 
calling  aloud  the  names  of  dear  ones,  whose  voices  could  not  be 
heard  in  answer.  Many  were  hatless  and  coatless,  their  garments 
having  been  torn  from  them  by  the  pushing  and  jostling  of  the 
crowd. 

The  police  of  the  First  Precinct,  under  the  command  of  Ser- 
geants Eason  and  Cain,  were  on  the  ground  within  three  minutes 
after  the  breaking  out  of  the  fire,  and  did  very  effective  work  in 
quieting  the  fears  of  the  populace.  These  gallant  men,  divest- 
ing themselves  of  their  outer  garments,  rushed  into  the  burning 
building  and,  pushing  their  way  on  beyond  the  main  corridor, 
ascended  the  stairs  leading  to  the  dress  circle,  and  assisted  a 
number  to  escape.  On  reaching  the  top  of  the  staircase,  how- 
ever, the  blinding  smoke  forced  them  to  retreat.  They  did  not 
give  up  the  gallant  fight,  however,  and  returned  again,  this  time 
ascending  the  stairs  leading  to  the  upper  gallery,  where  they 
found  a  mass  of  people,  and  were  compelled  to  use  their  clubs 
to  prevent  them  from  trampling  one  another  to  death.  Inside, 
meanwhile,  the  flames  made  rapid  progress,  and  had  forced  their 
way  through  the  roof,  which  had  become  one  sheet  of  seething 
flame.  The  cries  of  the  doomed  auditors  for  help  could  no 
longer  be  heard,  and  the  stream  of  people  that  had  hitherto 
poured  forth  from  the  burning  building  was  rapidly  diminish- 
ing. An  awful  hush  fell  over  the  multitude,  for  It  was  well 
known  that  there  were  still  hundreds  of  people  within  the  burn- 
ing structure.  These  victims,  in  their  terrible  haste  to  reach  the 
street,  became  wedged  together  in  a  short  turn  in  the  staircase, 
and  thus  prevented  those  from  behind  from  escaping.  Frantic 
in  their  terror,  those  in  the  rear  having  more  room  than  those 
ahead  of  them,  jostled  and  trampled  upon  one  another,  and  it  is 
thought  that  very  many  were  killed  in  this  way.  The  volume 
of  flame  which  issued  from  the  roof,  and  shot  upward  into  the 
air,  rapidly  increased,  and  soon  the  entire  upper  part  of  the 
building  was  one  lurid  sheet.  In  less  than  twenty  minutes  after 
the  sounding  of  the  first  alarm,  the  mansard  roof  fell  in  with  a 
crash,  carrying  with  it  to  the  cellar  both  the  upper  gallery  and 
the  dress  circle,  with  their  freight  of  human  beings.  By  this 
time  the  entire  Fire  Department  was  on  the  spot,  and  numerous 
streams  of  water  were  being  poured  into  the  burning  building 
and  upon  the  adjoining  houses,  to  which  the  efforts  of  the  fire- 
men were  directed,  in  the  hope  that  these,  at  least,  might  be 
saved.  Before  the  falling  of  the  roof,  some  of  the  inmates  en- 
deavored to  get  through  the  windows,  but  so  far  as  known,  only 
one  succeeded,  and  he  jumped  to  the  roof  of  the  station-house. 
Another,  who  was  immediately  behind  him,  only  succeeded  in 
catching  hold  of  the  sill  of  the  window,  when  the  smoke  and 
flame  forced  him  to  relax  his  hold,  and  he  fell  back  into  the 
burning  cauldron  beneath,  to  share  the  fate  of  those  who  had 
not  succeeded  in  getting  even  so  slight  a  chance  of  safety.     Soon 


the  major  portion  of  the  Johnson  street  or  southerly  wall  fell, 
crushing  beneath  it  a  brick  house  and  covering  the  street  with 
debris.  A  few  minutes  later,  the  easterly  wall  fell,  and  the 
Brooklyn  Theatre  was  a  heap  of  smouldering  ruins.  Some  of 
the  three  hundred  unfortunate  people  who  had  suffered  such  a 
terrible  death  might  even  now  have  been  left  in  a  condition  to 
be  recognized  by  their  friends,  but  the  gas  burnt  fiercely,  light- 
ing up  the  scene  and  sending  a  cloud  of  white  steam  into  the 
air.  Hardly  an  hour  had  elapsed  from  the  time  of  the  breaking 
out  of  the  fire  before  the  building  was  totally  demolished,  and  the 
flames  well  under  control.  Streams  of  water  were  kept  pouring 
upon  the  ruins  during  the  remainder  of  the  night,  and  it  was 
decided  that  at  daylight  the  search  for  the  missing  ones  should 
commence.  Mayor  Schroeder,  Commissioners  Jourdan  and 
Vyhun,  were  present  during  the  conflagration,  directing  the 
movements  of  their  subordinates. 

A  few  minutes  after  four  o'clock  in  the  morning,  they  reached 
the  boxotfice  and  found  the  first  body.  It  was  that  of  a  large 
woman,  and  was  lying  face  downward.  Even  at  that  hour  many  of 
the  most  experienced  firemen  were  of  the  opinion  no  great  num- 
ber of  persons  had  lost  their  lives.  A  few  hours  later,  however, 
when  daylight  began  to  break,  all  doubt  had  vanished,  and  the 
terrible  reality  was  revealed.  The  smoke  and  steam  were  still 
ascending  in  dense  vohimes,  but  an  occasional  puff  of  wind 
blew  aside  the  clouds,  and  the  horror-stricken  firemen  .saw  the 
bodies  of  the  dead  who  had  fallen  through  from  the  gallery  piled 
up  in  heaps.  Chief  Engineer  Nevins  at  once  assigned  a  com- 
pany of  firemen  to  remove  the  dead.  From  the  front  entrance 
on  Washington  street,  for  a  distance  of  about  thirty  feet, the  floor 
remained  unburned,  and  at  this  point  the  work  of  removing  the 
bodies  was  commenced,  and  they  were  piled  in  a  heap  in  the 
entrance-way.  Hardly  any  were  recognizable  except  by  their 
clothing.  At  this  time,  the  extent  of  the  calamity  was  not  fully 
known,  and  the  crowd  outside  could  be  numbered  by  hundreds. 
An  hoiar  later,  when  a  large  force  of  undertakers  had  arrived 
with  wagons,  and  the  bodies  began  to  be  removed  to  the  Morgue, 
the  excitement  knew  no  bounds.  The  police  force  was  doubled, 
but  for  a  time  it  seemed  as  if  the  excited  crowd  would  break 
down  all  barriers  and  rush  bodily  into  the  mined  theatre.  The 
half-burned  and  broken  glass  doors  were  pulled  partially  to- 
gether, and  a  group  of  sturdy  policemen  was  stationed  in  the 
gap,  with  orders  to  allow  no  person  to  enter.  This  course  en- 
abled the  firemen  to  pursue  their  dangerous  work  with  a  little 
less  peril  to  themselves. 

The  floor,  with  the  exception  of  the  liortion  just  inside  the 
entrance,  had  fallen  into  the  cellar,  and  it  was  at  this  point  most 
of  the  bodies  were  found.  The  second  bend  in  the  stairs  lead- 
ing to  the  top  gallery,  was  immediately  over  the  corridor.  When 
the  gallery  gave  way,  it  fell  into  the  cellar.  In  order  to  get  out 
the  bodies,  it  was  found  necessary  to  have  a  large  ladder,  the 
top  of  which  rested  at  the  entrance  to  the  corridor  on  the  ground 
floor  and  the  end  on  the  smoking  ruins.  The  rungs  were  hastily 
covered  with  boards  so  as  to  make  a  gangway  for  the  passage  of 
the  undertakers'  men.  For  hours  the  firemen  worked  down  in 
the  smoking  ruins,  amid  the  still  burning  beams  of  the  floor 
and  galleries.  A  stream  of  water  was  kept  constantly  playing  into 
the  cellar.  As  the  work  progressed  and  the  smoke  became  less 
dense,  the  undertakers'  cases  were  pushed  down  along  the  gang- 
way, and  the  bodies  placed  in  them  and  decently  covered  before 
being  taken  up.  Many  men  who  anxiously  strove  and  even 
fought  to  obtain  an  entrance,  turned  sick  when  they  had  looked 
once  on  the  ghastly  heap  of  the  dead.  Passing  down  into  the 
ruins  among  the  firemen,  the  sight  was  complelely  appalling. 
One's  powers  of  thought  and  speech  were  paralyzed.  Even  the 
firemen,  used  to  similar  scenes,  moved  about  awe-stricken  and 
silent  among  the  heap  of  dead,  pulling  aside  the  debris  wherever 
possible  with  their  hands,  without  resorting  to  the  implements 
of  their  craft.  In  one  place  the  bodies  of  twenty  persons,  most 
of  them  young  and  of  the  male  sex,  were  found  closely  wedged 


THE  DRAMA,    OPERA,   MUSIC  AND  ART. 


1121 


together,  lying  over  each  other  in  layers.  They  were  not  much 
burned,  but  so  blackeneil  and  bruised  as  to  be  beyond  recogni- 
tion. About  noon,  the  body  of  officer  Patrick  McKearon,  of  the 
Sanitary  Squad,  was  taken  from  the  ruins.  He  was  detailed  in 
the  gallery  of  the  theatre,  and  died  in  the  performance  of  his 
duty.  Bvit  of  the  four  hundred  persons  in  the  gallery,  not  more 
than  one  hundred  escaped.  The  stairway  was  very  narrow,  and 
had  a  tortuous  bend  just  over  the  entrance  to  the  main  corridor. 
At  seven  o'clock,  December  6th,  all  the  bodies  which  had  fallen 
through  this  passageway  when  the  gallery  gave  way,  had  not  been 
recovered. 

As  soon  as  it  became  too  dark  for  the  men  to  see  what  they 
were  about,  calcium  lights  were  procured  and  placed  at  different 
points  among  the  ruins,  and  with  their  light,  no  difficulty  was 
experienced  in  continuing  the  work.  In  order  to  give  moi'e 
light  at  the  entrance,  the  burner  of  a  street  lamp  on  Washington 
street,  directly  opposite,  was  broken  off,  and  the  heavy  stream  of 
gas  was  lighted.  It  gave  out  a  brilliant  flame  about  eighteen 
inches  high,  illuminating  the  street  from  one  end  of  the  block 
to  the  other.  The  flooring  of  the  lobby  of  the  theatre  was  the 
only  part  of  the  whole,  which  had  not  fallen  through,  and  on  the 
further  end  of  this  another  calcium  light  had  been  placed  in 
such  a  manner,  as  to  throw  its  rays  down  into  the  space  between 
the  side  wall  and  foundation  wall  of  the  partition,  dividing  the 
lobby  and  the  auditorium,  where  the  greater  number  of  the 
bodies  were  found.  On  the  east  side  of  the  ruins  a  third  cal- 
cium light  was  placed,  its  light  falling  directly  upon  the  anterior 
portion  of  the  auditorium,  where  a  large  number  of  ladies  were 
also  discovered.  About  a  quarter  past  seven  o'clock,  the  space 
between  the  side  wall  and  the  foundation  wall  of  the  lobby  par- 
tition above  mentioned,  was  completely  cleared,  and  the  labors 
of  the  firemen  were  directed  to  the  d6bris  in  the  auditorium. 
The  scene,  as  viewed  from  the  gap  in  the  main  wall  in  Johnson 
street,  was  singularly  weird.  The  bright  glare  of  the  lime-lights 
threw  the  broken  and  rugged  edges  of  the  walls  and  arches  into 
strong  relief,  and  the  black  and  grimy  figures  of  the  firemen,  as 
they  raised  the  bodies  and  bent  over  the  coffins,  was  a  scene 
long  to  be  remembered. 

The  scenes  at  the  Morgue  in  the  market  on  Washington  street, 
with  thousands  of  persons  viewing  the  charred  remains,  and 
identifying  the  bodies,  were  indescribable. 

As  the  bodies  were  taken  from  the  ruins  of  the  burned  theater, 
they  were  placed  in  undertakers'  wagons  and  ambulances  and 
conveyed  to  the  Market  House.  The  first  loads  of  fire-blackened 
and  disfigured  bodies  were  taken  to  the  City  Morgue  on  Wil- 
loughby  street  about  six  o'clock,  where  they  were  placed  in 
coffin-like  boxes,  kept  for  the  reception  of  the  hospital  dead. 
There  was  then  no  supposition  on  the  part  of  those  who  brought 
the  first  dreadful  load  of  dead,  that  there  was  to  be  so  great  a 
demand  upon  the  accommodations  of  the  Morgue  as  aftenvard 
proved  to  be  the  case.  But  another  and  another  load  followed 
quickly  upon  the  first,  until  more  than  eighty  bodies  had  been 
strewn  upon  the  marble  floors.  By  eight  o'clock,  every  spot  of 
available  space  had  been  occupied  by  the  charred  and  ghastly 
remains.  The  Morgue  has  but  one  dead-room  in  which  bodies 
are  usually  displayed  for  recognition,  but  the  entire  first  floor 
of  the  building  in  which  the  Morgue  is  situated,  was  devoted,  on 
this  occasion,  to  the  exhibition  of  its  horrible  occupants.  The 
crowds  that  collected  by  thousands  were  permitted  to  enter,  after 
satisfying  the  officers  on  duty  that  they  came  not  from  idle 
curiosity,  but  for  the  purpose  of  identifying,  if  possible,  missing 
relatives  or  friends.  Many  came  provided  with  passes,  but  some 
who  did  not  hold  them,  were  allowed  to  enter,  after  pleading 
with  tears  to  be  admitted. 

Tico  actors  stifled  and  burned  while  endeavoring  to  escape.  —At  the 
moment  when  the  fire  was  first  discovered,  Mr.  Murdock  was 
before  the  curtain  playing  with  Miss  Kate  Claxton.  As  soon  as 
the  panic  occurred  and  a  general  rush  was  made  to  escape,  Mr. 
Thrope,  the  stage  manager,  saw  Messrs.  Murdock  and  Bur- 
(3) 


roughs  rush  to  their  respective  dressing-rooms,  which  were 
on  the  same  side  of  the  stage,  immediately  in  the  rear  of  the 
upper  right-hand  box,  as  viewed  from  the  auditorium,  and  con- 
sequently furthest  from  the  stage-door.  The  dressing-rooms 
were  arranged  in  tiers,  approached  by  a  narrow  stairway,  which 
led  up  to  the  painter's  bridge  which  spans  the  stage.  Mr.  Mur- 
dock's*  room  was  on  the  second  tier,  and  Mr.  Burroughs'!  on  the 
third.  Changing  their  clothing,  their  stage-garments  being  very 
scanty,  and  collecting  wliat  valuables  they  could,  they  made  an 
effort  to  descend  together,  but  during  the  time  thus  occupied 
the  flames  had  made  such  headway,  that  when  they  made  their 
appearance,  the  stairway  was  one  sheet  of  flame.  All  chance  of 
escape  in  this  direction  was  now  cut  off,  an<l  the  unfortunate 
men  were  compelled  to  beat  a  hasty  retreat.  There  was  still  one 
chance  left— they  might  effect  their  escape  from  the  other  side 
of  the  bridge,  and  thither  they  hurried  ;  but  the  hungry  flames 
were  doing  their  work  here  also,  and  the  young  men  were  now 
surrounded  entirely  by  fire.  Alone  on  the  burning  bridge— cut 
off  from  all  aid— their  sufferings  must  have  been  intense. 
Whether  they  made  the  frightful  leap  into  the  burning  mass  be- 
neath them,  or  remained  upon  the  burning  bridge  until  the  last, 
meeting  their  fate  as  only  men  can,  will  never  be  known. 

*Mr.  Henry  S.  Murdock  was  engaged  in  the  cast  of  "The  Two  Orphans  " 
as  Pierre,  tlie  cripple,  and  was  the  sole  support  of  his  widowed  mother  and 
two  sisters.  Mr.  Murdock  was  born  in  Boston,  Aug.  6,  1845,  and  was  con- 
sequently in  the  thirty -second  year  of  his  age.  He  received  his  education  in 
Philadelphia,  and  made  his  debut  at  the  Arch  Street  Theatre  in  that  city,  in 
the  winter  of  1864.  During  the  season  of  1865  he  fulfilled  an  engagement 
at  the  Boston  Museum,  and  from  there  he  went  to  Cincinnati,  where  he 
performed  at  Pike's  Opera  House  until  its  destruction  by  fire  on  March  22. 
1866.  In  this  case  he  narrowly  escaped  with  his  life,  and  lost  his  entire 
wardrobe  in  the  fire.  He  next  went  to  San  Francisco,  where  he  played 
with  John  McCuUough  at  the  California  Theatre.  He  remained  there  two 
years,  1867-8.  He  then  performed  short  engagements  at  Washington,  Balti- 
more, St.  Louis  and  Pittsburgh.  In  1872-3  he  played  at  the  Arch  Street 
Theatre,  Philadelphia,  under  the  management  of  Mrs.  John  Drew,  taking 
the  parts  of  "  Fop  smA  Walking  Gentleman."  and  upon  one  or  two  occasions 
played  leading  parts.  The  season  of  1873-4  he  spent  in  Chicago,  and  acted 
at  Hooley's  Theatre,  under  the  management  of  Mr.  Fred.  Williams,  of  Bos- 
ton. He  resigned  his  position  before  the  close  of  the  season,  to  support 
Miss  Clara  Morris  at  the  Academy  of  Music  in  the  same  city,  then  under  the 
management  of  Mr.  C.  R.  CJardner.  During  his  engagement  with  Miss 
Morris  he  made  a  decided  hit  as  Armande,  in  the  play  of  "  CamiUe."  At  the 
conclusion  of  his  engagement  in  Chicago  he  returned  to  Boston,  where  be 
remained  one  season,  atter  which  he  commenced  his  engagement  with 
Messrs.  Shook  &  Palmer,  when  he  played  the  part  of  Sandy  Morton,  in  the 
play  of  "Two  Ali  n  of  Sandy  Bar,"  at  the  Union  Square  Theaire,  New  York 
City.  From  there  he  went  to  the  Brooklyn  Theatre,  on  October  9,  1876.  Mr. 
Murdock,  whose  real  name  was  Hitchcock,  was  a  nephew  of  Mr.  James  E. 
Murdock,  >h.^  eminent  tragedian,  and  a  brother  of  Frank  Murdock,  the 
author  of  Javid  Crockett."  He  had  a  brother  in  New  Orleans,  also  an 
actor,  whose  stage  .  -  me  was  William  Wallace.  Mr.  Murdock  was  an  ac- 
complisheii  .'"a  educated  gentleman,  and  a  rising  actor.  During  his  en- 
gageme'-,'  :■:  "  jston,  he  played  such  characters  as  Charles  Middlewiek,  in  the 
play  ci  ir  Boys,"  and  Harry    Spreadbear,  in  "Sweethearts."    He  gave 

much  outiSfaction  in  Brooklyn  in  his  interpretation  of  Eustace  in  "Con- 
science," Charles  Surface  in  "  School  for  Scandal,"  and  was  giving  a  good 
rendition  oi Pierre,  the  cripple,  in  the  "  Two  Orphans,"  at  the  time  of  the 
fire.  He  was  a  [r-^d  vocalist,  and  an  amateur  artist.  He  had  been  suffering 
from  sciatica  I  ome  time,  and  the  malady  'had  given  him  considerable 
pain,  during  the  six  weeks  previous  to  his  death,  causing  him  to  limp 
painfully  at  times,  Te  occupied  apartments  at  53  Concord  street,  Brook- 
lyn, where  his  unc:   ,  .vir.  Henry  Murdock,  resided. 

t  Mr.  Claude  Bukrough-'  made  his  first  appearance  on  the  stage  at  the 
Winter  Garden,  New  Yor':  •';•>  ',•■'  1866,  playing  in  "Hamlet"  with  Edwin 
Booth.  At  the  conclusion  of  his  engagement  with  Mr  Stuart,  who  was  then 
managing  the  'Winter  Garden,  he  came  to  Brooklyn,  where  he  played  light 
comedy  parts  in  the  Park  Theatre,  then  uml.-v  Airs.  Conway's  management. 
Upon  the  opening  of  the  Union  Square  Theaii't-  New  York  City,  by  Messrs. 
Shook  &  Palmer,  Mr.  Burroughs  was  engaged  to  pl.'>  'i^ht  parts.  His  first 
appearance  at  that  theatre  was  as  a  Reporter  in  "Agues,"  the  first  piece  pro- 
duced in  the  house,  and  he  had  been  in  the  cast  of  nearly  every  play  produced 
there.  Upon  a  few  occasions,  when  not  playing  in  New  York,  he  accepted 
engagements  in  Brooklyn.  He  was  the  Fop  in  "  Athcrly  Court,"  the  Fop  in 
"Jane  Eyre,"  Maxime  in  "Ferrol,"  and  a  very  clever  representative  of 
Talbot  Champneys  in  "Our  Boys."  At  the  time  of  his  death  he  was  playing 
Picard.  the  valet,  in  the  "Two  Orphans."  He  was  but  twenty-six  years  old, 
and  unmarried. 


1122 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


The  bodies  of  the  two  actors  were  found  together,  and  it  was 
apparent  that  they  had  died  at  the  same  time— perhaps  when 
the  Johnson  street  wall  of  the  theatre  fell,  thereby  depriving  the 
stage  of  its  support. 

Fortunately  all  the  ladies  engaged  in  the  second  and  previous 
act  had  left  the  theatre  as  soon  as  they  had  performed  their 
parts,  and  so  escaped  any  danger. 

Action  of  the  Public  Authokities. — In  response  to  a  call  from 
Mayor  Schroeder,  a  special  meeting  of  the  Brooklyn  Board  of 
Aldermen  was  held  at  four  o'clock,  Wednesday,  December  Gth, 
1876.  The  Common  Council  Chamber  was  filled  with  citizens, 
who  took  a  deep  interest  in  the  proceedings  of  the  Board. 
The  roll  having  been  called,  and  considerably  more  than  a 
quorum  of  the  aldermen  having  responded  to  their  names, 
Alderman  French,  the  President  of  the  Board,  called  for  the 
reading  of  a  special  message  from  Mayor  Schroeder.  The  docu- 
ment was  as  follows  : 

"  Mayor's  Office,  Dec.  6,  187G. 
To  the  Honorable  the  Common  Council : 

Gentlemen, — I  have  called  you  together  to-day  to  deliberate 
and  take  action  concerning  the  terrible  calamity  which  has  be 
fallen  the  people  of  this  city,  in  the  burning  of  the  Brooklyn 
Theatre  last  night.  It  is  impossible  at  this  hour  to  estimate  the 
number  of  human  beings  who  have  perished  in  the  conflagration, 
though  already  over  one  hundred  have  been  exhumed.  Fi-om 
such  observations  as  I  have  been  able  to  make  among  the  ruins,  I 
do  not  think  the  relatives  and  friends  of  the  dead  will  be  able 
in  many  cases  to  identify  the  bodies  of  those  whose  loss,  under 
circumstances  of  such  horror,  must  be  mourned  with  unequaled 
grief.  For  this  reason,  it  seems  to  me,  arrangements,  should  be 
made  by  the  public  authorities  for  the  burial  of  the  unrecognized 
dead,  in  a  manner  becoming  a  sympathetic  and  Christian  people. 
To  this  end  a  committee  should  be  at  once  appointed,  and  our 
merchants  and  tradespeople  should  close  their  stores  on  the  day 
of  the  funeral,  and  participate  in  the  obsequies.  If,  in  addition, 
it  should  transpire  that  many  homes  have  been  dejirived  of  their 
support,  by  the  loss  of  a  father,  brother,  husband,  or  son,  the  at- 
tention of  our  churches  and  charitable  institutions  and  our 
wealthy  citizens  should  be  promptly  called  to  the  fact,  in  order 
that  neither  the  reality  nor  apprehension  of  immediate  want 
may  be  superadded  to  an  affliction  in  itself  almost  insup- 
jjortable. 

Kespectfully, 

FREDERICK  A.  SCHROEDER,  Mayor." 

At  the  conclusion  of  the  reading  of  the  Mayor's  message, 
President  Fisher  arose  and,  after  a  few  feeling  words,  presented 
the  following  resolutions  : 

"Resolved,  That  a  committee  of  nine  be  appointed  to  take  into 
consideration  the  duty  incumbent  upon  the  municipal  au- 
thorities, in  view  of  the  recent  destruction  of  the  Brooklyn 
Theatre,  and  the  calamitous  results  flowing  therefrom. 

Resolved,  That  there  be  a  special  meeting  of  this  Board  at  two 
o'clock,  p.  M.,  Thursday,  the  7th  inst.,  to  receive  report  from  said 
committee  and  take  action  thereon. 

Resolved,  That  said  committee  be  authorized  to  confer 
upon  this  subject  with  other  organizations,  official  or  other- 
wise." 

These  resolutions  were  appropriately  seconded  by  Alderman 
Murtha,  and  unanimously  adopted,  and  President  Fisher  ap- 
pointed the  following  Aldermen  as  members  of  the  committee 
called  for  :  Aldermen  Fisher,  Burnett,  Black,  Murtha,  Arnot, 
Rowley,  Acker,  Donovan  and  Guthrie. 

Alderman  Fisher  announced  that  the  Board  of  Supervisors 
had  met  earlier  in  the  afternoon,  and  had  appointed  a  committee 
composed  of  Supervisors  Strong,  Sexton,  Curran.Harman,  Brown, 
■Ryder  and  Byrne  to  confer  and  co-operate  with  the  committee 
of  the  Board  of  Aldermen.  He  proposed  that  the  committee,  of 
which  he  was  the  chairman,  should  meet  in  the  Common 
Council  Chamber  immediately  on  the  adjournment  of  the 
Board. 

A  motion  that  the  Board  of  Aldermen  should  hold  a  special 
meeting,  December  7,  at  two  o'clock  p.  m.,  was  carried. 

The  Numbek  that  Pekished. — Two  hundred  and  ninety-five 
human  beings  were  known  to  have  perished  in  the  flames  of 
this  Ul-fated  theatre.     One  hundred  and  ninety-seven   of  the 


bodies  were  identified  and  taken  away  by  their  friends,  and  the 

ninety-eight  unidentified  bodies  were  buried  by  the  city. 

Immediately  after  the  calamity,  a  Relief  Committee  of  250  of 
the  first  citizens  of  Brooklyn  commenced  their  earnest  work  to 
assist  the  afflicted  relatives  of  the  dead.  All  of  the  theatres  of 
Brooklyn  and  New  York  gave  benefits,  which  were  liberally 
attended,  and  over  $-10,000  was  obtained  by  the  united  action  of 
the  committee,  and  the  dramatic  performances.  The  number  of 
I^eople  who  received  aid  from  the  fund  was  between  five  and  six 
hundred.  In  some  cases  there  were  as  many  as  five  and  six 
in  one  family.  The  highest  amount  paid  to  any  one  family  was 
$20  per  week,  which  was  the  case  of  a  widow  with  eight  children. 
The  fund  lasted  over  a  year. 

To  do  justice  to  all  of  the  good  citizens  who  showed  their 
deep  sympathy  and  took  an  active  part,  would  require  more 
space  than  here  allotted.  His  Honor  Mayor  Schroeder,  the 
members  of  the  Common  Council,  and  many  of  the  first  clergy- 
men of  the  city,  including  Henry  Ward  Beecher,  did  them- 
selves lasting  honor.  Actors  and  managers  of  theatres  every- 
where through  the  country  did  nobly,  and  gave  another  evidence 
of  their  proverbial  disposition  for  deeds  of  charity. 

The  Funeeal  in  Cold  and  Storm. — At  two  o'clock  on  Saturday, 
December  the  9th,  the  gleam  of  bayonets  was  reflected  from 
the  struggling  sunshine  that  peeped  out  now  and  then  between 
the  broken,  dark  storm-clouds. 

The  military  were  arrayed  along  Sehermerhorn  street.  The 
head  of  the  procession  was  nearing  the  point  of  establishment 
of  the  right  of  the  line.  -At  Flatbush  and  Fulton  avenue  junc- 
tion it  halted  for  ten  minutes  while  the  disposition  of  the 
various  parts  of  the  procession  was  perfected.  The  Twenty- 
third  Regiment,  that  had  marched  up  in  hollow  square  forma- 
tion, opened  and  rested  at  "order  arms,"  while  the  Forty- 
seventh  Regiment  passed  through  and  took  the  right  of  the  line. 
Then  the  hearses  and  undertakers'  wagons  were  broken  from  a 
single  to  a  double  column,  and  the  Twenty-third  Regiment  was 
placed  as  a  guard  of  honor,  surrounding  that  portion  of  the 
mournful  cortege.  Then  the  march  was  begun,  and  the  boister- 
ous cold  winds  bore  fitfully  the  strains  of  the  saddening  dirge 
played  by  a  full  band  of  sixty  pieces,  with  the  procession  follow- 
ing, at  funeral  pace  and  slow,  in  the  following  order  : 

Squad  of  Mounted  Police — Sergeant  Johnson,  Alderman  Fisher, 
and  Supervisor  Quimby. 
Committees,  in  Carriages. 
Forty-Seventh  Regiment  Band. 
Foi'ty-Seventh  Regiment. 
Detachment  of  Fourteenth  Regiment. 
Gatling  Battery,  without  piece. 
Conterno's  Band. 
Twenty-Third  Regiment,  as  Guard  of  Honor,  leading  the   flank- 
ing first  Hearses. 
Hearses — Seventeen. 
Forty-five  Undertakers'  Wagons,  with  from  one  to  four  Coffins  in 
each. 
Carriages  with  Relatives  and  Friends. 
Carriages  with  Ministers  and  Officials. 
Thirteenth  Regiment  and  Drum  Corps  of  forty  pieces. 

All  along  Flatbush  avenue  and  the  line  of  march,  the  side- 
walks were  crowded  with  spectators,  all  with  sad  faces,  and 
the  DiKGE,  which  the  band  had  been  playing,  ceased  for  a 
time,  while  the  roll  of  forty  muffled  tenor  drums  marked  the 
time  of  the  military.  Solemnly  impressive  as  had  been  the 
music  of  the  band,  it  seemed  less  effective  than  the  roll  of  the 
drums.  Now  and  then  could  be  heard  the  deep  knell  of  the 
city's  fire  and  church  bells,  as  the  bitter,  violent  north  winds 
swept  from  that  portion  of  the  city.  This  efi"ect  had  almost  the 
form  of  melody,  and  impressed  itself  on  the  heart  as  monotone 
sobs;  and  the  air  grew  heavy  with  the  weight  of  those  meas- 
ured pulsations  of  half-voiced  articulatives  that  seemed  to  drop 


TBE  DRAMA,    OPERA,   MU8IG  AND  ART. 


1123 


down  from  the  black  fringing  clouds  of  the  heavens.  Along 
both  sidewalks  moved  steadily  a  silent  multitude;  there  was 
no  talking  to  beguile  the  weary  way  ;  only  a  sullen  resistance  to 
the  frenzy  of  the  gale,  which,  bitter  as  it  was,  seemed  as  a 
bright  contrast  to  the  sutlerings  of  the  helpless  hundreds  who 
were  had  been  roasted,  like  hecatombs,  alive. 

The  drums  ceased,  and  from  the  military  bands  wailed  forth 
another  dirge,  more  weirdly  sad  than  the  first.  A  trembling, 
thrilling  ci-y,  as  of  a  stricken  soul,  voiced  by  a  single  cornet 
in  a  high  trembling  note,  accompanied  the  deep  sub-sonorous 
sounds  of  the  base  instruments,  which  seemed  to  utter  sighs 
as  they  kept  time  to  the  dramatic  situation. 

The  march  was  a  terrible  one,  for  its  deep  oppressive  gloom, 
the  deadly  cold,  the  grief  on  every  hand  ;  but  that  portion  of 
Sixth  avenue  to  the  ^ate  of  Greenwood  Cemetery  was  in  all  re- 
spects the  worst.  All  the  way  across  the  wide  vacant  spaces  to- 
ward the  bay,  the  ice-blast  seemed  the  breath  of  death  itself. 
At  three  o'clock,  the  funeral  halted  on  "Battle  Hill,"  where 
the  arrangements  for  the  interment  of  the  bodies  in  one  com- 
mon grave  had  already  been  made.  Hei-e  a  circular  trench  had 
been  cut,  seven  feet  deep  and  thirteen  feet  wide,  surrounding  a 
round  sodded  space  ten  feet  in  diameter,  upon  which  a  monu- 
ment was  to  stand.  One  by  one,  the  hearses  and  the  undertakers' 
wagons  passed  up  the  main  avenue,  each  in  turn  stopping  to 
deposit  its  ghastly  freight,  and  then  moving  away.  Twelve 
cemetery  employees  received  the  coifins  and  lowered  them  to 
their  last  resting-place.  They  were  placed  in  double  row,  the 
heads  all  pointing  toward  the  monumental  centre.  The  work 
was  not  delayed,  but  was  necessarily  slow.  Meanwhile  the  ceme- 
tery bell  kept  up  its  sad  tolling,  "  rolling  on  the  human  heart  a 
stone."  The  fury  of  the  gale  soon  made  it  evident  that  human 
endurance  would  not  be  able  to  bear  any  protracted  obsequies. 
With  wonderful  fortitude,  not  less  than  five  thousand  persons 
maintained  their  places  around  the  grave.  At  length,  the  coiBns 
were  all  in  place,  containing  101  bodies.  Sixty  German  singers, 
members  of  the  Brooklyn  Saengerbund,  South  Brooklyn  Quartet 
Club,  Schuetzenfest,  and  Brooklyn  Maennerchor,  led  by  W. 
Groschel,  stood  upon  the  centre  plot  and  sang  Abt's  "Repose." 
The  Eev.  John  Parker  read  the  Episcopal  burial  service.  The 
Rev.  Dr.  Putnam,  instead  of  the  extended  funeral  oration 
which  he  had  prepared  for  the  occasion,  announced  that  the 
extreme  cold  would  preclude  the  possibility  of  its  delivery,  and 
said  a  few  brief  words  on  the  uncertainty  of  life  and  the  blessed 
hopes  of  immortality.  Then  a  benediction  was  pronounced 
by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Odell,  and  the  ceremony  concluded  with  the 
singing  by  the  Germania  choir  of  Kuhlan's  beautiful  choral, 
"  Above  all  summits  there  is  repose." 

The  graves  were  soon  filled  in,  and  many  of  the  spectators 
took  up  handfuls  of  earth  and  dropped  them  reverently  into 
the  trench  before  turning  away  for  their  homes.  One  man,  a 
stalwart  Englishman  named  Weeden,  a  Long  Island  farmer, 
stood  on  the  central  plot  until  all  had  departed,  and  with  tear- 
dimmed  eyes  bent  upon  the  earth-covered  cofiSns,  he  dropped 
some  flowers;  for  among  that  group  of  unrecognized  dead  rested 
his  son. 

The  early  evening  shadows  fell  upon  the  great  mound  rounded 
over  the  unclaimed  deid,  with  a  fragile  but  beautiful  monument 
in  the  form  of  a  lai'ge  floral  crown  and  cross,  placed  there  by  the 
Germania  Theatre  Company.  The  wind  had  ceased  its  howling, 
the  night  became  clear  and  bitter  cold,  and  the  bright  stars  in 
the  dark  blue  of  the  heaven  looked  like  crystallized  tears  quiver- 
ing over  the  hill  of  the  dead. 

The  Actors'  Funekal. — On  Sunday  afternoon,  December  10th, 
the  funeral  services  of  the  two  actors,  Mr.  Haeet  Muedock  and 
Mr.  Claude  BniiRonoHs,  took  place  in  the  "  Little  Church  Around 
the  Corner,"  in  Twenty-ninth  street,  New  York  City.  Long  be- 
fore the  hour  of  service,  two  o'clock,  a  large  crowd  was  gathered 
about  the  doors  and  in  the  church.  The  celebrated  Dr.  Houghton 
conducted  the  service.     At  the  words  "  Ashes  to  ashes,"  there 


was  a  visible  movement  of  agitation  among  the  congregation, 
which  comprised  nearly  all  the  leading  members  of  the  dramatic 
profession  in  the  city.  After  the  short  burial-service  had  been 
read,  the  musical  portion  of  the  sad  rites  took  place.  Mesdames 
Gulager  and  Pappenheim,  Conradi,  Gomien  and  McDonald,  and 
Messrs.  Fritsch  and  Sohst,  had  volunteered,  with  Carl  Berg  and 
Louis  Dachauer  at  the  organ.  "I  know  that  my  Redeemer  liveth  " 
was  given  with  tearful  effect.  At  the  conclusion  of  the  service, 
the  coffins,  which  were  covered  with  flowers,  were  carried  to  the 
hearses,  followed  by  the  pall-bearers.  The  coffin  containing  the 
remains  of  Harry  Murdock  was  taken  to  the  Pennsylvania  Rail- 
road Depot,  at  Jersey  City.  Claude  Burroughs'  remains  were 
conveyed  to  the  receiving  vault  in  Second  avenue,  in  New  York 
City. 

The  Memorial  Services,  for  all  of  the  dead,  were  held  on  Sun- 
day night  in  many  churches  of  New  York,  and  in  Brooklyn  at  the 
Academy  of  Music,  Hooley's  Opera  House  and  Park  Theatre.  In 
all  of  them,  crowds  of  people  assembled  to  do  homage  to  the 
memory  of  the  lost.  Among  the  speakers,  Henry  Ward  Beeoher 
was  prominent.  He  held  forth  at  Hooley's  Opera  House,  on 
Court  street,  where  now  stands  the  new  Dime  Savings  Bank. 
The  Rev.  Dr.  Storrs  was  at  the  Academy  of  Music.  At  the  Park 
Theatre  the  Episcopal  burial  service  was  read  by  Dr.  D.  N.  Miller, 
and  Rev.  Dr.  Theodore  L.  Cuyler  delivered  a  feeling  address. 
In  many  other  churches  throughout  the  city  special  services  were 
held  ;  in  fact,  the  whole  Sabbath  day  was  devoted  to  the  memory 
of  the  heart-rending  accident,  and  its  afflictions  to  the  living 
relatives. 

A  Momiment  now  lifts  its  tall  and  graceful 
marble  shaft  where  lie  the  congregated  dead  of  this 
frightful  calamity.  "There  is  no  evil  so  great  but 
some  good  will  come  out  of  it."  Every  community 
throughout  the  civilized  world  took  a  lesson  from  the 
sad  mishap  by  providing  better  safeguards  for  the  es- 
cape of  large  assemblies  of  people,  whether  in  theatres, 
concert-halls,  or  churches. 

The  ruins  of  the  burnt  theatre  stood  undisturbed 
until  1879,  when  Messrs.  McCue,  Kingsley  and  Keeney 
erected  on  the  site,  what  is  now  known  as 

"Haverly's  Theatre."  it  opened  under  his 
management,  October  4th,  1879.  The  front  of  the 
theatre  this  time  was  placed  on  Johnson  street,  and  in 
its  construction  every  care  was  taken  to  make  its 
places  of  egress  equal  to  the  greatest  emergency,  so 
that  a  full  house  can  be  emptied  within  the  short  space 
of  five  minutes. 

We  must  now,  in  our  condensed  history  of  the  drama 
in  Brooklyn,  go  back  to  the  days  when  the  Con  ways 
left  the  management  of  the  Park  Theatre  to  risk  their 
little  fortune  in  the  ill-fated  Brooklyn  Theatre,  in  1871. 
Shortly  after  they  took  up  their  new  dramatic  abode, 
Messrs.  Carroll  and  McOluskey  became  the  managers 
of  the  little  Park  Theatre,  at  the  head  of  which  they 
remained  for  about  a  year,  performing  melodramas  and 
sensational  plays  with  but  moderate  success.  After 
these  gentlemen  came  Mr.  John  P.  Smith,  who  held 
the  theatre  for  about  the  same  length  of  time,  with 
little,  or  no  better  success.     In 

1873  the  owner  of  the  property  leased  the  Park 
Theatre  to  Mr.  A.  R.  Samuells.who,  at  a  large  expense, 


1124 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


altered  it  so  that  the  parquette  floor  was  ou  a  level  with 
the  street  (a  great  improvement),  and  the  theatre  was 
made  equal  in  appointments  to  the  new  Brooklyn 
Theatre.  It  was  then  called  the  "  Netv  Park  Theatre." 
But  it  did  not  succeed  under  Mr.  Samuells'  manage- 
ment.    In 

1874  Mr.  Edward  Lamb,  a  genial  gentleman  and 
an  excellent  comedian,  and  a  great  favorite  with  the 
Brooklyn  public,  while  under  the  Con  ways'  management 
of  the  Park  Theatre,  now  became  the  next  lessee  of  the 
Neiu  Park  Theatre.  He  opened  it  with  a  good  com- 
pany, and  played  many  of  the  best  "star  combinations," 
among  whom  were  John  Brougham,  John  E.  Owens, 
Miss  Lucille  Western  and  others.  Mr.  Lamb's  manage- 
ment was  of  short  duration. 

1875. — The  lesseeship  next  fell  into  the  hands  of 
Colonel  William  E.  Sinn,  and  up  to  the  present  time  he 
still  holds  possession.  Mr.  Sinn  was  a  man  of  great 
energy  and  business  tact,  and  it  can  be  safely  said  that  he 
made  more  money  during  his  management  than  any 
person  who  ever  controlled  the  destinies  of  the  Park 
Theatre.  In  rapid  succession  he  played  all  of  the  best 
stars  in  the  country,  whether  of  tragedy,  comedy,  or 
English  opera.  It  was  a  rare  thing  not  to  see  the 
house  filled  to  overflowing.  The  little  Park  Theatre,  of 
which  the  writer  had  the  honor  of  being  the  founder, 
has  been  the  most  successful  place  of  amusement  in  the 
city  of  Brooklyn. 

1876. — Mr.  George  Wood,  for  many  years  man- 
ager of  "  Wood's  Museum,"  New  York,  took  Hooley's 
Opera  House  on  Court  street,  and,  re-decorating  the 
whole  interior,  made  it  a  beautiful  little  theatre.  He 
opened  it  in  the  early  part  of  this  season  with  a  small 
but  excellent  company.  During  his  management,  he 
produced  some  of  the  best  light  comedies,  and  several 
of  the  best  combination  companies  performed  there, 
with  moderate  success.  Among  these  combinations 
were  Daly's  Fifth  Avenue  company,  of  New  York. 

On  February  25th,  1878,  Mr.  Gabriel  Harrison  pro- 
duced for  the  first  time  his  dramatization  of  Haw- 
thorne's "  Scarlet  Letter."  His  daughter,  Viola  Harri- 
son, made  her  first  appearance  upon  any  stage,  in  the 
character  of  Hester  Frynne.  Mr.  Harrison  painted 
new  scenery  for  his  own  piece,  and  produced  the  drama 
with  every  detail  of  stage  effects.  The  play  had  a  run 
for  an  entire  week  to  crowded  houses,  and  the  press  of 
New  York  and  Brooklyn  spoke  of  the  drama  and  per- 
formance in  the  highest  terms.  It  is  so  seldom  that 
an  American  play,  in  plot,  is  produced,  that  the  cast 
of  characters,  &c.,  &c.,  becomes  a  dramatic  fact  worthy 
of  record. 

"The  Scablet  Lettee." 

Roger  ChUlingworth Gabriel  Harrison 

Hester  Prynne Miss  Viola  Harrison 

Mev.  Arthur  Dimmesdale E.  E.   Barry 

Mr.  Bellingham,  Governor  of  Boston,  Mass J.  E.  Howe 


Jiev.  Mr.   m/.s-on T.  E.  Hann 

Master  Townsman J.  Montgomery 

Citizen  Rawson J.  Warner 

Master  Brackett  (Town  Beadle) J.  Greaver 

Captain  Goodwill. W.  Denny 

Pearl,  7  years  old Miss  Florence  May 

Mistress  Hibbins,  Governer  Billingham's  bister,  and 

a  New  England  witch Mrs.  Lemiene 

Mistress  Oossip Miss  Edmonson 

Mary  Mercy - Miss  Nelson 

Mistress  Small Miss  Storer 

Witches  and  Indians: 

Swamp-Fox J.   Howard 

Spear-Head B.  Failes 

Fleet- Wing D.  Carroll 

Blighted-Trunk,  80  years  old G.  Lentus 

Weeping-  Willow Miss  Foot 

Scenery  and  Incidents  in  Boston,  A.  D.  1864. 

Mr.  Wood,  though  one  of  the  most  cai'eful  mana- 
gers in  the  country,  failed  to  make  this  theatre  a  financ- 
ial success,  and  closed  its  doors  in  the  early  spring. 

1879.— The  Hooley  Opera  House  changed 

its  name  to  the  Court  Square  Theatre,  and  successively 
fell  into  the  hands  of  several  itinerant  managers,  who 
all  failed  of  success.  It  (hen  was  leased  to  a  Mr.  Bun- 
nell, who  turned  the  place  into  what  he  called  a"  Dime 
Museum,"  which  under  his  management,  was  a  suc- 
cess, and  so  it  continued  until  May,  1883,  when  the 
property  was  sold  to  the  Brooklyn  Dime  Savings  Bank  ; 
and,  upon  the  sjjot  of  this  once  jjopular  place  of  amuse- 
ment, now  stands  the  splendid  building  that  is  one  of 
the  architectural  adornments  of  the  city. 

The  next  place  of  amusement  that  started  up  in  the 
City  of  Brooklyn  was 

The  Standard  (or  "Volks")  Theatre, 

situated  on  Adams  street,  west  side,  and  a  few  doors 
south  of  Myrtle  avenue.  This  building  was  originally  a 
market.  It  soon  failed  as  such,  and  remained  closed  for 
several  years.  The  uj)per  floor  of  this  building  was  at 
one  time  used  as  a  ball-room,  with  an  entrance  to  it 
on  Myrtle  avenue. 

Messrs.  Hyde  and  Behman  became  lessees  of  this 
property,  and  taking  out  the  upper  floor  converted  the 
place  into  a  theatre,  and  opened  it  as  such  on  May 
19th,  1877.  The  class  of  amusements  given  therein  is 
known  as  "  Varieties,'-'  and  was  visited  by  men  and 
boys  only,  and  for  this  style  of  amusement  the  place 
became  a  great  success. 

Music  Hall. — -The  next  place  of  amusement  that 
calls  our  attention  was  a  minstrel  hall,  on  the  corner 
of  Fulton  and  Flatbush  avenues.  It  was  a  large  frame 
building,  and  was  first  altered  into  a  theatre  by  Welch 
and  Hughes  m  1873.  The  place  never  was  a  success. 
In  1878,  the  building  was  taken  down,  and  on  the  site 
has  been  erected  a  fine  brick  building,  called  "  Music 
Hall."  This  hall  was  first  opened  to  the  public  in  1880, 
and  is  used  for  concerts  and  lectures. 


THE  DRAMA,    OPERA,   MU8I0  AND   ART. 


1125 


The  Olympic  Theatre.— In  ib-59  the  Elm 

Place  Congregational  Church,  wishing  to  erect  a  larger 
edifice  in  Elm  place,  where  the  Grand  Ojiei-a  House 
now  stands,  leased  a  piece  of  ground,  to  the  east  of  the 
old  Dutch  Church  burial-grounds,  on  the  south  side 
of  Fulton  avenue,  between  Hoyt  street  and  Gallatin 
Place,  and  put  thereon  a  brick  building  for  their  tem- 
porary accommodation,  which  they  called  Brooklyn 
Tabernacle.  In  it  the  Kev.  William  Oliver  Bartlett 
preached  for  several  years,  until  the  removal  of  the  con- 
gregation. May  1st,  1864,  to  the  former  location,  when 
the  premises  reverted  to  the  owner,  Mr.  A.  S.  Wheeler. 
They  were  then  leased  for  five  years  to  the  county,  as 
an  Armory  for  the  Fifty-Second  Regiment.  The  regi- 
ment was  disbanded  before  the  termination  of  the 
lease.  After  this,  it  was  occupied  by  the  "  Constitution 
Club,"  as  a  political  wigwam.  On  May  1st,  1869, 
Thomas  L.  Donnelly,  in  conjunction  with  E,  M.  Hooley, 
entered  into  possession,  and  reconstructed  the  building 
into  a  theatre,  which  for  many  years  was  known  as  the 
Olympic  Theatre.  In  1870  Mr.  Hooley  retired,  and 
his  place  was  filled  for  a  short  time  by  Edgar  Dewell ; 
upon  the  withdrawal  of  the  latter,  Mr.  Donnelly  con- 
tinued as  sole  lessee  until  May  1st,  1876.  Mr.  Charles 
Chevalier,  Pierce  L.  Jarvis,  Daniel  Hatfield  and  John 
S.  Leese  became  the  managers,  January,  1879,  when 
the  theatre  was  again  remodeled.  At  this  time  a 
frame  house,  which  stood  at  the  front  of  the  theatre 
was  now  removed,  and  a  spacious  brick  entrance  to 
the  theatre  took  its  place.  Shortly  after  this  the 
premises  were  assigned  to  Richard  Hyde  and  Louis  C. 
Behman.  It  then  became  the  Standard  Theatre,  and 
was  so  retained  till  1883,  when  it  was  again  subleased 
to  John  W.  Holmes,  as  the  Standard  Museum. 

The  G-rand  Opera  House.— The  last  new 

theatre,  up  to  this  present  time,  is  situated  on  Elm 
place,  west  side,  south  of  Fulton  avenue.  It  is  erected 
on  the  site  of  the  Congregational  Church,  which  was 
destroyed  by  fire  in  1878.  This  theatre  was  first  opened 
to  the  public  in  1881.  The  first  owners  of  the  theatre 
were  Messrs.  Barry  Fay  and  Lewis,  and  from  them 
it  was  purchased  by  Messrs.  Hyde  and  Behman.  At  the 
present  time,  it  is  under  the  management  of  Messrs. 
Ruudles  and  Morris.  The  Grand  Opera  House,  with  the 
exception  of  the  Brooklyn  Academy  of  Music,  will  seat 
more  peojjle  than  any  other  place  of  amusement  in 
Brooklyn.  The  interior  is  pleasing  to  the  sight,  and  is 
well  furnished  with  a  good  stock  of  scenery  and  every- 
thing that  pertains  to  a  well-provided  stage.  The 
management  is  in  excellent  hands,  and,  as  a  place  of 
amusement,  has  been  a  success  from  the  start.  It  is  run 
on  the   "star"  principle. 

The  Novelty  Theatre.— The  first  theatre 

that  acquired  any  success  in  the  Eastern  District 
of  Brooklyn,  was  the  Novelty  Theatre.     This  build- 


ing was  erected  in  185:i,  by  Messrs.  Alfred  and 
Henry  Kemp,  builders.  It  was  called  the  "Odeon," 
and  was  intended  for  a  ball-room  and  public  meet- 
ings. At  this  time  it  was  the  largest  public 
hall  in  Brooklyn  or  Williamsburgh.  Messrs.  Kemp 
subsequently  failed,  and  the  property  was  sold  under 
foreclosure,  and  passed  into  the  hands  of  several  own- 
ers. After  this  a  stage  and  some  scenery  was  put  into 
the  back  end  of  the  hall,  and  it  was  conducted  as  a  thea- 
tre by  Alfred  Theall,  Samuel  Lewis  and  others.  At 
the  time  of  the  Rebellion,  the  building  was  used  as  a 
drill-room,  etc.  This,  however,  was  before  it  was 
used  for  theatrical  purposes.  In  1868,  the  building 
passed  into  the  hands  of  R.  M.  Hooley,  who  fitted  it  up 
as  a  variety  theatre;  but  not  a  success,  he  sold  the  place 
in  1869.  In  1870,  it  was  sold  under  foreclosure  again, 
and  purchased  by  the  present  owners,  Thomas  F. 
Jackson,  James  Eodwell  and  Henry  Waterman,  who 
fitted  up  the  building  as  a  ball-i'oom,  and  named  the 
place  Apollo  Hall.  In  1878,  the  building  was  entirely 
reconstructed,  and  converted  into  a  theatre  in  every 
particular,  named  the  "Novelty,"  and  leased  to  Thomas 
Theall,  who  subsequently  formed  a  copartnershij?  with 
Henry  Williams.  The  place  is  still  under  their  man- 
agement, and  is  run  as  a  star-theatre. 

We  here  close  our  history  of  the  Drama  in  Brooklyn, 
having  faithfully  traced  from  the  first  known  dramatic 
performance  in  Brooklyn,  1776,  to  1883.  We  have 
been  more  particular  in  giving  the  details  of  the  ear- 
liest dramatic  performances  in  Brooklyn,  since  they  il- 
lustrate the  struggles  of  the  drama  to  find  a  foothold  in 
Brooklyn  ;  and  from  the  fact  that  every  additional  year 
makes  it  more  difficult  to  secure  the  data  for  the  his- 
torian to  work  from.  At  the  present  time,  the  city  of 
Brooklyn  has  several  daily  newspapers  that  not  only 
record  every  night's  performances  at  the  theatres,  but 
also  give  a  general  criticism  on  the  characteristics  of 
the  actors,  and  the  manner  the  different  plays  are  placed 
upon  the  stage.  These  papers  will  preserve  and  furnish 
in  detail  abundant  matter  for  the  future  historian  of 
the  Drama  and  Music  in  Brooklyn. 

The  Drama  is  the  most  entertaining  and  instructive 
amusement  the  people  can  have.  It  has  always  flour- 
ished in  the  largest  and  most  celebrated  communities. 
The  growth  of  its  refinement  did,  and  must  always, 
keep  pace  with  the  advancement  of  civilization. 

The  dramatic  art  is  a  combination  of  all  the  sister 
arts — music,  painting  and  poetry  blended  into  one  ; 
and  the  populous  city  that  is  without  the  charm  and 
intelligence  of  the  drama,  is  without  the  most  needed 
nourishment  of  the  human  mind. 

All  that  Brooklyn  now  requires  to  make  complete 
her  places  of  instructive  amusement  is  a  well-appointed 
theatre,  with  a  first-class  stock  company,  managed  on 
the  principles  of  Wallack's  or  the  Union  Square  Thea- 
tre of  New  York. 


THE 


Progress  of   Music   and  Opera 
in  brooklyn. 


THE  history  of  the  progress  of  Music  with  the  growth 
of  any  city  or  country  is  always  interesting.  It  is 
a  language  of  the  soul,  felt  and  understood  by 
every  class  of  human  beings;  and,  in  accordance  with 
the  civilization  of  a  people,  so  will  it  advance  to  a  higher 
and  a  more  scientific  condition.  In  this  respect,  large 
cities  have  an  advantage  over  the  smaller  ones,  because 
they  can  better  afford  to  support  the  best  talent— thus 
offering  an  example  and  an  incentive  to  musical  cul- 
ture. 

The  first  musical  performances  that  were  given  in 
Brooklyn  were  at  the  time  when  the  population  was 
too  small  and  too  poor  to  encourage  the  best  artists, 
by  frequent  exhibitions  of  the  highest  class  of  music. 
Therefore,  the  earliest  encouragement  that  music  re- 
ceived in  Brooklyn  was  through  the  medium  of  the 
church  choirs. 

1810.— The  first  musical  performance 

in  Brooklyn,  worthy  of  notice,  was  an  "  oratorio" 
given  by  the  vestry  of  St.  Ann's  Church  for  the  bene- 
fit of  Mr.  Pierson,  the  leader  of  its  choir.  On  Thurs- 
day evening,  October  4th,  "a  grand  selection  of  sacred 
music,  vocal  and  instrumental,"  was  advertised  to  take 
place,  but  no  mention  was  made  as  to  who  the  perlorm- 
ers  were.  The  price  of  admittance  was  fifty  cents. 
Mr.  Pierson  was  long  and  favorably  known  in  New 
York  and  Brooklyn  as  a  leader  of  church  music. 
Another  public  musical  entertainment  followed  at  the 
same  church  on  the  13th  of  May.  After  these  there 
were  no  other  public  performances  until 

1813,  when  a  concert  was  given  for  the  benefit  of 
the  Loisian  Seminary  for  the  education  of  "forty  poor 
female  children."  The  performers  were  volunteers 
from  New  York  City.  Mr.  S.  P.  Taylor  presided  at 
the  organ.  The  public  were  admitted  free,  and  a  col- 
lection was  taken  up  between  the  first  and  second  parts 
of  the  jjrogramme. 

The  first  concert  given  outside  of  the  church  was  at 
Mr.  Stockofi's  "  Military  Garden,"  spoken  of  elsewhere 
as  "Green's  Military  Garden,"  and  afterwards  "Dnf- 
lon's."  This  concert  was  given  by  the  Panharmonic 
Society  of  Brooklyn,  on  the  2d  of  December.  This 
society  was  organized  on  the  1st  of  May,  1813.  Mr. 
Taylor  was  its  first  president,  and  perhaps  its  last.  The 
society  gave  three  public  performances,  and  then 
nothing  more  was  heard  of  it.  After  this  there  was 
another  long  interval  until 


1819,  when  Mr.  Cartwright,  the  celebrated  per- 
former on  "  musical  glasses,"  gave  a  concert  on  the 
37th  of  October,  at  Columbian  Hotel,  "tavern  and 
tea  garden,"  137  Fulton  street.  Mr.  Cartwright  was 
an  Englishman,  who  came  to  America  in  1818.  He 
was  an  exquisite  performer,  and  attracted  large  audiences 
througliout  the  United  States. 

1823.— Mr.  Duflon  fitted  up  a  little  stage  at  "Mili- 
tary Garden"  (formerly  known  as  Green's),  and  open- 
ed on  the  14th  of  June,  with  a  concert.  Mr.  Bristow 
acted  as  leader  of  the  band. 

1825. — January  28th,  a  "Grand  Sacred  Concert" 
was  given  at  the  First  Presbyterian  Church,  for  the 
benefit  of  the  "  holy  cause  of  Grecian  emancipation 
from  bondage.''  It  was  under  the  direction  of  Mr. 
L.  P.  Cole,  of  New  York ;  Messrs.  Dyer,  Eiley  and 
Moran  were  among  the  singers.  Selections  from 
Handel,  Mozart  and  Beethoven  were  performed.  All 
of  the  first  named  gentlemen  were  well  known  in  New 
York  as  leaders  of  church  music. 

1829.— The  Sacred  Music  Society  of  BrooUyn, 
attached  to  the  Cranberry  Street  Church,  gave  three 
public  concerts  at  St.  Ann's  Church  this  season.  The 
names  of  Mr.  Taylor,  Pearson,  Coats,  Miss  Humbert, 
Miss  Pearson  and  Mrs.  Whelply  Avere  on  the  pro- 
gramme. 

1830. — Mr.  Bristow  gave  two  concerts  for  the  be- 
nefit of  the  Appentices'  Library.  Mr.  Bristow  acted  as 
conductor.  On  this  occasion  Mr.  Solomon,  of  London, 
appeared,  assisted  by  Mr.  B.  Colby,  Thornton  and 
others.  The  Apprentices'  Library  stood  on  the  corner 
of  Cranberry  and  Henry  streets ;  the  building  was  of 
brick.  The  corner-stone  was  laid  by  General  Lafayette 
on  July  4th,  1825,  while  he  was  at  that  time  on  a 
second  visit  to  this  country. 

1834.— December  nth,  a  "Grand  Oratorio"  was 
given  at  St.  John's  Church,  for  the  benefit  of  the  Sun- 
day school,  at  which  Miss  Watson,  Mrs.  Franklin  and 
Mr.  Trust  were  the  principal  artists.  Both  of  the 
ladies  mentioned  were  at  the  time  prominent  concert- 
singers  in  New  York. 

1835. — Mr.  Trust  gave  a  fine  concert,  at  "  Clas- 
sical Hall,"  Washington  street,  January  16th.  Sig. 
Gambarti,  the  celebrated  cornet-player,  who  had  made 
a  great  sensation  in  the  city  of  New  York,  now  per- 
formed for  the  first  time  in  Brooklyn.    Mr.  Kyle  (flute), 


THE  PROGRESS   OF  MUSIC  AND   OPERA   IN  BROOKLYN. 


1127 


Mr.  Phillipson  (piano),  and  Mrs.  Franklin  (soprano) 
filled  up  the  programme.  July  ith,  Miss  Watson,  Sig. 
Montressor*  and  Mr.  Trust  (harpist)  gave  a  concert 
at  the  same  hall.  This  was  one  of  the  finest  musical 
exhibitions  that  had  ever  been  given  in  Brooklyn. 

1837. — Mr.  Henry  Eussell,  a  fine  tenor,  gave  a 
concert  at  Classical  Hall,  April  25th,  on  which  occa- 
sion Mr.  Edwinf  and  Mr.  Thomas  IScott  made  their 
first  appearance  in  Brooklyn.  Both  of  these  last  named 
gentlemen  were  excellent  artists. 

lu  September  of  this  year,  a  Sacred  Music  Associa- 
tion was  formed  for  the  "practice  and  performance  of 
sacred  music,  and  particularly  of  anthems  and  chants." 
Mr.  Adrian  Hegeman  was  elected  president  of  the 
society ;  and  Mr.  Joseph  Sprague,  1st  vice-president ; 
Cyrus  P.  Smith,  2d  vice-president;  H.  B.  Duryea, 
secretary  ;  P.  T.  Arcularius,  treasurer ;  and  0.  D. 
Burtis,  librarian.  The  first  performance  of  this  so- 
ciety took  place  on  the  6th  of  October,  1837,  at  the 
residence  of  H.  B.  Duryea,  Esq.,  No.  10  Front  street. 

On  Monday,  December  4th,  Madame  Caradori  Al- 
lenj  gave  her  first  concert  in  Brooklyn,  at  the  Ly- 
ceum. 

1839.— January  4th,  Madame  Otto,  Mrs.  Munson 
and  U.  G.  Hill  {violinist)  appeared  at  the  Lyceum. 
May  9th,  Mr.  E.  C.  Horn,  an  excellent  tenor  singer, 
appeared  for  the  benefit  of  the  Apprentices'  Library. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Seguin  §  made  their  first  appearance  at 
a  concert  in  Brooklyn  at  the  Lyceum.  Both  of  these 
artists  were  great  public  favorites. 

After  the  Seguins  followed  Henry  Eussell  |1  with  a 
concert  at  the  Lyceum,  assisted  by  Mr.  Knight. 

•  Sig.  Chakles  Montkessor  was  an  Italian,  and  an  artist  of  splendid  abili- 
ties. He  made  his  first  appearance  on  the  American  stage  at  the  Chestnut 
Street  Theatre.  Philadelphia,  June  23,  1833,  in  Italian  opera. 

t  Mr.  Edwin  made  his  debut  on  the  stage  at  the  Surrey  Theatre,  London, 
in  1834.  and  his  first  appearance  in  this  country,  November  19th,  1836,  at  the 
Park  Theatre,  New  York.  He  afterwards  became  a.  great  favorite  at  Mitchell's 
Olympic  Theatre,  N.  Y.  He  was  a  fine  actor,  and  had  a  beautiful  tenor 
voice,  which  he  managed  with  remarkable  skiU.  He  was  born  in  London, 
and  died  in  New  York,  1842. 

t  This  lady  made  her  first  appearance  in  the  United  States  at  the  Park 
Theatre  in  1833,  as  Rosini  in  "  The  Barber  of  Seville."  She  was  an  artist  of 
fine  ability,  and  for  several  years  attracted  great  houses  in  all  the  principal 
cities  in  the  United  States.  She  took  her  farewell  of  the  American  stage  at 
the  Park  Theatre,  April  15th.  1848,  and  returned  to  Europe.  She  died  in 
England,  October  loth,  1865. 

§  Mr.  Seguin  had  a  remarkable  bass  voice.  He  was  born  in  London,  .-ipril 
7th,  1809.  He  was  a  member  of  the  London  Academy  of  Music,  from  which 
he  retired  in  1830.  He  made  his  first  appearance  on  the  London  stage,  July 
3d,  1831.  In  1838,  he  came  to  this  country,  and  appeared  for  the  first  time 
in' America  October  18th,  1838,  at  the  National  Theatre,  Church  street.  New 
York  City.    He  died  in  New  York,  December  13th.  1852. 

Mrs.  Seguis's  maiden  name  was  Ann  Child.  She  was  born  in  London, 
and  made  her  first  appearance  at  a  grand  concert  of  the  Philharmonic  So- 
ciety of  London.  She  was  a  member  of  the  Italian  Opera  Company  for  over 
three  years.  She  first  appeared  on  the  American  stage,  October  16th,  1838, 
at  the  National  Theatre,  New  York.  She  traveled  as  a  star  through  the 
United  States,  much  admired  as  an  artist,  and  much  respected  as  a  lady  of 
cultivated  manners. 

II  Mr.  RussEli  was,  at  the  time,  the  most  prominent  tenor  singer  this 
country  had  ever  produced.  He  was  born  in  Philadelphia,  and  made  his 
debut  May  the  nth,  1839,  in  opera,  at  the  Chestnut  Street  Theatre,  Philadel- 
phia, in  the  character  of  £(in>w  in  "La  Sonnambula."  He  visited  Eng- 
land' in  1844.  and  was  complimented  by  being  invited  to  sing  before  the 
Queen  at  Windsor  Castle.  He  was  the  first  American  singer  that  met  with 
marked  attention  and  success  in  England. 


1840. — In  January,  Mr.  E.  Horn  gave  a  concert 
at  the  Lyceum,  introducing  to  a  Brooklyn  audience,  for 
the  first  time,  Madame  Manncelli  and  Mr.  Masset, 
both  excellent  artists.  On  March  3d,  The  Brooklyn 
Sacred  Music  Society  gave  a  concert  at  the  Presbyterian 
Church  on  the  corner  of  Clinton  and  Fulton  streets, 
and  repeated  the  concert,  with  great  success,  on  the 
28th  of  April,  at  Rev.  Dr.  S.  Hanson  Cox's  church  in 
Cranberry  street.  In  April,  a  new  place  for  amuse- 
ment was  opened  on  Columbia  street,  opposite  to  Pine- 
apple street,  called  "Colonnade  Garden,"  and  on 
August  6th,  was  presented  the  vaudeville  of  "  The 
Lady  and  the  Devil,"  in  which  Mrs.  Charles  and  Mr. 
Graham  did  the  singing. 

At  a  concert  of  sacred  music,  December  30th,  at  the 
Lyceum,  Mr.  Braham,*  the  celebrated  tenor  singer, 
made  his  first  appearance  before  a  Brooklyn  audience. 

1841.— Mr.  Duflon,  of  the  Military  Garden,  com- 
menced, on  July  13th,  to  give  concerts,  "vocal  and 
instrumental,"  at  a  shilling  admittance.  He  must  have 
met  with  considerable  success,  as  they  were  continued 
until  the  latter  part  of  September. 

1842. — Mr.  Braham  gave  a  farewell  concert  at  the 
Lyceum,  and  had  a  crowded  house. 

1843. — March  2d,  the  Mozart  Association,  anew 
organization,  gave  a  concert  at  the  Brooklyn  Institute 
(Lyceum).  Mr.  Charles  Holt  was  conductor.  This 
year,  Mr.  Duflon  retired  from  the  management  of 
Military  Garden,  and  Mr.  Isaac  Burtis  became  lessee. 
He  gave  concerts  through  the  season.  Other  concerts 
were  given  at  the  Institute,  with  the  names  of  N.  C. 
Hill  and  Mr.  Timni  on  the  bills. 

1844.— "The  Hutchinson  Family"  appeared  in 
Brooklyn  this  season,  and  gave  several  very  successful 
concerts  at  the  Institute.  Monday,  May  20th,  Vieux 
Temi^s,  the  great  violinist,  assisted  by  his  sister  Fanny, 
an  accomplished  pianist,  gave  a  concert  at  the  In- 
stitute. 

1845. — The  most  noteworthy  concert  of  this  sea- 
son was  given  at  the  Institute,  14th  of  August.  Mr. 
Templeton,t  William  Francis  Brough.t  and  Mr. 
Dempster,  all  fine  artists,  aj^peared  for  the  first  time 
in  Brooklyn,  and  gave  the  public  great  satisfaction. 

*  Mr.  Braham  was  an  artist  of  fine  culture.  He  had  a  strong,  clear  tenor 
voice,  and  in  London,  for  many  years,  he  was  the  favorite  ballad-singer.  He 
was  said  to  be  the  finest  Harri/  Bertram,  in  the  musical  drama  of  ■■  Guy 
Mannering,"  that  ever  walked  the  English  stage.  He  performed  this  part 
with  great  success  at  the  Park  Theatre,  New  Y'ork,  in  1840.  He  was  born  in 
London.    He  died  in  England,  February  17th.  1856. 

t  Mr.  Templeton  was  born  in  Scotland,  and  made  his  first  appearance  in 
this  country  as  a  tenor  singer  at  concerts.  His  voice  had  great  power  and 
sweetness,  with  a  fine  articulation  He  went  to  England  in  1832,  and 
became  a  great  favorite.  He  was  a  member  of  Drury  Lane  and  Covent  Gar- 
den Theatres.  He  returned  to  this  country,  and  gave  an  interesting  enter- 
tainment entitled  ••  Nights  with  Burns  and  Walter  Scott."  As  a  baUad 
singer  he  had  few  equals. 

t  Mr.  Bbodgh,  born  at  Wexford,  Ireland,  in  1798,  appeared  first  on  the 
stage  as  a  bass  singer  in  Sussex,  England,  1818,  and  was  afterwards  a  fa- 
vorite at  the  Haymarket  Theatre,  London.    He  came  to  the  United  States  in 


1128 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS   COUNTY. 


1847. — The  most  prominent  concert  given  this 
year  was  at  Gothic  Hall,  for  the  bene6t  of  the  suffer- 
ing people  of  Ireland,  at  which  Sig.  Lesto  Beneditti, 
Mr.  Phillips,  Mr.  Beams,  Mr.  Bowlaiid  and  Miss  Julia 
Northall  (daughter  of  Dr.  Northall,  the  dramatist)  ap- 
peared 

1848. — "The  Hutchinson  'Family"  gave  several 
very  successful  concerts  at  the  Institute.  This  troupe 
was  at  one  time  the  most  successful  concert  organiza- 
tion that  ever  traveled  in  the  United  States.  Not  so, 
however,  from  their  possessing  any  extraordinary  abili- 
ty, but  simply  that  they  sang  old-fashioned  songs,  in 
costumes,  and  in  a  quaint  and  old-fashioned  way. 

December  31,  Madame  Anna  Bishop,*  wife  of  Sir 
Henry  Bishop,  the  well-known  composer  (and  who 
arranged  the  old  Sicilian  air  to  John  Howard  Payne's 
words  of  "  Home,  Sweet  Home"),  gave  her  first  concert 
in  Brooklyn,  at  "The  Brooklyn  Female  Academy." 
The  concert  was  made  up  of  eavatinas  and  songs  from 
the  best  composers. 

The  BrooUyn  Sacred  Music  Society  gave  the  "Ora- 
torio" of  "  The  Seven  Sleepers"  at  the  "  Female  Acad- 
emy." The  orchestra  was  composed  of  over  one 
hundred  performers  ;  Mr.  J.  Zundel  was  director. 

There  were  no  unusual  musical  performances  given 
in   Brooklyn  during  the  year  1849. 

1850.— February  18th,  Mrs.  Emma  Gillingham 
Bostwick  gave  a  concert  at  the  Female  Academy.  This 
lady  was  for  several  years  the  leading  voice  in  Grace 
Church,  N.  Y.  The  Hutchinsons  returned  to  Brook- 
lyn this  season,  and  performed  to  crowded  houses  for 
a  whole  week  at  Plymouth  Church. 

1836,  and  flret  appeared  at  the  Park  Theatre,  September  4tli,  as  Dandini. 
He  met  with  great  success,  and  was,  for  many  years,  the  bass  singer  of  the 
English  opera  troupe  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wood  (Mrs.  Wood  was  formerly  the 
celebrated  Miss  Ann  Paton).  He  traveled  with  them  through  the  United 
States,  and  became  a  great  favorite  wherever  he  appeared.  He  had  a  rich, 
deep  voice,  and  managed  it  with  remarkable  skill.  Brough  was  one  of  those 
whole-souled  and  kind-hearted  men  that  carried  sunshine  with  him  wher- 
ever he  went.  He  was  a  most  excellent  actor,  and  was  always  greeted  with  a 
round  of  applause  as  soon  as  he  appeared  upon  the  stage.  He  was  over  six 
feet  high,  of  a  fine  figure,  and  had  a  genial  face  that  at  once  drew  yon 
towards  him  and  made  you  his  personal  friend. 

Mr.  Brough  was  the  author  of  several  burlesques,  one  of  which,  "  The 
Field  of  the  Cloth  of  Gold,"  had  a  long  run  at  Mitchell's  Olympic  Theatre, 
New  York.  At  different  periods,  he  was  the  agent  and  manager  of  Miss 
Maggie  Mitchell,  the  Webb  sisters,  and  the  celebrated  Mr  and  Mrs.  Charles 
Eean,  with  whom  he  traveled  throughout  the  United  States  during  their 
last  visit  to  this  country.  He  was  for  a  long  time  a  resident  and  a  property- 
owner  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn.  His  health  failing  him,  he  undertook  a  trip 
to  England,  and  died  just  as  he  arrived  there,  May  21st,  1867.  His  body  was 
brought  back  to  this  country  in  February,  1808,  and  buried  in  Greenwood 
He  had  a  very  large  and  highly  respectable  funeral. 

*  Mbs,  Bishop  made  her  debut  in  London,  July  5th,  1839.  In  1843,  she  trav- 
eled through  Europe  with  success,  and  closed  a  brilliant  engagement  at 
Naples  in  1845.  She  made  her  first  appearance  in  this  country  at  the  Wal- 
nut Street  Theatre,  Philadelphia,  in  the  opera  "  Norma,"  November  22d, 
1847.  Sir  Henry  Bishop,  her  husband,  died  April  30th,  18-55.  In  1858,  she  mar- 
rried  Martin  Shultz.  She  went  to  Europe  in  1859,  soon  returned  to  the  States, 
and  has  since  sung  in  almost  every  important  city  or  town  on  the  globe.  Her 
last  appearance  was  in  the  spring  of  1883,  at  a  concert  given  to  Harry  B,  Dod- 
worth,  Steinway  Hall,  N.  Y.,  January  30th.  This  lady,  after  a  short  illness 
of  two  days,  died  in  the  City  of  New  York,  March  18th,  1884.  Her  remains 
were  deposited  at  Red  Hook,  N.  J. 


1851. — The  celebrated  Catherine  Hayes*  gave  her 
first  and  only  concert  in  Brooklyn,  which  took  place 
at  the  Female  Academy.  Mr.  Braham  and  'Sir.  Bassford 
assisted.  Her  selections  were  mostly  from  Donizetti 
and  Wallace.  The  hall  was  packed,  and  the  recipts 
amounted  to  over  seven  hundred  dollars ;  tickets  one 
dollar  each. 

Thursday,  Nov.  4th,  Madame  Henrietta  Sontagf  gave 
a  concert  at  Plymoth  Church,  assisted  by  Pozzolini, 
Carl  Eckert,  and  other  prominent  artists.  Her  selec- 
tions were  from  Rossini,  Schubert  and  Hayden. 

*  This  remarkable  vocaUst  was  bom  in  Limerick,  Ireland,  in  1828.  Bio- 
graphers have  given  her  a  place  among  the  "queens  of  song."  When  she 
was  only  ten  years  old,  her  pure  soprano  voice  and  pathetic  style  of  singing 
attracted  the  attention  of  the  Eight  Kev.  Edmund  Knox,  Bishop  of  Limerick, 
who  happened  to  overhear  her  singing.  He  invited  her  to  his  house,  and 
she  at  once  became  the  star  at  the  musical  re-unions  given  by  her  patron. 
She  soon  took  up  her  residence  in  Dublin  with  her  selected  teacher,  and 
made  a  successful  appearance  in  this  city,  in  1841.  Lablache  heard  her, 
and  predicted  for  her  a  great  future.  As  soon  as  she  heard  Madame  Grisi, 
she  made  up  her  mind  to  study  for  the  opera,  and  at  once  commenced  her 
studies  with  the  great  teacher  Garcia.  At  the  end  of  two  years,  he  declared 
that  he  could  not  add  another  grace  to  her  voice.  On  May  10th,  1845,  she 
made  her  first  appearance  in  the  Opera  House  of  Marseilles,  as  Elvira  in 
"  Puritani."  She  labored  through  the  opera  until  she  reached  the  latter  part, 
when,  as  if  by  inspiration,  she  gained  full  confidence,  and  made  a  great 
success.  She  then  appeared  in  "Lucia  de  Lammermoor,"  and  other  firat- 
class  operas.  Three  months  after  this,  she  made  a  great  sensation  in  "La 
Somnambula,"  and  even  a  greater  triumph  in  the  part  of  Ophelia  in  the 
piece  of  "  Othello."  Her  conceptions  of  characters  were  strongly  dramatic. 
She  was  tail,  of  a  fine  figure,  graceful  and  lady-like.  She  made  her  first  ap- 
pearance in  .America,  at  Trlpler  Hall,  N.  Y.,  on  Sept.  23d,  1851.  After  she 
left  Brooklyn,  she  went  through  the  States,  thence  to  the  Sandwich  Islands, 
Australia,  and  back  through  England.  Her  success  was  beyond  all  prece- 
dent. While  in  New  York  City,  she  married  a  Mr.  BushneU.  who  was  acting 
as  her  agent.  She  did  not  give  up  her  maiden  name  until  she  returned  to 
England.  He  soon  died,  while  at  Sydenham.  She  retired  from  the  stage 
for  a  while,  and  died  August  11th,  1861.  She  was  a  lady  of  the  most  refined 
culture  and  noble  character,  and  was  much  beloved  by  all  who  knew  her. 
She  left  a  property  of  nearly  one  hundred  thousand  dollars,  which  was  be- 
queathed in  handsome  legacies  to  her  relatives  and  friends. 

t  HENKrETTi  SoNTiG  ranks  among  the  finest  artists  of  the  lyric  stage.  She 
was  born  at  Coblenlz,  May  13th,  1805.  She  was  intended  by  her  parents  for 
their  own  profession,  and,  when  only  six  years  old,  she  appeared  on  the  stage 
at  the  Court  Theatre  of  Hesse  Darmstadt,  in  an  opera  entitled  "  Donau 
Weibchen."  Her  prettiness  and  silver-toned  voice  made  her  a  favorite  at 
once  with  her  audience.  In  her  ninth  year  she  lost  her  father,  and  im- 
mediately after,  her  mother  took  her  to  Prague,  where  she  performed  the 
parts  of  children,  under  the  direction  of  the  celebrated  Weber.  At  fifteen 
years  old,  a  sudden  illness  of  the  prima  donna  gave  her  the  opportunity  of 
taking  the  part  of  the  Princese  de  Navarre,  in  the  opera  of  "  Jean  de  Park," 
and  being  very  small  for  her  age,  the  little  vocalist  was  furnished  with  heels 
four  inches  high,  so  when  the  prodigy  appeared  on  cork  pedestals  the  house 
was  filled  with  acclamations,  and  she  left  the  stage  that  night  with  a  repu- 
tation which  never  faded.  In  1834  she  appeared  in  Leipzig,  and  made  a 
brilliant  success.  Her  voice  was  a  pure  soprano,  reaching  from  A  orB  to  D 
in  alt.  In  her  high  octave  from  F  to  C  in  alt,  her  notes  rang  out  like  the 
sound  of  silver  bells.  Her  inventions  were  displayed  in  brilUant  flights  and 
lavish  fioriture.  Her  rare  flexibility  of  voice  was  a  natural  gift,  but  fully 
cultivated  by  her  taste  and  by  incessant  study  and  practice. 

Sontag  was  of  middle  stature,  with  a  face  full  of  deUcacy  and  sensibility. 
She  had  Ught-colored  hair,  fair  complexion,  and  large  blue  eyes,  hs  an 
actress,  though  not  great,  she  Justly  claimed  applause. 

In  1826,  she  appeared  at  Paris  in  "  D  Barbier  di  SevigUa,"  and  made 
a  decided  success.  In  1827,  she  was  at  Berlin,  and  in  London  the  next 
season,  always  gaining  new  laurels  wherever  she  went.  She  left  the  stage 
for  several  years,  and  when  she  returned  to  it  still  found  public  favor. 
In  1850,  she  was  prima  donna  under  the  management  of  Lumleyatthe  Drury 
Lane  Theatre,  London.  In  1852,  Sept.  19th,  she  arrived  in  New  York  City, 
and  gave  a  series  of  splendid  concerts  at  Metropolitan  Hall,  assisted  by  Sig. 
Silvl  She  next  appeared  in  Brooklyn,  Boston,  Philadelphia  and  New  Or- 
leans.  She  then  returned  to  New  York,  and  in  July,  1853,  appeared  in  opera 
under  the  baton  of  the  celebrated  Max  Maretzek  at  the  Castle  Garden.  In 
1854  she  went  to  Mexico  to  perform  an  engagement  of  two  months,  lor 
which  she  was  to  secure  ten  thousand  dollars,  but  shortly  after  she  arrived 
there,  she  died  of  the  cholera,  on  the  17th  of  June.  1854.  She  had  an  im- 
mense funeral;  all  performers  of  both  theatres  assisted  at  her  funeral  service. 
Her  remains  were  sent  to  Germany,  and  buried  in  the  Abbey  Marienstem. 


THE  PROGRESS  OF  MUSIC  AND   OPERA  IN  BROOKLYN. 


IVid 


1852. — Whatever  minor  concerts  were  given  this 
year  in  Brooklyn  were  attended  with  a  better  success 
than  formerly.  The  excitement  created  by  two  such 
great  artists  as  Miss  Hayes  and  Madame  Sontag  ap- 
pearing iu  Brooklyn,  gave  a  new  impulse  to  the  desire 
on  the  part  of  the  people  for  other  musical  entertain- 
ments of  high  order,  and  almost  demanded  the  return 
of  these  excellent  artists  to  the  "  City  of  Churches." 

1853. — This  year  is  made  notable  from  the  fact 
that  a  new  hall,  "  The  Athenmum,"  opened  its  doors 
for  the  first  time  on  the  3d  of  May.  The  building  is  a 
fine  structure,  standing  on  the  north-east  corner  of  At- 
lantic and  Clinton  streets.  It  contains  a  large  hall  on 
the  second  floor,  and  will  seat  twelve  hundred  people. 
It  has  a  parquette  floor  and  a  gallery,  both  well 
arranged.  The  interior  is  finely  frescoed,  and  has  a 
small  sta.ge,  a  drop-curtain  and  a  few  scenes,  better 
adapted  to  concert  purposes  than  to  the  drama.  Sev- 
eral fine  concerts  were  given  the  early  part  of  the 
season  at  this  hall.  On  October  14th,  Henrietta 
Sontag  appeared  at  the  Athenasum.  This  was  her 
second  and  last  appearance  in  Brooklyn.  She  was 
supported  by  Sig.  Rocco  and  Paul  Jullien. 

1854. — Madame  Isidora  Clark,  an  American  prima 
donna,  and  who  for  many  years  had  been  a  resident  of 
Brooklyn,  gave  a  concert  at  the  Athenasum  November 
39th.  Mr.  Henry  Appy,  the  celebrated  violinist,  and 
Mr.  Wells,  pianist,  assisted.  The  well-known  Mr. 
Henry  Timm  acted  as  conductor. 

1855. — "ThePyue  and  Harrison  English  Opera 
Troupe  "  gave  their  first  concert  in  Brooklyn  at  the 
Athenaeum,  April  5th.  Miss  Louisa  Pyne*  was  assisted 
by  her  sister,  Mr.  William  Harrison,  and  Mr.  Henry 
Horncastle.  The  selections  were  from  the  most  pop- 
ular operas.  The  concert  was  rej^eated  on  the  11th  of 
the  same  month  with  increased  attendance. 

*Mi8s  Louisa  Ptne  was  a  great  favorite  with  the  American  public.  At  au 
early  age,  she  was  i>laced  under  the  instructions  of  Sir  George  Smart.  When 
only  ten  years  old,  she  appeared  at  the  Queen's  Concert-Room,  London,  and 
met  with  much  applause,  and  soon  became  a  favorite  concert  singer.  Iu 
1847,  she  visited  Paris,  and  met  with  success.  In  1849,  she  made 
her  iirst  appearance  in  opera  at  Boulogne,  as  Armena  in  "  La  Son- 
nambula,"  and  was  greeted  with  loud  applause  on  the  fall  of  the 
curtain.  Two  months  later,  she  performed  at  the  "  Princess's  "  Theatre, 
London,  as  Zeilina  in  "  Don  Giovanni."  In  1851  she  was  prima  donna 
at  the  Haymarket  Theatre,  London.  It  was  here  that  she  first  appear^^d  in 
the  opera  of  "The  Crown  Diamonds,"  the  music  of  which  she  sang  with 
exquisite  taste  and  brilliancy.  Her  fame  was  now  made,  and  she  soon 
appeared,  by  request,  before  Her  Majesty  Queen  Victoria,  at  Windsor  Castle, 
and  at  Buckingham  Palace.  In  1854,  from  Liverpool,  she  embarked  for  the 
United  States,  and  made  ber  first  appearance  at  the  Broadway  Theatre,  Oc- 
tober 9th,  the  same  year,  in  the  opera  of  •*  La  Sonnambula."  The  theatre  was 
crowded  almost  to  suffocation,  the  admittance  being  only  fifty  cents.  She 
made  a  most  decided  hit,  and  performed  for  several  weeks  to  crowded 
houses.  After  this,  she  traveled  through  the  States  with  like  success.  Her 
voice  was  a  soprano  of  excellent  quality,  remarkable  for  compass  and  flexi- 
bility. In  her  appearance  she  was  petite  and  blonde,  with  a  most  agreeable 
expression  of  face  that  almost  sparkled  with  intelligence.  After  remaining 
in  the  States  for  three  years,  she  returned  to  England  in  1857,  and  at  the 
Lyceum  Theatre,  London,  she  made  a  great  hit  in  "The  Kose  of  Castile,"  a 
new  opera  by  Balfe,  which  was  produced  for  the  first  time,  October  29th, 
1857.  In  1860  and  1861,  Miss  Pyne  crowded  Drury  Lane  and  Oovent  Garden 
Theatres  by  her  delightful  singing  in  Wallace's  new  opera  of  "  Lurline."  In 
1862,  she  took  the  place  of  Miss  Kellogg  at  Her  Majesty's  Theatre,  London. 
Mr.  William  Harrison,  a  fine  tenor,  and  who  always  sang  with  Misa  Pyne, 
died  in  England,  1868,  63  years  old.    Miss  Pyne  was  born  in  England  in  1835. 


September  14th,  Madame  Theresa  Parodi  made  her 
first  salutation  to  a  Brooklyn  audience  at  the  Athe- 
njeum.  Madame  Amelia  Patti,  Strakosch,  Sig.  Barvidi, 
and  Mr.  Gardiner  composed  the  list  of  artists.  The 
selections  were  from  Meyerbeer's  "Prophet,"  "Casta 
Diva,"  "Norma,"  with  the  duettino  called  "Love's 
Approach,"  composed  by  William  Wallace,  and  were 
sung  by  Madame  Parodi.* 

1856. — January  16th,  the  celebrated  Gottschalk 
gave  his  first  "  Piano-forte  Soiree  "  in  Brooklyn,  at  the 
Polytechnic  Institute,  Livingston  street.  This  gentle- 
man came  to  Brooklyn  with  a  splendid  reputation, 
which  he  had  recently  made  in  the  City  of  Ncav  York, 
yet,  on  this  occasion,  he  performed  to  almost  empty 
benches.  He  was  a  wonderful  artist.  The  piano  in  liis 
hands  seemed  like  a  spirit  of  music  that  answered  in  a 
peculiar  and  thrilling  way  to  his  fingers  as  they  floated 
over  the  keys,  as  if  by  magic.  There  was  a  melancholy 
of  tone  and  pathos  of  melody  which  at  times  he  expressed 
that  would  force  tears  to  the  eyes.  He  made  the  piano 
talk  to  you  as  the  poet  talks  in  his  written  verses. 
You  understood  his  effect  of  sounds  as  you  understand 
the  forms  of  words.  He  could  express  sentiments  so 
strongly  and  picture  the  descriptive  so  vividly  that 
one  could  almost  see  the  colors  of  the  sunset,  and  hear 
the  ripplings  of  water,  see  the  flashings  of  the  light- 
ning and  hear  the  mutterings  of  the  thunder,  the 
swayings  of  the  forest  in  the  storm,  and  the  meanings 
of  the  afiiicted.  If  ever  the  human  soul  was  expressed 
through  the  medium  of  the  fingers  upon  an  instrument, 
Gottschalk  attained  the  height  of  that  expression,  f 

*This  lady  was  the  pupil  of  the  great  Pasta,  who  was  the  most  prominent 
of  all  lyric  tragediennes .  She  was  to  the  operatic  stage  what  Siddons  was 
to  the  dramatic  stage.  Parodi  made  her  first  appearance  on  the  stage  at  the 
Grand  Opera  House,  London,  April  10th,  1849,  in  "  Norma,"  and  achieved  a 
perfect  success.  A  critic,  who  used  to  write  many  years  ago  for  the  New 
Yorker,  a  weekly  paper,  over  the  nom  de  plume  of  "  D  ",  and  was  present  at 
her  rfeSwi,  describes  her  performance  in  the  following  terms:  "I  weU  re- 
member the  eager  scrutiny  which  the  whole  performance  underwent,  to 
ascertain  how  much  of  the  Pasta  leaven  it  contained,  and  how  far  her  Norma 
would  bear  comparison  with  that  of  Grisi.  the  acknowledged  great  •  diva  ;' 
but  Parodi's  interpretation  was  entirely  different  iu  many  respects  from 
that  of  Grisi.  There  was  more  of  the  lovely  yet  slighted  woman,  and  less  of 
the  tragic  queeu  about  it.  Not  only  were  the  great  outlines  of  the  character 
more  strongly  developed,  but  all  of  the  nicer  shades  were  filled  in  with  more 
artistic  skill  and  dramatic  effect,  which  gave  tone  and  coloring  to  the  whole 
picture.  In  this  the  teaching  of  Pasta  and  the  great  scholarship  of  Parodi 
were  alike  evident.  There  was  the  same  beauty  of  declamation  in  the  reci- 
tative, the  same  frequent  sacrifice,  though  but  momentary,  of  composer  to 
author,  and  the  same  abandon  of  style  which  her  great  teacher  had  manifested 
in  her  own  wonderful  performances." 

Madame  Parodi  arrived  in  New  York  City,  October  25th,  1850,  and  made 
her  appearance  under  Max  Maretzek,  Nov.  4th,  1850.  She  was  warmly 
received  by  the  New  York  press,  and  was  frequently  compared  to  Grisi. 
Her  voice  was  pure  and  sympathetic,  with  a  fine  quality  preserved  through- 
out. She  was  not  brilliant  in  execution,  but  she  put  in  those  embellish- 
ments that  attracted,  for  the  reason  that  they  belonged  to  the  sentiment  of 
the  music,  and  not  to  mere  tricks  of  the  voice  to  gain  applause.  She  pos- 
sessed an  intellect  that  gave  great  power  and  artistic  thought  and  weight  to 
her  conception  of  character — ^just  such  a  mind  as  could  grasp  the  meanings 
of  such  a  character  as  Lady  Macbeth,  and  expound  the  meanings  of  deep 
thoughts.  She  had  a  fine  figure,  and  a  face  better  fitted  to  the  work  of  a 
tragic  actress  than  a  prima  donna,  to  whom  we  generally  look  for  voice-cul- 
ture only,  and  not  to  those  mental  acquirements  that  are  absolutely  neces- 
sary to  make  a  great  actor  or  actress.  On  leaving  the  theatre,  one  was  more 
apt  to  remember  Parodi  as  the  great  actress,  than  as  the  great  singer. 

t  This  great  genius  of  the  piano  was  born  in  New  Orleans  in  1829,  and 
died  at  Tijuca,  a  plateau,  about  two  miles  from  Rio,  on  the  18th  of  Decem- 
ber, 1869. 


1130 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


On  the  22d  of  January,  Louisa  Pyne  made  another 
visit  to  the  Athenfeum.  January  39th,  Gottschalk  made 
his  second  attempt  at  the  Polytechnic  Hall,  and  on 
this  occasion  the  people  of  Brooklyn  redeemed  their 
reputation  for  musical  culture  by  giving  him  a  fine  re- 
ception and  a  full  house.  February  32d,  Louisa  Pyne, 
Gottschalk  and  Paul  Jullien  all  appeared  at  the  Athe- 
nffium.  May  8th,  Madame  La  Grange  and  Gottschalk 
gave  a  concert  at  the  Athenaeum.  Oct.  15th,  La 
Grange  gave  her  second  concert  at  the  same  hall.  On 
the  23d,  Parodi,  Gottschalk,  Tamberlini,  Bernaidi  and 
Morini  all  appeared  at  the  same  concert  at  the  Athe- 
na3um.  Selections  were  given  from  Rossini,  Donizetti, 
Verdi,  Ballini  and  Malibran.  This  was  the  greatest 
disf)lay  of  musical  genius  that  had  ever  appeared  on  the 
same  night  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn. 

December  1st,  Thalberg  appeared  for  the  first  time 
in  Brooklyn. 

1857. — January  5th,  Mr.  William  Mason,  an 
American  pianist  of  fine  ability,  captivated  his  hearers 
at  the  Athenrcum.  On  the  16th,  Gottschalk  gave  a 
concert  at  the  same  hall,  assisted  by  Parodi,  Cora  Wil- 
horst,  and  Madame  Amelia  Patti.  February  5th,  the 
Pyne  and  Harrison  troupe.  March  14th,  Carl  Prox 
gave  what  he  called  a  "  Philharmonic  Soiree,"  at  the 
AthenaBum.  April  4th,  Ole  Bull,  the  great  violinist, 
gave  a  concert  at  the  Athenaeum  to  a  crowded  house. 
April  30th,  many  of  the  first  citizens  of  Brooklyn  gave 
a  grand  complimentary  concert  to  Miss  Louisa  Pyne, 
at  the  Athenaeum.  Every  seat  in  the  house  was 
filled. 

Philharmonic  Society  .—On  Monday  evening, 
April  13th,  1857,  a  number  of  gentlemen  met,  pur- 
suant to  notice,  at  the  Brooklyn  Athenreum,  to  organ- 
ize a  Philharmonic  Society.  The  Hon.  Judge  Green- 
wood was  called  to  the  chair,  and  Luther  B.  Wyman, 
Esq.,  was  appointed  secretary.  Judge  Greenwood 
stated  the  object  of  the  meeting,  alluded  to  the  power- 
ful influence  arising  from  the  cultivation  of  music,  and 
tendered  his  hearty  co-operation  with  the  gentlemen 
present  in  the  formation  of  an  institution  so  much  re- 
quired in  the  city  of  Brooklyn.  Professor  Raymond 
then  offered  a  set  of  resolutions,  wherein  it  was  stated 
that  the  first  duty  of  every  community  was  to  advance 
its  own  moral  and  spiritual  condition;  and,  that  the 
most  effective  measure  to  this  end  was  an  institution  of 
pure  and  elevated  recreation  for  the  people,  and  no  other 
institution  could  so  perfectly  accomplish  the  object  as 
one  devoted  to  the  sublime  Art  of  Music.  The  com- 
mittee appointed  to  draft  a  plan  of  organization  and 
constitution;  consisted  of  Robert  R.  Raymond,  John 
Greenwood,  Luther  B.  Wyman,  and  Edward  White- 
house. 

May  5th,  a  second  meeting  was  held  at  the  same 
place.  A  Board  of  Directors  was  immediately  formed, 
elected  to  serve  for  one  year,  consisting  of  Edward 
Whitehouse,  Charles  Christmas,  Robert  R.  Raymond, 


Luther  B.  Wyman,  A.  Cooke  Hull,  L.  S.  Burnham, 
John  Greenwood,  P.  K.  Weizel,  Alfred  Large,  George 
C.  Ripley,  W.  M.  Newell,  Charles  Congdon,  Samuel 
Sloan,  H.  Mayren,  Henry  F.  Vail,  Robert  M.  Berdell, 
E.  D.  Plympton,  William  Pool,  Luke  W.  Thomas, 
David  M.  Stone,  R.  H.  Tucker,  Lea  Luqueer,  George 
G.  Hastings,  and  C.  M.  Congreve.  Luther  B.  Wyman 
was  elected  President;  Edward  Whitehouse,  \st  Vice- 
President;  John  Greenwood,  2fZ  Vice-President;  Rob- 
ert R.  Raymond,  Secretary,  and  A.  Cooke  Hull,  Treas- 
urer. 

The  society's  first  concert  took  place  at  the  Athe- 
naeum on  Saturday  evening,  Nov.  14th,  1857.  Con- 
ductor, Theo.  Eisfeld  ;  leader,  J.  Noll ;  under  whose 
skillful  management  the  following  interesting  pro- 
gramme was  performed : 

Pakt  I. 

Erucia — Symphony,  No.  3 Beethoven 

Sear  ye,  Israel,  from  "Elijah" Mendelssohn 

Miss   Heneietta  Behrend. 
Concerto  for  Cornet-a-Pision Schreiber 

L.    SCHEEEBER. 

pakt  n. 

Ruy  Bias — Overture Mendelssohn 

A  ve  Maria —  Gornet-a-pision Schubert 

L.    SCHEEIBEB. 

Aria  from  "Linda" Donizetti 

Miss  H.  Beheend. 
Oberon — Overture Weber 

The  orchestra  consisted  of  forty  excellent  musicians. 
The  house  was  crowded  to  its  fullest  capacity ;  the 
concert  was  a  perfect  success,  and  was  followed  by  an- 
other, December  12. 

1858. — The  Haydn  Quartet  Glub  gave  four  con- 
certs at  the  Polytechnic  Institute,  January  30.  Third 
concert  of  the  Pliilharnionic  took  place  at  the  Athe- 
nmum,  Madame  de  Lussan,  soprano;  Aptommas,  harp; 
and  full  orchestra  of  forty  instruments,  with  Theo. 
Eisfeld  as  director.  Symphony  No.  7,  Beethoven,  was 
performed. 

The  Brooklyn  Harmonic  Society,  composed  of  the 
vocal  and  instrumental  societies  of  Brooklyn,  with 
Carl  Prox  as  director,  gave  their  first  concert  at  the 
Polytechnic.  Selections  from  several  of  the  best  com- 
posers were  given. 

October  1st,  at  the  Athenasum,  Sig.  Strakosch,  with  a 
portion  of  the  Italian  opera  troupe  from  New  York, 
gave  a  concert.  Madame  Pauline  Colson,  Brignoli,  La 
Bactta  and  Amodio  made  up  the  list  of  singers.  The 
first  concert  of  the  second  season  of  the  Philharmonic 
was  given  October  30th,  with  Madame  Gazzanigaas  the 
soprano  of  the  occasion.* 

*  Want  of  space  obliges  us  to  condense  much  that  had  been  prepared 
concerning  the  Philharmonic.  Suffice  it  to  say,  that  Bince  1877,  five  or 
more  concerts  have  been  given  every  year.  At  present  the  season  con- 
sists of  twenty  performances — eight  concerts,  eight  public  rehearsals,  and 
four  matinees. 

Performances  were  given  in  the  Brooklyn  Athenseum  till  1862;  since 
then  at  the  Academy  of  Music.  The  first  president  was  Mr.  Luther  B. 
Wyman,  who  held  the  office  until  his  death  ;  siuce  when  Mr.  Henry  K. 
Sheldon   has   been    president.    Theodore  Eisfeld  was  the  first  conductor, 


THE  PROGRESS  OF  MUSIC  AND   OPERA  IN  BROOKLYN. 


1131 


Italian  Opera  in.  Brooklyn.— The  first  per- 

formauce    took   place    at    the  Athenffiiim,    Saturday, 
November     30th.      A    stage    had     been    erected     at 
the  west  end  of  the  room,  furnished  with  scenery,  foot- 
lights and  drop  curtain.     The  stage  was  about  thirty 
feet  wide  inside  of  the  proscenium,  by  twenty-two  feet 
deep;  and,  although  small  and  cramped,  in  comparison 
with  the  required  amount  of  sj^ace,  when  all  the  char- 
acters and  chorus  were  on  the  stage;   still  that  could 
well  be  overlooked  in  the  exciting  thought  that  Brook- 
lyn had  really  reached  an  Italian  opera  performance. 
It  was,   indeed,  an  epoch  in  the  history  of  Brooklyn, 
and  caused  at  the  time  quite  a  sensation  among  the 
elite.     The  following  is  the  programme  in  full : 
BROOKLYN  ATHEN^UM. 
Saturday,  Kove)nber  20lh,  1858. 
Italian  Opera,  performed  with  Chorus,  Orchestra,  Costumes. 
A  SpeciaIj  Stage, 
with  new  scenery  and  footlights,  having  been  built  and  painted 
by  Allegri  and  Calyo. 
Piccolomini,    Gazzaniga,    Formes,  Florenza,  Tamaro,  Mag- 

gioroehi. 
Doors  open  at  7.30  ;  opera  commences  at  8  o'clock. 
The  performance  will  commence  with  the  second  act  of 
' '  The  Dauohteb  of  the  Regiment,  " 
Preceded  by  an  overture — Orchestra. 

Mile.  Piccolomini,  Carl  Formes,  Tamaro,  Marra. 
To  be  followed  by  the  second  act  of 

"  LucREZiA    Borgia.  " 
Gazzaniga,  Florenza,  Tamaro. 
Previous  to  "  Lucretia  Borgia,"  the  orchestra  will  perform  the 
overture  to  "  Der  Freischutz."    The  performance  to  conclude 
with  the  entire  opera  of 

"  La  Serva  Padrona.  " 
Mile.  Piccolomini,  as  the  Housemaid. 
During  the^comic  particcio  of  "La  Serva  Padrona,"  will  be  in- 
troduced '*  The  Quarrelling  Duette,"  from   Auber's  comic  opera 
of  "The   Mason  and  the  Locksmith,"  and,  at  the  end  of  the 
opera,  "  The  Piccolomini  Waltz,"  especially  composed  for  her 
by  Signor  Muzio.     Previous  to  "  La  Serva  Padrona,"  the  orches- 
tra will  perform  the  overture  of  "  Massaniello." 
Reserved  seats,  $2.50.     General  Admission,  SI. 50. 

Card  to  the  Brooklyn  Public. 
As  one-third  of  the  Athenjeum  will  be  occupied  by  the  stage, 
there  will  be  lost  over  three  hundred  seats.  In  view  of  this  cir- 
cumstance, and  of  the  great  expense  attending  the  performance, 
the  price  charged  will  not  be  remunerative  to  the  director.  His 
principal  motive,  however,  in  giving  opera  in  Brooklyn,  is  to 
stimulate  the  citizens  of  Brooklyn  toward  hastening  the  rapid 
construction  of  the  contemplated  Brooklyn  Academy  of  Music, 
which,  Mr.  Ullman  trusts,  will  be  closely  united,  under  one 
management,  with  that  of  New  York. 

November  25th,  the   second  operatic  occasion,  was 
the  performance  of  The  Barhieredi  Seviglia.     Madame 

until  1865;  Carl  Bergmann  was  conductor  for  1865-6;  Theodore  Thomas 
was  conductor  from  1866-1870;  Carl  Bergmann  again,  1870-1873;  Theodore 
Thomas,  1873  until  the  present  time.  The  orchestra  at  first  numbered 
40.  Now  its  regular  force  is  100,  and  is,  on  some  occasions,  increased  to 
140.  Board  of  Directors  : — President,  Henry  K.  Sheldon;  1st  vice-presi- 
dent, Lyman  S.  Burnham;  2nd  vice-president,  Frederic  Cromwell:  treas- 
urer, William  R.  Bunker;  secretary,  Benj.  T.  Frothingham;  John  T. 
Howard,  Henry  N.  Whitney,  William  H.  CromweH,  John  D.  ElweU,  Wil- 
liam H.  Husted,  Camden  C,  Dike,  Frederick  A.  Ward,  F.  H.  Cowper- 
thwaite,  Horatio  C.  King,  Jos.  P.  Holbrook,  Frederick  D.  Blake,  John  F. 
Praeger,  O.  H.  Prentiss,  W.  W.  Goodrich,  William  B.  KendaU,  C,  T.  Christ- 
ensen,  Chauncey  Low,  Edward  B,  Bartlett,  Herbert  Seymour,  John  S. 
Frothingham. 


La  Bord  (from  the  Grand  Opera  House,  Paris),  Ro- 
sina;  assisted  by  Maggio,  Rochi,  Florenza,  Lorini, 
Dubruie,  Collotti  and  Morra ;  director,  Muzio. 

On  the  first  evening,  the  audience,  though  brilliant 
in  fashion,  was  not  so  full  as  on  the  last  occasion. 
The  price  having  been  reduced  to  $1.50  for  reserved 
seats,  and  $1.00  for  general  admission,  gave  more  satis- 
faction to  the  Brooklyn  public.  On  both  occasions  the 
performance  was  very  fine.  The  entire  company  was 
from  the  New  York  Academy  of  Music.  Madame  La 
Bord  gave  the  utmost  satisfaction,  and  although  Pico- 
lomini  had  just  been  creating  a  great /wrore  in  New 
York,  La  Bord  at  once  became  the  favorite  with  the 
audience,  which  she  justly  deserved,  for  she  was  in 
many  respects  the  far  superior  artist. 

1859. — The  third  concert  of  the  second  season  of 
the  Philharmonic  took  place,  June  29th,  at  Athenaeum; 
Miss  Maria  S.  Brain.ard,  soprano.  February  17th,  Miss 
Elizabeth  Greenfield,  the  "black  swan,"  a  colored 
woman,  who  iiad  sung  with  great  success  in  Euro^De, 
gave  her  first  concert  in  Brooklyn.  Miss  Greenfield 
possessed  a  sweet  and  powerful  soprano  voice  of  great 
compass,  executed  well,  and  sang  with  good  taste. 
Among  her  selections  were  ihscavatina  from  the  opera  of 
"  Ernani,"  Visions  of  Rest,  from  "Trovatore,"  and 
others  from  the  best  composers.  She  gave  several  con- 
certs in  this  city,  and  drew  good  houses.  March  5th, 
Madame  De  Lussan,  and  March  16th,  Madame  Gaz- 
zaniga, were  the  sopranos  at  the  two  Philharmonic  con- 
certs. The  Philharmonic  this  season  tendered  a  com- 
plimenty  concert  to  Madame  Gazzaniga,  for  which  Sig. 
Steffani  Amadio  and  Carl  Formes  volunteered. 

I860. — This  season  was  filled  up  with  several 
good  concerts.  The  Philharmonic  Society  had  in- 
creased so  rapidly  in  its  popularity  that  the  Brooklyn 
Athenteum  was  no  longer  large  enough  to  hold  the 
number  that  flocked  to  the  rehearsals  and  concerts. 
The  purpose  of  having  an  Academy  of  Music  in  the 
City  of  Brooklyn  incited  the  people  to  foster  the  Phil- 
harmonic, which  had  also  become  the  fashionable  re- 
sort. The  Academy  of  Music  (of  which  a  full  history 
will  be  found  in  the  dramatic  chapter  of  this  book), 
was  the  offsjjring  of  the  Philharmonic  Society. 

1861. — The  first  concert  of  the  Philharmonic  that 
was  given  at  the  Academy  took  place  on  Saturday 
evening,  January  19th,  1861.  Madame  Colson,  Signor 
Ferri,  and  Mr.  L.  Schreiber  were  among  the  artists, 
with  an  orchestra  of  si.xty  performers.  Theo.  Eisfeld, 
conductor,  and  Mr.  J.  Noll,  leader. 

January  22d,  the  first  Italian  opera  performance  was 
given  at  the  Academy  of  Music.  This  was  termed  the 
"Inauguration  of  the  first  season  of  six  nights." 
The  opera  originally  selected  for  the  opening  night 
was  "Traviata,"  but  the  directors  of  the  Academy  object- 
ed to  the  story  of  the  opera,  on  the  ground  that  it  was 
not  of  a  moral  character  (?).  The  management  were 
forced  to  produce  in  its  place,   Mercandante's  II  Oiu- 


1132 


SISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTT. 


ramento  (the  curse),  Elasir  (1st  time),  Madame  Col- 
son  ;  Bianca,  Miss  A.  Phillips;  Viscardo,  Sig.  Brig- 
noli ;  Manfredo,  Sig.  Ferri  ;  conductor  and  director, 
Sig.  Muzia.  This  was  a  great  musical  occasion  for  Bi'ook- 
Ivn,  as  the  house  was  packed  from  parquette  to  dome 
with  one  of  the  most  brilliant  and  fashionable  audiences 
that  ever  graced  a  theatre.  The  opera  was  beautifully 
placed  upon  the  stage,  with  new  scenery,  properties  and 
costumes.  Madame  Colson  appeared  to  her  best  ad- 
vantage. Her  pure  vocalizations,  and  the  finest  of 
execution,  together  with  her  fine  acting,  were  worthy  of 
the  applause  she  received.  Miss  Phillips  seemed  to 
feel  the  importance  of  the  occasion,  and  captivated 
her  hearers  with  her  fresh  and  powerful  contralto 
voice  ;  while  Brignoli's  fine  tenor  voice  held  the  at- 
tention of  his  audience  as  if  they  were  in  a  dream. 
Ferri  was  a  fine  actor,  and  appeared  to  great  advantage 
in  the  part  of  Manfredo.  The  orchestra,  though  small, 
only  twenty-seven  jjieces,  did  their  work  well,  under 
the  leadership  of  Sig.  Muzio.  Price  of  admission, 
$1.00;   reserved  seats,  $1.50. 

Among  the  distinguished  persons  present  was  Mrs. 
Abraham  Lincoln,  wife  of  the  President  of  the  United 
States,  accompanied  by  her  sons.  The  party  occupied 
one  of  the  private  boxes,  and  divided  the  attention  of 
the  audience. 

January  26th,  second  opera-night,  with  the  debut 
of  a  new  prima  donna.  Miss  Isabella  Hinkley,  on 
which  occasion  was  produced  Donizetti's  opera  of  "Lu- 
cia de  Lammermoor":  Lucia,  Miss  Hinkley  ;  Edgardo, 
Sig.  Stefani ;  Ashton,  Sig.  Ferri ;  Raniundo,  Sig.  Co- 
letti. 

Miss  Hinkley*  made  her  first  appearance  in  New 
York  Academy  of  Music,  on  tlie  Wednesday  evening 
previous.  It  was  admitted  by  the  entire  press  of 
New  York,  that  she  was  a  success,  and  a  young  lady  of 
great  promise.  Her  appearance  met  with  the  warmest 
encouragement.  It  was  so  rare  a  thing  to  have  an 
American  prima  donna,  that  all  present  felt  that  a 
generous  warmth  of  encouragement  was  no  more  than 
proper.  Her  voice  was  a  pure  soprano,  reaching  readily 
to  high  C,  in  alt,  clear  and  ringing  in  the  upper  re- 
gister, and  with  an  uncommon  quality  of  chest  and 
lower  tones.  Her  careful  training  was  evident  in  the 
manner  she  changed  from  the  lower  to  the  middle 
register,  and  the  clear  delicacy  with  which  the  ex- 
treme high  notes  were  enunciated,  while  the  staccato 
upper  passages  were  remarkably  well  done. 

*  MisB  Hinkley  was  tlie  daughter  of  a  physician  in  Albany,  N.  T.  Her 
father  saw  that  his  daughter  possessed  a  fine  soprano  voice,  and  while  she 
■was  quite  young,  placed  her  under  the  best  instructors  in  his  vicinity.  He 
died  before  she  had  attained  to  any  great  proflciency  in  her  difficult  art. 
Her  mother,  feeling  that  her  daughter  should  pursue  her  studies,  took  her 
to  Italy  to  complete  her  musical  education.  She  remained  there  for  over 
two  years,  receiving  instructions  from  some  of  the  best  masters,  and  ap- 
peared in  opera  in  several  European  cities.  On  her  return  to  this  country, 
she  appeared  in  New  Vorli  and  Brooklyn.  In  1861,  she  became  the  wile  of 
Sig.  Susini.  She  died  of  typhoid  fever,  at  her  residence  in  New  York  City, 
July  6th,  1862.  Her  sudden  death  was  a  great  shock  to  her  friends  and  the 
musical  public.  No  .\merican  prima  donna  ever  before  or  since  has  ap- 
peared, possessed  of  so  many  of  the  requisites  for  the  operatic  stage. 


January  28th,  third  opera  night  at  the  Academy, 
"The  Sicilian  Vespers"  was  performed,  with  Colson, 
Brignoli,  Ferri,  Susini,  and  Coletti  in  the  cast.  Janu- 
ary 30th,  fourth  night,  "II  Trovatore,"  with  Miss 
Hinkley  as  Leonora,  and  Miss  Phillips  as  Azu- 
cena.  This  was  something  new  to  have  the  two  prin- 
cipal characters  represented  by  American  artists.  Miss 
Phillips'  acting  and  singing  in  the  "Gipsy  Mother" 
were  remarkably  fine.  Her  full,  rich  voice  and  vocali- 
zation were  exhibited  to  great  advantage  in  the  "  Stride 
la  Vampa,"  and  so  completely  did  her  dramatic  inten- 
sity carry  away  her  audience  that  she  was  summoned 
before  the  curtain  at  the  close  of  the  opera: 

Brooklyn,  at  this  time,  was  having  three  opera  nights 
per  week,  while  New  York  had  to  be  satisfied  with  two. 
This  caused  considerable  comment  by  the  New  York 
press. 

February  1st,  the  opera  of  "  Martha "  w^as  per- 
formed, with  Colson  in  her  great  original  character 
oi  Lady  Henrietta.  February  5th,  the  "  Barber  of 
Seville,"  with  Miss  Hinkley  as  Roscna.  February 
9th,  "Ernani" — Elvira,  Madame  Colson;  with  the 
last  act  of  "Lucia  Lammermoor" — Lucia,  Miss 
Hinkley.  So  great  was  the  success  of  the  first  season, 
that  Sig.  Muzio  was  induced  immediately  to  commence 
six  additional  nights.  February  12th,  "Lucrezia  Bor- 
gia," with  Signorina  Elena  as  Lucrezia.  This  lady 
was  one  of  Sig.  Garcia's  pupils,  and  was  a  success. 
February  15th,  eighth  opera  night,  and  Miss  Hinkley 
as  Leonora.  February  19th,  "  Mr.  Ballo  in  Mas- 
chera," — Anelia,  Madame  Colson;  Oscar,  Miss  Hink- 
ley. This  opera  and  "  Trovatore "  were  both 
performed  in  the  United  States  before  they  were  in 
England.  The  "  Masked  Ball "  was  repeated  on  Feb- 
ruary 33d.  On  the  26th,  "1  Puritani;"  March  2d, 
"  Don  Giovanni ;"  March  5th,  the  first  appearance  of 
Miss  Louisa  Kellogg  in  Brooklyn, 

RiGOLETTO, 
With  the  following  cast : 

Gilda MissKeUogg 

Magdalena Miss  Phillips 

Dm  of  Mantua, Sig.  Stigalli 

Eigohllo Sig.  Ferri 

Sparafucile, Sig.  Colletti 

Miss  Kellogg  was  the  third  American  lady  who  made 
her  debut  this  season  as  a  prima  donna.  This  was  an 
extraordinary  harvest  of  fine  singers  reaped  from  Ameri- 
can soil  that  the  public  did  not  expect,  and  up  to  tJiis 
time  has  not  been  equaled.  Miss  Kellogg  at  onee  be- 
came a  great  favorite  with  the  public. 

March  9th,  the  fourteenth  opera  night,  and  benefit 
of  Miss  Hinkley, — Norma,  Colson ;  Adelgia,  Miss 
Hinkley.  The  performance  on  this  occasion  con- 
cluded with  Miss  Kellogg  as  Oilda,  in  one  act  of 
"Rigoletto."  Thus  ended  the  first  opera  season  in  the 
city  of  Brooklyn,  with  the  receipts  averaging  $2,300 
per  night,  while  they  did  not  reach  $1,600  in  the  city 
of  New  York. 


TBE  PROGRESS  OP  MUSIC  AND   OPERA  IN  BROOKLYN. 


1133 


The  Philharmonic  Society  and  tliese  performances  of 
the  Italian  opera  had  established  a  taste  for  music  in 
Brooklyn,  which  has  increased  in  its  growth  every  year; 
until  Brooklyn  is  looked  upon  by  all  operatic  and 
concert  managers  as  being  the  most  appreciative  city 
in  the  Union,  and  where  they  are  always  certain  of  re- 
plenishing their  coffers.  From  18G1  to  1883,  all  the 
great  lyric  artists  that  have  appeared  in  New  York 
City  have,  also,  appeared  in  Brooklyn,  and  frequently 
with  a  greater  monetary  success  than  in  any  other  city 
of  the  Union.  Having  now  pictured  the  first  strug- 
gling efforts  for  the  establishment  of  music  in  the  "  City 
of  Churches,"  we  are  compelled,  for  the  want  of  sjiace, 
to  notice  only  the  most  prominent  musical  events  that 
have  occurred  up  to  the  present  time,  and  that  in 
brief. 

March  14th,  Mr.  George  F.  Bristow,  son  of  the 
Mr.  Bristow  mentioned  in  the  early  parts  of  this 
article,  performed  at  the  Academy  his  oratorio  of 
"  Praise  to  God,"  with  a  full  chorus  of  two  hundred 
picked  voices.  April  9th,  Sig.  Muzio's  opera  troupe 
appeared  for  three  nights  at  the  Academy.  Madame 
Colson,  Miss  Hinkley,  and  Miss  Kellogg  were  the  stars 
of  the  occasion. 

May  18th,  the  Philarmonic  Society  gave  a  "  Grand 
Extra  Concert  "  at  the  Academy,  in  aid  of  the  "  Patri- 
otic Relief  Fund."  Miss  Hinkley,  Miss  Kellogg,  Sig. 
Brignoli,  Mr.  Schreiber,  Mr.  George  Warren,  and 
others  volunteered.  George  P.  Morris,  the  poet,  wrote 
a  song  for  the  occasion,  eutited  "  The  Union,  Right 
or  Wrong;"  music  by  Muzio,  and  sang  by  Miss  Hink- 
ley. 

1862.— January  10th,  the  first  grand  opera  night, 
"II  Barbiere  di  Seviglia,"  Miss  Hinkley  and  Sig. 
Brignoli  in  the  leading  parts.  This  season,  "  l\  Tro- 
vatore,"  ""Martha,"  "La  Favorita,"  "Betty," and  other 
first-class  operas  were  performed,  with  Miss  Hinkley 
and  Miss  Kellogg  the  favorite  prima  donnas.  May  1st, 
Mrs.  Grace  brought  before  the  Brooklyn  public,  at  the 
Athenajum,  Miss  Carlotta  Patti.  Miss  Emelia  J. 
Boughton  made  her  debut  at  the  Academy,  as  Violetta. 

October  2d,  a  musical  and  dramatic  performance  was 
given  at  the  Athenaeum  for  the  benefit  of  the  sick  and 
wounded  soldiers.  Mr.  Gabriel  Harrison  performed  the 
part  of  Fazio,  to  Miss  Osgood's  Bianca.  Mr.  John 
M.  Loretz,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  John  Abbot,  and  Mrs.  Prior 
all  volunteered,  and  took  prominent  parts  in  the  mu- 
sical programme. 

Nov.  25th,  Madame  Guerrabella  made  her  first  ap- 
pearance at  the  Academy  as  Leonora.  On  the  27th, 
Signora  Lorini  as  Norma.  Dec.  4th,  Mile.  A.  Cordier 
as  Dinorah,  with  new  scenery  and  costumes.  Many 
other  operas  were  performed  this  season  with  great 
success. 

1863. — January  8th,  Grau  gave  his  first  opera- 
night  of  the  new  season,  with  Miss  Kellogg  as  Pao- 


lina,  making  her  first  of  a  series  of  farewell  perform- 
ances, prior  to  her  departure  to  Europe.*  This  season 
the  German  Opera  Troupe  gave  several  performances, 
with  partial  success.  March  19th  was  Max  Maretzek's 
first  night  of  his  Troupe.  On  this  occasion.  Mile.  Or- 
tolani  Brignoli  appeared  as  Violetta.  This  artiste 
had  made  considerable  reputation  abroad,  but  did  not 
meet  with  the  success  she  deserved  in  this  country. 
She  wa,s  petite  and  very  graceful,  had  a  good  voice,  and 
was  quite  charming  as  an  actress.  After  this  lady  fol- 
lowed Madame  Guerrabella  as  Amelia  in  the  "Masked 
Ball,"  and  Miss  Kellogg  as  Martha. 

November  4th,  Mrs.  Van  Zandt  (Miss  Jennie  Blitz), 
a  lady  who  had  resided  in  Brooklyn  nearly  all  her  life, 
made  her  first  apiJearance  in  Brooklyn  at  a  concert 
given  at  the  Academy,  and  when  the  curtain  fell  upon 
her  performance,  she  stood  an  accepted  artist  and 
favorite,  f    It  is  an  astonishing  fact,  that  since  the  open- 

*CHRA  Louise  Kellogg  won  bnr  way  into  public  esteem  by  hard 
work  and  a  soul  devotion  to  her  glorious  art,  and  occnpies  at  the  present 
time  the  proudest  position  ever  reached  by  an  American  singer.  The 
forcing  process  so  well  known  to  speculative  management  was  never  ap- 
plied to  her.  She  was  of  a  purely  natural  growth,  and,  step  by  step,  has 
made  her  way  up  the  rounds  until  she  is  an  acknowledged  triumph,  and 
in  every  sense  an  ornament  of  the  lyric  stage. 

Her  fame  preceded  her  to  Europe,  and  opened  the  doors  of  the  principal 
opera-houses  for  her.  as  to  the  most  honored  guest.  She  sang  before  the 
worshipers  of  the  great  Patti,  Nilsson  and  Lucca,  and  still  retired  covered 
with  laurels.  The  brothers  Strakosch,  while  hunting  in  Europe  for  their 
annual  novelty,  could  find  no  singer  abroad  more  desirable  as  a  means  of 
cis-Atlantic  speculation  than  the  fair  young  American.  This  was  turning 
the  tables  ;  they  sent  to  catch  a  foreign  songster,  and  brought  home  a 
native  bird.  It  takes  but  a  few  words  to  explain  her  abilities  as  a  singer. 
"She  does  not  astonish  you;  she  does  what  is  far  better — she  delights  you." 
She  is  natural  in  every  particuKir  of  voice-management.  She  is  sympathetic, 
and  has  an  almost  faultless  method,  and  while  we  cannot  say  that  she  is  a 
dramatic  artist  of  any  startling  effects,  we  always  feel  perfectly  satisfied 
with  her  quiet  style  of  acting,  which  leaves  a  good  impression  upon  her 
audience.  As  any  one  can  admire  a  rose  or  a  lily,  or  can  be  impressed 
with  the  glory  of  a  sunset,  or  feel  awe-struck  with  the  grandeur  of  an 
Alpine  scene,  so  it  is  with  native  worth  on  the  stage.  An  audience  is 
magnetized  just  as  promptly  and  as  truly  by  the  tlash  of  genius;  and  the 
popular  heart  always  knows  when  it  is  thrilled  in  sympathy  with  the  true 
genius  of  song,  and  appreciates  its  real  value,  and  the  power  that  breathes 
it  forth,  as  the  humble  Swiss  peasant  appreciates  the  sublimity  of  his 
mountains  of  eternal  snow. 

t  Mns,  Van  Zandt  was  born  in  the  City  of  Now  York,  January  1st,  1845. 
She  studied  iu  New  York  under  Sig.  Barili  and  Sig.  Abella.  She  made  her 
first  appearance  upon  the  stage  at  a  concert  a  few  months  previous  at  the 
Brooklyn  Academy.  Her  complete  success  before  crowded  houses,  composed 
of  the  musical  dilettanti  and  the  best  critics,  more  than  sustained  the  an- 
ticipation of  those  who  had  frequently  heard  her  in  private.  The  press 
spoke  of  her  efforts  as  delicately  artistic  performances,  and  predicted  for 
her  a  glorious  future,  which  has  been  fulfilled.  Subsequently  she  appeared 
in  the  "  Bride  of  Lammermoor  "  with  increased  success.  In  1865  she  went 
to  Milan,  and  there  placed  herself  for  instruction  under  the  well-known 
Lamparte.  Her  progress  was  so  great  that  she  was  soon  offered  an  engage- 
ment at  the  Royal  Opera  House,  Copenhagen,  where  she  appeared  with  the 
most  flattering  success.  After  this  she  entered  into  an  engagement  with 
the  Russian  Government  to  sing  during  the  winter  months  at  the  Imperial 
Opera  House.  In  the  winter  of  1867  and  1868  she  appeared  for  five  months 
at  the  far-famed  La  Scala,  Milan,  and  the.  furore  she  there  created  attracted 
the  attention  of  Mr.  Gye,  the  manager  of  the  Royal  Italian  Opera,  at  Covent 
Garden  Theatre,  London,  where  she  appeared  in  April,  1868,  making  a  great 
hit  in  "Don  Giovanni,"  and  proving  herself  a  most  fascinating  Zerlina. 
She  was  here  engaged  for  the  seasons  of  1869  and  1870.  .After  this,  she  was 
engaged  by  Gye  for  a  lengthened  tour  through  Great  Britain,  visiting 
Glasgow,  Dublin,  Liverpool,  and  aU  the  large  cities,  receiving  marked  at- 
tention and  favors  wherever  she  went.  After  winning  many  laurels 
abroad,  during  her  absence  of  six  years,  she  returned  to  her  native  city. 
New  York.  She  was  immediately  engaged  by  Mr.  Rosa  as  a  prima  donna 
soprano  for  the  tarepa  Rosa's  "Grand  English  Opera  Troupe,"  and  made 
her  first  appearances  in  English  opera  on  the  9th  of  October,  at  the  New 
.  York  Academy  of  Music.  Balfe's  opera  of  "Satanella  "  was  chosen  for  the 
occasion;  Madame  Van  Zandt  was  received  with  great  applause,  and  the 
press  spoke  of  her  in  the  highest  terms. 


1134 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


ing  of  the  Academy  of  Music,  in  less  than  three  years, 
no  less  than  four  American  prima  donnas  made  their 
first  great  success  in  Brooklyn,  and  were  recognized 
wherever  else  they  went,  as  artists  of  marked  abilities. 
The  residue  of  this  season  was  filled  up  with  many 
fine  operatic  performances.  The  Philharmonic  con- 
certs were  attended  by  crowds  of  people,  and,  on  many 
occasions,  even  the  Academy  was  not  large  enough  to 
accommodate  them. 

1864. — The  most  important  event  this  season  in 
the  opera  line,  was  the  first  appearance  in  Brooklyn 
of  Mrs.  Jennie  Van  Zaudt  on  the  operatic  stage,  which 
took  place  November  19th,  she  having  made  her  debut 
at  the  New  York  Academy  a  few  evenings  previous. 
She  chose  the  part  of  Oilda  in  "  Rigoletto."  On  both 
occasions  her  success  was  decided. 

Madame  Van  Zandt  is  still  popular  with  the  Ameri- 
can public.  Her  voice  still  retains  its  freshness  and 
many  beauties  of  execution,  and  wherever  she  appears, 
in  concert  or  opera,  she  is  welcomed  with  all  the  marks 
of  respect  and  approval. 

In  the  season  of  1864,  Signora  Carozzi  Zucha  jjer- 
formed  frequently  at  the  Academy  in  "  Lucrezia  Borgia," 
"  Don  Giovanni,"  "  II  Polinto  "  and  '•'  Don  Sebastian". 
This  same  season  Miss  Kellogg  made  a  great  impression 
in  the  character  of  Marguerita  in  "  Faust,"  drawing 
immense  houses  whenever  she  apjjeared. 

After  the  advent  of  three  such  American  artistes  as 
Miss  Hinkley,  Mrs.  Van  Zandt  and  Miss  Kellogg,  it  is 
impossible  for  foreigners  to  say  that  this  country  has 
not  produced  artists  of  high  merit;  which  fact  they 
should  ever  feel  ready  to  admit,  and  of  which  every 
American  should  feel  justly  proud. 

As  years  have  passed,  the  Philharmonic  Society  has 
increased  in  juiblic  favor,  and  no  musical  organization 
in  America  can  compare  with  it  for  the  great  work  it 
has  done  in  building  up  a  refined  taste  for  music.  The 
society  has  always  kept  its  faith  with  the  public  by 
giving  the  best  talent  they  could  obtain,  whether  native 
or  foreign,  vocal  or  instrumental.  To  one  gentleman 
in  particular  are  the  citizens  of  Brooklyn  indebted  for 
the  great  success  of  this  society  and  the  progress  of 
music  in  Brooklyn.  This  gentleman  was  Luther  B. 
Wtman,  and  to  this  statement  no  one  can  take  excep- 
tion. If  any  man  in  connection  with  the  history  of 
music  in  Brooklyn  deserves  a  recognition  and  bio- 
graphic mention,  it  is  he. 

LuTHEE  B.  Wyman. — This  gentleman  was  born  in  Massachu- 
setts, in  February,  1805.  He  passed  the  first  twenty  years  of  his 
life  on  his  father's  farm.  At  the  age  of  twenty,  he  went  to  Boston, 
aud  soon  alter  he  became  a  member  of  the  Handel  and  Haydn 
Society.  He  possessed  a  superior  bass  voice,  and  with  some 
hard  work  in  its  culture,  he  gained  the  position  of  one  of  its 
principal  solo  singers,  and  frequently  appeared  in  public,  and 
was  siJoken  of  as  a  careful  and  jiaiustaking  artist. 

In  1830,  he  started  West.  On  arriving  at  Troy,  a  friend  took 
him  to  see  the  then  just  completed  Erie  Canal,  and  here,  by  ac- 
cident, he  met  a  young  lady,  daughter  of  the  Eev.  Dr.  Warren, 


who  afterwards  became  his  wife.  This  caused  him  to  remain  in 
Troy,  where  he  obtained  a  position  in  the  office  of  the  Troy 
Towboat  Company.  He  had  been  but  a  few  weeks  in  Troy  when 
he  was  appointed  to  take  charge  of  the  choir  of  the  Second  Pres- 
byterian Church,  which  he  conducted  for  two  years.  Subse- 
quently, and  for  several  months  prior  to  his  departure  for  New 
York,  he  became  quite  famous  as  a  violoncello  performer  in  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Berrian's  church.  At  the  end  of  three  years,  Mr.  Wy- 
man moved  to  New  York.  He  at  once  joined  the  New  York 
Sacred  Music  Society.  His  connection  with  this,  the  only 
musical  society  of  note  in  the  city,  lasted  for  over  fifteen  years, 
and  for  the  last  five  years  of  this  time  he  acted  as  its  president; 
his  choirs  gave  superb  perfoi'mances  of  the  most  noted  vocal 
compositions,  assisted  by  such  soloists  as  Madame  Cazadori 
Allen,  Mrs.  Austin,  and  Mrs.  and  Mr.  Joseph  Wood,  and  all  of 
the  great  artists  of  that  day. 

In  18iO,  Mr.  Wyman  removed  to  Brooklyn,  then  a  city  of  less 
than  forty  thousand  inhabitants.  At  this  time,  he  sang  bass  in 
the  Church  of  the  Messiah,  Dr.  Dewey's,  New  York.  However, 
he  soon  resigned  this  position,  and  accepted  the  appointment  of 
musical  director  in  the  newly-erected  Unitarian  Church  of  the 
Eev.  Dr.  Farley.  This  position  he  held  until  1870,  at  which 
time  he  was  presented  with  a  handsome  silver  service  as  a  testi- 
monial of  their  high  appreciation  of  his  great  labors  in  accom- 
plishing an  advanced  condition  of  church  music.  Soon  after 
joining  Dr.  Farley's  church,  he  was  elected  president  of  the 
Brooklyn  Sacred  Music  Society,  and  superintended  the  produc- 
tion of  the  oratorios  "  Samson  "  and  the  "  Messiah  "  at  Plymouth 
Church,  and  the  "Seven  Sleepers,"  by  Karl  Lowe,  in  the  hall 
of  the  old  Academy,  on  the  site  where  the  Packer  Institute  now 
stands.  This  office  he  held  for  three  years,  and  in  this  Society 
he  made  the  acquaintance  of  Miss  Frances  N.  Hall,  who  became 
his  second  wife  in  18'19,  his  former  wife  having  died  some 
years  before. 

In  1857  he  took  the  initiative  of  forming  the  Brooklyn  Phil- 
harmonic Society.  Theretofore,  Brooklyn  had  been  mainly 
dependent  upon  New  York  for  instrumental  music  of  a  high 
order.  On  the  evening  of  April  15th,  1857,  a  committee  of  gen- 
tlemen met  at  the  Brooklyn  Athenasum  to  organize  a  society  for 
the  purpose  of  giving  in  Brooklyn  a  series  of  concerts  similar  to 
those  BO  long  enjoyed  by  the  citizens  of  New  York  under  the 
auspices  of  their  Philharmonic  Society.  A  committee,  com- 
posed of  Luther  B.  Wyman,  Eobert  R.  Raymond,  John  Green- 
wood, Edward  Whitehouse,  Carl  Prox,  Leopold  Bierwirth  and 
Mr.  Spies,  was  appointed  to  draft  a  plan  of  organization  and  a 
constitution.  On  the  following  5th  of  May,  the  committee  re- 
ported, and  the  society  was  permanently  organized.  Luther  B. 
Wyman  was  appointed  its  president.  It  is  sufficient  to  say,  that 
from  the  inception  of  the  Philharmonic  Society,  Mr.  Wyman 
held,  by  annual  re-election,  the  position  of  president  almost  up 
to  the  hour  of  his  death,  and  was,  without  doubt,  its  most  active 
and  efficient  manager.  The  great  success  of  the  Philharmonic 
Society  at  the  Athenaeum  rendered  it  absolutely  necessary  to 
have  a  large  hall  to  admit  the  crowds  that  attended  its  concerts. 
The  Philharmonic  Bo.ard,  with  Mr.  Lyman  at  its  head,  was  the 
first  to  propose  the  erection  of  the  Academy  of  Music.  A  board 
was  formed,  stock  was  subscribed,  Mr.  Wyman  was  elected  sec- 
retary of  the  Building  Committee,  and  the  work  proceeded 
without  delay.  In  June,  1860,  while  the  erection  of  the  Acad- 
emy was  in  progress,  Mr.  Wyman  had  a  narrow  escape  from 
death.  On  the  2'.)th  of  that  month,  he  was  in  the  unfinished 
building,  to  fulfill  an  engagement  with  the  master  mason,  Mr. 
French.  He  was  some  few  minutes  in  advance  of  his  engage- 
ment, and  while  on  the  main  floor,  watching  the  raising  into 
position  the  immense  trusses,  weighing  nine  tons  each,  which 
were  to  support  the  roof,  he  observed  a  storm  gathering,  and 
suddenly  a  squall  arose,  and  striking  the  first  truss  on  the  Clin- 
ton street  end,  which  was  not  fully  secured,  it  fell,  carrying  the 
whole  ten  trusses  one  after  the  other  with  it,  and  falling  with  a 


THE  PROGRESS   OF  MUSIC  AND   OPERA   IN  BROOKLYN. 


frightful  crash  into  the  interior  of  the  building.  Mr.  Wyman, 
unable  to  escape,  was  buried  beneath  the  debris.  After  being 
extracted  from  his  dangerous  situation,  he  was  carried  home, 
and,  lingering  between  life  and  death,  was  confined  to  his  bed 
for  over  two  months. 

It  has  been  the  intention  of  this  sketch  to  trace  Mr.  Wyman's 
connection  more  particularly  with  musical  matters,  and  the 
various  projects  with  which  he  has  been  indentified  for  the  ad- 
vancement of  music  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn .  It  is  well  to  remind 
our  readers  of  the  prominent  part  he  took  during  the  War  of  the 
Rebellion  in  the  organization  of  regiments,  in  "sanitary  fairs," 
in  patriotic  concerts,  and  every  other  movement  for  he  further- 
ance of  the  success  of  our  armies  and  the  saving  of  the  Union. 
In  such  matters,  no  citizen  of  Brooklyn  was  more  active,  and 
when  he  could  not  give  in  the  way  of  wealth,  he  made  himself 
doubly  serviceable  by  personal  devotion  to  the  great  cause.  We 
can  truthfully  say  that  in  every  position  of  public  trust  he 
proved  himself  an  unselfish  and  public-spirited  citizen  and  an 
honorable  gentleman,  whose  character  would  adorn  the  proudest 
of  cities.  For  over  three  years  previous  to  his  death,  he  was  an 
invalid  from  paralysis.  No  man  ever  died  in  Brooklyn  who  was 
more  highly  respected,  or  whose  death  was  more  deeply  re- 
gretted, than  Luther  B.  Wyman.  He  died  in  Brooklyn,  on  Sun- 
day, July  27th,  1879,  at  the  age  of  seventy -six  years.  His  re- 
mains were  laid  at  rest  in  Green-Wood. 

In  mentioning  the  names  of  the  celebrated  artists 
who  have  visited  Brooklyn,  and  who  have,  by  their 
remarkable  talents,  lent  the  city  of  Brooklyn  pages  of 
musical  history  worthy  of  the  greatest  cities  in  the 
world,  there  are  two  singers  who  deserve  more  than  a 
passing  notice ;  these  are  Parepa  Kosa  and  Madame 
Albani. 

Of  all  the  singers  that  have  appeared  upon  the  lyric  stage, 
none  was  more  beloved  for  her  personal  character  than  Pakepa 
EosA.  Man,  woman  and  child,  on  meeting  her,  at  first  sight  took 
her  into  their  hearts.  There  was  a  freshness  and  a  truthfulness 
about  her  that  captivated  every  one  who  met  her  on,  or  off  the 
stage.  And  to  her  lovely  character  may  be  attributed  as  much 
of  her  fame  as  to  her  musical  genius. 

Euphrosyne  Parepa  was  born  in  Scotland  in  1839.  Her  mother 
was  the  daughter  of  Mr.  Seguin,  and  was  the  sister-in-law  of 
the  celebrated  Mrs.  Seguin.  Euphrosyne  gave  evidence  of  mu- 
sical talent  when  she  was  quite  young.  At  the  age  of  sixteen 
she  made  her  first  appearance  in  Malta  in  the  character  of  Ar- 
mina  in  "La  Sonnambula."  She  was  a  success.  She  then  went 
to  Rome,  Naples,  Genoa,  Lisbon,  and  Madrid.  In  1857,  she  ap- 
peared in  London  with  the  great  Eonconi,  and  there  held  a  very 
high  position  in  the  Italian  opera.  In  1863,  she  married  Captain 
Carroll,  of  the  East  India  service,  who  left  her  a  widow  after  six- 
teen months  of  married  life.  In  1866,  Parepa  accepted  an  en- 
gagement from  Mr.  Bateman,  father  of  the  well-known  actress. 
Miss  Kate  Bateman,  who  brought  her  to  this  country.  She  made 
her  first  appearance  at  Irving  HaU,  New  York,  on  September 
nth,  same  year.  Mr.  Bateman,  through  bad  management,  did 
not  make  her  a  success.  He  then  passed  her  over  to  the  man- 
agement of  Mr.  Lafayette  Harrison,  owner  of  Irving  Hall  at  that 


time.  He  soon  introduced  her  to  the  public  in  oratorio  and 
opera,  when  she  at  once  took  position  in  public  opinion  as  one 
of  the  finest  queens  of  song  that  had  ever  visited  the  United 
States;  and  she  nobly  maintained  that  position  till  the  hour  of 
her  death. 

In  1866,  she  married  Carl  Rosa,  the  violinist.  In  1872,  they 
organized  an  English  opera-troupe  of  their  own,  which  was  so 
great  a  success  that  their  profits  inside  of  two  years  amounted 
to  $150,000.  Flushed  with  wealth  and  fame,  she  returned  to 
England  to  rest  for  a  few  months;  but  shortly  after  her  return 
to  her  native  country  she  suddenly  died  on  the  22d  of  January, 
1874. 

Her  voice  was  pure  and  sympathetic  in  every  note,  and  was 
ample  in  volume,  but  possessed  no  dramatic  quality  of  expres- 
sion. Her  great  charm  as  a  singer  lay  in  her  simple  truthfulness 
of  note  and  manner  of  modulating  its  compass.  Wherever  she 
went,  she  flooded  the  land  with  melody,  and  gladdened  the 
hearts  of  all  who  heard  her. 

Madame  Albani  is  an  American  artist,  whose  ability  as  a  singer 
has  lent  additional  glory  to  the  limited  circle  of  American  sing- 
ers who  have  given  the  "New  World ''a  reputation  in  musical 
art.  It  was  while  she  was  studying  for  the  operatic  stage  in 
Milan  that  she  attracted  the  attention  of  her  old  maestro,  and 
he  wrote  to  the  manager  of  the  Theatre  "La  Pergola,"  at  Flor- 
ence, that  he  would  send  him  the  most  accomplished  and  the 
most  finished  singer  in  style  that  had  ever  left  his  studio.  How 
well  she  redeemed  all  he  had  promised,  the  Florentines  soon 
testified.  Her  fame  spread  rapidly,  and  she  soon  appeared  at 
the  Covent  Garden  Theatre,  London,  and  made  a  decided  success 
in  the  character  of  Armlna  in  "La  Sonnambula."  It  was  con- 
ceded by  press  and  public  that  she  was  worthy  to  take  rank  with 
the  foremost  prima-donnas  of  Europe.  After  an  absence  of  some 
ten  years,  she  returned  to  her  native  country,  where  she  soon  ap- 
peared in  the  concert  room  and  on  the  operatic  stage.  She  was 
fully  endorsed  by  all  as  a  great  artist,  and  she  still  holds  her 
position  as  such,  having  become  a  fixed  favorite  with  the  best 
critics. 

To  particularize  the  advancing  steps  of  Music  in  tlie 
city  of  Brooklyn,  from  1865  up  to  the  present  writing, 
1883,  would  require  a  volume  of  five  hundred  pages. 
The  rapid  succession  of  the  appearance  at  the  Academy 
of  Music  of  all  the  musical  celebrities,  Italian,  French, 
German  and  American,  would  indeed  be  interesting  to 
detail,  and  would  further  prove  the  fact  that  Brooklyn 
has  done  as  much  to  encourage  the  advancement  of 
music  as  any  other  city  in  the  Union.  Among  the 
great  artists  who  have  appeared  in  Brooklyn  in  the 
last  twenty  years  may  be  named  Pauline  Lucca,  Patti, 
Nilsson,  Parepa  Rosa,  Zucchi,  Aim6e,  Geistinger,  De 
Murska,  La  Grange,  Gerster,  Albani,  Rozetti,  Krebs, 
States,  Silly,  Gary,  Charles  Santley,  Wachtel,  Rubin- 
stein, Ronconi,  Formes,  Thalberg,  Strauss,  and  many 
other  fine  lyric  artists. 


1130 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS   COUNTY. 


The  Ast-Association  Building,    Montague  Street,  Beookltn. 


The    Fine   Arts   in    Brooklyn. 


BY 


ART  is  the  beginning,  the  substance,  and  the  end- 
ing of  civilization.  The  first  line  of  grace 
drawn,  or  the  first  graceful  adjustment  of  a  fold  of 
drapery,  belongs  to  the  beginning  of  art.  Art  is  innate 
and  instinctive  with  all  human  beings  to  a  greater  or 
less  degree.  The  barbarian,  though  savage  and  brutal, 
has  the  conditions  of  art  in  his  wild  nature.  The  first 
human  being  that  breathed  the  breath  of  life,  though 
a  barbarian,  was  simply  a  man  with  the  elements  of  grace 
in  his  soul,  which  ultimately  lead  to  the  expression  of 
art,  and  from  which  spring  civilization. 

The  wild  Indian  of  the  Far  West  demonstrates  the 
existence  of  the  germs  of  art  within  him  by  the  decora- 
tions of  his  garments,  by  the  feathers  that  flaunt 
upon  his  head,  the  wampum  that  hangs  from  his  belt, 
and  the  colors  of  paint  that  adorn  his  face.  None 
other  than  the  born  fool  can  see  things  of  grace  with- 
out an  emotion;  therefore  all  things  of  grace  indicate 
art,  for  the  reason  that  emotion  is  the  mother  of  grace, 
and  so  long  as  the  human  mind  is  able  to  distinguish 
the  difference  betw'een  a  curved  and  a  straight  line,  art 
will  exist,  and  civilization  will  go  on.  Form  was  the 
first-born  child  of  art.  Next  came  light  and  shade, 
twin  children,  and  then  followed  harmony  of  color,  the 
three  producing  the  picturesque,  which  is  the  highest 
condition  of  art. 

But  few  cities  in  the  world  are  celebrated  for  art-col- 
lections; but  few  cities  can  afford  a  proper  encourage- 
ment for  a  high  art-culture;  for  here  we  must  admit 
that  art  ultimately  becomes  the  greatest  of  luxuries,  as 
it  takes  years  of  study,  labor,  and  even  genius  on  the 
part  of  the  artist  to  reach  an  eminent  degree  of  success, 
and  he  must  accordingly  be  well  paid  for  what  he  has 
accomplished.  However  this  may  be,  Brooklyn  has 
done  quite  as  well,  all  things  considered,  as  any  other 
city  in  the  Union. 

London  had  no  permanent  art-school,  or  an  academy 
of  design,  until  it  was  over  seven  hundred  years  old, 
and  yet  it  was  surrounded  with  the  great  art-marts  of 
the  world.  Taking  these  facts  into  consideration,  the 
Americans  have  no  cause  to  complain  for  what  they 
have,  or  what  they  have  not,  done  for  art.  They  have 
had  none  of  the  surrounding  art-examples  of  ages, 
accumulated  in  galleries,  nor  has  the  Government  re- 
sources or  ecclesiastical  wealth,  as  among  the  nations 


of  Europe,  to  assist  the  American  artist  to  advancement. 
The  churches  in  this  country  do  absolutely  nothing 
for  art  beyond  the  mere  frescoing  of  the  walls  in  the 
modern  bed-quilt  pattern,  through  the  cheap  medium 
of  stenciling,  and  this  frequently  so  inharmoniously 
done  that  one  wonders  at  the  lunatic  condition  of  the 
mind  that  invented  the  grotesqueness.  The  Govern- 
ment many  years  ago  purchased  a  few  pictures  for  the 
Rotunda  at  the  top  of  the  Capitol  at  Washington. 
Either  for  the  want  of  good  judgment,  or  through  po- 
litical peculation,  many  of  these  pictures  are  repulsive 
to  the  intelligent  mind,  for  the  ignorance  the  artist  has 
shown  of  the  historical  situation  and  condition  of 
things  which  he  has  portrayed  in  what  he  calls  an  his- 
torical picture.  A  simple  examination  of  several  of 
these  pictures  is  all  that  is  required  to  prove  their 
worthlessness  as  historical  pictures,  especially  so  in  the 
one  styled  "De  Soto  Discovering  the  Mississippi." 
From  the  style  of  costume  and  the  physical  condition 
of  De  Soto  and  his  men,  one  would  be  led  to  suppose 
that  they  had  been  fattened  for  the  occasion  and  turned 
out  for  a  dress  parade,  after  having  consulted  a  Chinese 
laundry  and  a  first-class  French  barber,  while  the  direct 
opposite  was  the  condition  of  De  Soto  and  his  squalid, 
fagged-out,  half-roasted,  and  half-starved  little  band  of 
heroic  followers,  when  De  Soto  gave  one  glance  at  the 
river  of  rivers,  fell  sick,  died,  and  was  buried  in  the 
mud  of  the  fickle  stream. 

Another  painting  in  the  Capitol,  entitled  "  Washing- 
ton Crossing  the  Delaware,"  is  faulty  with  like  impossi- 
bilities. Amidst  blocks  of  ice,  falling  snow,  and  a  stiff 
wind,  the  Father  of  his  Country  is  standing  up  in  the 
centre  of  the  boat  that  is  in  rough  motion,  holding  an 
American  flag.  The  position  of  Washington  is  such 
that  he  could  not  keep  it  under  such  circumstances,  and 
there  is  no  poetical  or  historical  license  to  warrant  it, 
or  the  melodramatic  position  of  General  Washington, 
whose  manner  was  always  that  of  an  unostentatious 
gentleman. 

The  picture  entitled  "  The  Baptism  of  Pocahontas  " 
is  alike  faulty  in  its  costumes  and  surroundings.  She 
was  baptized  from  a  common  wooden  trough  in  the 
little  stone  church  at  Jamestown,  Va.,  with  everything 
in  the  most  primitive  condition,  as  would  attend  the 
early  settlers  in  a  strange  country,  which  was  yet  a  wil- 


H38 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


derness.  But  the  picture  alluded  to  represents  the 
scene  as  one  of  luxury.  The  native  romance  and  poetic 
effects  that  might  be  thrown  into  a  composition  of  the 
baptism  of  Pocahontas,  are  of  the  finest  order;  and  any 
artist  of  ability  ought  to  see  enough  in  the  truth  of  the 
situation,  without  having  recourse  to  falsehood  and  the 
flummery  of  things  that  are  introduced  only  to  catch 
the  eye.  There  is  no  necessity  for  untruthful  historical 
picture  representations.  The  historian  has  given  the 
facts  of  American  history  with  sufficient  exactness  to 
prevent  the  artist  making  any  mistakes,  provided  the 
artist  has  sought  for  truth. 

The  nation's  history  is  replete  with  fine  subjects  for 
the  artist's  genius.  The  romance  of  situations  involved 
in  the  discovery  by  Columbus,  the  settlements  in  Vir- 
ginia, and  the  darings  and  sufferings  of  the  Pilgrim 
Fathers  on  the  wild  coast  of  Massachusetts,  the  strug- 
gles of  the  Revolution,  the  Rebellion — opening  the  flood- 
gates of  rich  battle  compositions  of  every  nature,  from 
the  merest  skirmish  to  the  gigantic  proportions  of  the 
Gettysburg  fight — all  give  a  marvellous  fullness  of  sub- 
jects to  inspire  the  artist's  pencil  to  great  results. 

Yet,  after  all  such  deductions,  it  can  be  safely  said 
that  great  credit  is  due  to  American  art-progress  when 
w^e  look  at  the  fettered  condition  under  which  it  has 
been  forced  to  fight  and  struggle.  The  early  painters 
of  this  country  did  great  work,  and  in  their  own  day 
commanded  high  attention  in  Europe.  We  cannot 
ignore  the  fact  that  West,  Leslie,  Washington,  Allston, 
Copley,  Vandenlin,  Malbone,  Thomas  Cole  and  Gilbert 
Stuart  did  grand  work.  As  artists  they  lent  an  undy- 
ing glory  to  the  days  in  which  they  lived,  and  brought 
this  country  an  art-fame  of  which  every  American 
should  feel  proud.  It  is  a  fact  that  the  early  painters 
of  this  country  aspired  to  higher  achievements  in  art 
than  do  the  artists  of  the  present  day.  They  not  only 
saw  nature  in  form  and  color  with  an  acute  eye,  but 
saw,  too,  the  ideal,  and  made  the  effort  to  combine 
both,  thereby  demonstrating  higher  conditions  of 
thought  as  well  as  a  higher  expression  of  art-effects. 
The  works  of  Allston,  West,  Trumbull  and  Cole  are 
positive  evidences  of  these  facts.  For,  while  they 
painted  histories  and  ideals,  their  paintings  exalted 
them  as  historical  figures  in  the  art-history  of  their 
own  country.  It  is  the  grandeur  of  thoughts  that 
make  great  men,  and  it  is  only  great  men  that  can 
make  a  nation's  history  worth  consideration. 
Allston's  "  Dead  Man  Revived,"  "  Belshazzar's 
Feast,"  "The  Bloody  Hand,"  and  "  Uriel  in  the  Sun," 
are  works  of  art  equal  to  the  best  productions  of  any 
of  his  contemporaneous  European  artists.  He  was  also 
a  poet  of  high  ability  ;  his  "  Paint-King,"  and  his 
"  Lines  to  the  Genius  of  Edmund  Kean,"  are  among 
the  best  efforts  of  English  poetry.  Col.  John  Trum- 
bull has  enriched  his  country  with  art-treasures  in  his 
battle-pictures  of  the  American  Revolution,  that  should 
be  valued  not  only  as  painted  history,  but  also  as  works 
pf  art  eruanating  fi-om  a,n  Aniericq,r(  hand  that  was 


highly  respected  in  England  and  France.  His  "  Death 
of  Montgomery,"  "  Death  of  Wolfe,"  and  "  Sortie  of 
Gibraltar,"  as  battle  compositions,  must  ever  rank  with 
the  best  works  by  the  artists  of  any  nation.  Thomas 
Cole  stands  alone  as  the  poetic  landscape  painter.  His 
"  Voyage  of  Life  "  is  a  poem — an  ideal  of  a  high 
character — pictures  that  tell  their  enchanting  story  in 
forms  and  colors  as  strongly  as  the  verses  of  Byron  or 
Longfellow  through  the  medium  of  words.  Cole's  pic- 
tures create  thoughts  in  the  beholder  as  soon  as  the  eyes 
take  them  in.  Their  power  over  the  mind  in  form  and 
color  is  even  stronger  than  words  ;  they  grasp  the  eye 
and  ignite  the  brain  with  thoughts  of  our  own,  added 
to  those  suggested  by  the  artist.  That  writer  or  artist 
is  the  best  who  makes  us  think  the  most — who  makes 
us  have  two  thoughts  of  our  own  to  the  one  he  gives 
us.  It  is  the  unwritten  thoughts  between  the  thoughts 
that  Shakespeare  wrote  that  make  his  genius  incompar- 
able. And  the  pleasure  we  have  in  seeing  or  reading 
lies  in  the  sensation-nerves  of  our  own  brain  which  are 
brought  into  action  by  the  suggestions  of  others. 
Cole's  "Voyage  of  Life"  and  "  Course  of  Empire"  are 
full  of  these  suggestions,  and  are  painted  epics. 
In  speaking  of  Malbone,  the  American  miniature 
painter,  we  feel  as  if  our  ink  should  be  dew  ex- 
tracted from  the  leaves  of  roses,  and  our  pen  as  soft 
and  delicate  as  the  brush  with  which  he  so  exquisitely 
touched  the  ivory.  The  writer  of  these  words  has 
had  the  honor  of  holding  in  his  own  hands  Malbone's 
glorious  miniature  entitled,  "  The  Hours  ;  or,  the 
Past,  the  Present,  and  the  Future."  He  saw  it  in  the 
possession  of  old  Mrs.  Whitehorne,  the  sister  of  Mal- 
bone, at  Newport,  R.  I.  The  composition  represented 
three  lovely  female  figures  in  one  group — Girlhood 
full  of  joy  and  expectation  ;  Womanhood  (the  centre 
figure),  full  of  dignified  pride  and  satisfaction  ;  while 
the  third  figure,  expressing  the  approach  of  Age, 
formed  a  composition  replete  with  grave  and  deep  hu- 
man thought.  The  faces  of  the  three  figures  were 
luminous  with  feeling,  and  the  harmony  of  colors  that 
pervaded  the  picture  was  like  a  sweet  melody  produ- 
cing a  repose  and  restful  ness  seldom  produced  by 
pictorial  effects. 

The  touchings  of  the  brush  in  the  execution  of  the 
work  are  marvellously  beautiful,  and  make  one  feel, 
while  viewirg  the  picture,  that  it  was  executed  by  fairy 
fingers. 

Benjamin  West,  the  American  artist,  told  JNIr.  ]\Ion- 
roe  (afterwards  President  of  the  United  States),  when 
in  Europe,  that  he  had  seen  a  picture,  "  The  Hours," 
by  a  young  gentleman  of  the  name  of  Malbone,  which 
no  artist  in  England  could  excel.  This  was  true,  and 
the  picture,  as  a  miniature  on  ivory,  stands  to-day  un- 
equaled.* 


♦Some  unknown  band,  inspired  by  this  exquisite  art-worli,  wrote 
the  following  lines,  tliat  were  extensively  copied  at  the  time: 
Whoe'er  beheld  thy  rosy  Hours, 

And  could  unfelt  their  beauties  see. 
The  mind  is  his  where  darkness  lowers. 
And  his  the  heart  that  mine  should  flee. 


ART  HLSTORY. 


This  young  American  genius  of  art,  giving  too  close 
an  application  to  his  inspiring  profession,  sickened  and 
died  at  the  age  of  thirty-two  years. 

Stuart,  Trumbull,  Elliott,  and  George  A.  Baker 
have  not  been  excelled  as  portrait  painters. 

With  these  facts  looking  us  in  the  face,  it  will  not 
do  to  say  that  the  American  people  are  not  naturally 
disposed  to  art-culture,  or  have  not  those  sensbilities 
that  are  necessary  to  make  a  nation  celebrated  in  art 
matters.  We  have  evidences  to  the  contrary  in  every 
department  of  art,  and  in  no  one  has  this  been  more 
empathically  demonstrated  than  in  the  wonderful  im- 
provement made  in  this  country  in  wood-engraving. 
Its  rise  and  progress  knew  no  bounds  until  it  absolute- 
ly leaped  into  a  new  style  of  wood-engraving  that  ex- 
presses in  touch  and  effects  everything  that  can  be  ex- 
pected in  black  and  white,  and  surpasses  anything  of 
the  kind  done  in  Europe.  Our  illustrated  magazines 
have  more  value  given  to  them  through  the  wood-en- 
gravings that  adorn  their  pages  than  is  contributed  to 
them  by  any  of  their  writers.  Harper's  and  the 
Century  magazines  are  almost  galleries  of  art-gems, 
and  have  became  valuable  as  art-collections.  The  rea- 
son for  this  vast  improvement  in  this  department  of 
art  arises  from  the  taste  of  the  American  people  for  il- 
lustrated works.  The  engraver  becomes  valuable  to 
the  publisher;  he  is  in  demand,  and  the  artist  strug- 
gles to  reach  a  higher  standard  of  excellence,  that  he 
may  reach  a  higher  standard  of  pay,  and  so  long  as  this 
disposition  lasts,  so  will  wood-engraving  keep  on  im- 
proving, if  it  is  possible  to  imjirove  any  more.  Every- 
thing must  be  fostered  that  it  may  improve,  and  when 
the  Government  of  the  United  States  wakes  up  to  the 
realization  that  an  artist  means  something  much  more 
than  a  carpenter,  a  bricklayer,  a  stone-cutter,  who 
puts  up  its  public  buildings,  it  will  discover  that  even 
a  democratic-republican  form  of  government  can  add 
not  only  to  the  happiness  of  its  people,  but  to  the 
glory  of  the  nation.  The  affected  disregard  or  con- 
tempt for  the  paternal  influence  which  should  be  ex- 
ercised over  the  morals  and  the  art-fostering  of  the 
people  is  an  insult  to  ordinary  intelligence,  and  ob- 
viously unworthy  of  the  characteristics  and  policy  of 
a  highly  civilized  nation. 

Has  the  fact  that  the  governments  of  England, 
France  and  Germany  having  patronized  art  made 
the  people  of  those  nations  any  worse  ?— and  has 
not  the  fact  of  their  governments  having  fostered  the 
art  made  the  people  happier,  and  the  nations  greater 
in  intellectual  achievements  ? 


May  memory  to  thy  mind  present 
The  |)HSt  with  gentle,  placid  mien. 

When  Hope,  prophetic  spirit  sent. 
Waving  her  golden  hair,  was  seen. 

And  may  thy  present  hours  be  bright 
As  the  fair  angel  smiling  there; 

Without  a  cloud  to  dim  tlieir  light- 
Without  a  thought  that  sets  in  care. 

But  for  the  future— Oh  !  may  they 
Be  crown'd  with  bliss,  health,  and  fame  ! 

And  may  this  little,  humble  lay 
Be  lost  midst  songs  that  sound  thy  name. 


When  the  representatives  of  the  people  at  Washing- 
ton ,are  made  to  see  something  more  than  "  river  and 
harbor"  improvements,  and  are  sufficiently  developed 
to  estimate  the  difference  of  importance  between  the 
work  of  a  carpenter  and  of  an  artist,  they  will  then 
discover  that  there  is  something  in  art  that  is  worth 
the  care  of  the  government,  and  that  such  care  cannot 
in  the  least  impair  the  dignity  of  the  government,  or 
jeopardize  "  democratic-republican  institutions."  Let 
our  government  make  an  occasional  appropriation 
from  its  overflowing  coffers  for  the  encouragement  of 
art.  Let  awards  be  offered  for  national  historical 
pictures.  The  appropriation  of  one  hundred  thousand 
dollars  would  place  upon  the  walls  of  the  Capitol's 
Rotunda  at  least  four  pictures  worthy  of  art-fame. 

In  1850,  the  few  artists  that  resided  in  Brooklyn 
felt  that  something  should  be  done  by  organization  to 
uphold  and  advance  a  taste  for  art  in  the  rapidly  grow- 
ing city.  Among  the  Brooklyn  artists  of  those  days 
stood  prominently  Mr.  Thomas  Thompson,  the  marine 
painter,  and  at  that  period  among  the  best  in  the 
country.  Mr.  Thompson  was  born  in  London,  Eng- 
land, March  25,  1776.  He  came  to  the  United  States 
in  1817.  For  several  years  he  resided  in  Baltimore, 
and  had  his  studio  on  Lexington  street.  In  1830,  he 
came  to  New  York  Citj%  was  highly  esteemed  by  his 
brother  artists,  and  was  for  many  years  a  member  of 
the  New  York  Academy  of  Design.  His  marine  pic- 
tures were  frequently  on  exhibition  at  the  New  York, 
Philadelphia  and  Boston  Academies.  In  1840,  he 
moved  to  Brooklyn,  where  he  remained  until  his  death, 
November  15,  1852.  In  1818,  while  a  resident  of 
Baltimore,  he  was  commissioned  by  a  gentleman  of 
that  city  to  paint  a  view  of  New  York  Harbor. 
Among  his  later  works,  the  writer  has  seen  two  oblong 
pictures  representing  the  Battery,  and  taking  in  an 
extended  view  of  Governor's  Island  and  the  bay, 
crowded  with  all  kinds  of  ships  and  water-craft,  as 
was  the  case  before  the  introduction  of  so  much  steam 
navigation.  These  pictures  are  valuable  both  as  to  the 
condition  of  things  at  that  time  and  as  works  of  art. 

At  the  time  Mr.  Thompson  was  resident  of  Brook- 
lyn, a  Mr.  Haskins  was  the  teacher  of  drawing  and 
painting  in  the  Graham  Art  School,  in  the  Brooklyn 
Institute.  This  gentleman,  feeling  that  something 
must  be  done  to  advance  art  taste,  and  to  find  a  mart 
for  the  sale  of  resident  artists'  works,  called  on  Mr. 
Thompson  and  suggested  the  formation  of  an  Art 
Union  in  Brooklyn,  on  the  plan  of  the  one  in  New 
York  City — the  distribution  of  pictures  by  lottery. 
Mr.  Thompson  joined  hands  with  this  gentleman,  and 
the  first  exhibition  of  the 

Brooklyn  Art  Union  was  given  in  issi  at 

283  Fulton  street,  in  the  "  Whitehouse  Building,"  now 
Loeser's  well-known  dry  goods  store.  The  exhibition 
room  was  of  good  proportions  and  had  a  sky-light  well 
adapted   to  the  purpose.      The  first  drawing   of   the 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


prizes  took  place  at  the  Brooklyn  Institute,  Washing' 
ton  street,  and  Walt.  Whitman,  then  the  editor  of  a 
small  paper  called  the  Brooklyn  Fi-eeman,  delivered 
the  address  on  the  occasion  of  the  first  distribution. 
But  the  State  authorities,  looking  upon  this  system  for 
the  encouragement  of  art  as  nothing  more  than  a 
mode  of  gambling,  enacted  a  law  forbidding  it,  and 
nothing  more  was  heard  of  the  Art  Union. 

The  G-raham  Art  School.— This  was  the  first 

art-seliool  Brooklyn  had.  It  took  its  name  from 
Augustus  Graham,  an  English  gentleman,  who  left  an 
amount  of  money  to  be  used  by  the  Brooklyn  Institute 
for  art-school  purposes.  The  Mr.  Haskins  above- 
mentioned  was  one  of  its  first  teachers.  This  school 
has  done  a  splendid  work  for  art-progress  in  Brooklyn, 
and  too  much  respect  cannot  be  shown  to  the  memory 
of  Mr.  Graham,  who  so  nobly  remembered  the  cause 
of  art,  which  is  so  seldom  appreciated  by  men  of 
wealth  in  their  dying  bequests  to  educational  institu- 
tions of  this  class. 

Quite  a  large  number  of  prominent  artists  have 
graduated  from  the  Graham  Art  School.  It  has  since 
the  time  of  its  organization  given  free  art-education  to 
over  one  thousand  pupils,  males  and  females,  many  of 
whom  had  not  the  means  otherwise  to  pursue  the  pro- 
fession of  their  choice.  The  reader  will  find  as  he 
follows  this  sketch  through  to  the  end,  that  a  fuller 
history  of  the  Graham  Art  School  will  be  given  in 
connection  with  other  art  events  in  Brooklyn. 

The  Sketch  Club. — The  next  important  move 
in  art-matters  of  Brooklyn  was  the  formation  of  "  The 
Sketch  Club,"  which  took  place  in  1857.  Its  first 
meeting  was  held  in  the  Dodworth  Building,  137  Mon- 
tague street.  The  meeting  was  held  in  Mr.  Chappel's 
studio.  Mr.  F.  A.  Chapman  was  elected  president. 
Among  the  members  we  find  the  names  of  the  fol- 
lowing artists:  S.  I.  Guy,  8.  Coleman,  Alonso  Chap- 
pell,  J.  G.  Brown,  John  M.  Falconer,  ,Iohn  William- 
son, James  Dick,  John  A.  Parker,  George  Innis,  J. 
B.  Whittaker,  Rufus  Wright,  and  Mr.  Oertel.  The 
objects  of  this  club  were  of  a  two-fold  nature:  for 
social  purposes  and  original  compositions.  The  re- 
sults were  excellent  both  in  oil  and  water  colors. 

It  served  also  to  fraternize  the  artists,  and  called  the 
attention  of  the  public  by  their  exhilntions  to  the  fact 
that  Brooklyn  had  an  art-circle,  in  which  were  some  of 
the  most  promising  artists  in  the  country.  Tlie  ex- 
hibitions of  this  club  were  held  in  the  artists'  studios, 
Dodworth  Building. 

Brooklyn  Art  A ssociation.— In  i859,  the 

artists  of  New  York  City  started  what  they  termed  art- 
receptions,  which  was  nothing  more  than  a  small  col- 
lection of  pictures  hung  upon  the  walls  of  the  Acad- 
emy of  Design,  and  invitations  sent  out  to  people  of 
wealth  to  inspect  the  same.  The  exhibitions  took 
place  in  the  evening.     The  artists  were  present.     In- 


troductions took  place,  and  the  artists  sold  their  pic- 
tures. In  a  commercial  point  of  view  it  was  a  success. 
This  led  Mr.  John  Williamson  to  call  a  meeting  in  his 
studio,  Dodworth  Building,  to  organize  a  similar 
social  club,  with  the  additional  feature  of  admitting 
lay  members,  believing  that  this  would  be  the  means 
of  interesting  a  larger  outside  interest  in  art-matters 
and  occasion  a  more  ready  sale  for  the  artists'  produc- 
tions. Tlie  sale  was  exceedingly  limited  at  that  time 
in  Brooklyn. 

The  first  meeting  was  held  on  January  5th,  1801. 
The  following  artists  were  present:  F.  A.  Chapman, 
J.  B.  Brown,  S.  I.  Guy,  John  M.  Falconer,  J.  A. 
Parker,  E.  J.  Whitney,  P.  P.  Rider,  W.  Hepburn,  A. 
Berger,  Mr.  Oertel,  Mr.  Lundy,  Mr.  Patton,  R. 
Gignoux,  and  Mr.  John  J.  Ryan,  of  the  New  York 
Herald.  Mr.  F.  A.  Chapman  was  called  to  the  chair. 
The  meeting  resulted  in  an  organization,  and  the 
following  oflicers  were  elected:  President,  Mr.  R. 
Gignoux;  Vice-Pres.,  J.  A.  Oertel;  Treas.,  F.  A. 
Cliapman;  Secretary,  John  Williamson. 

"  The  Brooklyn  Art  Association."— This 

organization  had  a  distinctive  feature  of  admitting  lay 
members  to  take  part  in  the  management  of  the 
association.  Among  the  first  lay  members  elected 
were  Mr.  E.  S.  Mills,  Mr.  Massey,  and  Mr.  John  J. 
Ryan.  The  last-named  gentleman  interested  himself 
with  the  directors  of  the  Brooklyn  Academy  of  Music 
to  let  the  Art  Association  have  their  first  reception  in 
the  Assembly  Room  of  the  Academy,  free  of  rent. 

The  association  issued  a  circular  in  October,  1861, 
asking  for  members  at  five  dollars  a  year,  and  promising 
three  receptions  during  the  term.  The  membership 
was  limited  to  two  hundred.  This  number  was  not 
filled  up  at  first,  but  after  the  first  reception,  which 
took  place  in  the  Assembly  Rooms,  Academy  of  Music, 
on  Mond.ay  evening,  February  isth,  1861,  which  went 
off  in  magnificent  style,  assisted  as  it  was  with  the 
display  of  floral  decorations,  music,  and  full  dress,  the 
rush  for  membership  was  so  great  that  the  association 
concluded  to  raise  the  fee  to  ten  dollars. 

The  exhibition  was  thrown  open  to  the  public  with 
ten  cents  admission.  This  lasted  for  two  days,  but 
was  not  a  success,  as  the  amount  taken  in  was  less 
than  sixty  dollars.  After  the  second  reception,  the 
exhibition  was  open  free  for  one  week,  with  a  charge  of 
twenty-five  cents  for  catalogues.  This  was  announced 
through  the  press,  and  thous.ands  thronged  to  see  the 
pictures,  and  the  receipts  amounted  to  very  nearly 
eighty  dollars  a  day  for  catalogues.  This  was  the  first 
catalogue  of  the  kind  ever  issued  in  Brooklyn. 

The  Art  Association  was  now  fully  launched  upon 
public  favor.  The  member.ship  increased  to  such  an 
extent  that  the  association  felt  warranted  in  extending 
the  expenses  and  grandeur  of  their  receptions,  and,  on 
the  occasion  of  the  next  one,  the  floor  was  placed  over 
the  parquette  of  the  auditorium,  which  was  elegantly 


ART  HISTORY. 


1141 


decorated  for  the  occasion  with  rare  flowers,  trees 
and  shrubs,  the  whole  under  the  especial  care  of  John 
W.  Degrauw,  president  of  the  Long  Island  Horticultural 
Society.  The  pictures  were  hung  in  the  assembly 
room  up  stairs,  while  the  members  and  invited  guests 
promenaded  the  auditorium  to  the  strains  of  music. 
It  made  a  scene  of  beauty  and  excitement  never  before 
witnessed  at  an  exhibition  of  pictures.  It  now  became 
the  fashionable  thing  to  be  a  member  of  the  art-recep- 
tions, and  for  the  citizens  to  crowd  to  see  the  pictures 
at  the  free  exhibitions. 

How  much  good  this  display  of  ornament  has  done 
the  cause  of  art  in  Brooklyn,  and  how  much  benefit 
it  has  been  to  the  pockets  of  the  individual  artists,  the 
artists  themselves  are  the  best  able  to  tell  after  the 
experiment  of  twenty-three  years.  However,  the  Art 
Association  went  on  with  great  success.  Several  active 
lay  members  took  great  interest  in  the  association, 
and  conceived  that  there  should  be  a  building  put 
up  in  Brooklyn  devoted  to  art  purposes,  and  the 
association  resolved  to  erect  the  Art  Association 
Building  that  now  stands  adjoining  the  west  end  of 
the  Academy  of  Music.  Mr.  Edward  G.  Lowber  in- 
terested himself  so  deeply  in  the  erection  of  this 
building  that  he  was  the  means  of  obtaining  the 
largest  portion,  by  subscriptions,  of  the  eighty 
thousand  dollars  which  the  building  cost. 

During  the  Sanitary  Fair  in  1864,  the  Art  Associ- 
ation rendered  important  services  to  the  cause  of 
the  Union  by  giving  an  exhibition  of  pictures.  The 
admission  fee  was  twenty-five  cents.  They  also  gave  a 
grand  reception,  which  took  place  on  February  17th, 
1864.  By  these  two  interesting  events  they  added 
largely  to  the  funds  of  the  Sanitary  Commission  up  to 
about  1864.  All  of  the  Brooklyn  artists,  and  many  of 
the  New  York  artists,  contributed  liberally  to  the  ex- 
hibitions in  pictures  and  gold  frames,  but  many  of 
them  finding  that  they  only  occasionally  sold  a  picture, 
and  other  dissatisfaction  occurring  from  too  much  laic 
influence  in  the  management,  left  the  association. 
In  fact,  the  artists  themselves  became  wholly  the 
secondary  consideration,  and  the  control  of  the  in- 
stitution went  entirely  out  of  their  hands.  Among  the 
artists  who  contributed  the  most  largely  to  such  a 
separation  was  Mr.  John  Williamson  himself,  who 
became  unpopular  with  his  brother  artists  of  Brooklyn. 
He  at  last  resigned  from  the  association  and  removed 
to  New  York. 

Besides,  the  directors  of  the  Art  Association  were  so 
much  engrossed  with  the  idea  of  a  building  for  the  as- 
sociation, that  they  lost  sight  of  the  interest  they  should 
have  taken  in  the  artists'  welfare  by  the  sale  of  their 
pickcres,  which  was  the  very  purpose  of  the  existence 
of  the  Art  Association,  for,  without  the  pictures,  the  in- 
stitution would  have  been  without  a  foundation.  Too 
little  interest,  also,  was  taken  in  the  formation  of  a 
first-rate  art  school;  for  although  they  appropriated  a 


basement  floor  for  a  school,  yet,  for  the  want  of  proper 
light,  it  could  be  used  Only  at  night,  and  with  a  scanty 
collection  of  casts  for  the  students  to  work  from.  More 
will  be  said  on  the  subject  of  the  Art  Association 
School  in  the  matter  relating  to  the  Brooklyn  Academy 
of  Design. 

After  Mr.  Gignoux  resigned  his  position  as  president, 
Mr.  E.  S.  Mills  was  elected  to  the  position.  Mr.  R. 
W.  Hubbard  succeeded  Mr.  Mills. 

At  last,  the  opportunity  offering  the  Art  Association 
for  a  better  condition  of  its  art-school,  by  the  fact  that 
the  Academy  of  Design  could  no  longer  maintain  its 
schools,  a  proposition  was  made  on  the  part  of  the  Art 
Association  to  the  Academy  to  take  their  school-rooms 
and  teach  there  free  of  rent,  and  that  out  of  the  one 
thousand  dollars  which  the  city  donated  to  the  Art 
Association  for  art  instruction,  after  the  expenses  of 
light,  heat  and  cleaning,  were  deducted,  the  teachers 
should  apportion  the  residue.  To  this  effect,  papers 
were  signed  and  sealed,  and  J.  B.  Whitaker,  Rufus 
Wright  and  G.  O.  Annable  were  appointed  as  instruc- 
tors over  the  several  departments  of  the  school.  The 
school  went  along  finely  under  their  able  instruction, 
and  the  classes  became  full  to  overflowing.  But 
when  the  time  came  to  pay  the  teachers,  out  of  the  one 
thousand  dollars  given  for  the  support  of  the  Art 
School,  there  was  so  little  left  for  the  teachers,  after 
deducting  for  light  and  cleaning,  that  Mr.  Whittaker 
and  Rufus  Wright  resigned  their  positions,  and  others 
took  their  places,  consisting  of  George  O.  Annable, 
William  H.  Baker  and  Miss  Georgia  Douglas,  with 
Mr.  Annable  holding  the  position  of  principal  teacher, 
until  within  a  year  or  more  of  the  present  period.  One 
of  the  squeamish  features  of  the  directors  of  the  Brook- 
lyn Art  Association  was,  their  forbiddance  of  a  "  life 
school,"  or  drawing  from  the  nude  figure.  No  art- 
institution  with  such  cramped  ideas  can  ever  be 
much  use  to  real  art-progress.  Those  who  seek  to 
manage  art  on  such  principles  show  their  total  igno- 
rance of  the  highest  things  in  art.  They  do  not  see 
that  the  painters  and  sculptors  of  ancient  and  modern 
times  produced  their  great  works  of  art  from  their 
knowledge  of  the  human  anatomy,  and  when  the  man 
becomes  ashamed  of  the  naked  figure  for  art  or  scien- 
tific purposes,  he  should  go  further,  to  reach  a  plausible 
climax,  by  being  ashamed  of  the  God  that  made  him. 
There  is  no  language  strong  enough  to  disapprove  of 
such  affected  notions,  and,  if  real,  their  ignorance  is  only 
equaled  by  the  bigots  who  put  to  death  women  on  the 
superstition  that  they  were  witches,  on  account  of  cer- 
tain natural  marks  upon  their  breasts. 

The  Art  Association  has  just  completed  its  forty- 
seventh  exhibition,  which  was  attended  only  by  hun- 
dreds, where  it  used  to  be  attended  by  thousands. 
This  should  not  be  the  case,  nor  would  it  be,  if  the  in- 
stitution had  been  properly  managed.  The  fact 
is,  all  art- associations  t^hould  be  managed  by   artists 


1142 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COtfNTY. 


only.  There  should  be  no  opposing  elements  in  the 
management  of  the  institution  in  the  fact  of  two 
classes  of  men,  the  one  having  the  right  and  the  knowl- 
edge to  manage,  while  the  other  has  only  the  means  to 
assist  in  the  upholding  of  the  institution.  Each  class 
has  its  separate  functions  to  perform,  and  each  alike 
honorable.     All  should  be  in  harmony. 

To  say  that  the  lay  members  of  the  Brooklyn  Art 
Association  have  not  been  of  great  benefit  to  art-prog- 
ress in  the  city  of  Brooklyn,  or  that  they  have  not 
done  a  great  work  in  giving  the  city  of  Brooklyn  the 
fine  building  for  art-purposes,  would  be  simple  injustice 
and  ingratitude.  The  great  trouble  lies  in  the  fact  that 
wealth  felt  itself  of  more  importance  than  art,  and  that 
artists  felt  themselves  of  more  importance  than  wealth. 
We  freely  maintain  that  there  have  been  painted  more 
great  pictures  under  the  influence  of  poverty  and  toil 
and  struggle  than  have  been  painted  under  the  affluent 
aspects  of  life.  The  man  who  wants  to  paint,  will 
paint  under  any  circumstances.  But  who  will  pretend 
to  deny  that  the  man  of  wealth  has  the  power  to  en- 
courage the  artist  in  his  work,  and  assist  art  and 
artists  to  attain  the  highest  condition  of  merit  ? 

It  would  not  be  just  to  close  this  sketch  of  the 
Brooklyn  Art  Association  without  alluding  to  Mr. 
John  M.  Falconer.  Perhaps  no  member  of  the  as- 
sociation gave  more  of  his  valuable  time,  and  none 
accomplished  more  for  the  success  of  the  institution 
than  Mr.  Falconer.  He  was  constantly  on  some  com- 
mittee, and  whether  he  was  or  not,  he  invariably  helped 
those  that  were.  During  the  Sanitary  Fair  in  18G-1,  Mr. 
Falconer  got  up  the  first  exhibition  of  engravings  that 
was  held  in  the  United  States.  The  collection  was  a 
large  one,  and  represented  the  best  specimens  of  the 
diflicult  art.  Henry  Ward  Beecher,  Charles  Burt,  the 
celebrated  engraver,  and  Professor  West,  of  the  Brook- 
lyn Heights  Seminary,  contributed  largely  to  the  col- 
lection of  engravmgs.  The  Rev.  Dr.  Farley  made  an 
able  report  on  the  exhibition. 

Mr.  Falconer  has  interested  himself  for  many  years 
in  making  sketches  in  oil  and  water  colors,  of  the  noted 
landmarks  of  the  Revolution  that  lie  within  Kings 
County  and  on  Long  Island  at  large.  His  pictures  are 
remarkable  for  truthful  representations.  His  color  is 
always  good,  and  the  details  admirable.  To  the  histo- 
rian, these  pictures  must  prove  of  great  value.  Those 
that  attracted  our  attention  the  most  are  the  views  of 
the  old  Cortelyou  House  on  Gowanus  Road,  built  in 
1G99;  the  Payne  Homestead  at  East  Hamj^ton,  L.  I., 
exterior  and  interior  views;  the  Old  House  in  Prospect 
Park,  Brooklyn,  that  stood  near  the  old  Long  Island 
battle-ground;  and  the  Old  Tavern  in  Flatbush  Avenue. 
Mr.  Falconer  has  produced  etchings  of  many  of  these 
places.  He  is  a  member  of  the  London  Etchers'  Club, 
among  whom  his  etchings  are  highly  valued.  Mr. 
Falconer  is  a  Scotchman  by  birth,  has  been  in  this 
country  many  years,  and  is  a  resident  of  Brooklyn. 

Mr.  John  A.  Paekek  was  another  devoted  servant 


to  the  success  of  the  Art  Association.  For  many  years 
he  served  on  the  Hangers'  Committee,  and,  had  it  not 
been  for  his  just  and  determined  spirit  many  a  fine  work 
of  art  would  have  been  hung  in  some  dark  corner  or 
out-of-the-way  place  in  the  exhibition,  that  justly  found 
a  place  on  the  line.  It  is  only  just  and  right  to  state 
that  there  were  various  other  members  of  the  Brooklyn 
Art  Association  who  did  much  hard  work,  and  assisted 
materially  in  advancing  the  success  of  this  institution, 
and  only  the  fact  of  the  want  of  proper  space  prevents 
further  detail. 

On  March  11th,  1872,  the  Brooklyn  Art  Associa- 
tion, on  the  occasion  of  the  twenty-fourth  reception, 
gave  to  the  public  an  exhibition  that  will  ever  redound 
to  its  great  credit.  This  exhibition  consisted  of  the 
finest  collection  of  works  of  art  by  American  artists,  in 
chronological  order,  that  had  ever  been  brought 
together,  and  more  than  is  likely  ever  again  to  be 
accomplished  to  so  complete  an  extent.  Any  lover  of 
art  who  took  an  interest  in  the  art-achievements  of  this 
country,  and  saw  this  exhibition,  was  fortunate,  and 
should  ever  feel  indebted  to  the  Brooklyn  Art  Associa- 
tion. It  is  here  proper  to  give  the  names  of  the  most 
prominent  of  the  past  artists  who  were  represented  on 
this  occasion,  many  of  whom  had  long  since  washed 
their  brushes  for  the  last  time,  and  many  who  were 
fast  trudging  down  the  slope  of  life  that  leads  to  where 
shadows  fall  from  graves.* 

*  Washington  Allston,  Thoniaa  Cole,  John  G.  Copley,  Vanderlyn,  A. 
n.  Durand,  Charles  Elliott,  F.  W.  Edmonds,  Jared  B.  Flagg,  James 
Frothingham,  S.  K.  Gifford,  H  P.  Gray,  G.  P.  A.  Healey,  D.  Hunting- 
ton, S.  F.  B.  Morse,  James  Herring,  W.  W.  Hunt,  T.  Hicks,  C.  C. 
Ingham,  Thomas  S.  Cummings,  Henry  Inman,  J.  W.  Jarvis,  J.  F.  Ken- 
sett,  C.  R.  Leslie,  E.  G.  Malbone,  J.  MoEntee,  George  Tunis,  W.  S. 
Mount,  John  Neagle,  Rembrant  Peale,  J.  F.  Peale,  C.  W.  Peale,  A.  H. 
Ritchie,  P.  F.  Kothmel,  E.  Savage,  Gilbert  Stuart,  Thomas  Sully,  E. 
LIsdale,  Benjamin  West,  Charles  W.  Weir,  W.  Witteredge,  A.  Wood 
side,  George  A.  Baker,  Bass  Otis,  W.  H.  Beard,  Thomas  Birch,  J.  P. 
Cropsey,  and  John  Trumbull. 

The  collection  of  pictures  representing  this  last-named  gentleman's 
art-work  was  very  complete.  It  represented  his  original  and  remark- 
able battle  pictures,  "The  Death  of  Warren  at  Bunker  Hill,"  "The 
Death  of  Montgomery  at  Quebec,"  and  also  the  Yale  College  collec- 
tion of  miniatures  in  oil  colors  of  nearly  all  of  the  generals  of  the 
Revolution,  as  well  as  a  large  collection  of  other  prominent  men  con- 
nected with  the  history  of  the  country,  as  follows:— G  eneral  Nathaniel 
Green,  1T92;  Colonel  William  Hull,  179:!;  Colonel  Thomas  Stevens.  1791, 
Captain  Thomas  Seymour,  1792;  General  John  Brooke,  1790;  Brigadier- 
General  Rufus  Putnam,  1790;  Colonel  Grimke,  Major-General  Mifflin, 
1783;  Captain  Manning,  1791;  General  Richard  Butler,  1790;  General  O. 
H.  Williams,  1790;  General  William  Moultry,  1791;  Brig.-General  Small- 
wood,  1792;  Major  Haskell,  1791;  Colonel  Morgan,  1792;  Mrs.  Washing- 
ton, 1792;  Mrs.  Trumbull,  1793;  The  Young  Sachem,  Chief  of  the  Six 
Nations,  1792;  T.  Dalton,U.  S.  Senator,  1792;  Theodore  Sedgwick,  M.  C, 
1791;  Oliver  Ellsworth,  U.  S.  Senator,  1792;  William  Smith,  M.  C,  1792; 
Jacob  Reed,  M.  C,  1783;  R.  Tzaud,  U.  S.  Senator,  1791;  Rufus  King,  U. 
S.  Senator,  1793;  Fisher  Ames,  M.  C.  1792;  The  Infant,  a  Chief  of  the 
Six  Nations,  1792;  John  Langdon,  U.  S.  Senator,  1792;  John  Brohn,  U. 
S.  Representative,  1792;  Jonathan  Trumbull,  Speaker  of  IT.  S.  House  of 
Representatives,  1792;  Jonathan  Trumbull,  Governor  of  Connecticut 
during  the  Revolution;  Good  Peter,  a  Chief  of  the  Six  Nations,  1792; 
Dr.  L.  Hopkins,  of  Hartford,  Conn  ,  poet  and  physician,  1793;  John 
Trumbull,  author  of  "McFingal,"  1791;  L.  Livermore,  U.  S.  Senator, 
1791;  Arthur  Lee.  1790;  Judge  Rutledge,  1791;  Thomas  Pickney,  1791; 
Charles  C.  Pickney,  1791;  Judge  E.  Benson,  1792;  Major-General 
Philips  Schuyler,  1792;  Harriet  Wadsworth,  1791;  Faith  Trumbull, 
1791;  Catherine  Wadsworth,  1792;  Julia  Seymour,  1792;  Eleanor 
Curtis,  1792,  Cornelius  Schuyler,  1792;  Sophia  Chew,  1793;  Har- 
riet Chew,  1793;  Henry  Laurens.  President  of  Congress,  1791;  John 
Jay,  Chief  Justice  U.  S.,  1793;  John  Adams,  Vice-President  U. 
S.,  1792;    George  Hammond,    Minister    from    Great    Britain,    1792: 


ART  HISTORY. 


1143 


The  Brooklyn  Academy  of  Design.— in 

the  preceding  sketch  of  the  Brooklyn  Art  Association 
we  mentioned  a  meeting  called  by  Mr.  Williamson, 
held  at  his  studio  on  January  5th,  1861,  and  resulting 
in  the  formation  of  the  "  Art  Association."  The 
great  majority  of  the  artists  of  Brooklyn  became 
members  thereof,  but,  after  a  few  years,  many  of  the 
artists  became  much  dissatisfied  with  the  management, 
for  the  reason  that  the  lay  members  were  usurping 
their  rights.  In  December,  1866,  Alonzo  Chappell, 
F.  A.  Chapman,  Rufus  Wright,  George  Hall,  H.  Car- 
mienke  and  P.  P.  Ryder  issued  a  call  for  a  meeting  to 
be  held  at  the  studio  of  Mr.  Carmienke,  Dodworth's 
Building,  to  take  these  matters  into  consideration,  and 
to  form  another  association,  to  be  controlled  by  artists 
only.  The  following  artists  were  present : — William 
Hart,  A.  H.  Ritchie,  A.  Chappell,  H.  Carmienke, 
Gabriel  Harrison,  Rufus  Wright,  P.  P.  Ryder,  G.  R. 
Hall,  J.  C.  Piatt,  W.  M.  Brown,  G.  O.  Annable,  J.  G. 
Brown,  F.  A.  Chapman,  W.  Hepburn,  S.  I.  Guy,  A. 
Berger,  A.  Luraley,  A.  Fisher,  C.  Sherman,  S.  Wal- 
len,  G.  Ward,  E.  T.  Whitney,  J.  B.  Whittaker,  and 
C.  H.  Smith.  This  was  the  largest  meeting  of  artists 
that  had  been  held  in  Brooklyn.  William  Hart  was 
requested  to  take  the  chair.  Alonzo  Chappell  then 
stated  that  "  the  object  of  the  meeting  was  to  form  an 
art-association  to  be  entirely  controlled  by  artists,  and 
for  the  one  purpose  of  art- improvement,  by  the  forma- 
tion of  an  Academy  of  Design,  with  its  several  schools, 
for  the  improvement  of  the  artists,  and  free  instruc- 
tion of  the  youth  of  Brooklyn."  Mr.  Chappell's  re- 
marks were  received  with  warm  approbation.  Rufus 
Wright,  Mr.  Carmienke,  and  Gabriel  Harrison  sus- 
tained Mr.  Ciiappell.  Mr.  Harrison  hoped  that  if  the 
free  school  of  the  academy  were  organized,  it  would 
admit  the  female  portion  of  the  community  as  well  as 
the  males.  Immediate  organization  was  proposed,  and 
the  election  of  the  following  officers  took  place  :  Wil- 
liam Hart,  President;  Alonzo  Chappell,  Vice-Presi- 
dent;  A.  H.  Ritchie,  Treasurer ;  J.  B.  Whittaker,  Re- 
cording Secretary ;  Gabriel  Harrison,  Corresponding 
Secretary.  Several  commitees  were  then  apjjointed  to 
take  into  consideration  the  principles  that  should 
guide  the  academy  schools.  Sue,  &c.  J.  B.  Whittaker, 
A.  H.  Ritchie,  and  Rufus  Wright  were  appointed  on 
the  school,  and  Gabriel  Harrison  and  Rufus  Wright  to 
find  rooms  for  the  academy. 

On  January  14th,  1867,  rooms  were  secured  in  the 
Ilalsey  Buildings,  on  Fulton  street,  opposite  the  City 
Hall.  Thirty-three  artists  interested  themselves,  and 
by  their  efforts  and  donations  nearly  three  hundred 
dollars  were  raised  within  a  month  for  academy  pur 

Temple  Franklin,  grandson  of  Dr.  Franklin,  1701;  Judge  Oakley, 
1827;  Henry  Bwight,  M.  C,  1827 ;  John  C.  Calhoun,  Vice-President  of  U. 
S.,  1827;  Dr.  Allen,  1837;  Dr.  B.  T.  Ogden,  1837;  portrait  of  Colonel 
Trumbull,  belonging  to  Mrs.  D.  T.  Lanman  ;  Colonel  Trumbull's  two 
daughters,  do.,  and  a  miniature  of  General  George  Wasbington,  once 
belonging  to  Governor  Barbour  of  Virginia,  sold  December  22d,  1803,  at 
the  Wolf  sale,  and  now  the  property  of  Mr.  J.  T.  Sanford, 


poses.  The  schools  were  opened  with  some  forty 
scholars — eleven  young  ladies  being  among  the  num- 
ber. J.  B.  Whittaker,  Rufus  Wright  and  F.  A.  Chap- 
man were  appointed  teachers,  all  capable  to  the  high- 
est degree,  and  most  industriously  attended  to  the  ad- 
vancement of  the  pupils.  The  average  attendance  for 
the  first  season  was  sixty-two,  of  which  number  twenty- 
two  were  ladies.  All  the  expenses  of  the  school  were 
paid  by  the  artists  themselves,  among  whom  none 
was  more  liberal  than  A.  H.  Ritchie. 

The  importance  of  the  art-work  done  by  the  pupils 
and  the  members  of  the  Academy  of  Design  cannot  be 
over-estimated,  and  the  unselfish  motives  of  the  artists, 
in  doing  the  work  of  teaching,  stand  unequaled  in 
the  history  of  art.  Five  nights  in  the  week  the 
schools  were  kept  open,  fom  8  to  10  o'clock,  and  prizes 
of  considerable  value,  for  emulation  among  the  pupils, 
were  offered.  The  results  of  the  first  season's  teaching 
gave  remarkable  evidences  of  talent  and  industry  on 
the  part  both  of  the  pupils  and  teachers. 

The  academy  remained  in  the  Halsey  Building 
until  the  Graham  Art  School,  at  the  Brooklyn  Insti- 
tute, in  Washington  street,  refitted  their  rooms,  when 
it  was  proposed  by  said  institute  that  they  would 
furnish  the  Academy  of  Design  with  a  suite  of  rooms, 
free  of  rent,  if  they  would  take  charge  of  the  Graham 
Art  School  teaching,  free  of  cost.  This  handsome 
offer  was  cordially  accepted.  The  rooms  were  well 
adapted  for  the  purpose.  The  Graham  Art  School  had 
quite  a  collection  of  casts,  to  which  were  added  those 
of  the  Academy  of  Design.  The  two  combined  made  a 
respectable  show  for  the  round  and  antique  class. 

The  season  of  1868  opened  with  a  crowded  school. 
Here  the  academy  established  a  "  life-school " — the 
most  neglected  branch  of  study  in  this  country.  The 
life-school  to  the  figure  artists  is  of  as  much  import- 
ance as  is  the  dead  body  to  the  anatomist  for  the  studies 
of  his  science;  and  this  youthful  academy,  soon  feeling 
the  strength  of  a  giant,  projected  public  lectures  in  the 
large  hall  of  the  institute,  the  first  of  which  was  deliv- 
ered by  James  Fairman.  His  subject  was  :  "  The  iEs- 
thetics  of  Art."  The  second  lecture  was  delivered  by 
Nelson  Macdonald,  on  "  The  Fine  Arts  of  the  Ancient 
Egyptians."  The  third  lecture  was  by  Caleb  Lyons, 
on  "Paul  Delarache."  Others  were  given,  all  of  which 
cost  money,  but  produced  none.  This  with  other  mat- 
ters brought  the  academy  into  debt,  and  next  fall, 
when  about  to  organize  for  the  winter  campaign,  mat- 
ters wore  a  gloomy  aspect.  The  majority  of  the  mem- 
bers had  already  put  their  hands  into  their  pockets  as 
deep  as  they  dared  to  go  in  justice  to  their  families. 
William  Hart,  the  president,  felt  the  gloom  of 
despondency,  called  a  meeting  of  the  Academy,  and 
offered  a  resolution  to  adjourn  sine  die.  This  resolu- 
tion would  have  passed,  had  it  not  been  for  the  elo- 
quent and  earnest  pleading  of  Gabriel  Harrison,  who 
proposed  one  more  assessment  of  the  members  to  an 
amount  suflicient  to  satisfy  a  few  creditors,  and  sug- 


1144 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


gested  means  for  loosing  the  meshes  of  debt  which  over- 
hung the  academy.  Mr.  Harrison  and  Mr.  Balling, 
who  had  warmly  seconded  his  views,  were  appointed  a 
committee  to  arrange  for  a  concert,  and  a  subscription 
wag  raised  by  the  members  to  meet  the  immediate  lia- 
bilities of  the  school.  Previous,  however,  to  the  con- 
cert, the  Academy,  at  its  annual  election,  January  18th, 
1869,  elected  the  following  officers:— President,  George 
Innis,  Esq.;  first  vice-president,  Alonzo  Chappel; 
second  vice-president,  Lemuel  Wilmarth;  recording 
secretary,  J.  B.  Wliittaker;  corresponding  secretary, 
Gabriel  Harrison;  treasurer,  E.  D.  Plympton;  coun- 
cil—F.  A.  Chapman,  P.  P.  Ryder,- W.  Hepburn,  H. 
Balling,  A.  Bergen;  hanging  committee — William 
Hart,  Rufus  Wright,  and  W.  H.  Snyder. 

Toe  Graham  Academy  and  Art  School  classes 
were  under  the  instructions  of  William  Hart,  J.  B. 
Whittaker  and  Rufus  Wright.  The  Elementary  class 
had  103  students  on  the  roll;  average  attendance,  78. 
Architecture,  under  I.  T.  Rhue,  number  of  students  on 
the  roll,  20;  average  attendance,  16.  The  Academy 
classes,  Antique,  under  L.  Wilmarth,  number  of  stu- 
dents on  the  roll,  56;  average  attendance,  38;  one 
half  the  students  being  young  ladies.  The  Nude  Art 
School  had  18  students,  average  attendance,  15.  A  total 
of  107  pupils  who  were  receiving  free  art-education — 
a  showing  that  stands  unequaled  in  the  history  of  any 
other  art-institution  in  the  United  States,  and  is  not 
likely  to  be  equaled  again. 

Mr.  Harrison  carried  out  his  promise  with  the  con- 
cert, which  took  place  at  the  Brooklyn  Academy  of 
Music,  on  the  12th  of  February,  1869.  The  following 
ladies  and  gentlemen  volunteered  their  services:  Ole 
Bull,  S.  B.  Mills,  F.  Steins,  and  Miss  Agatha  Statts, 
and  the  Brooklyn  Amateur  Philharmonic  Society. 
The  Rev.  Henry  Ward  Beecher  made  an  address,  re- 
lating to  the  noble  work  done  by  the  Brooklyn  Acad- 
emy of  Design,  and  the  importance  of  art-culture  to  the 
moral  condition  of  society. 

The  back  of  the  stage  was  occupied  by  an  allegorical 
picture — the  figures  colossal — representing  Music  sus- 
taining Art,  designed  and  painted  by  Gabriel  Harri- 
son and  Alonzo  Chappell.  In  one  of  the  proscenium 
boxes  sat  Admiral  Farragut,  who  was  received  with 
marked  attention.  The  result  of  the  concert  placed 
over  nine  hundred  dollars  in  the  treasury  of  the  Acad- 
emy of  Design. 

The  increase  of  pupils  had  now  gone  far  beyond  the 
capacity  of  the  rooms  allotted  by  the  Institute,  and 
about  this  time  a  misunderstanding  occurring  between 
the  directors  of  the  institute  and  the  oftieers  of  the 
academy,  led  to  the  removal  of  the  latter  institution  to 
other  quarters,  which  were  found  in  the  Hamilton 
Building,  corner  of  Court  and  Joralemon  streets,  where, 
by  Gabriel  Harrison's  successful  intercession  with  Mr. 
A.  A.  Low,  the  proprietor,  they  were  secured  at  half 
the  usual  rent.      The  main  room  was  twenty-five  by 


sixty  feet  in  size,  with  plenty  of  light  for  day-schools; 
there  were  two  other  rooms,  one  of  which  answered 
for  council  chambers.  Admirable  arrangements  of  gas- 
lights were  put  up  for  night-classes.  Mr.  E.  D. 
Plympton,  the  treasurer,  who  took  great  interest  in  the 
Academy  of  Design,  presented  the  academy  with  a  full 
suite  of  furniture  for  the  council  chamber.  All  things 
in  readiness,  the  school  opened  on  the  29th  November, 
with  128  applicants,  of  which  number  only  110  could 
be  received  for  want  of  room. 

At  the  annual  election,  Januarj'  29th,  Mr.  A.  H. 
Ritchie  was  elected  president,  while  the  rest  of  the  offi- 
cers stood  the  same  as  the  year  previous.  The  school 
gained  additional  glory  this  season  by  the  wonderful 
results  of  its  pupils.  The  fame  of  the  management  of 
the  academy-schools  extended  to  the  New  York  Acad- 
emy of  Design,  from  which  a  committee  waited  on  the 
Brooklyn  Academy  to  see  and  inquire  into  its  workings. 
So  well  pleased  was  this  committee  that  they  not  only 
adopted  many  of  the  principles  of  the  teaching  system, 
but  asked  the  privilege  of  inviting  Mr.  Wilmarth,  one 
of  the  teachers,  to  take  a  class  in  the  New  York  Acad- 
emy, at  a  handsome  salary,  which  was  granted  in  justice 
to  the  gentleman,  as  none  of  the  teachers  were  receiv- 
ing the  least  pay  for  the  extremely  hard  work  they  did 
in  the  Brooklyn  Academy. 

The  season  of  1872  found  the  members  of  the 
academy  ready  and  willing  to  work,  but  the  want 
of  means  to  carry  on  the  schools  again  looked 
them  in  the  face.  New  assessments  were  proposed,  but 
the  members  could  no  longer  stand  the  burden;  besides, 
the  vast  expenditure  of  brains  and  physical  labor  re- 
quired from  the  teachers  for  the  average  attendance  of 
a  hundred  pupils,  five  nights  a  week,  from  November 
to  May,  began  to  weary  the  teachers,  and  especially  so 
when  considering  that  they  received  no  pay.  J.  B. 
Whittaker  and  Rufus  Wright  were  martyrs  to  art-edu- 
cation. It  was  suggested  that  the  city  be  asked  to  give 
the  school  $1,000  per  annum,  a  portion  of  which 
should  be  paid  to  the  three  teachers.  The  Art  Asso- 
ciation, hearing  of  this  application,  put  in  a  similar  ap- 
plication, though  at  the  time  it  had  no  schools,  and 
from  the  fact  of  their  having  a  building,  and  a  strong 
influence  to  back  the  application,  obtained  it.  This 
left  the  academy  out  in  the  cold.  This  caused  some 
bitterness  of  feeling  between  the  two  art-associations 
which  finally  led  to  the  following  understanding:  that 
the  Academy  of  Design  should  hold  its  art-schools  in 
the  basement  of  the  Art  Association,  and  that  the 
schools  known  as  the  Free  Schools  of  Brooklyn  Acad- 
emy of  Design,  and  of  the  Brooklyn  Art  Association, 
should  be  under  the  government  and  control  of  the 
academy;  that  the  necessary  accommodation,  light, 
heat,  and  attendance  of  janitor,  with  facilities  for  the 
meetings  of  the  academy,  be  also  furnished  by  the  Art 
Association;  that  of  the  $1,000  received  from  the 
city  a   portion   should    be  divided   among  the  three 


ARTIST  BIOGRAPHIES. 


teachers,  etc. ;  the  statuary,  fixtures  and  property  of  the 
Academy  of  Design  to  be  used  in  the  schools. 

So  tlie  Academy  of  Design  merged  into,  and  died  an 
easy  death  in  the  arms  of,  the  Art  Association.  But 
with  tliis  died  the  finest  art-school  that  had  ever  been 
organized  in  America.  Many  of  the  best  members 
of  the  Academy  looked  upon  the  transaction  with 
much  disfavor,  and  quietly  withdrew  from  all  public 
art-interest  in  Brooklyn.  The  schools  were  taken  to 
the  Art  Association  with  less  than  half  of  the  number 
of  pupils  that  attended  the  Academy.  Mr.  William 
Hart,  the  ex-president  of  the  Academy,  was  placed  on 
the  council  of  the  Art  Association,  but  this  appeared 
useless,  as  the  majority  of  the  members  of  the  acad- 
emy saw  that  eventually  all  coutrol  would  fall  into  the 
hands  of  the  lay  members  of  the  Art  Association,  and 
it  did.  Mr.  Whittaker,  Eufus  Wright,  and  George  0. 
Annable  were  appointed  teachers.  But  when  the  ap- 
portionment of  the  thousand  dollars,  which  was  to 
have  been  paid  to  the  teachers,  after  the  deduction  for 
heat,  light,  &c.,  &c.,  was  made,  the  amount  was  so 
small  that  Mr.  Wiiittakor  and  Mr.  Wright  resigned 
their  positions.  The  collection  of  casts  belonging  to 
the  Academy  of  Design  was  finally  sold  to  the  Brooklyn 
Adelphi  Academy,  where  Professor  F.  T.  Boyle 
organized  an  art-department,  and  for  several  years  in- 
structed with  great  success.  So  perished  the  Brooklyn 
Academy  of  Design.  If  the  artists  themselves  had 
been  true  to  those  professional  principles  which  alone 
can  make  a  professional  organization  successful,  the 
Academy  of  Design  would  have  accomplished  all  that 
could  have  been  wished  for.  The  layman  never  can 
understand  the  necessities  of  the  professional  man. 
The  layman  can  give  noble  assistance  with  his  means, 
and  help  to  build  up  an  institution  to  a  success,  but  the 
professional  man  must  be  the  brains  and  the  genius  of 
the  institution,  if  great  professional  results  are  desired. 


Other  Art  Clubs.— In  writing  this  brief  history 
of  art  in  Brooklyn,  it  has  been  the  object  to  mention 
particularly  only  those  artists  and  institutions  which 
were  prominently  connected  with  art  progress  in  a  local 
sense.  Many  painters,  engravers,  and  sculptors  have 
resided  in  Brooklyn  for  many  years  who  have  not  con- 
nected themselves  with  art-matters  in  this  city. 

The  Art  Guild,  The  Rembrandt  Club,  TJie  Art  Stu- 
dents' League.,  The  Palette  Club,  The  Brookhjn  Art 
Club,  and  The  Scrafchers'  Club  (of  which  fuller  men- 
tion will  be  found  in  a  subsequent  chapter  of  this  work), 
are  among  the  minor  associations  that  have  been  of  use 
to  art  culture  in  Brooklyn. 

The  rooms  of  the  Brooklyn  Art  Association  have 
been  the  means  of  giving  to  Brooklyn  many  a  fine  ex- 
hibition of  pictures.  Tiie  last  and  most  notable  of  all 
was  "The  Loan  Exhibition"  of  1884,  given  for  the 
purpose  of  obtaining  funds  for  the  base  of  the  Statue  of 
Liberty  for  the  harbor  of  New  York.  This  exhibition 
for  real  merit  was  far  in  advance  of  the  one  given  in 
the  city  of  New  York  for  the  same  purpose. 

The  city  of  Brooklyn  can  boast  of  possessing  some  of 
the  finest  foreign  pictures  in  the  United  States. 
Among  the  owners  may  be  mentioned  the  names  of 
Messrs.  Seney,  Martin  Healy,  Charles  Storrs,  Judge 
McCue,  A.  A.  Low,  H.  A.  Pierrepont,  Kenyon,  Pro- 
fessor C.  E.  West,  B.  H.  Smith,  Litchfield,  H.  T. 
Cox,  Dr.  Keys,  Fred  Ward,  J.  Stearns,  Alexander  For- 
man,  T.  Havemeyer,  Burt,  the  engraver,  Aaron 
Healy,  Gordon  L.  Ford,  and  many  others.  These 
gentlemen  possess  not  only  many  foreign  pictures  of 
great  merit,  but  a  large  number  of  the  best  American 
artists'  works  in  painting,  engraving,  and  statuary. 
We  doubt  whether  any  other  city  in  the  Union,  with 
the  exception  of  New  York,  can  vie  with  Brooklyn  in 
these  respects. 


WILLIAM    HART. 


1  lyiLLIAM  HART  was  born  in  Paisley,  Renfrewshire,  Scot- 
VV  land,  March  31st,  1823,  His  parents  emigrated  to  the 
United  States  in  1831,  and  after  divers  wanderings,  settled  at 
Albany,  New  York.  William,  one  of  nine  children,  at  ten  years 
old,  was  placed  in  a  woollen  manufactory,  where  he  remained 
till  he  was  fourteen  years  old.  Then  he  was  ajjprenticed  to 
Eaton  &  Gilbert,  of  Troy,  N.  Y.,  coach  and  ornamental  painters. 
He  was  apt  at  the  business,  and  formed  a  desire  to  become  a 
landscape-painter,  or  an  artist  in  the  full  sense  of  the  word. 
After  serving  four  years  of  his  time,  ill-health  compelled  him  to 
seek  a  release  from  the  balance  of  his  indenture.  Free  from 
slavish  hours,  he  had  an  opportunity  to  build  up  his  health.  But 
the  desire  to  be  an  artist  still  burning  within  him,  he  fitted  up 
a  wood-shed  studio  on  "  Ida  Hill,"  and  there  commenced  portrait 
painting.  Five  dollars  was  his  price  for  head  and  shoulders. 
His  likenesses  were  good,  and  he  did  quite  a  thriving  business  ; 
securing  his  principal  support,  however,  from  the  mill  and  fac- 
ts) 


tory  hands.  After  having  saved  quite  a  little  sum  of  money,  he 
started,  in  1841,  for  Michigan,  where  he  traveled  about  for 
over  three  years  as  a  portrait  painter.  This  was  before  daguer- 
reotyping  had  found  its  way  much  bej'ond  the  large  cities,  and 
portrait-painting  at  low  prices  was  somewhat  in  demand  among 
the  poorer  classes.  He  was  quite  successful,  and  received  as 
high  as  $25  for  a  head,  in  the  way  of  barter,  taking  anything 
that  was  offered,  from  fruit-trees  to  clothing.  Having  accu- 
mulated three  or  four  hundred  dollars,  he  returned  to  Albany  in 
1844.  Here  he  became  acquainted  with  Dr.  J.  H.  Armsby, 
a  warm-hearted  gentleman,  and  a  great  lover  of  art,  of  whom  Mr. 
Hart  remarks  that,  "  Whatever  may  be  known  of  Dr.  Armsby's 
deeds  of  charity,  not  one-tenth  of  them  has  the  public  ear.  That 
Palmer,  the  sculptor,  Launt  Thompson,  George  Boughton, 
James  Hart,  and  many  other  artists  can  alike  testify  with  him- 
self to  the  great  encouragement  they  received  in  their  art- 
struggle."    The  first  commission  Launt  Thompson  executed  in 


1146 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


marble  was  a  bust  of  Dr.  Armsby.  While  Mr.  Hart  was  painting 
in  Albany,  many  of  his  landscapes,  which  were  exhibited  in 
New  York  City,  received  warm  commendations  from  the  pens  of 
Thurlow  Weed,  George  Jones,  of  the  New  York  Timef!,  and  Hugh 
Hastings,  of  the  Commercial  Advertiser.  This  was  the  means  of 
making  Mr.  Hart's  pictures  much  sought  after. 

During  his  residence  in  Albany,  Thomas  Cole,  the  celebrated 
landscape-painter,  called  at  his  studio,  and  his  kindly  criti- 
cism^gave  the  young  artist  great  encouragement. 

During  the  existence  of  the  New  York  "Art  Union,"  Mr.  Hart 
found  a  ready  market  for  many  of  his  early  efforts,  which 
were  pleasing  in  design,  and  rich  in  color.  They  commanded  so 
much  attention  that  the  Art  Union  invariably  paid  him  more 
for  his  pictures  than  he  asked. 

Mr.  Hart  married  in  1847,  and  in  1849  he  revisited  his  native 
land,  Scotland,  remaining  till  1852,  and  making  many  studies 
of  Scottish  and  English  scenery.  He  also  profited  largely  by  the 
study  of  the  best  masters,  as  represented  in  the  art-galleries. 
On  his  return  home  he  took  a  studio  at  806  Broadway,  N.  Y.,  re- 
mained there  till  the  Tenth  Street  Studios  were  built,  and  was 
the  first  artist  who  set  up  bis  easel  in  that  somewhat  famous  art- 
building.  Twelve  years  after,  he  removed  his  studio  to  the 
Young  Men's  Christian  Association  Building,  corner  of  Twenty- 
third  street  and  Fourth  avenue.  In  185.5,  he  was  made  an  associate 
of  the  New  York  Academy  of  Design;  in  1857,  an  academician. 

A  large  number  of  his  early  paintings  were  views  on  the 
Hudson,  near  Albany  and  Troy.  Occasionally  he  would  try  his 
hand  at  original  composition,  and  endeavor  to  invest  his  copies 
from  nature  with  the  spirit  of  sentiment.  In  1847,  he  painted 
pictures  which  he  called  "Coming  from  the  Mill,"  and  "A  Pas- 
sing Shower."  This  latter  picture  placed  him  among  the  best 
landscape  painters  of  the  day.  In  1854,  followed  his  picture  of 
the  "Children  at  the  Spring";  in  1855,  "The Gloaming";  andin 
1856,  "Peace  and  Plenty."  Each  of  these  compositions  was  based 
on  actual  scenes  from  nature,  and  infused  with  much  grace  and 
sentiment. 

Mr.  Hart  is  a  property  owner,  and  has  been  a  resident  of 
Brooklyn  for  over  thirty  years.  He  has  given  much  of  his  time 
towards  building  up  art-taste  and  art-schools  in  Brooklyn.  He 
was  the  first  president  (and  for  three  years)  of  the  Brooklyn 
Academy  of  Design.  While  holding  that  position,  he  delivered  a 
lecture  to  the  students,  entitled  "The  Field  and  the  Easel." 
His  mode  of  expressing  his  knowledge  in  art  was  through  the 
medium  of  illustrations,  which  he  made  in  the  presence  of  the 
students  with  charcoal  and  chalk.  These  illustrations  as  sub- 
jects of  art-instruction  had  occupied  his  mind  and  hand  for 
many  evenings  at  home,  and  by  them  he  gave  the  students, 
within  the  space  of  two  hours,  a  knowledge  of  landscape-effects 
in  light  and  shade,  and  form,  which  would  have  taken  them  years 
to  have  observed,  and  many  of  them  not  then,  as  the  sharp 
eyes  of  Mr.  Hart  never  let  desirable  aspects  and  effects  pass 
without  particular  attention  and  discrimination. 


Mr.  Hart  was  one  of  the  originators  of  the  "  Water  Color  So- 
ciety," and  occupied  its  presidential  chair  for  three  successive 
years.  Among  the  most  prominent  pictures  which  he  has  pro- 
duced within  the  last  ten  j'ears,  may  be  named  "The  Octo- 
ber Afternoon,"  "Sunday  Morning,"  "The  Last  Gleam," 
"The  Coming  Storm,"  "Apple  Blossoms,"  and  "  The  Golden 
Hour.'' 

"Apple  Blossoms  "is  a  landscape  on  a  moderate-sized  canvas, 
representing  an  apple-orchard  in  full  bloom.  Nothing  but 
nature  itself  could  have  been  the  foundation  of  so  charming  a 
picture.  It  is  a  subject  that  Mr.  Hart  could  grasp  and  manage 
with  perfect  satisfaction.  He  is  naturally  so  full  of  the  harmony 
of  color  that  his  spirit  is  easily  aroused  to  a  great  effort  when  his 
eye  sees  the  tender  greens  and  blushing  pinks  in  inviting  con- 
trasts. "Apple  Blossoms  "  was  full  of  "  color-music,"  and  is, 
indeed,  one  of  Mr.  Hart's  best  efforts. 

"The  Golden  Hour,"  Mr.  Hart  thinks  his  best  picture.  It  is 
on  a  large  canvas,  and  represents  the  summer  time,  when  nature 
in  her  landscape-beauty  seems  to  be  radiant  and  complete  in 
glory.  The  composition  has  a  foreground  of  rich  green  with 
gray  rocks,  and  the  late  flowers  of  the  season  combining  in  re- 
lief. The  middle  distance  is  composed  of  groups  of  stately 
elms  that  bend  and  droop  their  graceful  limbs  and  foliage  in 
forms  that  captivate  the  mind  and  fill  it  with  the  sentiment  of 
contentment  reposing  upon  the  bosom  of  plenty;  the  distance 
with  its  outlines  of  hills,  as  if  locked  within  each  other's  arms, 
and  in  its  noon  altitude  the  sun  throws  down  its  bright  lights, 
(where  intercepted)  forming  dreamy  shadows;  the  composition 
and  effects  making  a  picture  that  must  always  command  a  high 
place  in  the  constellation  of  art  achievements.  This  picture 
was  purchased  by  Mr.  A.  T.  Stewart,  and  still  holds  a  place  in 
his  valuable  collection. 

In  the  last  two  years,  Mr.  Hart  has  devoted  the  most  of  his 
time  to  the  study  of  cattle,  deriving  therefrom  all  the  interest 
that  their  introduction  lends  to  the  landscape.  His  drawing  is 
always  good,  and  he  has  the  faculty  of  at  once  grasping  the 
marked  features  in  cattle-nature,  and  therefore  his  cows  and 
his  sheep  at  once  command  attention,  and  give  a  double  charm 
to  his  landscape  pictures. 

Several  writers  have  confounded  Mr.  William  Hart  and  his 
pictures  with  his  brother,  Mr.  James  Hart.  An  article,  especially, 
which  appeared  in  Putnam's  Magazine,  names  many  of  Wil- 
liam Hart's  pictures  as  having  been  painted  by  his  brother 
James;  and,  in  one  instance,  it  was  stated  that  James  Hart  was 
the  painter  of  "The  Golden  Hours." 

A  most  commendable  feature  in  William  Hart's  character  as  a 
man,  is  honesty  of  opinion.  It  matters  not  who  painted  the 
picture,  if  it  has  merit,  he  sees  it,  and  speaks  ol  it  with  as  much 
pleasure  and  pride  as  if  it  were  his  own. 

Mr.  William  Hart  still  resides  in  Brooklyn ;  and,  although  his 
years  now  place  him  on  the  declining  slope  of  life,  yet  his 
enthusiasm  for  painting  is  as  great  as  ever. 


ALONZO    OHAPPELL. 


THIS  gentleman  was  born  in  the  City  of  New  York  in 
182'J,  his  ancestors  being  old  French  settlers  in  that  city; 
his  grandparents  owning  a  piece  of  property  (part  of  the  old  Delan- 
cey  farm)  on  the  Bowery  opposite  to  the  old  Bowery  Theatre,  ex- 
tending through  to  Chrystie  street.  Mr.  Chappell's  father  was  born 
on  this  spot  in  1801,  and  died  in  Brooklyn  1880.  Old  Mrs. 
Chappell  is  still  living.  Alonzo  Chappell,  the  subject  of  our 
sketch,  lived  in  New  York  City  until  1845,  when  he  moved  to 
Brooklyn.     He  was  educated  in  public  school  No.  2,  and  at  the 


age  of  fourteen,  went  to  learn  the  japanning  business.  This  he 
soon  left  for  window-shade  painting,  which  in  those  days  were 
adorned  with  all  kinds  of  subjects,  and  representing  landscapes 
which  covered  the  whole  shade.  This  gave  the  young  aspirant 
for  art  a  gorgeous  opportunity  to  express  form  and  color.  The 
nature  of  young  Chappell  was  full  of  the  dramatic,  and,  there- 
fore, startling  effects  pervaded  his  designs — cataracts  rushing 
over  rocks,  dark  caves,  fallen  trees,  castles  perched  high  upon 
the  mountain's  peak,  half  enveloped  in  clouds  of  romantic  form, 


ARTIST  BIOGRAPHIES. 


1147 


and  all  in  good  color  and  light  and  shade.  This  was  just  the 
business  for  the  boy  artist.  Shade. painting  was  a  new  thing 
then,  and  he  grew  up  with  it,  and  became  one  of  the  best  artists 
engaged  in  it. 

While  so  engaged,  he  turned  every  hour  of  his  evenings  to 
account  by  drawing  and  designing.  He  had  a  remarliably  crit- 
ical eye  for  one  so  young.  When  less  than  seventeen  years  old 
he  was  admitted  as  a  member  of  the  Antique  class  in  the  New 
York  National  Academy  of  Design,  at  the  time  when  the  cele- 
brated engraver  and  painter,  A.  B.  Durand,  was  president. 

In  184:5,  when  he  first  moved  to  Brooklyn,  he  began  to  paint 
landscapes  with  figures  in  them  for  the  American  Art  Union  in 
New  York  Cit)'.  These  pictures  were  so  attractive  in  color  and 
composition  that  they  purchased  almost  every  one  which  he 
presented.  One  picture  attracted  much  attention,  which  repre- 
sented a  boy  with  the  upper  part  of  his  body  plunged  into  an 
ash-barrel,  while  a  dog  has  nipped  him  by  the  seat  of  his  trou- 
sers. The  situation  was  laughable  in  the  extreme.  Leutze,  the 
celebrated  artist,  was  so  much  pleased  with  the  composition  that 
he  purchased  the  picture,  and  retained  the  same  in  his  studio  in 
Diisseldorf  until  the  day  of  his  death. 

In  1848  Gabriel  Harrison,  George  Hill,  George  De  Forest, 
Charles  Cormer  and  several  other  Brooklyn  gentlemen  organized 
the  first  dramatic  society  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn.  Alonzo  Chap- 
pell  was  one  of  the  most  active  members.  His  genius,  however, 
was  more  in  the  line  of  the  scenic  artist  than  the  dagger  and  the 
cup.  The  old  ball-room  which  stood  in  the  rear  of  "  Mrs. 
Brest's  Hotel"  on  the  grounds  of  the  Military  Garden,  where  now 
the  County  Court  House  stands,  was  leased,  and  Chappell  became 
the  architect,  scenic  artist,  and  decorator.  Carpenters  were 
brought  in  and  set  to  work,  up  went  the  dress-circle  and  away 
went  the  floor  of  the  ball-room,  with  a  tremendous  gash  in  it  to 
admit  of  an  under  part  to  the  stage,  and  traps  for  sinking  ghosts 
and  devils— all  in  accordance  with  the  most  approved  plans  of 
the  regular  theatres.  When  in  the  midst  of  this  work,  in 
rushed  old  Mrs.  Prest,  who  soon  had  her  voice  ranging  to  high  C, 
horror-stricken  at  what  was  going  on,  and,  with  her  arms 
stretched  upright,  she  shrieked,  "What  in  the  name  of  God  are 
you  doing?  "  "Doing,  madame,  doing!  why,  we  are  making  a 
place  to  catch  the  devils  and  ghosts  in  !  "  shouted  back  Chappell, 
while  he  thrust  his  hands  through  his  hair  and  struck  a  fearful 
attitude.  This  was  enough;  the  old  woman  picked  up  her 
skirts  and  left  in  six-foot  strides,  amid  the  demoniac  laugh  of  the 
would-be  tragedians,  who  stood  in  melancholy  attitudes  around. 
We  saw  no  more  of  Mrs.  Prest  until  a  committee  waited  on  her 
to  come  and  see  the  stage  and  improvements,  and  none  was 
more  delighted  than  herself  with  what  had  been  done,  but  she 
added  the  request  that  the  society  would  keep  the  "Chappell 
man"  from  coming  in  contact  with  her. 

In  1849,  Mr.  Chappell  was  commissioned  to  go  to  Cuba  to 
make  sketches  for  a  panorama,  which  he  painted  for  some 
gentlemen  in  New  York.  He  still  continued  his  art-studies, 
improving  constantly  until,  in  1856,    he  was  introduced  to  the 


book-publishing  firm  of  Martin  &  Johnson,  of  New  York  City, 
and  was  engaged  by  them  to  make  designs  for  a  history  of  the 
United  States,  to  be  published  in  monthly  parts  to  the  number  of 
four  quarto  volumes,  the  illustrations  to  be  engraved  on  steel. 
These  illustrations  he  mostly  painted  in  black  and  white  on 
canvas  much  larger  than  the  engraving  was  to  be,  and  repre- 
sented every  prominent  incident  in  the  historj*  of  the  country. 
Some  of  his  compositions  are  remarkable  for  dramatic  action, 
and  show  knowledge  of  costumes  and  other  things  that  be- 
longed to  the  period  of  the  time  he  desired  to  represent.  Their 
truthfulness  reflects  as  much  credit  upon  him  as  does  his  in- 
dustry in  searching  out  the  facts. 

After  Mr.  Chappell  had  finished  the  numerous  original  de- 
signs for  this  work,  he  was  immediately  commissioned  to  illus- 
trate "The  Life  and  Times  of  Washington,"  in  two  volumes. 
Then  followed  the  "Portrait  Gallery,"  in  three  volumes,  repre- 
senting the  characters  in  full-length  figures  ;  "The  War  of  the 
Union,"  in  three  volumes;  "The  History  of  the  World,"  in  three 
volumes;  "  The  Portrait  Gallery  of  Celebrated  Men  and  Women," 
in  two  volumes.  At  this  writing  he  is  engaged  in  making  illus- 
trations for  a  voluminous  edition  of  Shakespeare,  which  is  to 
contain  one  hundred  illustrations,  eighty  of  them  now  finished. 
This  work  will,  no  doubt,  be  his  master-piece.  Mr.  Chappell's 
dramatic  disposition  fits  him  most  aptly  for  the  undertaking.  It 
is  now  over  twenty-five  years  since  Mr.  Chappell  first  com- 
menced to  design  for  book  publications,  and  almost  every  one 
of  his  subjects  has  been  engraved  in  steel.  Besides  these,  he 
made  several  designs  which  were  engraved  on  steel  (20x24 
inches),  representing  "Washington  at  Mount  Vernon,"  "The 
Last  Hours  of  Lincoln,"  "Christmas  Morning,"  "Maud  MuUer," 
and  "The  First  Prayer." 

Mr.  Chappell  has  been  a  hard  worker,  and  not  without  profit. 
Some  fourteen  years  ago  he  purchased  one  hundred  acres  of  land 
near  a  beautiful  lake  on  Long  Island.  He  christened  the  place 
"  Artist  Lake."  Near  by,  he  built  himself  a  picturesque  cottage, 
planted  fruit  trees,  laid  out  his  grounds,  and  formed  his  walks 
with  artistic  taste,  turning  what  was  almost  a  wilderness  into  a 
garden  of  Eden.  Besides,  he  has  a  fine  library  of  standard 
literature,  and  has  made  a  large  collection  of  works  on  the  his 
tory  of  this  country,  from  the  landing  of  Columbus  down  to  the 
present  hour,  that  is  not  excelled  by  any  other  private  collec- 
tion. No  artist  ever  painted  historical  pictures  with  more  de- 
termination to  be  truthful  in  the  costumes  and  implements  of 
civil  and  military  life  than  Alonzo  Chappell. 

During  his  residence  in  Brooklyn,  he  has  always  been  among 
the  first  who  have  stepped  forward  to  assist  art-culture.  He 
helped  old  Mr.  Thompson  and  Hoskins  to  form  the  Brooklyn 
Art  Union  ;  he  was  a  member  of  the  Graham  Art  School;  he 
suggested  the  first  meeting  for  the  formation  of  the  Brooklyn 
Academy  of  Design,  and  was  its  first  vice-president.  Always 
modest  and  retiring  in  his  manners,  he  wins  the  respect  and 
confidence  of  all  with  whom  he  comes  in  contact. 


FRED.    T.    LEE    BOTLE, 


FRED.  T.  LEE  BOYLE  was  born  July  6th,  1820,  at  Ring- 
wood,  on  the  Avon,  Hampshire,  England.  His  father,  J.  T. 
Boyle,  a  composer  and  teacher  of  music,  a  fine  organist  and  a  pupil 
of  the  celebrated  Vincent  NoveUo,  was  for  many  years  a  resident 
and  teacher  of  singing  and  the  pianoforte  in  Brooklyn,  where 
he  located  in  1829,  on  Adams,  between  York  and  Prospect 
streets  ;  the  house  is  still  standing.  In  1830,  young  Boyle  was 
sent  to  Columbia  College  Grammar  School.  In  1832,  he  went  to 
Charles  Coudert's  boarding  school,  in  an  old  building  that  had 


once  been  the  State's  prison,  on  the  corner  of  Amos  and  Wash- 
ington streets.  New  York  City,  but  which  building  Mr.  Coudert 
had  somewhat  remodeled  for  school  purposes.  General  Beaure- 
gard was  a  pupil  in  the  same  class  with  young  Boyle  at  this  time, 
but  left  the  school  to  go  to  West  Point. 

During  his  early  years,  young  Boyle  gave  frequent  evidences 
of  a  strong  talent  for  art.  His  apt  sketches  of  almost  any  act  that 
attracted  °his  attention,  caused  his  father  to  consult  Henry 
Inman,    the    celebrated   portrait   painter,    and   in  1835,    young 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Boyle  commenced  Ms  study  with  that  gentleman.  He  remained 
with  him  for  three  years.  He  also  attended  the  art-schools  at 
the  New  York  National  Academy  of  Design,  at  which  time  Pro- 
fessor Morse  was  the  president,  and  he  predicted  that  young 
Boyle  would  make  his  mark. 

In  1839,  Mr.  Boyle  sent  a  picture  to  the  National  Academy 
for  exhibition,  which  found  a  good  place  upon  the  wall.  About 
this  time  he  made  some  notable  efforts  at  composition  in  oil 
colors  and  India  ink,  among  which  were  "  Salvator  Rosa  Offer- 
ing a  Picture  for  Sale  to  a  Dealer";  "Job  Appealing  to  God  from 
the  Injustice  of  his  Friends"  ;  "Saul  and  Witch  of  Endor"  ; 
"  Shylock  and  Antonio"  ;  "Death  and  the  Lady."  All  of  these 
compositions  had  merit,  and  showed  a  high  train  of  thoughts 
for  what  might  be  termed  epic  composition.  And  had  Mr.  Boyle 
pursued  this  style  of  painting  throughout  his  life,  there  cannot 
be  a  doubt  that  he  would  have  become  an  eminent  historical 
painter.  In  his  youth,  he  was  passionately  fond  of  the  drama, 
which,  as  a  matter  of  course,  could  not  fail  to  lead  him  to  the 
highest  class  of  reading,  and  incite  him  to  dramatic  efforts  in 
composition  and  light  and  shade. 

In  1850,  Mr.  Boyle  painted  a  life-size  full-length  portrait  of  the 
Kev.  John  Hughes,  of  the  city  of  New  York,  which  was  exhibited 
at  the  National  Academy  of  Design,  New  York  City,  and  after- 
wards became  the  property  of  the  Hon.  W.  H.  Seward.  It  pro- 
cured him  his  election  as  associate  member. 

From  1850  to  1856,  Mr.  Boyle  found  himself  crowded  with 
orders  for  portraits,  both  life-  and  cabinet-size.  Among  these 
were  those  of  Bishop  De  Lancey,  Edwin  Forrest,  Charlotte 
Cusliman,  J.  R.  Scott,  William  E.  Burton,  Lester  Wallack,  Mrs. 
Russell,  James  T.  Brady  and  other  celebrities.  At  this  time  he 
was  engaged  with  J.  Kyle  and  J.  Dallas  in  painting  a  panorama 
of  the  "Life  of  Christ,"  forming  thirty-four  pictures  in  fresco 
colors  on  canvas,  each  11  x  18  feet  in  size. 

In  the  latter  part  of  1856,  he  moved  to  St.  Louis,  where  he 
found  a  wide  field  tor  his  brush.  Art  as  yet  had  not  lifted  her 
head  very  high  in  the  Far  West,  and  but  few  artists  of  reputation 
had  located  themselves  in  those  regions.  Mr.  Boyle  saw  this, 
and  at  once  opened  his  studio,  with  the  intention  of  founding  a 
local  habitation  and  a  name.  It  was  not  long  before  he  painted 
some  of  the  prominent  citizens  of  St.  Louis.  Among  them  were 
two  full-length  portraits,  one  of  Frank  P.  Blair,  Gov.  R.  H. 
Gamble,  Hon.  Thomas  H.  Benton,  Col.  Brandt,  B.Gratz  Brown, 
Dr.  William  Carr  Lane,  Matilda  Heron,  and  several  family 
groups.  While  thus  engaged  he  made  himself  busy  in  an  effort 
to  establish  "The  Western  Academy  of  Arts."  This  he  accom- 
plished in  1858.  He  obtained  a  charter,  and  its  first  exhibition 
was  opened  by  the  Prince  of  Wales  and  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 
The  exhibition  was  one  of  the  finest  ever  held  by  American 
painters,  as  all  of  the  celebrated  artists  of  the  several  States  sent 
their  best  works.  From  this  time,  art  in  the  West  had  an  impetus 
that  forced  it  to  grow  with  unlooked-for  power.  All  the  exhibi- 
tions of  the  Western   Academy  were  well  attended,  and  many 


pictures  were  sold.  But  the  war  came,  and  fell  like  an  April 
blight.  The  brush  and  the  palette  were  laid  aside  for  the  sword 
and  the  musket;  and  the  rooms  of  the  Academy,  which  were 
wont  to  be  decorated  with  beautiful  landscapes,  portraits,  and 
groups  of  smiling  children  in  golden  frames,  were  now  taken 
for  the  Department  Head-quarters  of  the  soldiers.  The  walls 
were  soon  defaced,  and  the  collection  of  casts,  that  were  imported 
from  Paris  at  a  cost  of  fifteen  thousand  dollars,  were  defaced, 
broken,  and  distributed  throughout  the  West. 

No  such  blood  as  circulated  through  the  veins  of  Mr.  Boyle, 
could  rest  quiet  when  such  a  cause  as  Union  and  Freedom  was 
the  watchword,  echoing  up  and  down  the  streets  of  the  whole 
North.  He  would  have  his  say— he  made  his  speeches  in  favor  of 
the  Union— and  in  18G2  he  was  elected  colonel  of  a  regiment  which 
was  formed  in  the  third  ward  of  St.  Louis.  This  action  on  the 
part  of  Mr.  Boyle  lost  for  him  his  best  Southern  friends  and 
patrons.  When  the  war  was  over  they  neither  forgave  nor  for- 
got. Art  was  low  in  the  West.  Mr.  Boyle  lingered  for  some 
time  at  St.  Louis,  received  no  orders,  and  finally  in  1865  he 
left  the  West  for  Brooklyn.  There  many  old  friends  welcomed 
him,  and  he  soon  found  several  portraits  to  paint.  When  the 
Brooklyn  Academy  of  Design  left  the  Broooklyn  Institute,  and 
gave  up  the  teaching  of  the  Graham  Art  Schools,  Mr.  Boyle  was  ap- 
pointed the  professor  over  the  classes.  In  1873,  Colonel  Sprague, 
principal  of  the  Adelphi  Academy,  called  on  Mr.  Boyle  to  take 
charge  of  an  art-department  in  that  institute  which  they  had 
been  trying  to  form.  When  he  took  charge  he  found  the  pupils 
drawing  from  some  poor  lithographs.  He  soon  convinced  the 
faculty  of  the  Adelphi  that  their  system  of  art-instruction  was 
all  wrong;  and  that  if  they  required  anything  like  success  in  this 
department  they  must  build  a  skylight  and  give  him  a  proper 
room,  and  also  furnish  plasters  for  the  pupils  to  work  from. 
These  requests  were  all  granted  him,  and  in  a  few  months  Mr. 
Boyle  had  a  large  class  of  pupils,  who  placed  many  of  their  works 
on  exhibition  at  the  Art  Association— works  which  were  spoken 
highly  of  by  visitors  and  the  press.  Soon  after,  he  was  reap- 
pointed to  take  charge  of  the  Graham  Art  School  at  the  Brooklyn 
Institute,  which  position  he  holds  up  to  the  present  time.  Mr. 
Boyle  is  admirably  constituted  for  a  teacher.  Thoroughly  read 
in  all  art  matters,  possessing  a  remarkable  memory,  great  fluency 
of  speech,  with  strong  descriptive  power,  he  can  make  his 
pupils  see  and  understand  what  must  be  done.  To  these  gifts 
he  adds  cheerfulness  of  spirit,  and  a  fund  of  anecdote  that 
draws  the  pupil  near  him  and  inspires  him  to  hard  work. 

Since  he  has  been  a  resident  of  Brooklyn,  he  has  painted  sev- 
eral important  pictures,  among  them  "The  Prayer  of  Judith," 
which  was  exhibited  at  the  Centennial,  "  Grandfather's  Pet," 
"  The  Organist,"  a  life-size  full-length  portrait  of  the  Hon.  Hugh 
Allen,  of  the  city  of  Rochester;  Col.  R.  C.  Ward,  for  the  Twenty- 
third  Regiment;  a  half-length  of  Miss  MacCullum,  a  half-length 
of  Mrs.  Pickwood,  and  other  pictures  of  note. 


JOHN   ADAMS   PARKER. 


JOHN  ADAMS  PARKER,  the  son  of  J.  A.  Parker,  an  old  New 
York  merchant,  was  born  in  that  city  29th  of  November,  1829, 
in  Broadway,  near  Broome  street;  received  his  education  at  the 
New  York  University;  and  when  sixteen  years  old,  became  a 
clerk  with  C.  D.  W.  Lillendale,  the  sole  agent  for  Faber's  pen. 
cils.  In  1855,  he  went  into  business  for  himself,  but  failed  in 
1857,  and  for  a  year  or  more  was  unsettled.  It  does  not  appear 
that  he  showed  any  early  predilections  for  art;  while,  at  the 
same  time,  he  was  a  keen  observer  of  nature  and  pictures,  with 
an  occasional   attempt  at  drawing.      However,    in   1859,   Mr. 


Parker  made  up  his  mind  to  become  a  landscape  painter, 
took  a  studio  in  the  Dodworth  Building,  Montague  street, 
Brooklyn,  and  rather  surprised  himself  and  his  friends  at  his 
rapid  improvements.  When  the  Brooklyn  Art  Association  be- 
came a  fixed  fact,  Mr.  Parker  was  among  its  first  exhibitors, 
and  the  first  picture  sold  from  off  its  walls  was  one  of  his, 
purchased  by  Mr.  M.  Massey.  He  took  a  great  interest  in  the 
Art  Association,  and  was  one  of  the  founders  of  the  Brooklyn 
Art  Club.  In  1869,  he  was  elected  associate  member  of  the 
National  Academy  of  Design,  New  York  City. 


ARTIST  BIOGRAPHIES. 


1149 


Mr.  Parker  became  one  of  the  most  active  members  of  the 
Brooklyn  Art  Association.  He  was  on  the  hanging  committee 
for  many  years,  and  it  is  doubtful  if  any  other  member  of  the 
association  gave  more  of  his  time,  and  worked  liarder  for  the 
success  of  this  institution.  This  was  appreciated,  however,  as  is 
shown  by  the  fact  that  he  sold  at  one  time  more  of  his  works, 
through  the  influence  of  the  lay  members  of  the  association,  than 
any  other  artist  who  placed  pictures  on  exhibition  at  the  Art 
Association.  Among  the  purchasers  of  his  best  works  were 
H.  E.  Pierrepont,  A.  A.  Low,  Judge  McCue,  Judge  Reynolds, 
Dr.  Keep,  W.  Husted,  Henry  Sanger,  William  Howard,  and 
many  others. 

Perhaps  the  best  pictures  that  Mr.  Parker  paints  are  snow- 


scenes.  He  is  fond  of  representing  the  evening  hours  of  the 
day,  when  the  sun  is  far  below  the  horizon  and  shoots  its 
golden  beams  stretching  across  the  picture,  while  all  the  fore- 
ground lies  in  that  first  gloom  of  twilight,  lending  a  peculiar 
repose  to  the  picture  that  fails  not  to  interest  almost  any  mind. 
His  style  is  not  one  of  finish,  but  rather  inclined  to  breadth  of 
touch,  and  has  a  tendency  more  to  the  suggestion  of  things  in 
nature  than  to  the  details.  Mr.  Parker  has  resided  and  painted 
in  Brooklyn  ever  since  he  first  took  up  the  brush,  and  can  justly 
be  considered  as  a  Brooklyn  artist,  whose  interest  in  Brooklyn's 
art-progress  has  never  lagged  from  the  moment  he  first  adjusted 
his  easel  to  receive  his  first  canvas.  His  pictures  will  always 
find  a  welcome  place  in  all  good  collections. 


WILLIAM    M.    BROWN 

11  7" AS  a  native  of  Troy,  N.  Y.  At  fourteen  years  of  age, 
VV  he  entered  the  employment  of  Thomas  Grinnell,  an 
ornamental  painter ;  showed  considerable  talent,  and  made 
rapid  Improvement  in  his  business.  But.  taking  a  fancy  to  por- 
trait painting  at  sixteen  years,  he  found  his  way  into  the  studio 
of  a  portrait  painter  of  some  note,  and  studied  with  him  for 
one  year.  He  found,  however,  that  his  talent  was  more 
decidedly  on  the  side  of  landscape-painting,  and  again  returned 
to  his  old  master,  the  ornamental  painter,  and  went  from  Troy 
with  him  and  his  family  to  Newark,  N.  J.,  with  whom  he  re- 
mained until  he  was  nineteen  years  of  age.  While  with  Mr. 
Grinnell,  he  took  every  opportunity  to  practice  landscape  paint- 
ing. His  pictures  were  so  pleasing  in  effects  of  composition  and 
color,  that  they  were  no  sooner  placed  on  public  exhibition  than 
they  found  purchasers.  This  caused  Mr.  Brown  to  give  up  other 
painting,  and  follow  that  of  landscape  only.  He  then  came 
to  Brooklyn,  and  for  a  time  had  his  studio  in  the  Dodworth 
Building,  on  Montague  street.  In  1860,  he  painted  the  well- 
known  picture  entitled  "The  Overturned  Basket  of  Peaches," 
which  at  once  made  him  a  reputation  as  a  fruit-painter,  a  branch 
of  art  which  he  has  allowed  to  occupy  much  of  his  time.  His 
fruit-pictures  are  among  the  best  ever  painted  by  an  American 
artist,  and  must  alwaj's  occupy  a  verj'  high  position  as  still-life 
pictures.  Nevertheless,  he  has  continued  to  improve  in  land- 
scape-painting, until  he  may  be  placed  among  the  best  land- 
scape-painters of  the  country.  He  is  more  inclined  to  the  de- 
tails in  nature  than  to  dramatic  effects  of  light  and  shade.  His 
color  is  always  good,  and  his  compositions,  whether  in  fruit 
pieces  or  landscapes,  always  graceful  and  engaging  to  the  eye. 

Mr.  Brown  has  resided  in  Brooklyn  nearly  thirty  years,  and 
has  been  a  member  of  almost  every  art-association  in  the  city 
of  his  residence.  He  is  an  extremely  modest  man,  who  never  has 
much  to  say  about  himself;  but  who  has  a  quick  eye  for  the  merits 
of  other  artists,  and  the  nobility  of  character  to  praise  their  works. 


A.    H.    RITCHIE 

"VTT'AS   born   in   Scotland,   but   has   been  a  resident  of  the 

V  V  United  States  for  many  years,  and  of  the  city  of  Brooklyn 
for  over  thirty  years.  He  ranks  with  the  best  engravers  in  the 
country;  and  has  also  found  time  to  pay  attention  to  portrait- 
painting,  having  produced  several  pictures  of  merit.  His 
likenesses  are  always  good,  and  the  flesh-coloring  is  up  to  the 
key-note  of  his  subject. 

He  has  painted  but  one  picture  of  any  great  note,  and  this 
picture  is  of  historical  value.  It  represents  "  The  Death-Bed  of 
Abraham  Lincoln,"  surrounded  by  twenty-seven  figures,  each 
one  representing  some  notable  character  connected  with  the  his- 
tory of  the  Rebellion.  There  is  no  subject  in  the  history  of  the 
whole  country  more  difficult  to  manage  with  graceful  and  agree- 
able lines  and  grouping  than  this.  Neither  the  locale  nor  the  cos- 
tume of  the  dramatis  personcB  afford  any  opportunity  for  artis- 
tic effects.  The  picture  is  remarkable  for  the  correct  likenesses 
of  all  the  persons  represented  therein.  Mr.  Ritchie  invented 
nothing.  He  has  not  in  the  slightest  called  on  the  imagination 
for  anything.  Every  person  is  placed  in  the  attitude  and  situa- 
tion in  the  room  as  he  had  when  the  tragic  scene  occurred.  In 
exactness  it  is  equal  to  a  photograph;  even  the  threadbare  carpet 
is  painted  with  wonderful  care.  As  the  country  grows  older, 
the  more  valuable  must  this  picture  become  in  a  historical  point 
of  view. 

Mr.  Ritchie  still  owns  this  picture,  at  his  residence  in  Brook- 
lyn. It  should  be  in  the  Capitol  at  Washington,  where  it  proper- 
ly belongs. 

No  other  artist  has  taken  a  greater  interest  in  the  progress  of 
art  in  Brooklyn  than  Mr.  Ritchie.  During  all  the  early  strug- 
gles of  the  Brooklyn  Academy  of  Design,  he  constantly  and 
liberally  assisted  as  teacher,  as  officer,  and  as  donor.  A 
fuller  account  of  his  efforts  to  build  up  art-tastes  in  Brook- 
lyn   is   given,    on    a    previous    page,    in    our    sketch    of   the 


CHARLES    C.    MARKHAM. 


PERH.'i.PS  no  artist  is  better  known  in  the  City  of  Brooklyn 
than  this  gentleman .  He  can,  in  the  fullest  sense,  be  looked 
upon  as  a  Brooklyn  artist,  since  the  whole  of  his  art-experi- 
ence has  been  in  this  city.  He  has  not  been  one  of  those 
artists  who  hung  out  his  sign  for  two  or  three  years,  and 
then  found  it  necessary  to  have  his  studio  in  New  York  City.  He 
pitched  his  art-tent  in  Brooklyn  and  bravely  maintained  its  po- 
sition; making   many  friends,  and  working  up  a  business  in 


portrait,  figure,  and  landscape-painting,  of  which  he  has  every 
cause  to  feel  proud. 

He  was  born  at  Burlington,  Vt.,  in  18.37,  and  when  quite  a 
boy,  was  inspired  by  the  beautiful  scenery  that  surrounded  him. 
With  his  dog  and  gun  he  would  spend  whole  days,  dividing  his 
time  between  hunting  for  game  and  for  those  finest  bits  of  scen- 
ery whose  forms  and  effects  so  satisfied  the  art-passions  latent 
within  him.    His  father,  believing  that  the  city  of  New  York 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


would  better  develop  his  boys  for  the  battle  of  life,  removed 
thither,  and  Charles  soon  found  employment  in  a  wholesale 
house.  While  here,  he  found  time  in  use  his  pencil.  His  em- 
ployers saw  his  efforts,  and  offered  to  place  him  under  instruc- 
tion. Through  false  delicacy,  however,  he  refused  the  noble 
offer.  But  his  love  for  art  was  so  great  that  he  would  take  the 
early  morning,  and  look  about  the  old  locations  of  the  city, 
sketching  old  houses,  huts,  and  pumps,  or  whatever  else  at- 
tracted his  attention.  By  and  by,  he  found  a  position  in  the 
American  Exchange  Bank,  where  he  became  much  trusted  and 
valued.  At  last,  came  a  panic,  and  with  it  the  abolishment 
of  the  "uncurrent  department"  of  the  American  Exchange 
Bank.  He  was  offered  other  responsible  positions,  but  refused 
them  all,  in  order  to  take  up  art  as  a  profession. 

He  was  not  the  first  member  of  his  family  that  gave  evidence 
of  art  talent.  His  grand-aunt.  Miss  Fanny  Porter,  was  an  artist 
of  much  ability;  and  his  aunt,  Mrs.  Bigelow,  was  a  successful 
portrait  painter.  From  her  he  took  his  first  lessons  in  portrait 
painting,  and  from  that  time  he  constantly  improved,  and  soon 
had  plenty  of  orders.  Among  his  first  efforts,  we  may  enum- 
erate the  portraits  of  the  children  of  Wm.  C.  Kingsley,  the 
portraits  of  W.  H.  Hazzard,  Albert  Ammerman,  Charles  Vail,  and 
Horace  Greeley.  He  painted  a  portrait  of  his  grandmother  which 
was  honored  with  a  place  at  the  Centennial  Exposition.    Many  of 


his  fancy  pictures,  landscapes,  and  figures  have  been  pur- 
chased by  Mr.  Kingsley,  F.  S.  Smith,  F.  S.  Street,  Demas 
Barnes,  and  other  prominent  citizens  of  Brooklyn,  and  now 
adorn  their  private  collections.  His  picture  of  the  "  Farm  Yard  " 
was  purchased  by  .Joseph  H.  Patten;  his  "Dreamland"  by  Dr. 
Joseph  Brown. 

Mr.  Markham  has  never  lost  his  great  love  for  out-door  sports, 
Every  summer  he  finds  his  way  to  the  Adirondacks,  and  there 
with  gun  and  dogs  and  fishing-rod,  he  leaves  his  tracks,  which 
many  a  sportsman  is  only  too  glad  to  follow,  for  he  knows  how  to 
take  game  of  every  kind.  And  to  the  old  sportsmen  of  these 
great  forests  and  lakes,  the  name  of  Markham  is  as  familiar  as 
is  the  hum  of  the  winds  through  the  trees,  or  the  splashings  of 
the  waters  as  they  leap  over  the  rocky  ribs  of  the  hillside. 

He  has  also  been  very  fond  of  military  exercise,  and  has 
always  been  one  of  the  picked  men  for  exhibition  drills.  When 
the  Eebellion  broke  out,  he  went  with  the  Thirteenth  Regiment 
of  Brooklyn  to  the  front,  and  while  there  he  was  detailed  by  the 
colonel  to  sketch  certain  localities.  He  also  was  a  correspondent 
of  the  Brooklyn  Eaijle,  using  the  nom  <le  plume  of  "Knap- 
sack," and  therein  wrote  pleasant  and  graphic  descriptions  of 
the  incidents  of  camp  life  and  the  war. 

Mr.  Markham  is  still  a  resident  of  Brooklyn,  and  stiU  follows 
his  profession  with  ardent  devotion. 


JAMES    ]^ORTHCOTE. 


THIS  gentleman  was  born  in  Hammerton,  a  suburb  of  Lon- 
don, in  1827,  came  to  the  United  States  in  1856,  and  at 
once  took  up  his  residence  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn,  where  he 
has  remained  ever  since  in  the  constant  practice  of  landscape- 
painting.  Mr.  Northcote  came  from  a  family  that  had  for  many 
years  been  connected  with  the  fine  arts.  He  was  related  on  his 
father's  side  to  James  Northcote,  the  celebrated  historical 
painter.  At  quite  an  early  age  young  James  gave  evidence  of 
art-talent,  which,  however,  his  father  had  no  desire  to  encourage, 
and  placed  him  at  the  desk  of  the  Paisley  Shawl  Company. 
After  remaining  here  for  about  four  years,  he  fully  determined  to 
devote  the  rest  of  his  life  to  the  study  of  art.  He  soon  found 
employment  as  an  assistant  scene-painter,  and  for  eight  years  he 
found  employment  in  the  Drury  Lane  and  Surrey  Theatres  in 
London,  and  in  many  of  the  minor  theatres  of  southern  England. 
While  in  London,  he  received  valuable  hints  from  such  clever 


artists  as  Philip  Phillips,  Louis  Haag,  and  the  celebrated  Stand- 
field.  After  he  quit  the  theatre,  he  frequently  took  long  trips 
into  the  country,  and  made  careful  studies,  selling  many  of  his 
more  hasty  sketches  as  he  went  along,  but  reserving  his  more 
finished  sketches  for  the  London  market. 

Mr.  Northcote  having  read  much  about  America,  had  a  great 
desire  to  see  this  country,  and  could  not  rest  until  he  set  sail  for 
the  land  of  liberty.  For  many  years  he  has  been  constantly  em- 
ployed in  painting  landscapes  for  the  trade.  This  is  to  be 
regretted,  for  the  reason  that  Mr.  Northcote  had  too  much  native 
talent  for  landscape  painting  to  waste  his  time  on  pictures 
painted  to  catch  the  eye,  and  not  the  sense  of  reason,  and  art  in 
its  higher  grade. 

When  Mr.  Northcote  paints  a  picture  to  suit  himself,  he  pro- 
duces a  landscape  full  of  charming  color,  and  at  times  shows  a 
handling  that  is  worthy  of  high  consideration. 


BENJAMIi^    LAl^DER, 


ARTIST,  of  No.  13.54  Bergen  street,  has  been  identified 
with  most  of  the  prominent  art-enterprises  of  Brooklyn. 
He  wields  the  pencil,  the  pen,  and  the  etcher's  point  with  equal 
facility  and  grace.  He  has  been  secretary  of  the  Scratch- 
ers'  Club  (etchers),  vice-president  of  the  Brooklyn  Art  Club, 
president  of  the  Brooklyn  Art  Guild,  and  a  member  of  the  Brush 
and  Palette  Club.  He  has  been  a  frequent  exhibitor  at  the  Na- 
tional Academy  of   Design,  and  the  leading  art  societies  of  the 


United  States  and  of  Europe,  and  a  welcome  contributor  to  the 
leading  illustrated  magazines  of  New  York  and  Boston.  His 
principal  published  works  are,  "From  an  Unknown  Shore," 
"Among  the  Daisies,"  "  Through  the  Trees,"  "  The  Pasture," 
"Along  Shore,"  and  the  etched  portraits  of  the  late  William  E. 
Dodge,  the  Revs.  Dr.  K.  S.  Storrs  and  Theodore  Cuyler,  D.D. 
The  Brooklyn  Advance  has  frequently  been  enriched  by  his 
graceful  sketches  of  old  Brooklyn  houses,  etc. 


THOMAS    MARTIISr    JEI^SEiT 


1  i  7  AS  born  May  20th,  1831,  in  a  small  seaport  town  in 
VV  the  duchy  of  Schleswig,  at  one  time  a  part  of  the 
Danish  dominions.  His  father  was  a  manufacturer  of  fancy  trim- 
mings for  military  coats.  At  an  early  age,  Thomas  was  sent 
to  one  of  the  government  schools.  At  sixteen,  he  left  the  school, 
and  about  this  time  his  father  died,  and  the  boy  found  it  neces- 
sary to  devote  all  his  energies  to  the  support  of  his  widowed 
mother.  Throughout  his  early  boyhood  he  had  an  ambition  to 
be  an  artist,  and  received  a  few  lessons  from  his  elder  brother. 
What  he  did  in  the  way  of  drawing  and  painting  gave  evidence 
of  marked  talent,  and  on  his  father's  death  he  fuUy  determined 


to  study  the  fine  arts.  He  soon  found  employment  as  a  house- 
painter  and  frescoer  in  the  town  of  Haderleben,  an  old  town  in 
Denmark.  Here,  for  five  years,  he  labored  from  sunrise  till  late 
at  night,  and  frequently  on  Sundays,  that  he  might  be  able  to 
fulfill  his  duty  to  his  mother,  and  supjjly  her  wants.  But 
nothing  daunted  his  ambition  to  become  an  artist  of  distinction. 
In  1848,  the  war  between  Germany  and  Denmark  filled  Schles- 
wig with  soldiers,  and  many  of  them  desirous  of  having  their 
portraits  painted.  Young  Jensen  turned  his  brush  to  its  best 
account  by  assisting  his  employer,  who  allowed  him  extra  pay. 
It  was  now  that  portrait-painting  attracted  his  attention  so  fully 


BIOGRAPHY  OF  GABRIEL  HARRISON. 


1151 


that  lie  was  determined  to  improve  in  that  branch  of  art.  In 
1852,  he  found  his  way  to  Copenhagen,  and  there  he  studied  for 
awhile,  and  then  concluded  to  go  to  Frysenburg,  the  castle-seat 
of  the  Count  Frj'S,  and  assisted  his  old  master  to  re-decorate  the 
church  on  the  county  estate.  In  those  old  churches  in  that  part 
of  Europe  may  be  found  memorial  tablets,  in  the  form  of  por- 
traits, set  in  richly-carved  oaken  frames,  and  frequently  they 
become  so  worn  and  obliterated  that  new  copies  are  made  to  take 
their  place.  Mr.  Jensen  was  so  successful  in  restoring  some  of 
these  old  pictures  that  he  drew  the  special  attention  of  the 
Countess,  who,  on  learning  the  story  and  hardships  of  his  life, 
gave  him  employment  for  several  months,  and,  at  the  conclusion 
of  his  work,  presented  him  with  a  handsome  sum  to  assist  him 
in  his  studies  when  he  returned  to  Copenhagen.  There  he  soon 
gained  his  way  into  the  Museum  Art  School,  and  not  only  carried 
off  several  prize  medals,  but  received  a  part  of  the  government 
allowance  for  the  encouragement  of  artists  in  the  pursuit  of 
their  studies. 

The  Countess  still  continued  to  assist  him,  and  often  would 
chide  him  for  not  allowing  her  to  "assist  him  more  liberally. 
However,  she  was  the  means  of  his  visiting  Berlin,  Dresden, 
Paris,  Belgium,  and  other  great  art  centres,  where  he  remained 
and  studied  till  the  war  of  1863,  which  resulted  in  Prussia  wrest- 
ing Schleswig  from  Denmark.  He  then  went  to  Kiei,  one  of  the 
chief  and  important  seaports  of  the  duchy  of  Holstein.  Here  he 
found  plenty  of  art-food  to  advance  his  ambition:  a  splendid 
library  of  80,000  volumes,  a  fine  collection  of  antiquities,  a  gal- 
lery containing  some  of  the  best  works  of  art,  casts  of  the  Elgin 
marbles,  and  many  of  Thorwaldsen's  best  productions.     While 


here  in  the  lap  of  art  he  was  married  to  a  lady  residing  in  Fleus- 
burg.  Soon  after  this  he  decided  to  visit  the  United  States,  and 
arrived  in  New  York  in  the  spring  of  1869.  He  at  once  iound 
employment  in  assisting  an  old  friend  to  paint  marine  views. 
While  so  engaged,  the  pilots  about  South  street  soon  discovered 
that  he  could  paint  portraits,  and  then  followed  many  an  order 
from  these  toilers  of  the  sea.  The  first  important  portrait  he 
painted  in  this  country  was  of  General  C.  F.  Christensen,  who 
introduced  him  to  Mr.  Brockett  and  Miss  Thurston,  of  whom  he 
made  fine  pictures.  In  the  spring  of  1870  Mr,  Jensen  took  up 
his  residence  and  studio  in  Brooklyn,  where  he  has  since  re- 
mained, and  where  he  has  painted  more  portraits  of  notable 
citizens  than  any  other  artist  in  the  city.  Among  these  may  be 
mentioned  Judge  Dikeman,  Judge  Lott,  Judge  McCue,  Judge 
Neilson,  Judge  Gilbert,  Judge  Troy,  Bishop  Loughlin,  Father 
Burke,  Mayor  Sohroeder,  Mayor  Howell,  Hugh  McLaughlin, 
Kev.  Dr.  Cuyler,  Judge  H.  W.  Eobinson,  of  New  York,  Manager 
Augustine  Daly,  Hon.  John  K.  Porter  and  Morris  K.  Jessup. 

Of  his  ideal  pictures,  "Reveries  of  the  Past,"  "The  Old 
Forge,"  "Now  Is  My  Chance,"  Christmas  Eve,"  and  the  "Con- 
noisseur." All  of  the  above  pictures  found  their  place  upon  the 
walls  of  the  Brooklyn  Art  Association,  and  the  New  York  Acad- 
emy of  Design. 

Mr.  Jensen's  style  of  painting  is  the  vigorous  German  school, 
strong  in  color  and  positive  in  touch.  His  likenesses  are  unmis- 
takable, while  the  surroundings  in  his  pictures,  such  as  drapery, 
chairs,  books,  etc.,  are  most  truthfully  depicted.  His  works  of 
art  are  full  of  his  own  characteristics,  and  are  possessed  of  suffi- 
cient merit  to  claim  the  admiration  of  the  most  careful  critic. 


GABEIEL    HAEEISOIT. 


As  biography  is  the  parierre  of  history,  many  will  regret  that 
due  space  cannot  here  be  given  to  the  talented  gentleman 
who  is  the  subj  ect  of  this  sketch ;  for  not  only  has  he  contributed 
largely  to  the  devellopment  of  Art  in  this  city,  but  his  name  is 
indelibly  traced  upon  some  of  the  most  interesting  pages  of 
Brooklyn  histoiy.  Gabriel  Harrison  was  born  in  Philadelphia, 
March  25,  1818.  When  he  was  six  years  old,  his  father,  Charles 
P.  Harrison,  a  man  of  classical  education,  and  a  bank-note 
engraver,  moved  to  New  York  City.  Here  his  hospitable  man- 
sion soon  became  the  favorite  social  resort  of  the  liUerali  and  the 
leading  artists  of  the  city.  Among  frequent  guests  were  George 
P.  Morris,  N.  P.Willis,  McDonald  Clarke,  the  "mad  poet,"  M.  M. 
Noah,  the  dramatist,  Kev.  John  Frederick  Schroeder,  Bass  Otis, 
Henry  Truman,  Col.  John  Trumbull,  John  Howard  Payne,  James 
Audubon,  the  ornithologist;  Bishop  Hughes;  and  the  celebrated 
Spanish  philosopher.  Father  Varela. 

When  Malibran  came  to  this  country  in  1825,  she  spent  much 
of  her  time  at  the  Harrison  home,  where  little  "  Gabe,"  then 
seven  years  of  age,  became  her  especial  pet.  She  joined  in  his 
childish  romps  with  great  delight,  and  won  his  life-long  friend- 
ship. His  favorite  employment  at  that  time,  was  to  creep  under 
the  piano  while  she  was  practicing,  and  mischievously  remove 
her  slipper.  This  was  sure  to  result  in  a  sham  battle  in  which 
Malibran  was  defeated,  while  the  youthful  victor  carried  off  the 
laurel  and  the  slipper.  He  was  a  child  of  great  precocity  and 
sensibility,  and  his  whole  eventful  life  has  been  illuminated  by 
the  friendship  of  some  of  the  most  remarkable  men  and  women 
of  the  time. 

Not  far  from  his  father's  house  in  Eeade  street,  near  Broadway, 
(where  Stewart's  store  now  stands),  lived  a  man  whose  name 
is  inseparably  linked  with  one  of  the  most  tragic  events  in  the 
annals  of  our  Republic— Aaron  Burr,  who  occupied  the  lower 
apartments  in  the  house  of  Mr.  Proudhomme,  the  well-known 
engraver.     Here  he  was  surrounded  by  books  and  pictures,  and 


upon  the  wall  hung  the  portrait  of  his  daughter  Theodosia, 
whose  death  deprived  him  of  his  only  object  in  life,  and  severed 
his  last  of  human  ties.  The  boy  Harrison  had  often  seen  this 
white-haired  man  sitting  at  his  open  window.  His  sad,  worn 
face  won  the  boy's  sympathy.  One  day,  as  he  passed  the  window, 
the  old  gentleman  sat  with  his  head  resting  upon  his  hand. 
The  boy,  timidly  approaching  him,  said,  "  Can  I  do  anything 
for  you,  sir  ?"  The  man  started,  wiped  away  the  tears  which 
were  in  his  eyes,  and  asked  the  boy  to  "come  in."  Thus  it  was 
that,  between  the  boy  of  eleven  years  and  the  man  whom  the 
world  had  deserted,  a  strange  intimacy  sprang  up.  The  boy 
became  fond  of  the  old  gentleman,  who  in  his  turn  showed  his 
liking  for  the  youth  by  giving  him  lessons  in  reading.  On  one 
occasion,  when  reading  to  the  child  about  the  battle  of  Tippe- 
canoe, wherein  it  was  stated  that  General  Harrison  killed  the 
Indian  Chief  Tecumseh,  he  corrected  the  statement  by  saying 
that  it  was  Col.  Richard  M.  Johnson,  who  had  killed  the  great 
chief.  Young  Harrison  was  devoted  to  his  teacher,  ran  on  all 
his  errands,  and  took  to  him  many  a  cup  of  tea  and  plate  of 
toast  from  his  mother's  table,  not  aware  at  that  time  that  he  was 
Col.  Burr,  the  man  of  inordinate  ambition.  Burr's  smoothness 
of  tone  and  beauty  of  reading  completely  won  young  Gabriel's 
admiration,  and  developed  in  the  child  the  taste  for  elocution 
which,  in  after  years,  has  made  him  so  eminently  successful  as  a 
teacher  of  the  art. 

His  grandfather,  William  Harrison,  was  born  in  London.  He 
was  a  bank-note  engraver  to  the  Bank  of  England,  and  map-en- 
graver to  the  East  India  Company.  In  1782,  the  State  Bank  of 
Pennsylvania  wrote  to  the  Bank  of  London,  requesting  that  a 
first-class  engraver  be  sent  to  Philadelphia,  to  engrave  some 
bank-note  plates.  He  came,  and,  at  the  expiration  of  six 
months,  hastened  back  to  England  for  his  family,  and  returned 
with  them  to  Philadelphia,  where  he  spent  the  remainder  of  his 
life.     He  educated  all  his  sons  in  the  art  of  engraving.    Charles 


1162 


HISTORY  OP  KINGS  COUNTY. 


p.  Harrison,  the  father  of  Gabriel  Harrison,  engraved  a  portrait 
of  Queen  Victoria,  shortly  after  her  coronation,  upon  a  copper- 
plate, within  the  circumference  of  a  sixpence,  around  the  edge  of 
which  was  the  Lord's  prayer  in  Roman  capitals.  When  seen  by 
the  naked  eye,  it  appeared  like  a  hair  line,  and  the  wonderful 
work  of  art  could  be  appreciated  only  when  viewed  through  a 
magnifying-glass.  The  portrait  was  excellent,  and  the  Queen 
was  so  pleased  with  it  that  her  secretaryconveyed  her  thanks  to 
the  artist.  Gabriel  Harrison's  maternal  grandfather,  whose 
name  was  Foster,  wove  the  coronation  robes  of  George  HI.  His 
cousin,  David  K.  Harrison,  now  nearly  ninety  years  of  age,  is 
still  employed  by  the  Bank  Note  Company  of  New  York,  and 
was,  also,  a  fine  organist,  of  whom  Gottschalk  once  said  that  he 
was  one  of  the  finest  sight-readers  of  music  he  had  ever  met. 
Gabriel  Harrison's  sisters  were  all  tine  musicians,  especially 
Lucretia,  afterwards  wife  of  A.  J.  Morales,  senior  Professor  of 
Spanish  Literature  and  Belles-Lettres  in  New  York  College. 
She  was  for  many  years  prima  donna  and  organist  at  Christ 
Church,  and  also  the  Church  of  the  Transfiguration  in  New  Y'ork. 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Morales  were  the  first  to  introduce,  into  the  church, 
masses  arranged  to  operatic  and  classic  music.  His  brother 
Lafayette  Harrison,  built  Irving  Hall,  in  New  York,  and  he  may 
truly  be  called  the  father  of  concert-music  in  New  York  City. 
Parepa  was  indebted  to  him  for  placing  her  in  her  proper  posi- 
tion before  the  American  people,  and,  as  an  evidence  of  grati- 
tude, gave  him  her  miniature  beautifully  set  in  gold. 

In  1832,  John  Howard  Payne,  the  dramatist,  and  author  of 
"'Home,  Sweet  Home,"  was  a  frequent  guest  at  Charles  P.  Harri- 
son's house.  One  night,  Gabriel  accompanied  his  father  and 
Mr.  Payne  to  the  Park  Theatre  in  New  York,  to  see  Edwin 
Forrest  in  the  character  of  Damon.  It  was  on  that  occasion 
that  the  young  elocutionist  was  fired  with  the  spirit  of  dramitic 
art,  and  determined  to  study  for  the  stage.  He  became  an  active 
member  of  the  American  Histrionic  Society,  and,  notwithstanding 
his  extreme  youth,  was  well-known  as  one  of  the  leading 
amateurs.  Soon  after  his  admission  to  the  society,  he  was  en- 
trusted with  the  part  of  Q-ypsy  Mike  in  the  drama  of  "Luke 
the  Laborer."  This  was  generally  supposed  to  be  a  minor  part, 
but  the  young  actor,  considering  all  the  parts  important,  de- 
veloped his  so  thoroughly  that  Gypsy  Mike  became  the  hero 
of  the  evening.  Soon  after,  he  appeared  in  the  character  of  .S'/. 
Pierre,  in  Knowles'  play  of  "The  Wife."  The  play  was  repro- 
duced by  him  on  this  night  for  the  first  time  in  this  country. 
The  performance  was  full  of  spirit,  and  the  young  actor's  con- 
ception of  the  character  of  ISt.  Pierre  "was  remarkable."  In 
1838,  he  performed  the  part  of  Polla  at  the  Histrionic  Society. 
Major  Norton,  of  the  Texan  Army,  was  so  impressed  with  his 
powerful  acting  on  that  occasion,  that  he  immediately  called 
upon  Mr.  Wallack,  then  manager  of  the  National  Theatre,  and 
induced  him  to  invite  young  Harrison  to  make  his  debut,  which 
accordingly  took  place  in  November  of  that  year.  He  appeared 
on  that  occasion  as  Othello,  with  the  celebrated  Wallack  as  "lago," 
and  Emma  Wheatley  as  "  Desdemona;"  went  through  the  per- 
formance to  the  entire  satisfaction  of  his  audience,  and  was  en- 
dorsed by  a  most  enthusiastic  recall,  at  the  close  of  the  last  act. 
The  press  spoke  in  favorable  terms  of  his  ability,  and  he  was  at 
once  engaged  as  one  of  the  leading  actors  for  the  Avon  Theatre, 
Norfolk,  Virginia,  managed  by  Mr.  George  Jones,  afterwards 
known  as  the  Count  Joannes.  Mr.  Jones,  however,  failed  to 
have  his  theatre  in  readiness  at  the  appointed  time,  and  Mr. 
Harrison  wisely  decided  to  return  to  New  York. 

Keenly  appreciating  the  beauties  of  all  art,  he  found  it  diffi- 
cult to  confine  himself  exclusively  to  the  dramatic  profession, 
and  from  early  boyhood  had  devoted  much  time  to  landscape- 
painting.  Thoroughly  earnest  in  every  undertaking,  he  possessed 
the  spirit  and  enthusiasm  which  are  necessary  to  plan  and 
execute  noble  things. 

In  1839,  Daguerre  had  given  to  the  world  the  secret  of  his  dis- 
covery.    Two  years  later,  Mr.  Harrison,  charmed  with  the  mys- 


terious and  beautiful  art,  became  one  of  its  most  prominent 
exponents,  and  by  his  earnest  research  contributed  much  to  its 
constantly  widening  resources.  The  admirable  tone  which  he 
succeeded  in  producing  in  his  pictures,  won  from  M.  Daguerre, 
the  inventor  of  the  art,  his  warmest  praise.  Mr.  Harrison's  pic- 
tures took  several  gold  medals  at  the  American  Institute  for  his 
employer,  John  Plum.  In  1851,  he  produced  the  cluster  of  pic- 
tures that  took  a  bronze  medal  at  the  Crystal  Palace,  London, 
and  also  another  bronze  medal  at  the  ■"  World's  Fair,"  New  York, 
1853.  These  pictures  were  made  for  Martin  M.  Lawrence,  for 
whom  he  made  many  experiments.  Some  of  the  pictures  were 
taken  on  sheets  of  silver,  14  x  18  inches,  the  largest  ever  known 
to  be  taken.  For  these  he  had  "  coating  boxes  "  and  "buffing 
wheels  "  made  to  accommodate  the  extra  size  of  the  plates.  Mr. 
Harrison  was  the  first  and  only  artist  who  ever  produced  allego- 
rical pictures  through  the  photographic  art.  One  of  these  rep- 
resented the  "  Past,  Present  and  Future,"  the  grouping  of  three 
female  figures  after  the  manner  of  Malbone's  great  miniature  of 
"The  Hours." 

Mr.  Harrison's  generosity  and  nobleness  of  character  have 
ever  been  seen  in  his  candid  estimate  of  other  men's  good  quali- 
ties and  virtues.  In  1842,  while  passing  Trinity  churchyard, 
his  attention  was  attracted  to  a  pile  of  bricks,  which  had  been 
erected  to  mark  the  grave  of  Commodore  Lawrence.  Finding 
that  the  tablet  of  record  had  fallen  from  the  bricks,  and  was 
buried  beneath  the  sod,  he  resolved  that  a  fitting  monument 
should  be  erected  to  mark  the  spot  where  the  brave  hero  sleeps, 
whose  dying  words  were:  "  Don't  give  up  the  ship."  He  at  once 
called  the  attention  of  the  Board  of  Aldermen  to  the  neglected 
tomb  of  Lawrence,  and  urged  that  measures  be  taken  to  adorn  it 
with  a  fitting  monument.  He  then  went  to  Albany,  where  he 
enlisted  the  sympathies  of  Governor  William  C.  Bouck  in  the 
enterprise.  In  a  short  time  be  had  organized  a  committee  to 
take  the  matter  in  hand,  consisting  of  the  Governor  of  the  State 
as  president,  and  ex-Lieut. -Governor  Luther  Bradish,  William 
CuUen  Bryant,  N.  P.  Willis,  Horace  Greeley,  General  George  P. 
Morris,  General  Thomas  L.  Cummings  and  others.  Mr.  Harrison 
set  himself  to  the  task  of  painting  pictures  of  the  battles  fought 
by  Lawrence,  the  sale  of  which  was  to  swell  the  funds  for  the 
proposed  monument.  He  finished  his  first  picture,  representing 
the  battle  between  the  "  Wasp  and  Frolic."  It  was  placed  on 
exhibition  in  New  York,  and  received  universal  praise.  It  was 
sent  to  John  Sartain,  the  celebrated  engraver  of  Philadelphia,  to 
be  engraved  in  the  finest  style  of  mezzo-tint.  By  this  time, 
however,  the  Trinity  Church  vestry,  seeing  that  they  were  cen- 
sured by  the  public  for  allowing  the  tomb  of  Lawrence  to  fall  to 
decay,  took  the  matter  in  hand,  and  offered  to  ptitup  a  handsome 
monument.  The  Harrison  committee  therefore  decided  to  take 
no  further  action  in  the  matter.  The  new  monument  was  soon 
completed;  but  few  are  aware  of  the  fact  that  it  was  to  the  spir- 
ited efforts  of  Gabriel  Harrison  the  public  is  indebted  for  the 
monument  that  now  stands  in  front  of  Trinity  Church,  in  honor 
of  Commodore  Lawrence  and  Lieutenant  James  Ludlow. 

Mr.  Harrison,  when  quite  young,  evinced  a  strong  disposition 
for  politics,  and  was  attached  to  the  Democratic  party.  In  1844, 
he  was  elected  the  president  of  the  White  Eagle  Club  of  New 
York,  and  did  much  towards  the  election  of  Polk  and  Dallas.  In 
1848  he,  with  many  other  discontented  Democrats,  went  to  the 
Philadelphia  Convention,  which  nominated  Lewis  Cass  for  Presi- 
dent; but  as  this  convention  adopted  a  platform  tainted  with 
slavery,  Mr.  Harrison  and  many  of  the  best  Democrats  returned 
home,  determined  not  to  support  it.  John  Van  Buren  became 
the  leader  of  the  new  part}',  which  organized  in  strong  opposi- 
tion to  the  introduction  of  slavery  into  the  Territories.  A  meet- 
ing of  the  best  Democrats  was  called  to  take  the  matter  into 
consideration,  and  Harrison,  Dr.  John  Gray,  and  R.  A.  Sandy 
were  sent  there  to  represent  the  XlVth  Ward.  At  this  meeting, 
Mr.  Harrison  made  a  telling  speech  against  the  Cass  platform, 
and  here  he  unfurled  a  banner,  on  which  was  inscribed  "  Free 


(SA[g^Q[£[L[]aM^aS(0)R]a 

Author  of  The  Life  of  John  Howard  Payrwr  and  the  drama  of  The  Scaflet  Letter." 


BIOGHAPHY  OF  GABRIEL  HARRISON. 


Soil,  Free  Speech,  and  Free  Men."  The  words  became  the  motto 
of  the  Free  Soil  party  through  the  campaign  of  1848.  Mr.  Har- 
rison was  one  of  the  delegates  to  the  Utiea  Convention.  He  there 
declared  that  slavery  must  be  considered  a  national  crime,  so 
long  as  the  District  of  Columbia  recognized  and  allowed  the  in- 
stitution to  exist  at  the  Capitol  of  the  nation,  which  was  the  case 
at  that  time.  This  was  a  new  thought;  the  anti-slavery  element 
of  the  country,  and  many  members  of  Congress,  at  once  took  up 
the  new  key-note,  and  in  a  short  time  the  institution  of  slavery 
was  abolished  in  the  District  of  Columbia.  On  Mr.  Harrison's 
return  from  Utica,  he  was  elected  president  of  the  "  XlVth  Ward 
Free  Soil  League."  He  was  also  appointed  chairman  of  the 
committee  to  get  up  the  grand  ratification  meeting,  June  6th, 
1848,  which  took  place  in  the  City  Hall  Park,  Mr.  Harrison's 
league  was  out  in  full  force,  bearing  a  banner,  designed  and 
painted  by  him,  emblematic  of  Liberty  cutting  the  chains 
from  the  hands  of  a  slave.  During  the  Rebellion,  Mr.  Harrison 
was  active  on  the  side  of  freedom,  and.made  strong  speeches  in 
New  York  and  Brooklyn.  He  has  since  remained  a  staunch 
Republican. 

In  1845,  Mr.  Harrison  became  a  member  of  the  Park  Theatre 
Company,  New  York,  making  his  first  appearance  in  the  char- 
acter of  the  Prince,  in  "Romeo  and  Juliet," in  one  of  Mr. 
Charles  Kean's  Shakespearean  revivals.  He  also  supported  Kean 
in  such  characters  as  the  Kinij,  in  "  Hamlet,"  and  ho  i)erformed 
this  part  so  much  to  Mr.  Kean's  satisfaction  that  the  great  actor 
presented  him  with  a  "  dress  sword."  In  1848  he  first  appeared 
in  Brooklyn  Garden,  and  performed  with  great  success  in  such 
characters  as  SI.  Pierre,  Claude  Mehujtte,  Caricin,  Lndovico,  Rolia 
and  \]'illiam  Tell;  becoming  at  once  such  a  favorite  in  Brook- 
lyn that  his  friends  and  admirers  induced  him  to  make  a  per- 
manent residence  among  them. 

In  1851,  he  organized  the  Brooklyn  Dramatic  Academy,  a  pri- 
vate association  for  the  encouragement  of  the  drama  in  Brook- 
lyn. For  several  years  the  society  gave  performances  to  select 
audiences,  at  the  Brooklyn  Museum,  with  Mr.  Harrison  gener- 
ally representing  the  leading  character.  Three  years  later  came 
"hard  times,"  and  many  of  the  actors  being  out  of  employment, 
Mr.  Harrison  engaged  the  Masonic  Hall  at  Paterson,  N.  J.,  con- 
verted the  large  rooms  into  a  theatre,  and  organized  a  fine  com- 
panj',  among  whom  was  the  celebrated  Lysander  Thompson. 
This  company  performed  for  several  weeks ;  but  as  every 
one  felt  the  "hard  times,"  it  was  impossible  that  any  such 
effort  should,  at  that  time,  prove  a  financial  success.  But 
the  leading  citizens,  admiring  Mr.  Harrison  as  an  actor  and 
a  gentleman,  tendered  him  a  complimentary  testimonial,  which 
was  given,  the  result  amounting  to  a  handsome  sum.  But 
an  account  of  the  suS'ering  of  the  poorer  classes  of  Paterson 
had  reached  his  ears,  and  he  at  once  offered  the  result 
of  his  benefit  to  the  Committee  of  Relief  To  his  astonish- 
ment, the  money  was  refused,  on  the  ground  that  it  was  "de- 
rived from  a  theatre."  When  this  fact  became  known  the  press 
took  the  matter  in  hand,  and  the  money  was  placed  in  the  hands 
of  an  independent  committee,  who  purchased  flour  and  coal  for 
the  hungry  and  cold.  When  Mr.  Harrison  left  the  place,  several 
members  of  the  Common  Council,  with  a  number  of  citizens,  at- 
tended him  to  the  depot  to  bid  him  good-by.  In  1859,  he  be- 
came the  lessee  and  manager  of  the  Adelphia  Theatre,  Troy, 
N.  Y.,  where,  both  as  manager  and  actor,  he  gave  the  greatest 
satisfaction.  While  manager  of  the  theatre,  he  played  a  large 
number  of  the  best  stars,  and  placed  his  pieces  upon  the  stage 
with  great  extravagance  of  scenic  effect.  After  two  seasons  of 
variable  success,  financially,  he  was  tendered  a  grand  compli- 
mentary benefit  by  the  leading  citizens  of  Troy,  among  whom 
were  General  John  E.  Wool,  with  his  stafi',  and  the  Mayor  of  the 
city.  Every  seat  in  the  house  was  sold  the  day  before  the  per- 
formance, in  which  Mr.  Harrison  appeared  in  his  favorite  char- 
acter ot  St.  Pierre,  in  the  play  of  "The  Wife."  General  Wool 
and  staff  attended  in  full  uniform,  which,  with  the  appropriate 
C) 


and  elegant  costumes  of  the  ladies,  added  brilliancy  to  the  occa- 
sion. William  E.  Burton's  last  engagement  was  with  Mr.  Har- 
rison. Arriving  at  Troy,  Mr.  Burton  was  taken  suddenly  ill,  and 
in  a  short  time  he  returned  home  to  die.  Ml'.  Harrison  had 
worked  incessantly,  and  with  his  artistic  taste  placed  his  pieces 
upon  the  stage  in  a  style  of  excellence  rarely  seen  out  of  the 
metropolis  ;  but  he  discovered  that  a  theatre  could  not  be  sus- 
tained in  such  a  style,  and,  refusing  to  carry  it  on  in  a  less  artis- 
tic manner,  closed  the  theatre,  and  returned  to  Brooklyn,  much 
to  the  regret  of  the  leading  citizens  of  Troy.  Alternating  and 
pursuing  histrionic  and  photographic  art  (for  Brooklyn  was  not 
then  prepared  to  supiiort  a  regular  theatre),  he  visibly  advanced 
and  improved  the  state  of  both,  awaiting  the  time  when  a  theatre 
eould  be  establislied  upon  a  permanent  basis.  In  September, 
1863,  Mr.  Harrison,  thinking  the  time  had  come,  opened  the 
Park  Theatre,  which  he  named  in  honor  of  the  old  Park  Theatre 
of  New  York.  His  management  and  company  were  most  excel- 
lent ;  but,  not  satisfied  with  the  success  which  attended  his  dra- 
matic efforts,  he  organized  an  English  opera  troupe.  Here  he 
introduced  to  the  lyric  stage  Messrs.  Castle  and  Campbell  and 
others,  with  Theodore  Thomas  as  conductor.  The  first  opera 
given,  the  "Bohemian  Girl,"  was  a  decided  success.  Mr.  Fry, 
the  famous  musical  critic  of  the  Nein  York  Tribune,  gave  frequent 
columns  of  laudation  to  the  effort  of  Mr.  Harrison  to  foster  the 
English  opera,  and  to  sustain  by  American  musical  talent ;  but 
the  enormous  expenses  of  the  companies  and  the  season  of  the 
opera  coming  in  contact  with  the  Lenten  season,  caused  greatly 
reduced  houses  and  brought  financial  ruin  to  Mr.  Harrison  after 
giving  ten  months  ot  hard  work  to  the  enterprise.  The  upright, 
generous  and  manly  course  of  Mr.  Harrison's  whole  life  had  won 
him  hosts  of  friends,  and  several  gentlemen  offered  him  means 
to  continue  his  work;  but,  ratlier  than  risk  the  money  of  others 
in  his  own  speculations,  he  refused  the  proffered  loans  and  closed 
his  theatre.  During  his  management  of  the  Park  Theatre,  he 
appeared  for  twenty-one  consecutive  nights,  rendering  only  four 
different  characters  ;  every  night  the  house  being  crowded  to 
overflowing.  The  New  York  World  of  November  23rd,  1862, 
contained  the  following  : 

Brooklyn  people  are  justly  congratulating  themselves  upon 
the  reappearance  of  Mr.  Gabriel  Harrison  on  the  boards  of  his 
cosy  and  admirably  conducted  theatre,  the  Park.  Mr.  Harrison 
is  remembered  by  many  as  the  talanted  actor  who  shone  at  the 
New  Park  Theatre,  New  York,  when  that  was  the  leading  establish- 
ment of  the  country.  He  resumed  his  dramatic  duties  last  week, 
appearing  as  St.  Pierre  in  Sheridan  Knowles'  play  of  "  The  Wife." 
Mr.  Harrison  is  a  well-read  man,  of  sound  taste,  and  possesses 
a  fine  appreciation  of  stage-art.  He  has  a  capital  presence, 
enunciates  fluently,  and  furnishes  throughout  excellent  render- 
ing of  his  text.  His  action  is  animated,  easy,  and  natural,  and  in 
some  scenes  surprisingly  fine.  There  is  taste  and  gentlemanli- 
ness  in  all  that  he  does.  He  afibrded  an  impersonation  artistic 
in  detail,  and  just  in  conception.  Later  in  the  week,  he  essayed 
Claude  MelnoUe  in  the  "  Lady  of  Lyons,"  and  with  the  same 
marked  success. 

The  entire  press  of  New  York  and  Brooklyn  spoke  in  unquali- 
fied praise  of  Mr.  Harrison's  ability  both  as  an  actor  and  a 
manager.  His  genius  for  the  work  was  undoubted,  and  never 
was  a  man  more  industrious.  He  labored  till  broken  in  health 
with  the  continued  mental  and  physical  strain,  when  he  was 
compelled  to  retire  from  his  profession,  to  which,  be  it  regret- 
fully said,  he  never  fully  returned.  In  1864,  a  number  of  gentle- 
men tendered  him  a  testimonial  at  the  Brooklyn  Academy  of 
Music,  and  many  favorite  artists  offered  him  their  services.  The 
play  selected  for  the  occasion  was  Shakespeare's  comedy  of  the 
"  Twelfth  Night,"  and  as  the  day  selected  for  the  performance 
fell  on  the  300th  anniversary  of  the  great  poet's  birth,  Mr.  Har- 
rison decided  to  celebrate  the  event  by  a  grand  Shakespearean 
tableau,  which  he  arranged  with  over  one  hundred  characters. 
The  occasion  was  a  great  success.  Several  times  after  this,  Mr. 
Harrison  became  the  lessee  and  manager  of  the  Brooklyn  Acad- 
emy of  Music,  and  here  many  of  the  best  stars  performed. 


1154 


HISTORY   OF  KINGS   COUNTY. 


among  them  Matilda  Heron,  William  Florence,  Charles  Dillon 
and  Sirs.  Waller.  Under  his  management,  at  this  time,  Miss 
Kate  Bateman  performed  for  three  consecutive  nights,  to  the 
largest  audiences  that  ever  filled  the  Academy  on  a  dramatic 
occasion.  Mr.  Harrison  paid  Miss  Bateman  ftSOO  a  night,  and 
employed  the  same  company  that  had  supported  her  at  Niblo's 
Grarden.  This  increased  his  expenses  to  $1,200  for  each  perform- 
ance. The  receipts  of  the  first  night  were  $1,956  ;  second 
night,  $-2, 145;  third  night,  S2,437.  Total,  $G,538,  leaving  Mr. 
Harrison  a  profit  of  $2,938. 

In  1867,  he  was  elected  a  member  of  the  Brooklyn  Academy  of 
Design,  and  soon  after  became  its  corresponding  secretary. 
Here,  as  in  everything  else,  he  was  the  enthusiast,  and  did 
everything  in  his  power  to  support  the  free  art-schools  of  the 
institution  ;  and,  indeed,  through  his  exertions,  the  life  of  the 
society  was  prolonged  several  years.  On  one  occasion,  the  presi- 
dent called  a  meeting  and  offered  a  resolution  in  regard  to 
discontinuing  the  academy,  as  the  members  felt  they  could  no 
longer  maintain  out  of  th^ir  own  pockets  the  cost  of  teaching  over 
two  hundred  pupils.  Mr.  Harrison  opposed  the  movement,  and 
in  an  eloquent,  off-hand  speech — the  style  for  which  he  is 
famous  —induced  them  to  desist,  promising  that  he  would  raise 
the  money,  not  onlj'  to  pay  off  the  debts  of  the  "  Academy  of 
Design,"  but  to  continue  the  free  art-schools.  He  accordingly 
got  up  a  concert,  which  took  jilaoe  February  22nil,  1869.  Ole 
Bull,  S.  B.  Mills,  Madame  Staats  and  others  volunteered  their 
services,  and  the  concert  yielded  over  $900,  enough  to  pay  off 
the  debts  and  continue  the  free  art-schools  through  two  winters. 

In  1866,  Miss  Matilda  Heron  induced  Mr.  Harrison  to  write  for 
her  a  tragedy.  As  she  had  advanced  in  years,  and  was  conscious 
that  she  was  outgrowing  the  graces  of  her  girlish  figure,  and  could, 
therefore,  no  longer  appear  as  any  of  the  dramatic  heroines 
should,  she  desired  a  i)lay  containing  a  matronly  character, 
which,  would  suit  her  years  and  rather  large  figure.  Mr.  Harri- 
son undertook  the  task,  and  was  successful  to  the  entire  satis- 
faction of  the  great  actress.  The  title  of  his  tragedy  is  "  Melan- 
thia,"  a  Greek  matron,  who,  Virginius-like,  held  her  daughter's 
honor  as  a  sacred  trust.  The  character  is  grand  in  conception, 
and  was  admirably  suited  to  Matilda  Heron's  wonderful  ijower 
as  a  tragic  actress.  Of  Mr.  Harrison's  creation  of  Mdanthia, 
Miss  Heron  writes  : 

"My  dear  Mr.  Harrison  :  Your  ildanthia  is  the  proudest 
character  ever  written  for  modern  woman.  It  can  never  fail  but 
through  bad  management.  I  know  what  I  am,  and  what  I  can 
do.  I  have  that  within  me  which  surpasses  all  the  representa- 
tions of  Vamille  I  ever  gave,  and  which  shall  yet  come  out. 
I  say  this  because  it  is  no  paltry  adaptation  of  a  novel.  lam 
speaking  of  a  great  and  glorious  gem  that  cannot  perish,  but 
which  will  shine  when  you  and  I  and  the  managers  shall  be  at 
peace.  See  Mr.  Palmer,  manager  of  Niblo's  Theatre,  or  whom 
you  please  about  this  subject.  I  ask  no  favors,  convinced  that, 
if  I  am  only  tolerably  equal  to  the  sublime  task  of  personating 
your  Melanthia,  I  shall  be  paying  them  a  tribute  of  distinc- 
tion that  they  have  not  in  their  power  to  repay  me.  In  New 
York  I  shall  play  this  play  only  on  condition  that  you  have  the 
entire  management  of  it." 

It  was  Miss  Heron's  wish  to  produce  "  Melanthia  "  at  one  of 
the  New  York  theatres,  and  she  made  an  effort  to  do  so;  but,  un- 
fortunately, all  the  principal  theatres  throughout  the  country 
were  at  that  time  occupied  with  the  "  Black  Crook,"  which  then 
had  been  for  over  two  years  drawing  immense  houses.  Miss 
Heron,  however,  produced  the  play  at  the  Olympic  Theatre,  in 
St.  Louis,  with  great  success;  the  local  press  agreeing  that  the 
play  "abounded  with  thrilling  dramatic  situations,"  and  that 
"Mr.  Harrison's  classic  tragedy  of  'Melanthia'  furnished  just 
the  character  that  had  always  been  wanted  for  the  great  actress 
when  she  arrives  at  middle  age."  But  the  people  had  just 
emerged  from  the  Civil  War:  the  agonies  of  tears,  and  blood,  and 
death.  They  demanded  something  to  amuse  and  cheer  them. 
About  the  time  Mr.  Harrison  retired  from  the  management  of 
the  Park  Theatre,  Dr.  Henry  K.  Stiles,  the  historian  of  Brook- 


lyn, Alden  J.  Spooner,  Professor  Chas.  E.West,  Henry  C.  Murphy, 
John  Winslow,  and  others,  were  organizing  the  Long  Island 
Historical  Society.  Mr.  Harrison  was  one  of  the  first  to  respond 
to  this  movement,  and  presented  to  the  Long  Island  Historical 
Society  a  dramatic  library  consisting  of  over  one  thousand  plays 
and  several  manuscripts  of  rare  value.  Among  them  were  a 
MS.  farce  by  John  Philip  Kemble,  the  original  part  of  Sir  Peter 
Teazle  in  the  handwriting  of  Sheridan,  and  many  rare  dramatic 
publications,  dating  back  to  1650,  together  with  old  play-bills 
of  Hallam's  first  performances  in  the  city  of  New  York  in  1752. 
He  gave  also  a  valuable  bust  of  Shakespeare,  one  of  the  three 
fac-similes  made  from  the  bust  that  stands  over  the  grave  of  the  im- 
mortal bard  at  Avon.  This  originally  belonged  to  John  Philip 
Kemble,  and  was  purchased  by  William  E.  Burton,  who  brought 
it  to  this  country.  It  was  purchased  by  Gabriel  Harrison  at  the 
sale  of  Mr.  Burton's  effects  in  1860.  Mr.  Harrison  also  gave  the 
Historical  Society  a  water-color  portrait  of  Edgar  A.  Poe,  with 
whom  he  had  been  well  acquainted.  This  picture  he  colored 
under  the  observation  of  Mrs.  Clemm,  Poe's  mother-in-law,  who 
pronounced  it  the  best  picture  of  the  great  poet  extant,  and,  in 
gratitude,  presented  Mr.  Harrison  with  Poe's  wedding  ring. 
This  ring  was  most  highly  prized  by  Mr.  Harrison,  but,  with 
over-liberality,  he  gave  this  also  to  the  Long  Island  Historical 
Society.  While  in  the  hands  of  its  original  founders,  these  valu- 
able historical  gifts  were  appreciated  and  cherished,  and  the 
donor's  generosity  recognized  by  his  election  to  a  life-member- 
ship. But,  in  the  after  years  of  its  management,  the  Society 
failed  to  appreciate  these  valuable  gifts,  as  they  seem  to  have 
vanished  from  the  shelves  of  the  library. 

Durin"  Mr.  Harrison's  industrious  life,  he  has  continued  to 
devote  his  attention  to  landscape-painting,  and  produced  many 
artistic  and  .some  notable  pictures.  Among  these  were  the 
original  pictures  entitled  "The  Swallows'  Roost"— a  sunset; 
"Solitude"— a  moonlight;  "A  Look  Between  the  Trees" — a 
noonday.  His  characteristics  as  an  artist  lie  in  grace  of  form, 
harmony  of  color,  and  sentiment  of  composition.  Andrew 
McLean,  editor-in-chief  of  the  Brooklyn  Efiijle,  in  describing  one 
of  his  pictures,  said  : 

"Mr.  Gabriel  Harrison's  picture  of  'Solitude'  is  one  that 
will  undoubtedly  attract  a  great  deal  of  attention.  It  is  a  mid- 
summer night  scene.  In  the  foreground  stands  a  clump  of  tall 
trees,  whose  foliage  forms  a  natural  frame  for  a  quiet  mountain- 
lake  and  a  range  of  distant  mountains.  The  moon,  just  rising, 
throws  a  band  of  silver  across  the  lake,  and  lends  a  dreamy, 
uncertain  light  to  the  scene.  Everything  about  the  picture  be- 
tokens the  ponderous  stillness  and  solitude  of  nature,  and  this 
effect  is  enhanced  by  the  entire  absence  of  animal  life .  The 
work  is,  in  fact,  a  poem  on  '  Solitude '  in  color,  and  it  im- 
presses the  theme  more  forcibly  ujion  the  mind  than  any  words 
are  capable  of  portraying  it. 

Mr.  Harrison  also  painted  a  picture  of  Edwin  Forrest  as  Gorio- 
lanns,  which  was  purchased  by  Mr.  Morell,  of  New  York,  and  is 
said  to  be  the  most  accurate  and  characteristic  portrait  of  the 
tragedian  ever  painted." 

Mr.  Alden  J.  Spooner,  another  critic,  writes  : 

"  '  The  Falls  of  Minnehaha'  has  been  greatly  admired  amongst 
our  artists.  None  have  been  so  successful  as  Mr.  Harrison  in 
depicting  poetic  scenes,  and  transfusing  the  poetry  and  senti- 
ment of  nature.  In  his  'Falls  of  Minnehaha,'  the  harmonies 
of  nature  are  unbroken  by  any  element  of  life  or  sound,  except 
the  cadences  of  the  '  laughing  waters,  to  which_  the  fauns  and 
dryads  of  the  realm — the  Indian  subjects  of  Longfellow — might 
be  supposed  to  be  lending  a  charmed  ear.  The  scene  is  as 
poetically  placed  upon  the  canvas  as  the  poet  has  framed  it 
in  his  immortal  verse." 

In  1872,  Mr.  Harrison  assisted  in  organizing  the  Fdust  Olub  of 
Brooklyn ;  he  was  elected  one  of  the  directors,  and  appointed 
chairman  of  the  Art  and  Literary  Department.  Never  doing  a 
thing  without  a  purpose,  he  soon  became  the  life  and  soul  of  the 
organization.  Through  his  suggestion  and  earnest  efforts, 
"Saturday  Night  Entertainments"  were  given,  and  monthly  re- 
ceptions for  the  wives,  daughters,  and  lady  friends  of  the  mem- 


BIOGRAPHY  OF  GABRIEL  HARRISON. 


1155 


bers.  On  these  occasions  paintings  were  exhibited,  music  and 
recitations  were  introduced,  and  also  the  reading  of  original 
papers  in  prose  and  poetry  ;  all  of  which  proved  a  powerful 
agent  in  promoting  taste  for  art  and  literature.  It  was  bere,  on 
one  Saturday  night,  that  Mr.  Harrison  read  a  paper  on  John 
Howard  Payne,  the  author  of  "Home,  Sweet  Home,"  and  one 
of  the  best  American  dramatists.  At  the  conclusion  of  his  paper, 
he  appealed  to  the  members  to  do  something  for  Payne's  mem- 
ory. They  responded  to  his  suggestions  ;  and,  by  a  series  of 
dramatic  performance.s,  suggested  by  Mr.  Harrison,  and  given 
at  the  Academy  of  Music,  and  by  the  sale  of  paintings  contri- 
buted by  Mr.  Harrison  arid  other  artists,  which  were  sold  from 
the  parlors  of  the  Faust  Club,  they  realized  thirty-one  hundred 
dollars.  This  amount  paid  for  a  fine  bronze  bust  of  Payne.  It 
was  erected  in  Prospect  Park,  and  unveiled  in  the  presence  of 
25,000  people;  who,  with  500  school  children,  joined  in  the 
chorus  of  "Home,  Sweet  Home."  One  year  later  he  published 
The  Lifeand  Writings  of  John  Jlowanl  Payne,  an  octavo  volume  of 
four  hundred  pages,  gotten  up  in  the  most  exquisite  style.  The 
book  is  a  valuable  addition  to  American  biography,  as  well 
as  one  of  the  finest  specimens  of  American  typography. 
The  leading  papers  of  New  York  and  Brooklyn  and  other  cities 
gave  the  book  most  favorable  notice.  In  the  AUIiiie  appeared 
the  following  critique  : 

"It  could  not  be  otherwise  than  that  such  a  man  as  Mr.  Har- 
rison should  have  supplemented  the  noble  bust  of  Payne  in 
Prospect  Park  with  an  appreciative  biography,  and  should  have 
done  his  work  with  ardor  and  with  excellent  judgment.  With 
the  admiration  that  Mr.  Harrison  always  has  for  what  is  really 
good,  there  might  be  a  fear  that  the  biography  might  tend  too 
much  to  eulogy,  and  perhaps  destroy  the  mission  of  the  work  by 
over-coloring.  But  let  it  be  said  that  this  temptation  has  been 
marvellously  resisted  by  Mr.  Harrison,  whose  admiration  for 
his  subject,  if  at  all  times  evident,  is  never  obtrusive, 
and  never  finds  expression  beyond  what  may  be 
easily  received.  In  the  main,  while  confessedly  admiring,  and 
somewhat  in  the  form  of  a  tribute,  it  bears  the  impress  of  being 
closely  restrained,  well  considered,  and  intrinsically  just." 

Amos  G.  Torry,  in  the  Brooklyn  Sunduy  JReriew,  August  1st, 
1878,  says  :  "The  life  and  writings  of  John  Howard  Payne,  by 
Mr.  Gabriel  Harrison,  is  a  work  wholly  characteristic  of  the 
author.  We  find  the  work  delightful  by  contrast  with  the 
stereoty[)ed  biography  of  the  day— a  fresh,  candid  and  artless 
recital  of  the  triumphs  and  failures  of  a  man  into  whose  web  of 
life  was  woven  more  of  the  gray  than  gold,  more  of  sorrow  than 
joy.  A  glorious  boyhood,  a  young  manhood  radiant  with 
promise,  a  prime  of  disappointment,  and  a  defeated  decline  ;  it 
was  of  these  that  Mr.  Harrison  had  to  tell,  and  most  laithfully 
has  he  painted  them  all.  He  has  achieved  a  most  undeniable 
success.  The  subject  fitted  the  biographer.  We  know  of  no 
other  man  so  competent  to  understand  and  appreciate  Payne  as 
this  same  great-hearted,  unselfish,  honorable  gentleman  as 
Gabriel  Harrison." 

These  efforts  of  Mr.  Harrison  so  aroused  public  sentiment, 
both  at  home  and  abroad,  in  regard  to  Payne,  that  measures 
were  at  once  taken  by  our  government  to  restore  his  neglected 
grave  at  Tunis,  and  finally  led  to  the  removal  of  his  remains  to 
America,  by  Mr.  Corcoran,  of  Washington.  Considering  what 
Brooklyn,  through  Mr.  Harrison  and  the  Faust  Club,  had  done 
for  Payne,  the  only  fitting  place  for  his  remains  was  in  Green- 
wood, or  beneath  his  monument  in  Prospect  Park.  When  Mr. 
Corcoran 's  project  became  known  to  the  public,  Mr.  Harrison 
wrote  him,  urging  that  the  remains  of  Payne  be  placed  in  Long 
Island,  where  he  had  spent  his  childhood,  and  as  the  only  spot 
which  the  poet  had  recognized  as  his  home  for  the  last  twenty 
years  of  his  life,  and  thus  fufill  the  sentiment  of  his  immortal 
song.  But  Mr.  Harrison's  request  was  refused.  Brooklyn  was 
denied  the  bones  of  her  dead  poet,  and  the  motives  of  patriotism 
and  philanthropy  in  removal  greatly  impaired  by  the  peculiar 
act  of  placing  his  remains  where  they  do  not  rightfully  belong. 
Not  a  citizen  of  Brooklyn  was  notified  when  the  remains  of  Payne 
arrived  in  New  York,  but  all  were  left  to  learn  the  fact  through 
the  newspapers.  Amid  the  throngs  of  people  who  visited  the 
City  Hall,  New  York,  where  the  remains  lay  in  state,  was  an 


elderly  gentleman,  who  paused  before  the  casket,  and  placed 
thereon  an  elegant  wreath  of  immortelles,  bearing  the  words 
"  From  a  Friend."  It  was  Gabriel  Harrison.  On  the  Gth  of  June, 
the  funeral  took  place  with  great  pomp  at  Oak  Hill  Cemetery, 
West  Washington,  the  burying-ground  in  which  Mr.  Corcoran 
had  selected  a  spot  for  the  last  resting-place  of  Payne.  Mr. 
Harrison  attended  the  obsequies  as  one  of  the  pall-bearers,  and 
must  have  been  impressed  with  the  important  results  which  had 
been  brought  about  by  his  efforts  in  the  Faust  Club  and  through 
the  agency  ot  his  pen. 

One  of  the  most  notable  productions  of  the  centennial  year 
was  Mr.  Harrison's  dramatization  of  Hawthorne's  "  Srarlet  Letter." 
"A  potent  charm  of  the  drama  is  its  faithful  portraiture  of  the 
Puritan  severity  and  simplicity  of  the  time  indicated."  In  the 
dramatization  of  this  famous  romance,  Mr.  Harrison  has  con- 
structed a  powerful  drama  without  sacrificing  any  of  the  lead- 
ing characteristics  of  the  original.  Amos  G.  Torrt,  in  the 
Brooklyn  Review,  says: 

'  'Brooklyn  possesses  at  least  one  citizen  of  whom  she  may  speak 
with  unalloyed  satisfaction,  if  not  with  absolute  pride.  He  is 
the  most  modest  of  men,  and  whenever  he  comes  to  the  surface 
of  afi'airs  at  all,  he  always  brings  in  his  hand  a  real  benefaction. 
He  gave  to  Brooklyn  her  first  permanent  theatre;  he  planted  in 
Prospect  Park  the  grand  memorial  bronze  which  has  made  the 
features  of  the  author  of  'Home,  Sweet  Home,'  almost  as  familiar 
to  us  all  as  the  plaintive  song  itself;  and  not  satisfied  with  that 
noble  tribute  to  unrecognized  genius,  he  wrote  out  the  wonder- 
ful history  of  Howard  Payne,  and  embalmed  it  by  means  of 
'the  art  preservative  of  art.'  Always  incurring  large  risks  and 
ruinous  outlays  for  the  betterment  of  bis  fellow-men,  good  Gabriel 
Harrison  has  steadily  impoverished  himself  for  the  enrichment 
of  the  world  he  lives  in,  and  of  Brooklyn  first  of  all.  And  now 
we  are  invited  to  inspect  still  another  Harrisonian  contribution  to 
the  art-force  of  our  time,  a  beautiful  dramatization  of  Hawthorne's 
unfading  'Scarlet  Letter.'  I  have  read  the  drama  through 
twice — first,  with  an  eye  to  its  dramatic  claims,  and  lastly  in  a 
sharply  critical  mood,  on  the  look-out  for  some  flaw  into  which 
to  thrust  an  epigrammatic  snarl,  or  a  jaundiced  interjection. 
And  here  am  I  now  gazing  somewhat  pluvially  and  abstractedly 
at  the  '  tail-piece'  which  spells  'Finis,'  with  my  few  remaining 
locks  standing  half  on  end!  in  the  entire  absorption  of  my  '  inner 
consciousness,'  and  by  the  cold  chills  that  creep  up  and  down 
my  spine  as  I  read  again  the  speeches  of  '  Hester'  and  'Dimmes- 
dale,'  I  am  warned  that  I  am  standing  covered  in  the  presence 
of  genius." 

The  New  York  Erpress  remarked:  "To  dramatize  this 
story  and  fit  it  for  the  exigencies  of  the  stage,  was  a  task  not 
to  be  lightly  and  frivolously  undertaken.  It  was  necessary  to 
bring  a  knowledge  of  the  stage  and  an  experience  of  dramatic 
writing  combined  with  ability— qualities  that  do  not  often  go 
hand  in  hand.  But  it  must  be  seen  from  Mr.  Harrison's  work 
that  he  possesses  the  qualities  to  an  eminent  degree.  His 
characters  are  deftly  drawn,  their  attributes  admirably  expressed, 
while  in  dramatic  construction  and  climax  the  play  presents  a 
composition  that  marks  a  great  stage-success.  The  character  of 
Hester  Prynne,  in  particular,  is  drawn  with  a  tenderness,  grace, 
and  fidelity  that  offer  unusual  advantages  for  the  display  of 
dramatic  genius.  Every  salient  feature  of  the  story  has  been 
seized  upon  by  Mr.  Harrison  in  a  manner  that  evinces  keenness 
of  perception,  and  the  ability  to  put  this  perception  to  the  best 
advantage;  and  whenever  he  has  introduced  words  and  thoughts 
of  his  own,  so  as  to  fit  the  story  to  the  stage,  it  is  almost  impossi- 
ble to  tell  which  is  Hawthorne,  and  which  is  Harrison.  The 
literary  qualities  of  the  play  are  the  same  throughout;  all  is 
harmonious  and  symmetrical." 

Mr.  Harrison  had  one  hundred  copies  of  this  drama  printed  in 
1876,  but  waited  two  years  before  placing  it  upon  the  stage.  In 
this  his  friends  recognized  the  true  delicacy  of  the  man,  in  refus- 
ing to  do  anything  which  might  seem,  even  remotely,  to  profit 
by  the  public  calamity  based  upon  the  Beecher-Tilton  affair. 

In  February,  1878,  Mr.  Harrison  produced  his  dramatization 
of  Hawthorne's  "Scarlet  Letter,"  at  Wood's  Theatre.  His 
daughter  Viola  made  her  debut  as  Hester  Prynne,  to  her  father's 
Roger  Collingworth.  The  drama  drew  crowded  houses  for  a  whole 
week.  Many  had  attempted  the  dramatization  of  this  beautiful 
novel,  but  failed  to  make  it  a  success,  even  with  the  gifted  Mrs. 
Lander  to  embody   the  characteristics  of  Hester  Prynne.    But 


1156 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Mr.  Harrison  presented  the  play  with  such  dramatic  force  that 
every  one  who  witnessed  it  was  hurried  alongfrom  beginning  to 
end  with  the  most  intense  interest.  He  so  arranged  the  dra- 
matic action  and  scenic  eflfects  that  they  assisted  in  leading  the 
mind  of  the  audience  into  that  deep  reasoning,  and  almost 
enabled  it  to  feel  the  secret  heart-pulses  which  seem  to  vivify 
the  leading  characters  in  the  wonderful  story  of  the  "  Scarlet 
Letter."  At  the  fall  of  the  curtain,  a  storm  of  applause  brought 
the  dramatist  and  actor  to  the  footlights  to  receive  the  congratu- 
lations of  the  audience  for  his  double  success. 

Mr.  Harrison  was  ever  a  firm  adherent  of  the  school  of  Edwin 
Forrest.     His  affection  and  regard  for  the  great  tragedian  knew 
no  bounds,  and  his  audience  never  failed  to  be  impressed  with 
his  faithful  study  of  the  mighty  model.     He  became  the  imper- 
sonator of  the  higher  class  of  tragic  and  romantic  characters,  and 
his  acting  has  ever  been  remarkable  for  its  intensity,  enthusiasm 
and  power,  united  with  perfect  naturalness.     His  utterance  of 
the  English  language  is  perfect  in  accentuation  and  intonation. 
With   a  strong   musical  voice,    made  flexible  by  his   thorough 
study  of  elocution,  it  is  equally  capable  of  the  rich,  deep  notes 
so  indispensable  in  tragedy,  and  the  smooth,   tender  qualities 
that  are  suited  to  the  expression  of  love  or  pathos.   In  184.5,  the 
mutual   admiration   of  Edwin    Forrest   and    Gabriel    Harrison 
matured  into  a  friendship  that  lasted  unbroken  till  the  hour  of 
the  great  tragedian's  death.     A  fortnight  before  the  sad  event 
Mr.  Forrest  invited  Mr.    Harrison   to  spend  Thanksgiving  Day 
with  him  at  his  residence  in  Philadelphia.     It  was  a  day  never 
to  be  forgotten  by  the  honored  guest.     From  early  morning  till 
late  at  night  they  were  alone,  enjoying  reminiscences,  or  ponder- 
ing over  the  dramatic  lore  with  which  Mr.  Forrest's  library  of 
7,000  volumes  abounded.     Among  the  literary  treasures  there 
was   the    first    folio    edition    of    .Shakespeare's   works — 1623 — 
which  seemed  almost  to  make  sacred  the  actor's  sanctum,  and 
which  had  cost  him  S2,000.    They  read  to  each  other  most  of  the 
day.     Mr.  Harrison  laid  before  Mr.  Forest  a  project  which  he 
had  contemplated  for  many  years.     In  1854,  Mr.  Harrison  had 
conceived  the  idea  of  establishing  a  Dramatic  College,  to  educate 
aspirants   for   the   stage,    and  to  encourage  dramatic  literature. 
It  was  partially  carried  into  effect,  and  the  first  performance  was 
given  at  the  Brooklyn  Museum.     The  organization  lasted  about 
a  year,  during  which  time  it  gave  to  the  public  stage  Miss  Ellen 
Gray  and  Messrs.  Ringgold,  Walton  and  others.     That  such  an 
institution,  if  established,  could  be  sustained,  Mr.  Harrison  had 
not  the  slightest  doubt  ;  and  as  Mr.  Forrest  was  a  man  of  wealth, 
he  laid  before  him  this  project  to  establish  a  Dramatic  College, 
where  students  for  the  stage  should  be  graduated  the  same  as  in 
any  other  profession,  and  receive  diplomas,  which  in  most  cases 
would  secure  to  the  possessor  a  position  according  to  his  ability. 
Mr.  Forrest  was  so  impressed  with  Mr.  Harrison's  unique  idea 
that  he  made  an   appointment  with  James  Lawson  and  Mr. 
James  Oakes,  his  executors,  to  meet  Mr.  Harrison  in  Philadel- 
phia, that  he  might  explain  to  them  his  plans  regarding  the  pro- 
posed institution.     Unfortunately,  Mr.  Forrest  left  Philadelphia 
to  read  in  Boston,  and  on  the  second   day  after  his  return,  De- 
cember 12th,  1872,  he  suddenly  died.     As  a  matter  of  course, 
Mr.    Harrison   was   immediately    summoned    to    Philadelphia, 
■where  he  acted  as  a  committee  to  receive  those  who  came  from  a 
distance  to  attend  the  obsequies.     Two  nights  he  sat  beside  that 
body  from  which  a  great  soul  had  fled,  bowed  in  the  grief  which 
only  those  bereft  of  such   a  friend   can  feel.     The  fact  that  Mr. 
Forrest  about  a  year  previous  bad   been  bereaved  of  his  only 
relative,  cast  a  gloom  on  his  last  days,  and  bound  him  more 
closely  to  the  friends  he  valued  for  other  ties  than  of  kindred. 
He  gave  to  Mr.   Harrison   many   proofs   of  his   affection  and 
esteem.    He  emphatically  i^ronounoed  him  a  man  of  genius.    In 
a  letter  to  Mr.  Harrison,  March  8th,  1871,  Forrest  writes  :  "  I 
have  been  quite  ill  since  I  came  home,  and  am  still  suffering 
from  my  hereditary  gout.    In  a  superficial  view  of  such  a  case, 


what  an  injustice  seems  the  penalty,  that  the  innocent  unborn 
must  suffer  for  the  guilty— but  it  is  an  irrevocable  natural  law. 
"  '  For  just  disease  to  luxury  succeeds. 
And  every  sin  its  own  avenger  breeds.'  " 

With  this  interesting  letter,  he  sent  to  Mr.  Harrison  his  portrait, 
stating  that  he  considered  it  the  best  of  him  ever  taken.  On 
another  occasion,  he  presented  Mr.  Harrison  a  life-size  head  of 
himself  in  the  character  of  King  Lear,  which  had  been  painted 
especially  for  him.  A  fac-simile  letter  accompanying  this  por- 
trait is  published  in  Lawrence  Barrett's  life  of  Forrest.  We 
here  give  the  following  letter,  which  is  characteristic  of  Mr. 
Forrest : 

PmLADEiiPHiA,  September  4,  1871. 
Gabriel  Hakeison,  Esq. 

Dear  Sir,— I  should  have  acknowledged  the  receipt  of  your 
several  very  kind  letters,  long  since  received,  but  the  bereave- 
ment suffered  by  the  death  of  my  only  relative  quite  unfitted 
me,  even  for  the  daily  occupations  of  life. 

I  duly  received  the  engraving  of  Mr.  Booth  as  Itujo,  and  which 
would  have  answered  quite  as  well  for  Romeo. 

The  photograph  of  Lear  I  sent  you  is  rather  a  portrait  of  a 
general  quiescent  state  of  lunacy,  and  not  of  any  paroxysm,  or 
specific  revealment  of  any  point  in  the  performance,  and  so  far, 
I  think  it  worthy  of  much  commendation. 

Next  month,  when  I  resume  my  professional  life,  I  hope  to  be 
able  to  sit  for  another  picture  of  King  Lear,  which  shall  be  more 
yronomiced  than  the  one  you  have.  If  you  could  be  here  at  the 
time,  you  might  greatly  assist  the  pose.  i,     ,-j-      r 

As  you  expressed  a  wish  to  ascertain  some  facts  in  the  life  ol 
John  Howard  Payne,  I  asked  Mr.  James  Kees,  of  this  city,  to 
furnish  you  a  brief  and  reliable  biography  of  him,  and  which  I 
now  take  great  pleasure  to  enclose  you. 

Truly  and  sincerely  yours, 

EDWIN  FORREST. 

While  in  New  York,  February  23d,  1871,  he  wrote  to  Mr.  Harri- 
son, saying,  "  If  Saturday  next  should  be  fine  weather,  I  should 
like  to  visit  with  you  the  studio  of  the   artist  whom   you   think 
qualified  to  paint  the  portrait  of  Edmund  Kean."    Mr.  Harrison 
met  him  according  to  arrangement,  and  decided  to   give  the 
honor  of  painting  the   portrait  to  Victor  Nehlig.     But  as  Mr. 
Forrest  died  soon  after,  and  his  executors  declined  to  act  in  the 
matter,  the  portrait  of  Kean  was  not  painted.     Mr.  Forrest  pre- 
sented Mr.  Harrison  with  a  picture  of  Edmund  Kean,  which  he, 
Forrest,  considered  the  most  correct  he  had   ever  seen.     Mr. 
Harrison's  friendship  for  Mr.  Forrest  was  not  "  interred  "  with 
the  tragedian's  "bones."     It  still  lives,  and  will  be  perpetuated 
in  W.  R.  Alger's  "  Life  of  Edwin  Forrest."    Although  a  personal 
friend   of  Forrest,  and  a  man  of  letters,  Alger's  vocation  in  life 
precluded  the  possibility  of  his  cultivating  any  adequate  knowl- 
edge of  the  dramatic  stage.     It  was,  therefore,  largely  through 
the  devoted  and  disinterested   assistance   of  Gabriel   Harrison 
that  Mr.  Alger  was  able  to  give  a   proper   estimate   of  Forrest's 
genius  as  an  actor.     This  assistance  was  not  only  solicited  by 
Alger,  but  by  James  Lawson  and  James  Oakes,  Forrest's  execu- 
tors, who  realized  that  no  other  man  had  studied  so  deeply  and 
understood  so  thoroughly  Forrest's  artistic  merits.     In   a   letter 
to  Mr.  Harrison,  February  12th,  1875,  Mr.  Lawson  writes:    "No 
one  has  a  fairer  insight  into  Forrest's  acting  than  yourself.     You 
appreciate  him  fully,  and  with  an  artist's  eye.     You  have  drawn 
him  as  he  is,  the  tragedian  of  the  age,  perhaps  of  all  ages."    Mr. 
Alger  wrote  from  Boston,  December  9th,  1874  :   '•  My  Dear  Mr. 
Harrison,  I  suppose  you  have  not  yet  got  the  proofs  of  your 
essay  on  Forrest  in  Bnitus.     When  you  have  them,  I  pray  you 
loan  them  to  me  for  a  few  days,  as  you  agreed.     Any  criticisms 
on  the  acting  of  Forrest  in  his  chief  roles,  any  hints  or  sugges- 
tions you  will  write  out  for  my  aid,  I  will  gladly  pay  you  for 
liberally."    Again  he  writes,  February  25th,  1875,  expressing  his 
obligations  to  Mr.  Harrison  for  his  "very  suggestive  and  helpful 
notes  on  the  Malamora  of  Forrest.     I  like  them  very  much,  and 
shall  be  greatly  aided  by  them.     If  at  any  time  you  feel  like 
scratching  off  reminiscences  and  hints  on  the  Gladiator,  Damon, 
WiUiam  Tell,  or  any  other  of  the  leading  roles  of  Forrest,  it  will 


BIOGEAFHT  OF  GABRIEL  HARRISON. 


1157 


be  a  great  favor.  Come  over  some  Sunday  morning  to  my 
church,  and  then  stop  and  dine  with  me,  and  talk  to  me  of  For- 
rest, of  acting,  and  of  the  Theatre  of  Art."  Mr.  Alger  had  re- 
ferred to  Edwin  Forrest's  acting  as  "melodramatic."  Mr.  Harri- 
son, writing  to  Mr.  Alger  in  protest  against  this  epithet,  gives 
his  estimate  thus:  "  Are  the  wonderful  figures  of  Michael  Angelo 
melodramatic  because  they  are  so  strongly  outlined  ?  Is  Niagara 
unnatural  and  full  of  trick,  because  it  is  mighty  and  thunders 
so  in  its  fall?  When  I  looked  at  it,  its  sublimity  made  me  feel 
as  if  I  were  looking  Clod  in  the  face;  and  I  never  thought  that 
God  was  melodramatic.  I  have  seen  Forrest  more  than  four 
hundred  times.  I  have  sat  at  his  feet  as  a  pupil-artist  learning 
of  a  master-artist.  In  all  his  chief  roles,  I  have  studied  him  with 
the  most  earnest  carefulness,  from  his  itml  ensemble  to  the  minu- 
test particulars  of  look,  tone,  posture,  and  motion.  I  say,  without 
doubt,  he  was  the  most  honest,  finished  and  powerful  actor  that 
ever  lived.  Whenever  I  saw  him  act,  I  used  to  feel  with  exulta- 
tion how  perfectly  grand  God  had  made  him.  How  grand  a 
form  !  how  grand  a  mind  !  how  grand  a  heart !  how  grand  a 
voice  !  how  grand  a  flood  of  passion,  sweeping  all  these  to  their 
mark  in  perfect  unison!  My  memory  of  him  is  so  worshipful 
and  afiectionate,  and  so  full  of  regret  that  I  can  see  him  no  more, 
that  my  tears  are  blotting  the  leaf  on  which  I  write."  The  above 
passage  Mr.  Alger  has  quoted  in  his  life  of  Forrest.  Gabriel 
Harrison  received  a  letter  from  James  Lawson,  April  13th,  1875, 
which  contained  the  following:  "About  Mr.  Alger's  progress,  I 
am  afraid  he  has  done  little  or  nothing  since  he  accepted  the 
church  in  New  York.  I  shall  be  delighted  to  see  your  articles 
on  Olhello  and  Lear.  I  don't  know  of  any  man  living  so  capable 
of  doing  justice  to  our  departed  friend.  Your  knowledge  and 
taste  in  art  is  difficult  to  please.  You  want  perfection  to  which 
few  attain." 

In  the  critical  essays  on  Forrest's  rendering  of  character  in 
Alger's  Life  of  Edwin  Forrest,  Mr.  Harrison's  hand  is  conspicuous, 
'and  where  his  words  are  used  the  sentences  sparkle  with  his 
enthusiasm.  Lawson  was  perfectly  aware  of  the  great  service 
Harrison  had  rendered  Alger  in  the  Life  of  Forrest,  and  writes, 
February,  1875  :  "You  have  done  Forrest  good.  But  for  you 
he  would  not  have  been  placed  in  the  elevated  position  he  so 
truly  merits.  Your  article  on  Mdtumora  came  to  hand  this 
morning.  It  came  near  to  my  heart.  It  touched  me  deeply.  I 
think  as  I  read  your  words  that  I  see  the  old  fellow  in  all  his 
grandeur.  The  latter  part  of  the  article  especially  is  truly  pa- 
thetic. It  went  to  my  very  soul.  It  is  sweetly  poetic,  that 
passage  particularly :  '  The  sweetest  music  lies  in  the  strings  of 
the  harp,  awaiting  the  touch  of  its  master  to  express  its  mel- 
ody.' Alger  must  appreciate  what  you  have  done,  and  if  he 
uses,  as  he  ought  to  do,  your  own  words,  your  beautiful  portrait 
of  Matainora  will  add  to  his  fame,  and  enhance  the  interest  and 
value  of  his  book.  I  have  better  hopes  than  ever  that  the  life  of 
Forrest  will  be  a  success.  Thanks  to  Gabriel  Harrison  with  all 
my  heart."  On  the  first  anniversary  after  Forrest's  death,  a 
company  of  gentlemen  met  in  New  York  and  organized  "The 
FoKREST  Club,"  of  which  Gabriel  Harrison  was  elected  corre- 
sponding secretary.  After  many  eulogies  had  been  paid  to  For- 
rest, Mr.  Harrison  said  : 

"Gentlemen,  however  well  the  world  may  know  Mr.  Forrest 
as  an  actor,  it  knows  comparatively  nothing  of  him  as  a  man. 
A  kinder  heart  never  beat  in  the  bosom  of  a  human  being.  In 
the  finer  sympathies  of  our  nature,  he  was  more  like  a  child  than 
one  who  had  felt  an  undue  share  of  the  buffets  of  ingratitude. 
When  speaking  to  him  of  the  trouble  of  others,  I  have  often  seen 
his  eyes  suffuse  with  tears.  The  beggar  never  knocked  at  his 
door  and  went  away  unladen.  Many  is  the  charity  that  fell  from 
his  manly  hand,  and  the  relieved  knew  not  whence  it  came. 
And  I  may  say  with  conscientious  pride,  that,  however  much  any 
of  the  great  actors  may  have  done  for  their  national  stage,  Mr. 
Forrest,  equal  to  any  of  them,  has  done  as  much  for  the  theatre 
of  his  country,  and  will  remain  a  recognized  peer  of  the  highest 
in  the  everlasting  group.  The  longer  I  allude  to  the  tragedian 
the  stronger  becomes  the  sadness  that  pervades  my  feelings,  to 
think  that  he  is  no  more,  and  that  the  mundane  existence  of  the 


gifts  nature  had  so  liberally  bestowed  upon  him,  had  to  cease 
with  the  cessation  of  his  pulses." 

In  1860  John  H.  Gion,  for  many  years  connected  with  the 
press,  and  the  manager  of  Miss  Matilda  Heron,  wrote  a  letter  to 
Mr.  Harrison  urging  him  to  continue  in  his  j^rofession.    He  says: 

"I  have  had  you  constantly  in  my  mind,  and  sincerely  regret 
that  you  have  not  been  enabled  to  take  the  steps  for  a  series  of 
successes  that,  I  feel  assured,  wait  you  in  a  brilliant  career  in 
the  profession  for  which  you  are  by  nature  so  peculiarly  adapted. 
I  have  seen  enough  of  you,  both  on  and  off  the  stage,  to  know 
that  there  are  many  with  but  a  moiety  of  your  ability  on  the 
high  road  to  fame  and  fortune.  Yoii  possess  rare  genius,  and 
talent  withal,  to  which  I  may  add  an  admirable  conception,  suffi- 
cient education,  and  a  mo.st  capital  stage  voice.  What  more  do 
you  need?  Is  it  wrong  that  flowers  should  bloom  unseen,  or 
that  diamonds  should  be  buried  in  the  ocean's  depths?  " 

Such  is  the  esteem  in  which  Mr.  Harrison's  genius  and  talents 
are  held  by  all  who  really  know  him.  His  wonderful  knowledge 
of  the  great  "bygones,"  his  discriminating  discernment  of  char- 
acter, his  interest  in  current  events,  his  artistic  and  literary 
tastes,  his  noble  and  generous  impulses,  the  magnetic  power  of 
his  voice  and  manner,  together  with  the  pre-eminent  purity  of  his 
character,  have  inspired  in  many  hearts  warm  sympathy,  rever- 
ence and  aft'ection. 

If  Mr.  Harrison  did  not  constantly  pursue  the  profession  of 
the  stage,  which  was  the  first  choice  of  his  life  and  ambition,  it 
w£is  because  adverse  circumstances  prevented  it.  He  never 
failed  as  an  actor.  Every  character  he  performed  was  a  success 
in  his  hands.  His  magnetic  influence  over  his  audience  at  once 
made  them  his,  and  gained  their  admiration.  It  can  be  said  of 
him,  as  it  is  said  of  Fanny  Kemble,  that,  had  he  devoted  his 
whole  life  to  the  dramatic  art,  he  would  have  stood  one  in  the 
group  of  actors  who  have  made  the  drama  a  glorious  institution. 
After  a  lingering  nervous  prostration  of  seven  years,  brought  on 
by  overwork,  he  gradually  became  a  teacher  of  elocution  and 
acting.  As  such,  Mr.  Harrison  is  unique  and  unrivaled.  No 
master  in  art  stands  in  truer  relations  to  his  pupils.  Measuring 
their  abilities  with  due  appreciation,  impressing  them  with  the 
justness  of  his  criticisms,  and  understanding  perfectly  the  anat- 
omy of  the  vocal  organs,  and  the  means  to  produce  the  happiest 
efforts,  he  obtains  from  his  pupils  the  highest  possible  results. 

Mr.  Harrison  has  contributed  many  graceful  poems  to  the 
public  press.  The  following  poem,  entitled  "Morning,"  was  ex- 
tensively reprinted,  and  much  praised  for  its  construction  of 
measure  : 


BY   GABRIEL  HARRISON. 

The  azure  gates  of  morn  unbar. 
Where  light  awakes  from  sleep. 

And  gi'eet  the  sun,  while  fades  the  star, 
In  morning  light  so  sweet. 

Fairies,  Spirits,  Angels, 
Arouse  the  birds  from  rest ! 
And  let  their  song  salute  the  morn 
While  light  creeps  o'er  the  nest. 


O  light  of  day,  thou  glorious  day  I 

But  touch  the  beauteous  flowers 
That  lie  in  wait  the  livelong  night. 

To  scent  the  sunny  hours. 
Fairies,  Spirits,  Angels, 

The  little  buds  unfold. 

Expand  their  leaves,  their  colored  leaves, 

The  white,  the  blue,  and  gold. 

Thou  glorious  sun,  refulgent  sun  I 
Illume  the  hill,  and  warm  the  dell. 

And  touch  the  brooklets  as  they  run. 
Or  waves  to  mountains  swell. 

Fairies,  Spirits,  Angels, 
Now  chant  your  praise  to  Him 
Who  made  the  sun,  the  glorious  sun, 
And  taught  the  birds  to  sing  I 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Mr.  Harrison  has  written  the  following  plays  :  The  Author, 
Dartmore,  The  Tldrteenih  Cliime,  and  Magna.  He  has  also  put  in 
blank  verse  and  adapted  to  the  English  stage  Schiller's  Fiesco 
and  Don  Carlos.  Lhjhts  and  Shadows  of  Datpierrean  Life  was  the 
title  of  a  series  of  poetic  and  intensely  dramatic  articles  which 
he  contributed  to  the  New  York  Photographic.  Journal.  He  also 
wrote  several  stories  for  the  New  York  Home  Journal,  among 
which  were  Tasso's  Love,  and  The  Nose.  His  story  of  The  Ttoo 
Artists,  which  was  published  in  the  Aldine,  was  extensively 
copied. 

Gabriel  Harrison  has  great  reverence  for  the  genius  of  others, 
and  the  walls  of  his  studio  are  hung  with'the  trophies  of  cele- 
brated people,  stage-properties,  swords,  shields,  and  old  engrav- 
ings of  great  actors  and  actresses.  Among  them  may  be  seen 
mementoes  of  Forrest,  Cooper,  James  Sheridan  Knowles,  Rachel, 
and  the  scales  of  the  great  Kean  used  in  the  part  of  Shylock. 


Gabriel  Harrison,  in  the  winter  of  his  life,  is  still  earnestly  toiling 
as  teacher  and  author.  BaflBed  as  he  is  for  the  want  of  sufficient 
means  to  carry  out  his  best  ideas,  many  of  those  friends  say, 
who  know  him  intimately,  "  The  Emblem  of  Genius  in  Chains." 
Although  thwarted  many  times  when  on  the  threshold  of  success 
by  overwhelming  circumstances,  and  his  life  is  in  a  measure 
obscure  and  uncomprehended,  yet  no  citizen  has  done  and  is 
doing  more  for  Brooklyn  in  the  way  of  dramatic  culture  and  art- 
education.  He  makes  necessity  a  virtue  by  devoting  his  ma- 
turer  years  to  the  task  of  raising  many  of  his  fellow-citizens  to  a 
higher  condition  of  iesthetic  culture.  By  giving  his  time  and 
strength  to  others,  he  is  wielding  an  influence  that  shall  long 
survive,  when  the  sculptured  monuments  and  descriptive 
memorials  which  he  has  raised  for  other  men  shall  have 
crumbled  into  dust. 

ViEGmiA  Chandlee. 


ClIAELES    STORES. 


CHARLES  STORRS*  was  born  in  the  town  of  Mansfield,  Con- 
necticut, January  24,  1822.  A  sketch  of  his  life  and  char- 
acter is  the  more  interesting  because  he  is  really  a  type  of  the 
nobility  of  New  England,  whose  decorations  and  estates  have 
been  won  by  that  hard  toil  which  Hesiod,  the  oldest  of  the  poets, 
says  is  the  "inexorable  and  undeviating  condition  of  the  be- 
stowal of  heaven's  best  gifts  on  man." 

"Stor"  is  an  old  Norse  word  meaning  great,  strong,  in  the 
sense  of  power,  authority;  and  Storrs,  which  is  one  English 
form,  may  fairly  be  interpreted  as  "strong  man."  All  the 
American  branches  of  this  family  trace  their  pedigree  to  Samuel 
Storrs,  who  emigrated  to  America  in  1663,  from  Sutton  cum 
Lounde,  Nottinghamshire,  England.  Charles  Storrs  is  sixth  in 
descent  from  this  Samuel  Storrs.  His  father,  Royal  Storrs, 
married  Eunice  Freeman,  daughter  of  Frederick  Freeman,  Esq,, 
of  Mansfield,  Conn.,  and  grand-daughter  of  Deacon  Edmund 
Freeman,  a  graduate  of  Harvard  in  the  class  of  1733,  and  the 
first  permanent  resident  of  that  name  in  the  town  of  Mansfield. 
Royal  Storrs  was  a  man  of  large  brain,  sound  judgment,  strict 
integrity,  liberal  views  and  unusual  conscientiousness;  and  his 
wife  possessed  fine  social  qualities,  and  was  attractive  both  in 
person  and  mind. 

The  district  school  for  about  three  months  in  winter  gave  Mr. 
Storrs  his  early  education,  and  he  must  have  studied  earnestly 
to  be  able  in  his  eighteenth  j'ear  to  become,  as  he  did,  a  school 
teacher  himself.  Six  months  before  he  attained  his  majority, 
he  hired  a  substitute  to  take  his  place  on  his  father's  farm,  and 
began  a  career  for  himself  without  a  dollar  of  capital,  but  with 
those  sterling  qualities  that  have  raised  him  to  independence 
and  honor.  He  began  selling  American-made  sewing  silk  to  the 
merchants  of  New  England;  Mansfield  being  the  first,  and  at  that 
time  one  of  the  chief  places  of  its  manufacture  in  the  United 
States.     He  followed  this  business  successfully  for  three  years. 

He  married  July  4,  1844,  Maryett  M.  Cook,  of  Coventry,  Con- 
necticut, and  in  the  following  year  removed  to  Hartford,  where 
his  only  child,  Sarah,  was  bom.  Here  he  engaged  his  services 
to  a  manufacturing  and  commission  firm  as  agent  for  the  sale 
of  their  goods.  This  occupation  brought  him  constantly  to  New 
York,  and  in  May,  1850,  he  chose  Brooklyn  as  his  permanent 
residence.     In  July,  1853,  he  was  taken  into  copartnership  with 

*  From  American  Fortuna  and  the  Men  Who  Have  Made  Them.  By  Laura  C. 
HoUoway,  author  of  "The  Ladies  of  the  White  House";  "Au  Hour  with 
Charlotte  Bronte  ";  &c.,  8;c.    Bradley  &  Co.,  Publishers,  Philadelphia. 


his  employers,  who  now  carried  on  the  commission  business  in 
New  York,  as  well  as  a  manufactory  in  Connecticut.  When  the 
financial  panic  of  1854  occurred,  so  m^ny  of  the  parties  who  had 
dealings  with  them  on  credit  failed,  that  in  September  they 
also  stopped  payment.  Mr.  Storrs  now  assumed  the  liabilities 
of  his  late  partners,  which  were  over  $300,000,  and  which  were 
honoi'ably  paid  in  full. 

On  the  1st  of  December,  1854,  he  commenced  business  as  a 
commission  merchant  on  his  own  account,  associating  with  him 
in  the  new  firm  of  Storrs  Bros.,  his  two  brother.s,  Augustus  and 
Royal  O.  Storrs  ;  but  the  latter,  owing  to  other  business,  never 
took  an  active  share  in  the  management,  and  in  the  course  of  a 
year  or  two  withdrew.  Mr.  Charles  Storrs,  with  his  brother 
Augustus,  continued  the  business  under  the  same  firm  name 
until  December  1,  187*;  and,  by  his  business  capacity,  his  care- 
fulness in  avoiding  doubtful  liabilities,  and  his  high  personal 
reputation  for  integrity  and  financial  prudence,  amassed  a  com- 
petency, upon  which  he  retired  into  private  citizenship,  and  the 
gratification  of  those  intellectual  and  artistic  tastes  and  that 
beneficence  which  are  his  characteristics. 

In  the  spring  of  1866  Mr.  Storrs  went  abroad  for  a  year  and  a 
half  with  his  family  and  friends,  visiting  every  country  of 
Europe  except  Portugal,  and  afterwards  Egypt,  Palestine,  Syria 
and  other  places  in  the  Levant. 

Upon  the  marriage  of  his  daughter  in  May,  1869,  to  David 
Clioate  Proctor,*  a  rare  man  beloved  by  all,  he  visited  California 
and  Colorado  with  his  wife  and  the  bridal  party,  and  in  1871, 
upon  the  invitation  of  Horace  Greeley,  he  accompanied  him  to 
Texas. 

Mr.  Storrs  has  furnished  his  own  home.  No.  23  Monroe  place, 
Brooklyn,  with  every  accessory  to  material  comfort  and  intel- 
lectual satisfaction.  His  collection  of  pictures  is  a  fine  one. 
His  library  has  attained  a  literary  celebrity  from  the  tributes 
which  distinguished  scholars  and  authors  have  paid  it,  and  from 
the  fact  that  it  was  a  favorite  resort  of  his  very  dear  friend 
Horace  Greeley,  who  was  accustomed  to  speak  of  it  as  the  best 
private  working  library  he  knew  of. 

In  connection  with  Horace  Greeley,  it  should  be  mentioned 
that  Mr.  Storrs  was  one  of  his  executors,  and  aided  in  arranging 
his  afiiiirs,  which  were  complicated,  with  a  personal  care  dictated 
solely  by  the  respect  and  friendship  he  had  borne  him.  As  the 
7V»6une remarked  at  the  time  :  "In  spite  of  the  embarrassments 

*  Died  December  17, 1880. 


BIOGRAPHY  OF  CHARLES  STORRS,   ESQ. 


1159 


which  attended  his  undertaking  of  this  task,  he  performed  the 
diflSeult  work  with  skill,  tact  and  success,  and  entirely  without 
compensation." 

In  his  political  and  religious  opinions,  Mr.  Storrs  is  both  con- 
servative and  progressive.  At  a  meeting  held  at  the  Cooper  In- 
stitute, in  the  autumn  of  1873,  by  the  religious  rationalists,  of 
whom  the  Kev.  O.  B.  FrotUingham  was  then  the  leading  spirit, 
Mr.  Storrs  was  invited  to  preside,  and  accepted  the  invitation  on 
the  "  Broad  Church  "  principle,  which  he  thus  stated  :  "It  is, 
perhaps,  but  right  that  I  should  state  that  I  belong  to  an  ortho- 
dox church  and  have  no  intention  of  leaving  it.  Early  asso- 
ciations and  circumstances  may  have  thrown  us  into  different 
churches;  being  there,  let  us  not  be  restive  or  too  hasty  to 
change.  As  we  are  impressed  and  permitted  to  see  the  light,  we 
may  be  enabled  to  enlighten  others.  Churches  have  changed  or 
modified  their  creeds  and  views  in  times  jjast,  and  doubtless 
will  again.  I  see  no  valid  reason  why  I  should  not  be  open  to 
conviction  and  hear  all  truth,  that  removes  ignorance  and  super- 
stition, stimulates  charity  and  good  works,  and  tends  to  a  better 
life,  from  whatever  source  it  may  come." 

If  he  has  a  creed,  it  is  this  :  a  pure  life  and  good  works.  At 
the  same  time  no  man  takes  a  greater  interest  in  the  good  work 
done  by  churches  than  he  does.  The  Congregational  church  in 
his  native  town  has  been  largely  provided  for  by  him.  He  has 
also  given  the  town  a  large  cemetery,  and  has  added  a  fund  under 
trustees  for  keeping  it  in  good  order.  He  has  erected  in  this 
cemetery  two  granite  monuments  for  his  father^  family  and  his 
own,  as  well  as  several  others  elsewhere  in  the  town  to  the  mem- 
ory of  his  early  ancestors,  especially  one  to  Samuel  Storrs,  the 
above-mentioned  founder  of  the  American  branch  of  the  family. 

The  private  benevolences  of  Mi-.  Storrs  have  not  blunted  the 
keen  edge  of  his  public  spirit.  In  October,  1877,  the  New  York 
\\\nid  stated  that  the  Khedive  of  Egypt  would  give  an  obelisk 
to  this  country  if  properly  applied  for. 

Mr.  Storrs  immediately  wrote  to  the  New  York  Trilmne  asking 
it  to  second  the  Workl'n  effort  to  obtain  the  obelisk,  and  offering 
to  bear  one-fiftieth  part  of  the  expense  of  its  removal  and  proper 
erection  in  New  York.  The  Tribune,  commended  his  proposition, 
as  did  other  New  York  papers.  This,  I  believe,  was  the  first 
public  offer  made  for  obtaining  the  obelisk,  which  now  adorns 
Central  Park. 

In  connection  with  his  brother,  Augustus  Storrs,  he,  some 
years  ago,  presented  to  the  State  of  Connecticut  the  land  and 
buildings  and  an   endowment  fund  to  establish  and  maintain 


the  Storrs  Agricultural  School  at  Mansfield.  Having  experienced 
the  intellectual  privations  too  commonly  incident  to  farm  life, 
the  younger  brother  Charles  determined  that  when  he  was 
ready  to  help  his  fellow  men  he  would  make  it  his  duty  to 
establish  an  agricultural  school  for  those  who  should  desire 
and  purpose  to  fit  themselves  for  agricultural  pursuits.  One 
of  the  provisions  of  the  Storrs  School  is,  that  in  addition 
to  the  teaching  and  training  of  pupils  to  the  practice  and 
business  of  farming,  they  should  also  be  taught  the  elements 
of  botany,  chemistry,  geology  and  other  sciences  as  applied  to 
agricvilture,  thus  ennobling  and  elevating  the  latter  calling,  and 
lifting  up  those  who  are  to  pursue  it. 

According  to  his  opportunities  and  the  bigness  of  his  heart, 
Charles  Storrs  has  sought  to  do  good  to  all  men  and  to  make  his 
circle  of  fellow  creatures  happier  and  better.  His  nature  attracts 
others,  invites  their  trust,  and  never  belies  the  impression  of 
downright  honesty  and  kindness  which  it  first  creates.  Active 
in  his  ways,  full  of  interest  in  the  people  and  events  around 
him,  the  dark  complexion,  the  hair  and  whiskers  tinged  with 
gray,  the  kindly  humor  which  is  the  most  habitual  expression 
on  the  face,  and  above  all  the  humane  trustfulness  and  good 
fellowship  of  the  eyes,  enable  us  to  create  from  imagination  a 
complete  picture  of  what  he  must  have  been  as  a  boy—careless 
of  appearance,  unconscious  alike  of  his  own  defects  and  merits 
in  style,  or,  rather,  unconscious  of  the  existence  of  style  or  man- 
ner in  externals,  eager  for  fresh  adventure,  ready  to  do  a  good 
turn  for  any  "  other  fellow,"  going  straight  to  the  heart  and 
kernel  of  things,  and  knowing  no  such  word  as  fail.  He  delights 
in  the  feeling  which  the  Latin  dramatist  expressed  when  he  said, 
"I  am  a  man,  and  nothing  that  touches  humanity  is  indifferent 
to  me." 

The  frankness  and  sociability  of  his  character,  his  perfect  can- 
dor and  straightforwardness,  have  attracted  others  to  him,  whose 
regard  he  has  cherished  but  did  not  seek.  Among  strangers 
in  a  room,  one  who  doesn't  know  him  picks  him  out  at  once 
by  his  looks  and  manners  as  what  Dr.  Johnson  would  have 
called  "  a  clubable  man."  The  secret  of  this  attraction  is  homely 
humanity  in  opposition  to  formality  and  self-environment. 
Those  who  have  been  much  with  him  and  have  known  him  in 
the  unrestrained  sociability  of  his  home,  must  have  been  struck 
with  his  youthful  elasticity  of  mind  and  ways.  When  one  looks 
into  his  merry  eye  the  secret  is  out.  Charles  Storrs  can  never 
be  old  in  heart,  for  charity  and  goodwill  to  all  the  world,  renew 
his  youth  continually. 


1160 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


^^rr^-^>^^-7^^ 


AUGUSTUS  YOUNG,  one  of  the  best-known  portrait  and 
historical  painters  of  Brooklyn,  was  born  of  German  parent- 
age in  New  York,  July  8th,  1837.  Early  in  boyhood  he  evinced 
much  talent  for  drawing  and  painting,  and  so  eager  did  he  grow  to 
become  an  artist  that  his  parents  permitted  him  to  leave  school  at 
the  age  of  thirteen  and  become  a  pupil  of  J.  B.  Stearns,  N.  A.,  who 
at  that  time  had  his  studio  in  the  old  American  Art  Union  build- 
ing on  Broadway,  New  York,  and  was  regarded  as  one  of  the 
most  eminent  historical  and  portrait  painters  of  the  time. 
Charles  L.  Elliott,  Ferdinand  Boyle,  F.  E.  Church,  E.  H.  May 
and  other  eminent  painters  had  studios  in  the  same  building, 
and  with  all  of  them  Mr.  Young  had  unrestrained  intercourse. 
Under  the  able  tuition  of  Mr.  Stearns,  and  with  many  valuable 
suggestions  from  other  artists  named,  Mr.  Young  soon  acquired 
considerable  proficiency  in  the  rudimental  parts  of  drawing  and 
painting  in  oil. 

In  1851  Mr.  Young  entered  the  Academy  of  Design,  and  was  a 
pupil  there  long  enough  to  pass  through  the  antique  and  life 
classes.  In  1852  he  entered  the  studio  of  Theodore  Kaufman,  a 
well-known  historical  painter  of  Dresden,  Germany,  who  had  at 
that  time  established  himself  in  New  York,  under  whose  teaching 
he  acquired  a  knowledge  of  anatomy,  sketching  from  nature, 
figure  painting,  and  composition  in  historical  painting.  About 
this  time  his  father  died,  and  he  was  left  to  the  care  of  his  aged 
mother,  who  had  from  the  first  taken  a  great  interest  in  his  aspi- 
rations and  essays  in  an  artistic  way.     Yielding  to  his  importu- 


nities, and  under  the  advice  of  his  tutor,  Mr.  Kaufman,  she 
consented  to  his  going  to  Europe,  there  to  prosecute  his  studies 
more  advantageously  than  he  could  have  done  in  New  York.  He 
was  abroad  three  years,  passing  through  the  antique,  life-paint- 
ing and  comjjosition  classes  of  the  Royal  Academy  of  Munich, 
where  he  composed  several  historical  subjects  which  he  executed 
after  his  return  to  America;  among  them  "The  Battle  of  Liitzen," 
"  The  Death  of  Gustavus  Adolphus,"  "  King  Alfred  in  the  Dan- 
ish Camp,"  "  The  Death  of  Teciimseh,"  and  several  other  equally 
interesting  subjects. 

Before  completing  his  studies  in  Munich,  Mr.  Young  entered 
the  studio  of  Professor  Graefli,  of  Paris,  one  of  the  best  portrait 
painters  then  in  Europe,  whose  studio  in  Munich  was  frequented 
by  the  nobility,  and  under  whose  tuition  he  acquired  the  bril- 
liant flesh  tints  for  which  his  portraits  have  become  noted.  A 
brief  sojourn  in  Paris,  where  he  occupied  himself  chiefly  in  a 
study  of  the  old  masters  in  the  Louvre  collection,  closed  his 
European  studies.  Soon  after  his  return  to  New  York  he  studied 
water-color  jjainting  under  J.  B.  Wandesforde,  a  celebrated  Eng- 
lish water-color  painter.  The  addition  ot  this  to  his  many  other 
artistic  accomplishments  of  a  high  order,  rendered  him  one  of 
the  most  versatile  artists  in  America ;  and  having  concluded  to 
devote  himself  to  portrait  painting  as  a  specialty,  his  knowledge 
of  composition  made  it  possible  for  him  to  add  the  scenic  effects 
for  which  his  work  has  become  distinctively  noted.  He  soon 
introduced  an  original  style  of  portrait,  in  which  the  work  is 


'USIC  IN  THE  PUBLIC  SCHOOLS  OF  BROOKLYN. 


not 


penciled  with  colored  crayons  on  a  water-color  groundwork,  and 
which  have  become  in  great  demand  on  account  of  their  life-like 
appearance  and  high  artistic  iinish. 

Brooklyn  has  claimed  Mr.  Young  as  a  citizen  since  1860,  when 
he  removed  from  New  York.  Soon  after  he  became  domiciled 
in  this  city  he  began  a  large  historical  work  of  great  local  in- 
terest, the  subject  being  "The  Retreat  of  Washington  from  Long 
Island."  This  painting,  on  which  Mr.  Young  lavished  his  great- 
est skill  both  in  its  design  and  execution,  was  one  calculated  to 
attract  much  more  than  a  passing  interest.  It  was  nearly  half 
completed  when  it  was  destroyed  by  an  unfortunate  accident, 
which  left  to  the  disappointed  artist  only  the  studies  upon  which 
it  was  based.  He  afterward  painted  "  The  Cavalier,"  "  The  Toy," 
and  "The  Execution  of  Mary,  Queen  of  Scots,"  and  other  sub- 


jects of  historical  and  artistic  merit.  He  was  an  earnest  sup- 
porter of  the  Brooklyn  Art  Association  during  the  early  portion 
of  its  career ;  and  his  contributions  to  its  exhibitions,  and  his 
portraits  of  many  of  the  most  distinguished  men  and  women  of 
Brooklyn,  among  them  those  of  General  B.  F.  Tracy,  Excise  Com- 
missioner Kichard  Lauer,  the  late  Lieut-Col.  Charles  Schurig, 
and  General  James  .Jourdan,  have  won  for  him  a  high  reputa- 
tion. His  studio  at  No.  173  Bergen  street  is  frequented  and 
patronized  by  numerous  people  high  in  business,  professional, 
political  and  social  circles,  who  find  liim  most  conveniently 
located  in  his  own  house,  where  he  can  offer  the  greatest  com- 
fort to  his  sitters;  it  being  his  belief  that  merit  in  art  will  be 
sought  for  by  those  who  are  able  to  appreciate  it. 


MUSIC  IN  THE  Public  Schools  of  Brooklyn. — 
Though  the  practice  of  singing  obtained  in  the 
Public  Schools  for  many  years,  Music  was  not  taught 
as  a  separate  branch  till  about  the  year  1860,  when 
Teachers  of  Music  began  to  be  employed;  but  tliey  had 
no  uniform  system  of  teaching,  and  each  used  his  own 
nietliod  independent  of  the  rest.  From  this  cause  some 
schools  became  much  moi'e  proficient  than  others.  Mr. 
D.wiD  P.  HoRTON  was  one  of  the  pioneers  in  music 
teaching  in  the  Public  Schools.  In  September,  1876, 
Prof.  A.  R.  Caswell  was  appointed  one  of  the  Teachers 
of  Music  in  the  schools.  Becoming  aware  of  the  dis- 
advantages of  the  system  of  music  teaching  then  prac- 
ticed, he  proposed  to  the  Board  of  Education  a  plan 
for  a  uniform  method  of  teaching  in  all  the  schools, 
but  they  failed  to  adopt  it  at  once.  In  the  autumn  of 
1878,  the  Central  Grammar  School  was  opened,  which 
comprised  the  highest  grades  of  all  the  schools,  and  its 
Music  Department  was  given  to  Prof.  Caswell.  Here 
the  inequalities  and  defects  of  the  different  methods  of 

(8) 


teaching  were  made  glaringly  apparent,  by  comparison 
of  scholars  coming  from  tlie  difierent  schools.  No  ac- 
tion to  remedy  matters  was  taken,  however,  until  the 
spring  of  1880,  when  Prof.  Caswell  was  appointed 
Musical  Director;  and  was  asked  to  propose  a  plan  of 
uniform  teaching  in  all  the  schools.  The  system  which 
he  brought  forward  was  adopted,  with  a  few  changes, 
April  20,  1880.  Under  this  uniform  system,  musical 
instruction  has  been  brought  to  a  high  standard.  Ex- 
aminations of  the  scholars  are  held  every  si.x  months, 
and  diplomas  awarded  to  graduates;  the  most  profi- 
cient pupils  receiving  still  further  instruction  gratui- 
tously from  Prof.  Caswell.  In  November,  1883,  a  rule 
of  the  Board  was  made,  under  which  applicants  for  the 
position  of  Music  Teacher  in  the  schools  must  pass  an 
examination  prescribed  by  the  Musical  Director.  The 
method  employed  in  teaching  is  almost  wholly  oral, 
from  charts  and  the  blackboard,  and  covers  the  rudi- 
ments of  music,  sight  reading,  the  elements  of  hnv- 
mony,  with  practice  in  vocal  culture. 


THE 


Amateur  Dramatic   Associations 

of  brooklyn. 


IN  1867,  the  Rev.  Henry  Blanchard,  an  ardent  love 
of  Shakespeare  and  the  Dramatic  Art,  was  pastor 
of  the  Church  of  the  Restoration,  now  the  Church  of 
the  New  Jerusalem,  at  the  corner  of  Monroe  place  and 
Clark  street.  Through  his  efforts  a  society  of  young 
people  having  for  its  aim  the  study  of  Shakespearean 
and  other  characters  was  formed.  At  that  period 
amateur  dramatic  societies  were  numerous  throuohout 
the  city,  but  liad  not  nrrived  at  the  high  degree  of  per- 
fection they  have  attained  at  tlie  present  time.  The 
young  people  then  were  content  witli  giving  their  rep- 
resentations in  the  parlors  of  friend's  houses,  without 
scenery  or  any  other  paraphernalia  peculiar  to  the 
stage.  They  never  dreamed  of  treading  the  boards  of 
the  Academy  of  Music,  or  the  Athenffium;  but  were 
well  pleased  when  they  could  secure  the  old  Lyceum, 
on  Washington  street,  for  their  purpose.  The  society 
formed  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Blanchard  was  accustomed  to 
meet,  on  alternate  Friday  evenings,  in  the  vestry  of  the 
church  and  read,  without  artistic  details,  some  first- 
class  drama.  The  pastor  himself  would  frequently 
participate  in  this  charming  amusement.  The  idea 
was  pleasing  and  novel,  and  was  instrumental  in  at- 
tracting a  large  number  of  persons  to  the  meetings  of 
the  society.  Mr.  Blanchard,  some  time  afterward, 
played  Claude  Melnotte  to  the  Pauline  of  Mrs.  L.  D. 
St.  George,  in  the  "Lady  of  Lyons,"  at  Sawyer's  As- 
sembly Rooms.  It  can  scarcely  be  for  a  moment 
doubted,  that  this  society  had  much  to  do  in  creating  a 
taste  for  the  Dramatic  Art,  which  resulted  in  such  sig- 
nally successful  associations  as  the  Entre  Nous,  Amar- 
anth, Kemble,  Gilbert,  Clifton,  Wallack,  Arcadian  and 
the  Amateur  Opera  Association  of  this  city. 

The  Entre  Nous  Dramatic  Association 

(since  converted  into  a  social  organization)  lieaded 
the  list  of  permanent  amateur  dramatic  societies.  It 
was  first  organized  in  the  autumn  of  1867,  at  the  j-esi- 
dence  of  Mr.  Couradt,  No.  20  Harrison  street,  by  a 
number  of  residents  of  South  Brooklyn  ;  among  whom 
were  the  late  Amos  G.  Torrey,  F.  M.  Moers,  L.  D.  St 
George,  since  deceased  ;  Charles  H.  Tremaine  and  Ed- 
ward Olds.  Its  purpose  was  to  give  the  members  an 
opportunity  to  spend  the  long  winter  evenings,  in  an 
agreeable  and  entertaining  manner.  The  comedy  of 
"  Naval  Engagements  "  was  the  first  performance,  and 


was  given  at  the  residence  of  Miss  H.  Tremaine,  on 
Henry  street.  A  number  of  performances  of  similar 
character  followed  in  rapid  succession,  all  given  at  the 
homes  of  the  members.  The  fame  of  the  new  society 
spread  far  and  wide,  and  the  applications  for  member- 
ship finally  grew  so  numerous,  that  it  was  resolved  to 
incorporate  it  under  the  laws  of  the  State;  and  the 
name  was  changed  to  the  Entre  Nous  Dramatic  and 
Literary  Association,  the  membership  being  limited  to 
one  hundred.  Mr.  Amos  G.  Torrey  was  the  first  presi- 
dent, and  held  the  office  until  the  close  of  the  sixth 
season.  In  the  fourth  year  of  its  existence,  dissatisfiic- 
tion  between  a  portion  of  the  members  and  the  man- 
agement, resulted  in  the  withdrawal  of  about  forty 
members,  under  the  leadership  of  Mr.  L.  D.  St.  George, 
who  organized  the  Amaranth,  with  Charles  Bamburgh 
as  its  first  president.  The  Entre  Nous  still  continued 
in  its  course  until  a  few  years  ago,  when  it  was  con- 
verted into  a  social  organization.  Among  the  gentle- 
men prominently  identified  with  the  Entre  Nous  during 
its  brilliant  career  were  A.  G.  Torrey,  Lucian  Stanley, 
Charles  H.  Parsons,  Charles  Bamburgh,  L.  D.  St. 
George,  J.  "W.  Thompson,  A.  R.  Thompson,  H.  W. 
Pope,  David  L.  Kirby,  Edward  Olds,  Avon  C.  Burn- 
ham,  A.  J.  Dickman,  F.  M.  Smith,  A.  W.  Peters,  John 
Oakey  and  C.  M.  Tremaine.  The  plays  produced  by 
the  Entre  Nous  were  as  follows  :  "  Still  Waters  Run 
Deep,"  "  The  Breach  of  Promise,"  "  Perfection,"  "Look- 
ing for  Pa,"  "Caste,"  "Poor  Pillicoddy,"  "Every- 
body's Friend,"  "A  Morning  Call,"  "I've  Written  to 
Brown,"  "Slasher  and  Crasher,"  "  She  Stoops  to  Con- 
quer," "  Six  Months  Ago,"  "  The  Two  Buzzards,"  "A 
Pretty  Piece  of  Business,"  "  All  that  Glitters  is  Not 
Gold,"  "Betsey  Baker,"  "Two  in  the  Morning," 
"  Lend  Me  Five  Shillings,"  "  Conjugal  Lessons,"  "Old 
Gooseberry,"  "  The  Elixir  of  Life,''  "  Tiie  Jacobite," 
'■One  Thousand  Pounds,"  "Married  Life,"  "The 
Chimney  Corner,"  "  Aunt  Charlotte's  Maid,"  "The 
Two  Bonnycastles,"  "  Leave  it  to  Me,"  "  The  Doctor  of 
Alcantara,"  and  many  others.  This  list  indicates  that 
the  society  confined  itself  rather  to  the  light  comedies, 
comediettas  and  farces  than  to  the  heavy  Shakspearean 
characters. 

Other  Dramatic  Societies,  contemporaneous 

with  the  Entre  Nous,  but  long  since  extinct,  were 
the  Montac/ue,  Mezereau,  Philo-Momus  (Fun-lovers), 


THE  AMATEUR  DRAMATIC  ASSOCIATIONS   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1163 


Corps  Draviatique  (Company  E,  Tliirteenth  Eegiment), 
Bowronville,  Oxford,  Nous  Vere  and  the  Burton. 

"  The  Amaranth,"  an  off-slioot  of  The  Entre 
Nous  Dramatic  Society,  lield  its  first  meeting  May  11, 
1871.  In  July  following,  the  society  was  thoroughly 
organized  with  100  members.  Its  first  performance 
was  given  at  the  Academy  of  Music,  October  20,  1871, 
in  aid  of  the  Home  for  Friendless  Women  and  Children. 

The  play  selected  was  Oliver  Goldsmith's  "She 
Stoops  to  Conquer,"  which  was  followed  by  a  musical 
interlude  and  the  farce  of "  Bos  and  Cox."  Some 
names  familiar  now  were  in  the  cast,  such  as  Assistant 
District  Attorney  Oakey,  "Our  John,"  Charles  Bam- 
burgli  and  Henry  W.  Pope.  It  was  the  first  dramatic 
venture  ever  made  by  amateurs  in  that  building,  and 
netted  $1,000.  The  officers  at  that  time  were:  Chas. 
Bamburgh,  President;  Geo.  F.  Gregory,  Vice-Presi- 
dent;  J.  W.  Sands,  Secretary;  John  M.  Burt,  Treas- 
urer. The  society  leaped  into  popularity.  "London 
Assurance "  was  performed  at  the  first  regular  recep- 
tion, November  20,  1871.  It  was  at  this  time  that  the 
amaranth  flower  was  first  adopted  as  the  emblem  of 
the  society.  In  1872,  the  flower  was  changed  to  a  coat 
of  arms,  which  did  not  suit  the  republican  ideas  of 
some  members,  and  the  old  flower  design  was  reinstated. 
It  was  used  until  November  19,  1873,  when  the  pres- 
ent cut,  well  known  to  the  frequenters  of  the  Amar- 
anth performances,  was  adopted,  with  the  following 
verse  to  be  inserted  under  it.  It  is  as  familiar  as  the 
wood-cut,  but  will  bear  reproduction  : 

Immortal  Amaranth,  a  flower  which  once 

In  Paiadise,  fast  by  the  tree  of  life, 

Began  to  bloom;  but  soon,  for  man's  offense, 

To  Heaven  removed,  where  first  it  grew,  there  grows 

And  flowers  aloft,  shading  the  font  of  life. 

The  cut  was  designed  by  Mr.  George  Bowlend,  whom 
old  members  of  tlie  society  will  remember  as  one  of  the 
most  talented  amateur  actors  who  ever  trod  the  Amar- 
anthine stage.  The  talent  of  the  Amaranth  was  par- 
ticularly strong  during  1S74-5.  Among  the  members 
then  were  Messrs.  Luske,  Pope,  Bowlend,  F.  V.  Ben- 
nett, E.  A.  Doty,  Stull,  Southgate,  Castner,  Mrs.  Phil- 
lips, Mrs.  Ferguson,  Mrs.  Draper  and  Mrs.  Bellows,  nee 
Hattie  Silsbee.  Mr.  L.  D.  St.  George  was  stage  mana- 
ger, and  performed  his  difficult  task  to  i^erfection.  The 
society  was  organized  by  ladies  and  gentlemen  who 
associated  themselves  together  for  mutual  imjJrovement 
in  art,  literature,  and  music;  the  object  of  the  society 
has  never  been  lost  sight  of,  nor  will  the  generous 
manner  with  which  she  has  given  the  fruits  of  her 
labors  to  charity  ever  be  forgotten.  The  Amaranth 
was  incorporated  under  New  York  State  Laws,  May 
10,  1880.  The  present  officers  are:  Fred.  M.  Lawrence, 
President;  L.  M.  Reed,  Vice-President ;  J.  C.  Von 
Aik,  Secretary ;  Edw.  Fackner,  Treasurer.  The  soci- 
ety is  in  a  very  prosperous  condition  as  to  membership, 
finances   and    resources.      Among    the    members   are 


Henry  Baldwin,  B.  J.  Bell,  J.  C.  Von  Aik,  J.  D. 
Adams,  Wallace  Grant,  F.  B.  Birdsall,  A.  R.  Hart, 
Colonel  David  E.  Austen,  G.  B.  Davis,  Theodore  H. 
Babcock,  S.  M.  Reed,  Thomas  Adams,  Jr.,  Jere.  A. 
Wernberg,  M.  Chauncey,  W.  J.  Collins,  Edward  Fack, 
ner,  John  Garlick,  Thomas  F.  Randolph,  George  B. 
Squires,  S.  T.  Skinner,  E.  J.  Snow,  A.  F.  Loomis,  W. 
L.  Watson,  H.  P.  Smith,  John  Oakey,  Charles  Bellows, 
Jr.,  W.  W.  Lambert,  Charles  Hickman,  Dr.  T.  A. 
Quinlan,  A.  Richmond  Hart,  E.  C.  Humbert,  Robert 
M.  Hopps,  Leon  Renault,  William  H.  Kimball,  J.  H. 
Cox,  Henry  P.  Webb,  John  S.  W.  Thompson,  and 
John  F.  Oltrogge. 

The  Kemble "  is  a  dramatic  organization 
which  came  into  existence  Sept.  C,  1880,  through  a  se- 
cession from  The  Amai-anth.  Its  first  officers  were 
G.  de  Cordova,  President ;  A.  Isaacs,  Vice-President; 
R.  M.  Hogan,  Secretary;  Jno.  B.  Miinoz,  Treasurer. 
The  object  of  the  Kemble  is  three-fold— dramatic,  lit- 
erary and  social.  The  first  performance  took  place  on 
November  10,  1880,  at  the  Academy  of  Music,  the  play 
being  Frederick  Marsden's  comedy  of  "  Above  the 
Clouds."  In  the  cast  were  William  Penny,  William  B. 
Vernam,  Charles  S.  Withington,  Miss  Julia  W.  Reed, 
Miss  Emma  Gilbert,  and  William  H.  Butler.  Later 
on  an  original  drama  was  produced  by  Wallace  Grant, 
well  known  as  a  member  of  the  Kemble,  entitled  "  De- 
feated," and  was  succeeded  by  the  "  Pride  of  the  Mar- 
ket," "  The  Earl  and  the  Outcast,"  "  The  Big  Bonan- 
za" (repeated  for  the  benefit  of  Deane  W.  Pratt), 
"The  Honey-Moon,"  " George  Geith,"  "Masks  and 
Faces,"  "  The  Wedding  March,"  "  Single  Life,"  and,  to 
cap  the  climax,  Shakespeare's  tragedy,  "  Othello,"  with 
the  following  dramatis  persona  : 

THE    CAST   OF    "OTHELLO." 

Desdemona Mrs.  Mattie  A.  J.  Balch 

Emilia Miss  Adelaide  Fitzallen 

Othello Mr.  John  H.  Bird 

lago :\rr.  Charles  H.  Withington 

Cassio Mr.   R.  C.  Hilliard 

Roderigo Mr.  George  Beeks 

Brabantio Mr.  J.  C.  Cloherty 

Montano Mr,  A.  C.  Munn 

Ludovico Mr.  Charles  Lamb 

Duke  of  Venice Mr.  William  A.  Clarke 

Gratiano Mr.  E.  L.  Cohen 

Leonardo Mr.  E.  J.  Wilkins 

■hUio Mr.  J.  W.  Underwood,  Jr. 

Marco Mr.  R.  A.  Moore 

Antonio Mr.  Frank  Cuddy 

Paulo Mr.  W.  H.  Wildey 

Luca Mr.  W.  E.  Gref 

Mr.  de  Cordova  is  an  efficient  stage  manager,  and 
the  following  persons,  well  known  on  the  amateur 
stage  of  this  city  and  of  the  metropolis,  constitute  the 
dramatic   corps   of  the   Kemble  :    Mrs.    Mattie  A.  J. 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Jkilcli  aud  tlie  Misses  Laura  T.  Colver,  Carrie  Frost,  | 
Belle  Noble,  Elita  P.  Otis,  Mamie  Lyou,  Auuie  L. 
^Ilyde,  Belle  Arnot,  Florence  Parker,  Louise  Perkins, 
L.  A.  Reau,  Julia  W.  Reed,  Josie  StoufFer,  Annie 
Walsh,  Ida  L.  Waller,  Ida  Thompson,  Jennie  Roherts 
and  Mrs.  R.  H.  L.  Waters ;  Messrs.  W.  A.  Clarke,  G. 
H.  Banerman,  M.  J.  Benjamin,  John  H.  Bird,  C.  T. 
Buckman,  George  H.  Beeks,  G.  de  Cordova,  Arthur 
Genns,  Wallace  Grant,  W.  W.  Lambert,  Deane  W. 
Pratt,  William  Penny,  J.  Wilson,  E.  J.  Wilkins,  A. 
C.  Munn,  S.  S.  Simpson,  Charles  Lamb,  R.  0.  Hil- 
liard,  A.R.Dyett,  Charles  S.  Withington,  C.  F.  Cuddy, 
J.  C.  Cloherty,  E.  L.  Cohen  and  William  Angell. 

The  Academy  of  Music  is  the  scene  of  their  dramatic 
successes ;  four  entertainments  are  given  each  sea- 
son. Monthly  social  receptions  are  held  at  the  resi- 
dences of  members,  where  dancing  and  music  is  intro- 
duced after  the  club  business  is  disposed  of. 

The  present  officers  are  :  G.  de  Cordova,  President; 
Charles  A.  Gilberg,  Vice-President;  A.  A.  Seaman,  ;S'ec- 
retary;  John  Taylor,  Treasurer.  The  success  of  this  or- 
ganization is  phenomenal,  its  social  standing  very  high. 

Amateur  Opera  Association,  of  Brooklyn, 

organized  in  1875  from  the  choir  of  St.  Peter's  Epis- 
copal Church,  State  street,  Brooklyn,  by  Messrs.  James 
Bogle,  J.  Walter  Thompson  and  Howard  Dunbar,  with 
the  organist,  Mr.  H.  E.  Hutchinson,  as  conductor. 
The  object  was  the  practice  of  operatic  music  and 
social  enjoyment. 

During  the  tirst  three  years  Mr.  Bogle  acted  as  secre- 
tary, and  Mr.  Thompson  as  treasurer.  In  1879  a 
board  of  officers  was  elected  as  follows  : — James  Bogle, 
PreMdent;  C.H.  Parsons,  Vice-President;  Henry  Gor- 
ham.  Secretary;  J.  Walter  Thompson,  Treasureir. 

In  1880  the  Board  consisted  of  C.  H.  Parsons,  Presi- 
dent; J.Walter  Thompson,  Fjce-Pr«SMZe?j<;  Henry  Gor- 
ham.  Secretary;  A.  M.  Wilder,  jr..  Treasurer. 

The  same  president,  secretary  and  treasurer  have  re- 
mained in  office  since,  and  the  Board  of  Directors 
(increased  to  seven)  is  now  composed  as  follows; — 
C.  H.  Parsons,  President;  Fred.  M.  Lawrence,  Vice- 
President;  Henry  Gorham,  Secretary;  A.  M.  Wilder, 
Jr.,  Treasurer;  L.  Hoffman,  Jr.,  Fred.  M.  Smith,  and 
J.  M.  Bacon,  Tr^istees. 

The  association  has  never  been  incorporated. 

For  eight  years  dues  were  collected  from  each  mem- 
ber to  pay  running  expenses,  and  tickets  sold  for  all 
performances.  In  November,  1883,  there  was  a  re- 
organization on  the  subscription  basis,  with  two  hun- 
dred subscribing  members  at  $15  each,  and  a  division 
of  invitations  to  performances,  with  no  duesfrom  sing- 
ing members. 

From  the  original  number  of  20  members,  the 
increase  has  been  to  the  present  number  of  200  sub- 
scribers and  eighty  singing  members. 

The  performances,  which  were  formerly  given  in 
Bedford  Hall,  Atheuseum,  the  Lyceum,  etc.,  are  now 


given  only  at  the  Academy  of  Music.  Among  them 
have  been  the  following  operas :  "  Doctor  of  Alcan- 
tara," "Martha,"  "Elixir  of  Love,"  "  Maritana," 
"Pinafore,"  "Pirates  of  Penzance,"  "  Fra  Diavolo," 
"  Chimes  of  Normandy,"  and  others. 

The  Bulwer  is  an  Eastern  District  dramatic  so- 
ciety, very  select  in  its  general  tone  and  membership, 
and  its  performances  are  given  at  Bedford  Hall,  The 
president  of  the  society  is  Mr.  E.  A.  Spooner.  Among 
the  members  well  known  for  their  talent  are  David 
Buckman,  Thomas  W.  McOormick,  Frederick  C.  Ash- 
ley, David  J.  McFadyen,  John  R.  Wood  and  Alexander 
Smith.  The  society  has  been  in  existence  for  some 
time,  and  promises  well  for  future  success. 

The  Amaryllis  Dramatic  Association 

is  composed  of  young  residents  of  "  the  Hill,"  and  was 
organized  on  October  9, 1882.  Its  aim  is  social  amuse- 
ment. The  officers  are  as  follows:  President,  H.  Dauers; 
Vice-President,  J.Moore,  Jr.;  Recording  Secretary,  0. 
A.  Goodwin  ;  Financial  Secretary,  D.  Burke;  Treas- 
urer, J.T.Wortmann;  Sergeant-at-Arms,  J.  Glouster; 
Executive  Committee,  J.  Smith,  C.  Banton,  W.  Snediker 
and  F.  Atwater. 

The  Prospect  Heights  Dramatic  Club 

is  also  of  recent  organization,  composed  of  ladies  and 
gentlemen  of  South  Brooklyn.  Their  performances 
are  given  at  Athletic  Hall,  on  Seventh  street,  near 
Fifth  Avenue. 

The  Arcadian  Dramatic  Association.— 

First  meeting  held  September  13th,  1882,  in  response 
to  a  call  in  the  newspapers  by  Thos.  C.  Faulkner.  It 
was  organized  with  six  members,  viz. :  Thos.  C. 
Faulkner,  H.  S.  Bellows,  F.  M.  Stoops,  Ira  H.  Moore, 
H.  W.  Noble  and  0.  F.  Wilson.  Its  first  performance 
was  the  "  Poor  Gentleman,"  given  at  Bedford  Hall, 
January  3,  1883.  The  most  important  plays  thus  far 
given  are  :  "Merchant  of  Venice"  and  "  Love's  Sacri- 
fice." The  present  membership  is  50.  First  Board  of 
officers :  H.  S.  Bellows,  President;  F.  M.  Stoops,  Secre- 
tary ;  Thos.  .C.  Faulkner,  Treasurer;  H.  W.  Noble, 
Stage  Manager.  Pi-esent  oflBcei-s  are  :  Charles  B.  Mor- 
ton, President ;  George  Woodruff,  Vice-President ; 
Arthur  Genns,  Secretary;  E.  Jay  Jennings,  Treasurer; 
Dramatic  Committee :  Wm.  Dinsmore,  W.  H.  Butler, 
I.  H.  Moore,  T.  C.  Faulkner,  F.  M.  Stoops,  J.  H. 
Arnold. 

The  Amphion  Musical  Society  was  organ- 
ized at  No.  40  Bedford  Avenue,  E.  D.,  in  October, 
1880,  by  fifteen  gentlemen  who  elected  Richard  Walsh, 
President;  W.  O.  Sumner,  Vice-President;  Alfred  F. 
Gray,  Treasurer;  Mark  H.  Burch,  Secretary;  and  C. 
Mortimer  Wiske,  Musical  Director.  "  The  object  of  the 
society  is  to  cultivate  choral  music,  and  to  provide  a 


THE  AMATEUR  DRAMATIC  ASSOCIATIONS   OF  BROOKLYN. 


suitable  resort  for  social  intercourse."  Meetings  are 
held  once  eacli  month  at  the  society's  rooms,  corner  of 
Clymer  street  and  Division  avenue  ;  and,  during  the 
season,  "two  concerts  are  given  at  the  Brooklyn  Acad- 
emy of  Music.  Tlie  membership  of  the  society  is 
limited  to  410,  of  which  sixty  is  reserved  for  the 
chorus — a  limit  long  since  reached.  The  present  offi- 
cers are :  Jos.  F.  Knapp,  President;  Wm.  M.  Sey- 
mour, Vice-President;  M.  H.  Leonard,  Secretary;  Jos. 
Applegate,  Treasurer;  and  C.  Mortimer  Wislce,  Musi- 
cal Director. 


Amateurs  who  have  become  Profes- 
sionals.— Among  tlie  members  of  Brooklyn  so- 
cieties who  have  graduated  from  the  amateur  stage 
and  become  professionals  are  the  Misses  Edith 
Kingdon  (of  the  Amaranth),  Adelaide  Fitzallan 
(Kemble),  Sara  Jewett,  Gertrude  L.  Kellogg, 
Maud  Granger  (Amaranth),  Misses  Oongdon,  Kate 
Newton,  Meta  Bartlett,  Mrs.  Fanny  Foster,  Mrs.  Lloyd 
Abbott,  and  Messrs.  William  Griffith  and  William  E. 
Wilson.  Miss  Fitzallan  is  with  Kate  Claxton's  com- 
pany, and  Mr.  Wilson  is  with  John  McCullough. 


LOUIS    0.    BEHMAI^. 


LOUIS  C.  BEHMAN,  prominent  among  the  successful  young 
business  men  of  Brooklyn,  was  born  in  this  city,  June  4, 
1855.  His  father  was  Henry  William  Behman;  his  mother  was 
Emstina  Kurtcman. 

When  old  enough,  he  began  attending  school  in  the  public 
schools  in  the  city,  completing  his  education  at  Zion's  Academy, 
in  Brooklyn.  He  very  early  developed  a  rare  capacity  for  the 
conduct  of  business,  and  while  yet  very  young  engaged  in  a 
market  and  provision  business  in  Brooklyn  ;  continuing  in  this 
occupation  with  reasonable  success  for  about  three  years. 

One  of  his  principal  amusements  (none  ever  interfered  with 
his  business)  was  attending  the  theatres  of  the  city. 

In  187G  he  went  to  Philadelphia  and  engaged  in  the  theatrical 
business  ;  after  remaining  there  about  one  year,  he  removed  to 
Baltimore,  and  engaged  in  the  same  occupation.  After  the  lapse 
of  six  months  he  returned  to  Brooklyn,  and,  with  Mr.  Richard 
Hyde,  continued  the  business  he  had  conducted  in  Baltimore 
and  Philadelphia.  In  May,  1877,  he  and  his  partner  leased 
what  was  known  as  the  Yolks'  Theatre.     In  1878  they  purchased 


the  building,  changed  the  name  to  "  Hyde  and  Behman's 
Theatre,"  its  present  name.  In  1880  they  leased  the  Olympic 
Theatre,  Fulton  street,  Brooklyn,  changing  its  name  to  the 
Standard  Theatre.  In  1881  they  purchased  the  Grand  Opera 
House  in  Elm  place.  In  1883  they  built  the  New  Park  Theatre, 
on  the  corner  of  Broadway  and  Thirty-fifth  street.  New  York 
City,  one  of  the  finest  theatrical  edifices  and  best  endowed 
properties  in  the  city.  Mr.  Behman  is  now  the  proprietor  of 
several  of  the  best  traveling  theatrical  companies  of  the  times, 
exhibiting  in  all  the  principal  cities  in  the  nation.  They  are 
also  the  proprietors  and  originators  of  "  Muldoon's Picnic,"  one 
of  the  most  successful  comedies  on  the  road.  It  is  gratifying  to 
say,  that  in  all  his  business  relations  Mr.  Behman  has  been  suc- 
cessful to  a  marked  degree,  and  his  success  has  brought  him 
into  consideration  and  respect  among  the  citizens  of  Brooklyn. 
This  is  exhibited  by  the  fact  that  in  1882  he  was  elected  Alder- 
man of  the  Eleventh  Ward,  a  position  which  he  still  occupies, 
discharging  its  duties  very  creditably  to  himself  and  to  the  sat- 
isfaction of  his  constituents. 


THE  Tkee  Planting  and  Fountain  Society 
was  organized  at  the  Brooklyn  Academy  of  Music, 
May  16th,  1882,  by  a  number  of  prominent  citizens, 
whose  object  in  the  formation  of  the  Society  was  to 
promote  the  planting  and  protection  of  trees,  the  erec- 
tion of  drinking  fountains;  and,  otherwise,  to  render 
the  city  of  Brooklyn  attractive.    Th us  fir  this  beneficent 


organization  has  not  met  the  encouragement  which  it 
deserves;  the  members,  however,  have  not  lost  faith  in 
the  ultimate  results  of  their  efforts,  and  are  prepared 
to  push  forward*  The  original  board  of  officers  was 
re-elected  for  1884:— John  W.  Hunter,  President; 
David  M.  Stone,  Vice-President;  Gordon  L.  Ford, 
Treasurer;   Kichard  M.  Montgomery,  Secretary. 


1166 


Photography  in   Brooklyn 


PHOTOGRAPHY,  like  chemistry,  owes  its  origiu  to 
the  alchemists  of  the  middle  ages,  who,  in  their 
search  after  the  philosopher's  stone  and  the  elixir 
of  life,  discovered  silver  chloride,  which  they  named 
liorn  silver,  which  blackened  on  exposure  to  liglit.  Long 
afterwards,  Scheele  experimented  to  determine  the  effect 
upon  it  of  the  different  rays  of  the  solar  spectrum,  and 
discovered  the  actinic  rays.  In  1803,  Thomas  Wedge- 
wood  published  a  method  of  producing  pictures  by  the 
action  of  light  on  white  leather  or  paper,  made  sensitive 
by  a  film  of  silver  salts.  M.  Niepee  followed  in  1814 
with  a  process  for  making  pictures  permanent  on  a  sil- 
ver plate,  coated  with  bitumen  and  oil  of  lavender  by 
developing  with  a  solvent  composed  of  oil  of  lavender 
in  the  oil  of  petroleum.  M.  Daguerre's  invention  was 
a  film  of  iodine  on  a  silvered  plate,  and  he  developed  the 
image  by  exposure  to  mercurial  vapor,  and  fixed  it  with 
soda  hyposulphite  and  hot  distilled  water.  Niepce  and 
Daguerre  had  been  experimenting  independently,  but 
in  1829  they  entered  into  partnership,  and  in  January, 
1839,  gave  to  the  world  specimens  of  the  work,  which 
received  the  name  daguerreotype.  Henry  Fox  Talbot, 
in  a  communication  to  the  Eoyal  Society,  February 
31st,  1839,  described  the  details  of  his  calotype  or 
photogenic  process,  in  which  the  image  was  jjroduced 
on  paper,  made  sensitive  by  silver  chloride  and  devel- 
oped by  gallic  acid  ;  this  produced  a  negative  picture, 
with  lights  and  shadows  reversed  when  viewed  by 
transmitted  light,  while  the  correct  result  was  obtained 
by  light  through  the  negative  upon  other  sensitive 
paper  beneath.  By  this  process  copies  could  be  made 
with  ease  and  rapidity.  Daguerre's  process  produced 
a  positive,  with  lights  and  sliadows  in  their  proper  re- 
lations. Continued  experiments  perfected  the  new 
art.  Dr.  Draper  was  the  first  to  succeed  in  taking  poi-- 
traits  from  life,  in  America.  Fizean  made  a  further  im- 
provement by  using  a  salt  of  gold  as  a  fixing  agent. 
Silver  bromide  was  found  to  be  much  more  sensitive 
to  the  action  of  light  than  the  chloride,  requiring  only 
about  one-thirtieth  the  lengtli  of  exposure. 

But  the  greatest  improvement  was  the  collodion  pro- 
cess, invented  by  F.  Scott  Archer,  in  which  a  glass 
plate  is  coated  with  gun-cotton  dissolved  in  alcohol  and 
ether  with  a  soluble  iodide,  generally  of  cadmium  ;  it 
is  next  immersed  in  a  saturated  solution  of  silver 
nitrate,  when  the  iodides  in  the  film  become  silver 
iodides,  sensitive  to  light.  The  image  is  developed  by 
pyrogallic  acid  or  protosulphate  of  iron,  with  acetic 
acid ;  the  plate  is  protected  from  further  change  by 
soda  hyposulphite  or  potassium  cyanide.  This  method 
was  in  general  use  until  quite  lately.    The  dry  collodion 


process  differs  only  in  coating  the  plate  with  tannin 
instead  of  the  liquid  fixing  agents,  and  adding  nitrate 
of  silver  to  the  developing  medium. 

The  bromo-gelatin  emulsion  process  has  been  recently 
introduced,  in  which  collodion  as  a  medium  of  carrying 
the  sensitive  salts  is  replaced  by  gelatin.  The  emulsion 
is  made  of  gelatin,  treated  with  the  bromides  of  am- 
monium and  zinc,  with  nitrate  of  silver,  and  developed 
either  by  sulphate  of  iron  with  alcohol,  acetic  acid,  and 
potassium  oxalate,  or  with  pyrogallic  acid,  ammonia, 
and  bromide  of  ammonium.  Plates  thus  prepared  are 
permanent  and  exceedingly  sensitive,  allowing  "instan- 
taneous photography"  under  favorable  conditions,  and 
the  images  may  remain  undeveloped  for  an  extended 
period.  Vogel's  Collodion  Emulsion  treats  the  gelatin 
emulsion  in  an  organic  acid  with  pyroxylin,  also  in  an 
organic  acid.  The  advantages  claimed  for  the  new 
process  are  its  keeping  qualities  and  ease  of  working. 

Though  years  of  experiment  have  elaborated  and 
perfected  details,  the  same  principle  pervades  all 
methods,  which  includes  the  production  of  the  image 
on  a  surface  made  sensitive  to  light,  its  subsequent  de- 
velopment, and  the  removal  of  the  unaltered  film  by  a 
fixing  agent.  At  present  the  methods  used  in  practical 
photography  are  limited  to  two  in  number  :  the  posi- 
tive, where  the  lights  and  shadows  appear  in  their 
proper  places  ;  the  plate  is  backed  with  black  varnish, 
and  the  desired  pearly-white  deposit  obtained  by  devel- 
oping with  proto-nitrate  and  sulphate  of  iron,  with 
nitric  and  acetic  acids;  second,  the  negative,  where  the 
image  is  produced  on  glass  with  lights  and  shades 
reversed  when  viewed  by  transmitted  light,  and  a 
thicker  deposit  than  in  the  preceding  method,  while 
positive  impressions  are  printed  through  the  negative 
upon  sensitive  material  beneath. 

The  wet  and  dry  collodion  jjrocesses  and  the  gelatin 
and  collodion  emulsions  are  variations  of  the  last- 
named  process. 

At  the  present  day,  photography  is  the  leading 
method  of  portraiture,  of  reproducing  landscapes,  and 
all  objects  animate  and  inanimate,  with  a  wide  appli- 
cation in  astronomy,  microscopy,  and  many  of  the  in- 
dustrialarts.  It  is  fast  rising  from  the  realm  of  science 
to  that  of  art ;  our  leading  photographers  combine  the 
art-idea  with  a  wonderful  perfection  of  finish,  that 
leaves  little  to  be  desired  in  the  result. 

As  far  as  ascertainable,  the  first  Daguerrean  artist 
in  Brooklyn  was  J.  Stanbert,  whose  gallery  was 
located  near  Fulton  Ferry  in  1844  or  '45,  but  few  years 
after  the  publication  in  France  of  Daguerre's  inven- 
tion ;  which  shows  the  rapid  spread  of  the  new  process 


II 


*A\ 


^^^^e,<,<-au^C^ 


PHOTOGRAPHY  IN  BROOKLYN. 


lie? 


through  the  civilized  world.  Next  came  Atkins'  gal- 
lery, also  located  near  the  Ferry.  In  1849,  a  studio 
was  opened,  where  St.  Ann's  Buildings  now  are,  by 
Gabriel  Haerison,  whose  most  interesting  biography 
will  be  found  on  a  preceding  page.  In  1844,  he  took  up 
daguerreotyping  with  Plunibe;  went  afterwards  with  M. 
M.  Lawrence,  and  was  unsurpassed  as  an  operator.  In 
1850,  he  opened,  at  283  Fulton  street,  the  finest  gallery 
that  had  then  been  seen,  with  elegant  furnishings  and 
spacious  rooms.  He  executed  the  largest  daguerreotypes 
that  were  ever  taken  with  success,  winning  medals  at 
the  World's  Fair  in  London  and  in  New  York.  The 
art-idea  was  apparent  in  all  his  works. 

In  1852,  Harrison  hung  out  the  first  crude  picture 
taken  by  the  photographic  process,  then  in  its  infancy; 
two  years  later  he  was  successfully  using  the  new 
method.  He  was  succeeded  by  Williamson",  who  had 
for  many  years  an  excellent  reputation  for  his  daguer- 
reotypes, and  stood  at  tlie  liead  of  his  profession. 
About  1860  Mokand  established  himself  in  a  gallery 
over  Tice's  on  Fulton  street,  where  he  remained  for  a 
number  of  years.  Harrison  again  engaged  in  photo- 
graphy, and  a  little  later  Truxall  had  a  fine  place  on 
Fulton  avenue.  In  1803  Douglass  opened  his  studio 
on  Fulton  street,  corner  of  Washington,  where  he  still 
remains.  W.  S.  Pekdlbton,  of  336  Fulton,  com- 
menced there  in  1868.  The  Fearsalls  began  their 
apprenticeship  twenty-five  years  ago  with  an  uncle  in 
Williamsburgh ;  in  1873  G.  Frank  E.  Pearsall 
opened  his  studio  at  298  Fulton  street;  and,  two  years 


after,  Alva  Pearsall  established  himself  at  Fulton 
and  Flatbush  avenues.  At  about  the  same  time 
DuRYEA  succeeded  Williamson  in  St.  Ann's  Buildings, 
and  Gardner  opened  a  studio  at  278  Fulton.  Wm.  F. 
Bowers  has  been  located  since  1 873  at  340  Fulton  street; 
Herjian  Wunder,  on  "the  Hill,"  at  722  Fulton, 
from  1875;  and  Charles  E.  Bolles,  at  271  Fulton, 
from  1878.  Other  prominent  artists  are  Henry  W. 
Biffur,  on  Fourth  street,  E.  ]).;  Eichardson  Bros., 
and  Mrs.  E.  Eichardson,  Broadway,  E.  D. 

Our  best  artists  have  devoted  labor  and  thought  to 
the  improvement  of  photography,  and  have  introduced 
a  decided  art-element  into  tliat  which  was  a  mere 
science  in  its  beginnings.  The  advance  that  has  been 
made  during  the  last  fifteen  years  is  marvellous.  Life- 
size  portraits  combine  great  delicacy  and  richness  with 
absolute  accuracy;  while-still  life  is  reproduced  with 
perfect  fidelity.  Success  has  attended  the  practice  of 
instantaneous  photography,  as  well  as  the  use  of  the 
electric  light  as  an  illuminator.  Technical  difficulties 
have  hitherto  prevented  the  preservation  of  the  natural 
colors  in  photographic  pictures,  although  much  experi- 
ment has  been  devoted  to  the  attempt. 

Oharles  S.  Rawson,  255  &  257  Fulton  street,  artist 
photographer,  established  1853,  Pennsylvania;  was 
situated  at  Milwaukee,  then  Albany,  and  in  1859  re- 
moved to  his  present  location. 

Ridiardson  Bros.  {P.  &  R.  D. ),  105  &  107  Broad- 
way, photographers;  established  1879,  at  present  loca- 
tion. 


G.    FRAI^K    E.    PEARSALL. 


MR.  G.  FRANK  E.  PEARSALL,  the  well-known  photog- 
rapher, at  No.  '298  Fulton  street,  is  a  native  of  New  York 
City,  having  been  born  in  Cherry  street,  November  23,  1841.  His 
father  was  John  A.  Pearsall,  a  life-boat  builder  and  a  man  of  enter- 
prise, who  was  the  first  in  his  life  to  use  steam  power;  and  who 
died  of  pneumonia  at  the  age  of  thirty-three,  having  contracted  a 
cold  while  out  on  Long  Island  Sound  in  a  yacht.  His  mother  was 
of  the  numerous  and  respectable  Long  Island  family  of  Duryea. 

Left  an  orphan  at  a  tender  age,  Mr.  Pearsall  spent  a  portion  of 
his  childhood  in  the  family  of  an  aunt  living  in  Saratoga,  N.  Y., 
and  during  a  few  years  attended  the  public  schools  there  and  in 
New  Y'ork.  When  only  eleven  years  old,  he  began  to  learn  the 
rudiruents  of  his  profession  with  his  uncle,  T.  Duryea,  once  a 
photographer  of  Williamsburgh.  Two  years  later  his  uncle  re- 
moved to  Australia,  where  he  has  since  resided.  With  the  as- 
sistance of  their  mother,  .\lva  A.  Pearsall,  then  aged  fifteen  years, 
and  G.  Frank  E.  Pearsall,  aged  thirteen,  continued  operations  in 
the  gallery  formerly  of  their  uncle  about  a  year,  when  the  elder 
of  the  two  went  to  the  West  Indies,  leaving  the  home  interests 
in  the  care  of  his  mother  and  younger  brother,  who  kept  the 
establishment  open  a  year  longer.  About  this  time  Alva  A. 
Pearsall  returned,  and  soon  the  two  brothers  bade  adieu  to 
Brooklyn,  spending  the  greater  part  of  the  following  eight  years 
in  Cuba  and  various  towns  in  the  West  Indies,  in  Carracas, 
Venezuela,  and   elsewhere,  only  visiting  Brooklyn  occasionally 


and  never  remaining  long.  Returning  at  the  end  of  the  period 
mentioned,  Mr.  Pearsall  was  employed  by  Gurney,  the  cele- 
brated New  York  photographer,  from  1862  to  1868.  During  the 
year  1868,  in  connection  with  his  brother,  he  conducted  a  veloci- 
pede school  and  dealt  in  velocipedes  on  Broadway,  New  York, 
at  the  corner  of  Twenty-third  street.  The  following  year  he 
was  again  in  Mr.  Gurney's  employ. 

In  1870  Mr.  Pearsall  established  a  photographic  gallery  at  the 
corner  of  Fulton  and  Tillary  streets,  Brooklyn,  removing,  two 
years  later,  to  his  present  location.  Mr.  Pearsall,  as  also  his 
brother,  Alva  A.  Pearsall,  may  be  said  to  be  in  a  great  meas- 
ure self-taught  in  his  art.  To  it  he  has  devoted  the  best  years 
of  his  life  and  much  careful  and  well-directed  thought;  making, 
from  time  to  time,  several  important  improvements  in  photo- 
graphic processes  and  apparatus.  As  an  artist  he  takes  high 
rank;  he  is  a  member  of  the  National  Photographic  Association, 
and  his  name  is  known  well  and  favorably  to  the  profession 
throughout  the  United  States  and  Canada. 

Mr.  Pearsall  is  president  of  the  Brooklyn  Archery  Club,  and 
in  1881  was  secretary  and  treasurer  of  the  National  Archery 
Association.  He  is  also  prominent  in  the  Fountain  Gun  Club, 
and  is  a  member  of  Commonwealth  Lodge  No.  409,  F.  &  A.  M., 
and  of  Orient  Chapter,  No.  1.38,  R.  A.  M.  He  was  married  March  6, 
1866,  to  Elizabeth  Conrow,  of  Brooklyn.  They  reside  at  No.  29 
Strong  Place. 


1168 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS   COUNTY. 


The  nature  of  the  tnie  artist  is  to  be  dissatisfied  -n  ith  all  his 
attainments.  His  field,  the  eternal  beaiity,  is  illimitable.  Every 
step  in  the  development  of  his  art  suggests  another  step  jnst 
beyond  his  grasp;  all  the  accessories  necessary  to  his  work  ex- 
hibit the  interior  working  of  his  mind.  Where  our  fathers  would 
have  Vjeen  satisfied,  and  found  nothing  lacking,  we  would  dis- 
cover many  crudities.     The  city  photograjjh  galleries  of  twent}'- 


five  years  ago,  with  their  bare  walls  and  general  uncouth  sur- 
roundings, are  to-day  relegated  to  the  obscure  country  village, 
while  in  their  place  are  magnificent  apartments,  and  the  studio 
of  the  present  keeps  well  in  line  with  our  progress  in  culture 
and  art.  The  cut  of  the  establishment  of  Mr.  G.  Frank  E.  Pear- 
sail,  No.  298  Fulton  street,  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  aptly  illustrates  this 
fact. 

The  first  floor,  22  feet  wide  by  128  feet  deep,  contains  the 
reception  room,  dressing-rooms,  offices,  studio,  laboratory  and 
dark  room.  The  reception  room,  22  x  60  feet,  is  carpeted  and 
furnished  with  exquisite  taste;  the  walls  are  handsomely  frescoed, 
which,  with  the  pictures  adorning  them,  or  resting  upon  easels, 
makes  the  entire  effect  pleasing  to  the  eye,  and  gratifying  to  cul- 
tured visitors.  The  studio  is  a  model  of  its  kind,  and  to  an  artist 
an  interesting  and  profitable  study.  It  is  42  feet  long  by  22  feet 
wide,  perfectly  arranged  with  plate-glass  sky  and  .side  lights, 
so  located  as  to  afford  a  right  and  left-hand  light.  The  ceilings 
are  frescoed,  and  the  floor  covered  with  an  English  Linoleum  of 
appropriate  pattern.  The  furniture  is  very  elaborate,  including 
many  pieces  not  usually  seen.  The  drawing  accompanying  this 
article  does  not  convey  a  full  idea  of  what  this  studio  is;  any 
effect  desired  may  be  attained  in  this  gallery.  The  second  floor 
is  supplied  with  complete  arrangements  for  printing,  toning 
and  finishing. 

Mr.  Pearsall's  work  is  noted  for  its  delicacy,  softness,  cleanli- 
ness and  technical  beauty.  The  rank  held  by  him  among  photo- 
graphers is  evinced  by  the  fact  that  the  majority  of  portraits 
illustrating  this  history  are  from  his  studio,  and  that  a  large 
amount  of  his  patronage  is  drawn  from  New  York  City,  despite 
the  attractions  of  its  renowned  galleries. 


BEOOKLYI^f    AETISTS. 


IN  addition  to  those  mentioned  in  the  foregoing 
article,  we  have  the  following  artists,  portrait 
jjaiuters,  etc.,  residing  in  Brooklyn: 

Brown  S  Son,  439  Fulton  street. 

Wm.  M.  Brown,  709  President  street,  jjainter  of 
fruits,  flowers  and  landscapes;  born  in  Troy,  N.Y.,  1839; 
studied  portrait  painting  in  the  studio  of  A.  B.  Moore, 
of  that  city ;  established  1855,  in  Brooklyn. 

Samuel  S.  Carr,  461  Twelfth  street. 

Richard  Crefield,  G38  Myrtle  avenue,  artist  (figure) ; 
had  seven  years'  study  at  Royal  Academy,  Munich, 
where  he  received  a  medal  for  work. 

A.  S.  Dauber,  307  Navy  street. 

M.  F.  H.  De  Haas,  h.  148  Taylor  street. 

Carl  Frank,  180  Sackett  street. 

P.  S.  Harris,  Garfield  Building. 

C.  D.  Hunt,  75  St.  James  place. 

James  M.  Hart,  94  First  place. 

R.   W.  Hulbard,  h.  121  St.  James  place. 


6'.   W.  Jewell,  1  York  street. 

J.  H.  Littlefield,  16  Court  street. 

Clinton  Loveridge,  461  Twelfth  street,  landscape 
painter,  member  Brooklyn  Art  Club;  served  in  army 
during  nearly  the  entire  War  of  the  Rebellion. 

Strafford  Netvmarch,  316  Gates  avenue. 

Julius  Ruger,  16  Court  street,  portrait  artist;  born 
in  Germany,  1840 ;  came  to  America,  1847 ;  worked  as 
an  engraver  on  gold  until  his  nineteenth  year,  when  he 
began  the  study  of  portrait  drawing  and  painting, 
establishing  himself  in  Brooklyn  as  an  artist  in  1864. 

J.  B.  Stearns,  389  Fulton  street. 

R.  W.  Satvers,  375  Pearl  street. 

Warren  W.  She'p'pard,  381  Ninth  street,  marine 
artist;  established  in  Brooklyn,  1873;  was  born  at 
Greenwich,  N.  J.,  1855;  soiiof  Josiah  Sheppard,  a  sail- 
ing ship-master;  his  specialty  is  that  of  brilliant  moon- 
light marine  effects. 

James  G.  Tyler,  313  Fulton  street. 


THE 


HISTORY    OF    THE    PRESS 

OF 

Brooklyn    and   Kings   County.* 

By  Hon.  WILLIAM  E.  ROBINSON. 
WITH     BIOGRAPHICAL     NOTES,     ETC.,     BY     THE     EDITOR. 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  PRESS  OF  KINGS 
County,  like  that  of  other  cities  and  localities, 
records  many  early  deaths  of  ambitious  jour- 
nals. 

The  Long  Island  Courier  f  was  the  first  paper 
published  in  Brooklyn,  by  Thomas  Kirk,  a  job  printer, 
book-seller,  publisher  and  stationer.  J  Its  first  number 
appeared  June  26,  1799.  It  was  a  weekly,  and  was 
the  second  paper  published  on  Long  Island.  The  first 
was  the  Long  Island  Herald,  published  at  Sag  Harbor, 
in  I79I,  by  Daniel  Frothingham.  The  Gourur  met 
witji  an  early  dealli  seven  years  afterwards. 

The  Long  Island  Weekly  Intelligencer  was 
commenced  May  2t),  1806,  by  William  C.  Robinson 
and  William  Little.  It  was  the  first  paper  to  jjublish  a 
list  of  letters  remaining  in  the  Brooklyn  Post  Office  ; 
but  was  discontinued  at  the  end  of  the  year  for  want 
of  patronage.  In  June,  1809,  Thomas  Kirk,  nothing 
daunted  by  the  failure  of  the  Courier,  started 

The  Long  Island  Star,  which  was  destined  for 
a  longer  life  and  an  honorable  career.     In  two  years  he 


*  In  the  preparation  of  this  chapter,  we  have  drawn  largely  upon  a  very  minute 
sketch  of  the  Local  Press  of  Brooklyn,  by  Mr.  W.  A.  Chandos  Fulton,  in  the 
Brooklyn  Standard. 

t  Furman  gives  the  title  of  this  paper  as  The  Courier  and  New  York  and 
Long  Island  Advertizer.  but  Mr.  Fulton  says  that  "all  the  copies  and  documents 
relating  to  it,  which  he  h.as  seen,  bear  the  title  of  the  Lon^  island  Courier. 

t  Mr.  Kirk  kept  a  small  job  printing  office  on  the  corner  of  Old  Ferry  (now 
Fulton)  and  Front  streets.  He  is  supposed  to  have  come  to  Brooklyn  about  the 
close  of  the  Revolution.  A  shilling  pamphlet  edition  of  Maj.-Gen.  Lee's  funeral 
oration  in  honor  of  Gen.  Washington,  in  December,  1799,  was  the  Jirst  book  pub- 
lished from  Kirk's  press,  in  Brooklyn.  In  1809,  he  commenced  the  Long  Island 
Star,  and  removed  his  job  printing  establishment  to  Main  street,  next  door  to 
Rapelye  &  Mooney's  dry  goods  store.  Here  he  opened  a  large  stationery  and 
book  store,  which  he  kept  well  supplied  with  the  publications  of  the  day,  together 
with  a  fine  assortment  of  standard  works.  Besides  conducting  his  paper,  he 
issued  several  publications  and  reprints  ;  and  seems  to  have  done,  for  the  times,  a 
good  general  business.  In  1811,  he  sold  the  Star  to  Alden  Spooner,  and  his  store 
to  Messrs.  Pray  &  Bowen,  and  devoted  himself  to  his  job  printing  office,  which 
he  removed  to  Fulton,  just  above  Front  street.  About  this  time,  he  published  a 
History  0/ the  Adventures  and  Sufferings  0/  Moses  Smith  in  tke  Miranda 
Expedition^  etc.,  etc.,  at  the  expense  of  the  author's  brother,  e.\-Mayor  Samuel 
Smith,  of  this  city,  a  curious  little  volume,  now  very  rare. 

Mr.  Kirk  lived  to  a  good  old  age,  was  identified  with  all  the  prominent  local 
movements  of  his  day,  and  was  followed  to  the  grave  by  the  respect  of  all  who 
knew  the  value  of  his  unobtrusive,  but  exceedingly  useful  life. 


sold  the  Star  to  Alden  Spooner,  §  formerly  of  the 
Suffolk  County  Gazette.  In  I8I8,  it  was  consolidated 
with  the  Long  Island  Farmer,  of  Jamaica,  and  pub- 
lished by  Spooner  &  Sleight,  retaining  the  n.ame  of  the 
Star,  the  same  edition  answering  for  both  Brooklyn 
and  Jamaica.  This  connection  was  mutually  dissolved 
in  1826.  Mr.  Sleight  revived  the  Farmer,  and  Mr. 
Spooner  continued  the  Star.  In  1827,  the  Star  was 
issued  as  a  daily  paper.  The  daily  issue,  though  at- 
tempted several  times,  was  not  successful  for  any 
length  of  time.  In  1832,  the  weekly  was  doubled  in 
size;  and,  in  1835,  it  w.as  issued  semi-weekly.  In  1836, 
Colonel  Spooner  took  his  sons,  Edwin  B.  and  George 
W.,  into  partnership,  under  the  name  of  A.  Spooner  & 
Sons.  In  1841,  Colonel  Spooner  became  Surrogate  of 
Kings  county,  for  four  years,  appointed  by  Governor 
Seward,  and  succeeding  Richard  Cornwell;  and  E.  B. 
Spooner  became  sole  proprietor.  It  was  afterward 
published  by  E.  B.  Spooner  &  Son  (E.  B.  Spooner,  Jr.), 
and  edited  by  Alden  J.  Spooner,  recently  deceased,  and 
Robert  A.  Burch.     It  was  discontinued,  June  27,  1863, 


§  The  Spooner  family,  so  honorably  associated  with  the  history  of  the  press  in 
this  country,  was  connected,  both  by  marriage  and  occupation,  with  the  Greens, 
of  New  London,  Conn.,  for  several  generations  prominent  as  printers  and  editors 
in  thai  State.  Judah  P.  Spooner,  and  his  brother,  Alden  Spooner,  early  printers 
in  Vermont,  were  sons  of  Thomas  Spooner  (who  came  from  Newport,  R.  I.,  to 
New  London,  in  1753),  and  brothers-in-law  of  Timothy  Green.  Alden  Spooner,  so 
fully  and  honorably  identified  with  the  highest  interests  and  prosperity  of  Brooklyn, 
was  a  son  of  the  first-named  brother,  and  was  born  at  Westminster,  Vt.,  January 
23,  1783.  Having  learned  the  printing  art  with  his  relative,  Samuel  Green,  the 
well-known  printer  of  New  London,  Conn.,  he  went  to  S.ig  Harbor,  L.  I.,  where, 
20th  of  February,  1804,  he  assumed  the  charge  of  the  Suffolk  County  Herald^ 
then  in  the  thirteenth  year  of  its  existence,  and  changing  its  n.ime  to  that  of  the 
Suffolk  County  Gazette,  published  it  until  1811,  when  he  was  obliged  to  abandon 
it.  Moving  to  Brooklyn,  which,  to  his  far-seeing  eye,  already  gave  promise  of 
its  future  growth,  he  purchased  the  Long  Island  Star  from  Mr.  Kirk,  and  with 
this  p.iper  his  whole  subsequent  life  was  honorably  identified.  He  afterwards 
conducted  for  a  time  the  New  York  Columbian,  a  daily,  and  with  that  zeal  for 
public  works  which  always  characterized  him,  was  an  early  advocate  of  the  Erie 
Canal,  and  a  great  admirer  and  firm  friend  of  its  originator,  De  Witt  Clinton, 
who  once  remarked  that  he  "  never  had  so  true  a  friend  as  Alden  Spooner  :  and 
what  is  more  (added  the  Governor),  he  never  asked  a  favor  of  me  directly  or  indi- 
rectly." He  indeed  avoided  public  office,  until  the  unfortunate  result  of  certain 
speculative  enterprises,  in  1836,  induced  bim  to  seek  the  office  of  Surrogate  of 
Kings  county,  which  was  bestowed  upon  him  by  Governor  Seward,  and  which  he 
held  for  four  years.  In  all  that  pertained  to  the  welfare  of  Brooklyn,  he  was  ever 
foremost  and  active.    He  was  influential  in  procuring  the  village  charter,  in  1816, 


1170 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


aftur  a  long  and  honorable  life  of  over  half  a  century. 
In  politics,  it  was  Federal,  Whig,  and  Republican.  In 
its  columns  may  be  found  the  history  of  Brooklyn  and 
Kings  County  for  the  period  of  its  existence.  The 
only  complete  set  in  existence— the  old  oiBce  file — is 
now  among  the  treasures  of  the  Long  Island  Historical 
Society. 

The  Long  Island  Patriot  was  started  as  a 
weekly  on  St.  Patrick's  Day,  1821,  by  George  L. 
Birch.*  It  was  Democratic,  and,  for  a  while,  success- 
ful. It  was  purchased,  in  1829,  by  Sheriff  John  T. 
Bergen,  and,  for  a  short  time,  edited  by  Samuel  E. 
Clements,  a  Southerner,  who  had  been  a  jourjieymanin 
Birch's  office.  In  1832,  it  became  the  property  of 
James  A.  Bennett,  who  changed  its  name  to  the 
BrooMyn  Advocate,  and 

The  Brooklyn  Advocate  and  Nassau  Gazette 
appeared  September  13,  1833,  as  the  successor  of  the 
Patriot,  owned  and  edited  by  Bennett  &  Douglas.  It 
was  strongly  Democratic  and  ably  edited,  and  was 
soon  issued  in  semi-weekly  form.  In  1836,  Mr.  Bennett 
retired,  and  S.  G.  Arnold  was  its  editor  till  its  suspen- 
sion in  1839.  During  the  eighteen  years  of  its  exist- 
ence as  Patriot,  Advocate  and  Gazette,  Henry  C. 
Murphy  was  a  constant  and  copious  contributor.  Mr. 
Birch  was  printer  to  the  New  York  Common  Council 
and  the  Custom  House  for  many  years. 

The  Brooklyn  Daily  Advertiser  was  commenced 
in  August,  1834,  by  E.  G.  Chase  &  Co.  It  was  only  a 
little  larger  than  a  sheet  of  letter  paper.  It  was 
printed  in  New  York,  at  the  same  office  with  Horace 
Greeley's  New  Yorker,  and  rumor  named  Mr.  Greeley 
as  its  editor,  and  it  was  frequently  mentioned  as 
"  Horace  Greeley's  paper." 

In  1835,  it  was  purchased  by  Francis  G.  Fish  and 
enlarged.  It  was  first  a  morning  paper,  then  an  even- 
ing, and  again  a  morning  paper.     The  evening  issue 

and  in  promoting  its  incorporation  as  a  city,  in  1834.  He  was  one  of  the  founders 
and  trustees  of  the  Brooklyn  Apprentices'  Library,  and  was  Second  Lieutenant  -n 
the  Fourth  Regiment  of  the  Fourth  Brigade  of  N.  Y.  State  Artillery,  in  1810; 
Quartermaster  of  the  Thirteenth  Regiment,  N.  V.  State  Artillery,  in  1819  ;  Cap- 
tain of  the  same,  in  1819,  and  Colonel  of  the  same,  in  1826.  He  was  one  of  the 
founders  of  the  Lyceum  of  Natural  History,  and  of  the  Female  Seminary  of 
Brooklyn,  and  the  noble  free  school  system  of  our  city  is  deeply  indebted  to  his 
ardent  championship.  "  It  was  his  unfaltering  energy  and  perseverance  that 
secured  to  the  city  the  Fort  Greene  property  as  a  public  park.  It  was  not  his 
fault  that  the  entire  of  the  beautiful  Heights  was  not  laid  out  as  a  park,  to  be  free 
to  the  inhabitants  as  a  place  of  resort  and  recreation  forever.  The  old  man  wrote 
for  it,  talked  for  it,  almost  begged  for  it— all  in  vaTn."  At  an  age  when  he  might 
reasonably  have  sought  for  retirement  and  repose,  he  was  yet  active  in  works  of 
public  utility.  For  the  last  two  years  of  his  life,  he  was  earnestly  engaged  in 
organizing  a  company  for  lighting  Brooklyn  with  gas,  and  on  its  incorporation, 
was  unanimously  chosen  its  President.  In  agriculture,  Col.  Spooner  took  ;.  deep 
and  active  interest,  and  was  especially  urgent  in  calling  public  attention  to  the 
feasibility  of  improving  the  vast  sand  and  pine  barrens  of  Long  Island  ;  and  to 
him  we  are  mainly  indebted  for  the  introduction  of  the  Isabella  grape.  His  little 
treatise  on  the  cultivation  of  the  grape,  which  passed  to  a  second  edition,  is  per- 
haps the  best  extant.  His  life  realized  the  ideal  of  a  vtodel  citizen,  whose  place 
was  not  easily  filled.  In  private  life,  "  a  simplicity,  cheerfulness,  and  genuine 
kindness  endeared  him  to  every  one  :  "  his  integrity  was  spotless  ;  he  was  liberal 
to  the  utmost  extent  of  self-sacrifice,  and  foremost  in  acLs  of  benevolence.  As  a 
politician,  he  endeavored  to  divest  partisanship  of  its  bitterness  and  illiberality  ; 
as  an  editor,  he  was  plain  spoken,  yet  eminently  courteous. 

He  died  on  the  24th  of  November,  1848,  in  the  sixty-fifth  year  of  his  age,  being 
then,  with  one  exception,  the  oldest  editor  in  the  United  States. 


was  resumed  as  a  native  American  organ,  under  the 
name  of  the  Native  Atnericati  Citizen  and  Proolchjn 
Evening  Advertiser ;  but  it  went  down  with  the  party 
in  all  its  editions. 

The  Wiiliamsburgh  Gazette  was  commenced  on 
the  25th  of  May,  1835,  as  a  weekly,  by  Mr.  Fish,  who 
soon  left  it  to  the  care  of  his  brother  Adrastus.  In 
February,  1838,  Levi  Darbee  became  its  publisher,  and 
pushed  it  with  energy  and  success.  It  was  independ- 
ent in  politics  till  1840,  when  it  was  struck  with  the 
Log  Cabin  "  boom,"  and  became  the  Whig  organ  in 
Wiiliamsburgh.  Its  success  led  to  its  publication,  in 
1850,  as  a  daily,  and  it  was  edited  in  part  by  Rev. 
Nathaniel  N.  Whitney.  It  was  suspended  in  1854, 
after  a  career  of  nineteen  years. 

The  Brooklyn  Daily  News  was  started  March 
2,  1840,  by  S.  G.  Arnold  and  Isaac  Van  Anden,  with 
the  first  named  gentleman  and  Dr.  W.  K.  Northall  as 
editors.  It  soon  collapsed  and  fell  into  the  Long 
Island  Daily  Times. 

The  Wiiliamsburgh  Democrat  w.is  st.arted  in 
June,  1840,  by  Thomas  A.  Devyr  and  William  H. 
Colyer,  as  a  weekly,  and  lived  for  eight  years. 

The  Long  Island  Daily  Times  was  issued  Octo- 
ber 19,  1840,  as  a  daily  inorning  p.aper,  by  F.  G.  Fish 
&  Co.,  and  edited  by  Dr,  Northall.  It  was  Whig  in 
its  politics.  It  absorbed  the  Daily  News,  and  contin- 
ued under  the  title  of 

The  Brooklyn  Daily  News  and  Long  Island 
Times,  first  number  March  2,  1841,  as  an  afternoon 
daily.  Dr.  Northall  bought  out  Fish  and  took  John 
C.  Watts  as  a  partner.  Watts  soon  retired,  and 
Northall,  in  1842,  sold  to  John  S.  Noble.  In  January, 
1843,  its  title  was  abbreviated  to  the  old  name  of 
BrooMyn  News,  and  it  was  issued  as  a  morning 
paper,  but  it  died  in  December  of  the  last  named 
year. 


*Geokge  L.  Birch,  born  in  Limerick,  Ireland,  August  15,  1787  ;  came  to  this 
country  in  1798,  with  his  parents,  who  settled  first  in  Providence,  R.  I.,  then  in 
Brooklyn.  After  completing  his  education,  he  was  bound  apprentice  to  Messrs. 
Arden  &  Close,  shipping  merchants  of  New  York  ;  afterwards  became  a  book- 
keeper for  a  large  distiller,  and  then  first  clerk  in  the  Columbian  Insurance  Com- 
pany. At  the  dissolution  of  this  company,  he  became  the  cashier  and  business 
manager  of  the  National  Advocate^  a  leading  Democratic  newspaper,  edited  by 
the  late  M.  M.  Noah,  in  partnership  with  whom  he  afterwards  started  a  printing 
office.  Shortly  after,  he  became  printer  to  the  Common  Council  and  to  the 
Custom  House,  both  of  which  positions  he  held  until  1828.  In  1819,  he  was 
an  active  member  of  the  Kings  County  Agricultural  and  Domestic  Manufacturing 
Society,  and,  on  the  17th  of  March,  1821,  he  issued  the  first  number  of  the  Long 
/j7rt7/^/'(i^/-/(»/,  a  weekly  family  newspaper.  In  October  of  the  same  year,  he 
joined  the  fire  department,  with  which,  as  foreman  of  Engine  No.  2,  he  was  iden- 
tified for  a  long  period.  On  the  31st  of  December,  1821,  he  received  the  appoint- 
ment of  Postmaster  of  Brooklyn,  which  office  he  occupied  for  four  years,  being 
succeeded  by  Thomas  Kirk.  In  1822,  he  estabhshed  a  monthly,  the  Minerva^  in 
New  York,  and  during  this  year,  at  his  suggestion,  a  branch  of  the  Columbian 
Order,  or  Tammany  Society,  was  established  in  Brooklyn.  He  was  a  member  of 
the  Mechanics'  and  Tradesmen's  Society  of  Brooklyn,  the  Mechanics'  Society  of 
New  York,  and  was  also  largely  instrumental  in  the  organization  of  the  first 
Sunday-school  in  the  village  ;  the  Erin  Fraternal  Association,  the  Apprentices' 
Library,  and  various  other  valuable  institutions,  which  have  greatly  contributed 
to  the  welfare  of  Brooklyn.  In  1829,  he  received  an  appointment  in  the  Custom 
House,  and  sold  out  the  Patriot.  In  1843,  he  became  the  custodian  and  librarian 
of  the  U.  S.  Naval  Lyceum,  at  the  Brooklyn  Navy  Yard,  which  position  he 
retained  until  his  death,  which  occurred  on  the  27th  of  July,  1864.  In  all  his  rela- 
tions of  life,  he  was  respected  and  beloved. 


THE   PRESS. 


llVl 


The  Brooklyn  Daily  Advertiser  was  started  on 
the  Ist  of  January,  1844,  by  H.  A.  Lees  and  William 
A.  Foulkes,  with  Dr.  Northall  as  editor.  In  1846,  Mr. 
Lees  became  its  editor,  and  was  succeeded  for  a  year 
by  W.  J.  Bryce;  and  afterwards,  in  1850,  Mr.  Bryce 
resumed  the  editorship,  and  the  paper  was  enlarged 
and  improved;  but,  in  1851,  ho  left  the  paper,  and  it 
fell  off  in  circulation  and  influence.  After  Mr.  Lees' 
death,  it  was  sold  at  auction,  in  1853,  to  David  A. 
Bokee,  a  prominent  Whig,  who  had  been  State  Sena- 
tor, Naval  Officer  of  the  Port  of  New  York,  and  Mem- 
ber of  Congress,  succeeding  Henry  C.  Murphy,  1849- 
'51.  For  a  time  it  was  edited  by  John  Lomas.  In 
1854,  it  was  purchased  by  R.  D.  Thompson,  formerly 
of  the  Troy  Daily  Times,  with  John  N.  Tucker  as  its 
editor,  and  came  out  as  the  organ  of  the  Know-Noth- 
ings,  with  a  corresponding  change  of  name  to  United 
rotates  Daily  FreciiKin;  but,  in  the  same  j^ear,  its  editor 
went  down  in  disaster  witii  the  paper. 

The  Brooklyn  Morning  Post  made  its  appear- 
ance October  £5,  1844,  under  the  management  of  John 
F.  Birch,  a  son  of  George  L.  Birch.  It  was  a  Demo- 
cratic sheet,  printed  at  Mr.  Birch's  printing  establish- 
ment in  New  York,  but  issued  in  Brooklyn  at  the  cor- 
ner of  Atlantic  and  Columbia  streets,  and  lived  only 
for  a  few  months. 

The  Brooklyn  Saturday  Evening  Bee  was 
started  in  1847,  by  A.  Spooner  &  Son,  as  a  family 
paper,  made  up  from  matter  of  the  Daily  Star.  It 
lived  for  a  year  or  two. 

The  Brooklyn  Freeman  was  started  April  25, 
liS48,  by  Judge  Samuel  E.  Johnson,  as  a  Free  Soil 
jiaper,  with  Walter  Whitman  as  editor,  and  in  a  few 
months  was  published  as  a  daily  morning  paper.  Mr. 
Whitman  was  succeeded  by  Samuel  F.  Cogswell,  and 
the  paper  was  published  in  the  Freeman  buildings,  in 
Fulton  street,  near  Myrtle  avenue.  Mr.  E.  R.  Colston 
became  its  owner,  and  several  able  writers  were  en- 
gaged on  it.  It  met  with  rapid  success,  and  became 
the  largest  penny  paper  in  the  United  States.  It  pro- 
fessed to  be  independent  in  politics,  but  espoused  the 
cause  of  Conklin  Brush  for  Mayor  of  Brooklyn,  and 
became  identified  with  the  Whig  party.  Its  rapid 
success  led  to  its  early  destruction;  and,  in  1852,  it  fell 
into  the  hands  of  Sheriff  Hodges,  who  kept  it  alive 
several  months,  issuing  onlj'  about  a  dozen  copies  to 
complete  the  publication  of  some  advertisement,  and 
then  let  it  drop  into  its  early  grave. 

The  Independent  Press,  a  daily  paper,  was 
started  in  Williamsburgh,  in  1850,  by  the  Municipal 
Reform  Association.  It  was  afterward  sold  to  Conrad 
Schwackhamer,  and  later  to  Bisliop  &  Kelly,  and  an 
establishment  was  erected  for  it,  at  present  the  Times 
building.  It  also  issued  a  weekly  edition.  It  was 
Democratic  in  its  later  years.    It  was  suspended  in  1857. 

The  Independent,  a  weekly  paper,  was  started  in 
1851,  by  George  Hall,  Seci-etary  of  the  Municipal  Re- 


form Association,  printed  by  William  H.  Hogan,  and 
edited  by  Mr.  Shannon.     It  lived  three  or  four  years. 

The  Brooklyn  Standard  commenced  in  the  fall 
of  185!),  by  James  Del  Vecchio,  was  a  Douglas  Demo- 
cratic paper,  but  afterward  supported  Abraham  Lin- 
coln.    It  kept  its  place  for  thirteen  years. 

The  Brooklyn  City  News,  commenced  November 
29,  1 859,  by  William  G.  Bishop,  rose  rapidly  and  seemed 
destined  for  permanent  success;  but  suspended  Novem- 
ber 10,  1863,  and  was  merged  into  the  Union. 

In  June,  1801,  Mr.  Del  Vecchio  started  a  Daily  Stand- 
ard, but  it  died  in  six  months. 

December,  14,  1861,  Harry  C.  Page  started  the  Era, 
as  a  literary  paper,  and  virtually  a  revival  of  the  Neio 
York  City  Metropolitan  Era;  but  not  thriving  in 
Brooklyn,  it  was  transferred  to  New  York,  where  it  was 
published  as  the  Neio  York  Era. 

Quite  a  number  of  periodicals,  daily,  weekly  and 
monthly,  were  started  in  Brooklyn,  but  most  of  them 
had  such  a  short-lived  existence  that  they  scarcely  im- 
pressed themselves  on  the  public  mind  and  left  no 
history.  Among  these  we  may  simply  mention,  with 
names,  dates  and  editors. 

The  Brooklyn  Monthly  Magazine,  1835,  by 
Rev.  Gilbert  L.  Hume. 

The  Tyro,  a  child's  paper,  1841.  "  Joe"  Howard,  Jr. 

The  Age,  1844.  James  G.  Wallace  and  General 
Suthciland,  the  Canadian  patriot. 

The  Greenpoint  Advertiser,  1847.  L.  Masqueria. 

The  Orbit  and  Excelsior,  1848. 

The  Messenger  Bird,  1849.  Edited  by  the  Alumni 
of  the  Brookh-n  Female  Academy  (Packer  Institute) 
and  T.  D.  Smitli. 

The  Kings  County  Chronicle,  1851.  E.  R. 
Swackhamer. 

The  Union  Ark,  1851.    J.  Schnebly. 

The  Daily  Journal,  1852.  Joseph  Taylor  and  J. 
M.  Ileighway. 

The  Brooklyn  Morning  Journal,  a  continuance 
of  the  foregoing.  By  Joseph  Taylor  and  William  H. 
Hogan. 

The  Long  Island  Family  Circle,  1852.  By  J.  E. 
Gander,  for  C.  S.  Schroeder  &,  Co. 

The  Brooklyn  Atheneum  Magazine,  1854.  Mr. 
Marsh. 

The  Signal,  a  daily;  1855.     By  Smith  &,  Co. 

The  Brooklyn  Independent,  1855.  By  John  H. 
Tobitt,  who  sold  to  Thomas  A.  Devyr,  who  changed 
its  name  to  the  Brooklyn  Taxpayer,  and  then  discon- 
tinued it. 

The  Leuth  Thurm,  1856.     Charles  Ilenseler. 

The  Kings  County  Advertiser  and  Village 
Guardian,  1857.  Published  in  East  New  York,  by  C. 
Warren  Hamilton. 

The  Ecclestonid,  1857.     James  S.  Rogers. 

The  Portfolio,  a  child's  monthly  magazine,  1858. 
By  Master  Robert  Buckley. 


1172 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


The  Brooklyn  Volks  Blatt,  1858. 

The  Brooklyn  Daily  Transcript,  1859,  a  Re- 
publit"in  cainjiaign  sheet,  South  Brooklyn. 

The  Literary  Casket,  i860.  Issued  two  numbers. 

The  Neophyte,  1S61.  (Packer  Institute  for  young 
ladies.) 

Der  Apologet,  a  Catholic  weekly,  1861.  John 
Meserole. 

The  Once  a  Week,  1863.     Wm.  G.  Bishop. 

The  Drum  Beat,  published,  under  the  editorship 
of  Rev.  Dr.  R.  S.  Storrs,  during  the  great  Sanitary  Fair. 

The  Brooklyn  Monthly,  1869.  Horace  W.  Love. 
Issued  four  numbers. 

The  Brooklyn  Daily  Register,  1869. 

The  Index,  1>^69.     A.  H.  Rome  &  Brother. 

The  Packer  Quarterly,  1868-'9;  Packer  Insti- 
tute for  young  ladies. 

The  late  J.  J.  O'Donnell  published  for  some  time 
The  Brooklyn  Standard,  as  a  campaign  paper. 

The  Brooklyn  Argus.  In  1866,  John  P.  Kenyon, 
a  native  of  England,  residing  in  Williamsburg,  started 
a  weekly  paper  under  the  above  name.  It  was  inde- 
pendent in  politics,  and  devoted  to  reform.  Daniel 
Donovan  was  associated  with  Mr.  Kenyon,  and  Henry 


McClosky  was  for  a  time  its  editor.  It  had  a  fair  local 
reputation.  In  1873,  Demas  Barnes,  who  had  previously 
been  a  Member  of  Congress  from  Brooklyn,  bought 
the  Argus,  and  on  the  15th  of  September  of  that  year, 
started  it  as  a  daily  paper,  Mr.  Kenyon  continuing  on 
the  editorial  staff.  The  equipment  of  the  paper  was 
complete  in  every  particular.  It  was  published  in  the 
building  adjoining  the  Post-office,  with  new  type,  im- 
proved presses,  and  a  strong  editorial  corps,  with  Mr. 
Barnes  at  its  head,  who  pushed  it  with  his  characteristic 
energy  and  a  lavish  expenditure  of  money.  It  attained 
a  large  circulation  and  apparent  prosperitj^  but  on  the 
17th  of  February,  1877,  it  was  suspended;  and,  in  the 
same  month,  the  entire  establishment  was  sold  to  the 
Union,  which  then  assumed  the  name  of  TTie  Union- 
Argus.  It  had  attained  a  large  circulation,  nearly 
equaling  the  Eagle.  Augustus  Maverick,  who  had  been 
early  connected  with  the  New  York  Tribune,  and  after- 
ward with  T'he  New  York  Times,  Brooklyn  Eagle  and 
Neio  York  Commercial,  was  managing  editor;  St. 
Clair  McKelway,  now  of  the  Albany  Argus,  its  chief 
editorial  writer;  with  George  D.  Bayard,  DeWitt  G. 
Ray,  Chester  P.  Dewey,  George  F.  Williams  and  Wil- 
liam Herries  at  different  times  upon  its  staff. 


HON.    DEMAS    BARNES. 


Hon.  Demas  Barnes  was  reared  amid  the  privations  of  a 
frontier  life,  which  doubtless  aided  in  developing  the  keen 
intellect,  indomitable  will  and  individuality  which,  since 
cbildhood,  liave  characterized  his  life.    We  find  him  a  farmer 

eleven  years  of  age;  a  merchant  at  twenty;  associated  in 
several  institutions  soon  thereafter;  and  a  member  of  Con- 
gress at  tliirty-nine.  His  father  was  a  New  Englander,  who 
settled  in  Western  New  York  when  that  section  of  the  state 
was  principally  covered  by  forests.  He  took  up  eighty  acres 
of  land,  subject  to  a  mortgage  of  tliree  hundred  dollars,  five 
miles  from  Canandaigua,  Ontario  Co.  The  house  was  (if  logs. 
Here  three  cliildren  were  born,  two  girls,  and  the  youngest 
of  the  three,  the  boy,  who  is  tlie  subject  of  this  sketch.  Tlie 
father  died  when  the  son  was  little  more  than  a  year  old. 
Four  years  thereafter,  the  mother  married  a  neighbor  whose 
farm  joined  her  own.  It  was  a  mile  and  a  half  to  the  dis- 
trict school,  where  the  Barnes  children  received  their  prin- 
ciple education.  In  the  summer  time,  the  lad  worked  in  the 
fields;  and,  ambitious  to  keep  up  with  the  men,  hoed  alternate 
hills  each  way.  As  a  child  and  boy,  he  was  no  more  idle 
than  he  has  been  as  a  man.  When  not  otherwise  occupied, 
he  was  damming  the  brooks,  building  mills,  looking  after  his 
ducks,  hens  and  rabbits,  gathering  nuts,  grafting  trees,  cul- 
tivating flowers,  or  in  doing  something  which  exhibited  in- 
dustry, mechanical  ingenuity,  or  horticultural  taste.  His 
first  money  was  earned  by  raising  corn  upon  shares  and  by 
building,  for  the  neighbors,  stacks  of  grain,  in  which  art  he 
excelled.  His  step-father,  who  was  fondly  devoted  to  the  boy, 
soon  became  an  invalid,  and  when  young  Barnes  was  eleven 
years  old,  he  was  regularly  carrying  on  the  two  farms  of  240 
acres. 


At  tlie  age  of  thirteen,  Demas  left  the  maternal  home  to 
seek  his  fortune  in  the  larger  world.  Working  his  passage  to 
New  York  on  a  canal  boat,  he  was  landed  in  Brooklyn  with- 
out money  or  an  acquaintance.  Begging  his  way  across 
the  ferry,  he  procured  employment  on  a  dock  and  his  board 
on  a  tow-boat.  His  first  effort  at  metropolilaa  amusement 
was  a  failure  to  witness  a  pla}-  at  the  old  Park  Theater,  for  he 
had  not  sufficient  money  to  obtain  admission.  Twenty  years 
after  that  time,  he  purchased  the  Pai-k  Theater  property, 
then  converted  into  stores.  Young  Barnes,  however,  returned 
to  the  country,  worked  as  a  mechanic  and  iijjoa  farms 
summers,  and  attended  school  winters,  doing  chores  for  his 
board.  While  making  purchases  one  evening  at  the  village 
store,  tlie  merchant  made  liim  an  offer  of  board  and  fifty 
dollars  a  j'ear  to  enter  his  store  as  clerk.  At  the  commence- 
ment of  the  second  year,  he  received  the  largest  salary  ever 
paid  a  salesman  in  the  village,  and  was  the  virtual  head  of 
the  mercantile  establisliment.  During  this  time,  he  brought 
around  him  a  class  of  young  men,  who,  after  nine  o'clock 
evenings,  carried  on  a  system  of  readings  and  various  studies. 
At  the  age  of  twenty,  he  had  saved  a  few  liundred  dollars 
with  which  he  started  business  as  a  merchant  at  Newark, 
New  York.  Two  years'  experience  convinced  him  that  coun- 
try villages  were  not  the  places  in  which  to  make  rapid  pro- 
gress. Selling  out  his  business,  he  moved  to  New  York. 
Living  upon  two  meals  a  day,  sleeping  in  his  store  and  work- 
ing early  and  late,  although  at  that  time  in  poor  health,  he 
also  managed  to  carry  on  the  farm  in  Western  New  York, 
upon  which  his  mother,  again  widowed,  was  living.  He 
educated  his  younger  half  brother  and  sisters;  superintended 
a  manufacturing  establishment;  carried  on  an  extensive  mer- 


THE  PRESS. 


IITS 


cantile  business  in  New  York  and  at  San  Francisco,  and  sub- 
sequently in  New  Orleans;  and  always  devoted  two  hours  out 
of  every  twenty-four  to  literary  pursuits.  The  panics  of 
18o7  and  1861  found  Mr.  Barnes  not  only  out  of  debt,  but  in 
a  position  to  assist  others. 

Believing  that  the  South  was  in  earnest  in  its  protest 
against  the  nomination  of  Lincoln  and  Hamlin  on  sectional 
issues  in  1860,  Mr.  Barnes  promptly  closed  all  credits,  and 
was  the  first  merchant  in  New  York  who  lirouglit  business  to 
a  net  cash  basis.  Wlien  the  war  finally  ensued,  he  believed 
that  the  government  call  for  twenty-five  thousand  men  was 
but  encouraging  the  rebellion;  and  he  offered,  at  his  own  ex- 
pense, to  equip  a  regiment  and  go  to  the  front,  if  the  govern- 
ment would  send  enough  men  to  mercifully  and  promptly 
end  the  conflict.  Subsequently  Mr.  Barnes  was  invited  by 
the  Ways  and  Means  Committee  of  Congress  to  assist  in  de- 
vising a  system  of  domestic  taxation. 

Mr.  Barnes  married  a  daughter  of  Judge  James  Hyde,  of 
Otsego  Co.,  N.  Y.,  and  took  >ip  his  residence  in  Brooklyn  in 
1858.  With  the  interests  of  the  city  he  became  promptly 
identified.  Realizing  the  benefits  New  York  was  then  de- 
riving from  lier  great  i)ark,  he  agitated  the  subject  of  a  park 
in  Brooklyn.  Out  of  this  effort  grew  Prospect  Park.  The 
original  charter  limited  its  cost  to  |600,000.  That  amount, 
however,  has  been  exceeded  by  nearly  |10,000,000,  the 
yearl}'  interest  upon  which  equals  the  first  limitation  of  cost. 
Mr.  Barnes  declined  the  position  of  Park  Commissioner  ten- 
dered to  him  by  Gov.  Morgan,  but  to  popularize  the  park,  he 
donated  to  it  the  now  well-known  bronze  of  Irving  which 
ornaments  the  principal  drive. 

!Mr.  Barnes  was  among  the  earliest  advocates  and  staunch- 
est  friends  of  a  bridge  across  East  River.  He  assisted  the 
enterprise  by  writing,  lecturing,  and  a  subscription  of 
$10,000.  The  present  bridge  was  commenced  in  1870;  but, 
in  1868,  Sir.  Barnes,  then  a  Member  of  Congress,  introduced 
and  carried  a  bill  through  that  body  by  which  the  right  was 
conceded  by  the  government  to  span  the  river  at  this  point. 
He  became  one  of  the  early  trustees  of  the  bridge  company, 
and  subsequently  caused  an  investigation  to  be  made  respect- 
ing the  expenditures. 

In  1865,  before  any  railroad  was  located  between  the  Mis- 
souri and  Sacramento  rivers,  Mr.  Barnes,  being  engaged  in 
mining  enterprises  in  the  western  territories,  crossed  the 
continent  in  a  wagon.  He  advocated  the  feasibility  of  a 
railroad,  and  communicated  the  result  of  his  observations 
through  the  newspapers. 

Mr.  Barnes  was  nominated  as  Representative  in  Congress 
in  1864,  but  declined  to  run.  He  was  again  nominated  and 
elected  in  1866.  He  was  selected  to  serve  on  the  important 
Committee  of  Banking  and  Currency,  and  on  Education  and 
Labor.  He  was  no  party  man.  He  opposed  the  radical 
measures  of  the  Republican  party  which  forced  carpet-bag 
government  upon  Southern  States,  disenfranchised  the  in- 
telligence of  the  South,  changed  the  status  of  the  Sujireme 
Court,  and  unnecessarily  expanded  the  currency  of  the  coun- 
try. He  strongly  opposed  the  attempted  impeachment  of 
President  Johnson,  as  well  as  the  extreme  ideas  of  the  Demo- 
cratic leaders  as  to  state  sovereignit}',  restriction  of  internal 
improvements,  efforts  to  tax  United  States  bonds,  free  trade 
movements,  and  so  forth.  He  never  recommended  a  man  for 
office,  because  of  mere  political  aptitude,  and  was  among  the 
first  American  speakers  to  recommend  a  total  change  in  the 
Civil  Service  regulations.  Serving  in  the  House  with  Schuyler 
Colfax,  Oakes  Ames,  Benj.  F.  Butler,  James  Brooks  and  the 
late  President  Garfield,  during  the  Pacific  Railroad  and 
Credit  Mobilier  legislation,  no  breath  ever  tainted  the  in- 
tegrity of  Demas  Barnes, 


Mr.  Barnes  retired  from  mercantile  business  while  stiU  a 
young  man,  or  when  42  years  of  age.  During  the  Franco- 
Prussian  war  he  spent  the  summer  in  those  countries,  pre- 
dicting from  the  first  the  defeat  of  France,  in  a  series  of  letters 
published  in  the  Brooklyn  newspapers. 

Publishing  a  Newspaper. — New  York  had  its  ring  with 
partners  throughout  the  State;  and  Brooklyn  had  its  ring 
with  partners  in  New  York  and  at  Albany.  With  property 
assessed  at  about  $300,000,000,  Brooklyn  had  loaned  her 
credit  to  the  amount  of  about  $40,000,000,  which  placed  a 
mortgage  of  twenty  per  cent,  on  all  property  within  its 
boundaries.  Fraudulent  ballots  by  the  thousand  were  used 
upon  election  days;  men  were  counted  into  offices  who  were 
interested  in  perpetuating  profligate  extravagance;  Brook- 
lyn's bonds  were  greatly  depreciated,  and  the  real  estate  of 
her  citizens  was  not  considered  proper  security  upon  which 
to  borrow  money. 

Under  the  guise  of  non-partisan  and  double-headed  com- 
missions, a  class  of  designing  men  had  joined  hands,  who 
controlled  every  dei>artment  of  the  city  government.  Public 
patronage  was  liberally  bestowed  upon  the  press,  and  the  city 
seemed  given  over  to  the  criminal  class.  Committees  of 
vigil  and  reform  were  inaugurated,  and  demanded  the  estab- 
lishment of  an  independent  news])aper.  In  this  emergency 
all  eyes,  as  if  bj-  common  consent,  turned  upon  Mr.  Barnes 
as  the  person  who  possessed  the  public  confidence  and  the 
nerve  to  engage  in  such  an  undertaking.  Unaided  to  the  ex- 
tent of  a  dollar  by  anyone,  and  without  ho2)e  of  other  reward 
than  serving  his  fellow  citizens,  he  invested  a  large  amount 
of  money,  turned  his  back  upon  tlie  ease  of  private  life,  and 
entered  the  arena  of  editorial  conflict. 

The  opposition  encountered  by  him,  and  the  environments 
of  the  position,  made  the  period  referred  to  historical;  and 
they  involved  an  antagonism  and  an  amount  of  labor  hereto- 
fore unknown  in  American  journalism. 

Mr.  Barnes'  Argus  made  unceasing  war  upon  double- 
headed  commissions,  which  since  have  been  abolished  ;  upon 
irresponsible  heads  of  departments,  since  then  made  respon- 
sible ;  upon  vinlegalized  primary  elections,  since  then  re- 
stricted and  legalized;  upon  the  increase  of  city  debt,  since 
then  reduced  over  twenty-five  per  cent,  per  capita  ;  upon 
carrying  national  politics  into  municipal  elections;  and  upon 
the  fountains  of  corrujition  wherever  they  existed,  and  was 
a  continuous  champion  of  "home  rule."  Although  a  Demo- 
crat upon  general  principles,  Mr.  Barnes  supported  Republi- 
cans for  office,  whenever,  in  his  judgment,  that  party  pre- 
sented the  best  men.  At  the  election  of  1881,  Mr.  Barnes 
presided  over  a  public  meeting  of  Democrats,  held  in  behalf 
of  a  Republican  candidate  for  Mayor.  Although  the  Demo- 
crats have  a  majoritj-  of  from  ten  thousand  to  fifteen  thou- 
sand votes  in  the  city,  the  influence  of  the  Argus  had  so 
permeated  the  community,  that  Mr.  Low,  the  Republcan 
candidate,  was  elected  hy  over  three  thousand  majority. 

A  man  of  enlarged  views,  quick  sympathies  and  liberal 
constructions,  Mr.  Barnes  answered  his  calumniators  whose 
hold  upon  the  public  crib  he  compelled  them  to  unloose,  by 
referring  to  the  changed  condition  of  the  city  and  to  the  mo- 
ti\'es  of  those  who  have  misrepresented  him.  Straight-for- 
ward in  his  dealings,  robust  and  emphatic  in  his  habits  of 
speech,  indulgent  with  the  inexperienced,  humane  to  the 
afflicted  and  generous  to  a  fault,  Mr.  Barnes  is  restive  with 
stupidity,  exacting  in  his  requirements,  intolerant  of  pretend- 
ers, and  has  no  sympathy  for  the  cunning  and  artifice 
of  sophists  and  insincere  persons.  It  would  be  foreign  to 
his  nature  to  use  subtle  diplomacy  or  to  expect  poi^ularity  in 
a  political  caucus.  He  calls  a  spade  a  spade;  and  a  hypocrit- 
ical rascal  in  his  presence,  is  not  apt  to  feel  that  he  is  con- 


1174 


HISTORY   OF  KINGS   COUNTY. 


sidered  a  saint.  He  was  the  only  democrat  in  the  Eastern 
States  who  publicly  opposed  the  election  of  Jlr.  Tilden  in 
187G.  Reproduction  in  Western  newspapers,  of  articles  from 
Mr.  Barnes"  caustic  pen,  is  believed  to  have  given  Ohio  to  the 
Republicans;  therebj-  electing  Hayes  President  of  the  United 
States. 

Mr.  Barnes  met  with  a  great  loss  in  the  death  of  his  tal- 
ented wife  in  1875.  Under  the  shadow  of  this  affliction  he 
shrank  from  public  life  and  retired  from  his  newspaper  when 
on  a  flood-tide  of  prosperity.  Since  that  time  he  has  been 
quietly  engaged  as  a  private  banker  in  New  York:  in  travel- 
ling and  in  literary  pursuits.  He  was  married  to  Miss  Blaks- 
ley,  of  St.  Louis,  in  1878.  Mr.  Barnes  is  a  close  observer  of 
passing  events,  reads  democratic  and  republican  journals 
alike,  repudiates  dogmas  in  religion,  and  supports  a  hospi- 
table house,  embowered  by  trees  and  surrounded  by  conserv- 
atories, stocked  with  a  practical  library  and  adorned  by 
works  of  art.  jjresided  over  by  an  accomplished  wife  and  an 
affectionate  and  charming  daughter.  When  asked  by  a 
friend  what  part  of  his  life  afforded  him  the  greatest  pleas- 
ure in  retrospect,  his  reply  was,  "the  time  when  I  was  first 
able  to  assist  my  mother  and  her  fatherless  children." 

The  Sunday  Eagle. — In  1874,  Mr.  Cohalere  estab- 
lished a  weekly  paper,  with  James  McDermott,  recently 
involved  in  Irish  troubles,  as  editor.  It  attained  sud- 
den prosperity.  It  was  published  in  Dr.  Cochran's 
building  in  Fulton  street.  The  proprietors  of  the  Ea<jle 
had  it  enjoined  from  using  their  title,  and  it  appeared 

for  some  time  as  the  "  Brooklyn ."     It  was  Boon 

afterward  discontinued. 

The  Brooklyn  Catholic  appeared  Feb,  20,  1869, 
a  weekly  religious  paper,  issued  by  Rev.  Dr.  Gardner 
and  Rev.  E.  G.  Fitzpatrick,  editors  and  proprietors, 
and  was  managed  with  great  ability  and  apparent  suc- 
cess. It  was  suspended  the  following  year.  It  was 
printed  by  Patrick  Ford  and  Brothers,  and  on  its  sus- 
pension the  Irish  World  appeared  by  the  same  print- 
ers; but,  though  edited  and  printed  in  Brooklyn,  it  was 
apparently  published  in  New  York,  Brooklyn,  Jersey 
City  and  Newark.  About  its  thirteenth  number,  W. 
E.  Robinson  was  announced  as  its  editor  with  Patrick 
Ford,  assistant  editor.  It  bad  then  about  three  or  four 
thousand  circulation.  In  about  a  year  it  was  running 
toward  a  hundred  thousand.  The  editors  had  some 
misunderstanding  concerning  the  conducting  of  the 
paper,  and  Mr.  Ford  was  announced  as  the  principal 
editor,  Mr.  Robinson's  name  having  been  withdrawn. 
It  is  now  published  in  New  York. 

The  Brooklyn  Bee,  was  published  in  September, 
1878,  at  353  Fulton  street.  It  was  a  sprightly  two-cent 
weekly,  in  favor  of  Labor  and  against  monopolies. 

The  Brooklyn  Sunday  Sun,  was  started  in 
1874.     One  of   its  managers  and  its  chief  editor  was 


Thomas  Kinsella  of  the  Eagle.  It  was  a  lively  paper, 
and  for  some  time  prospered  with  a  large  circulation 
and  vigorous  editorials;  but  was  discontinued  in  its 
second  year.  It  was  published  at  301  Washington 
street,  corner  of  Johnson  street,  now  occupied  by  Hubel's 
restaurant. 

The  Brooklyn  Daily  Ledger,  was  started  October 
3,  1877,  by  Henry  M.  Smith,  editor,  and  Harry  M. 
Gardner,  Jr.,  publisher,  at  the  corner  of  Court  and 
Joralemon  streets.  Mr.  Smith  had  been  for  a  time  chief 
editor  of  the  Union,  and  on  severing  his  connection 
with  that  paper,  established  the  Ledger.  It  was  a  one- 
cent  afternoon  paper,  and  lived  about  a  year. 

All  the  foregoing  papers,  with  many  of  their  editors, 
have  passed  away.  From  the  numerous  dead  we  turn 
to  the  living. 

The  Brooklyn  Freie  Presse. — This  flourishing 
German  ilaily  w.as  originally  started  in  Williamsburgh, 
September  2d,  1854,  by  Edward  F.  Roelir,  who  landed 
here  in  1840,  a  refugee  from  Germany,  because  of  the 
failure  of  the  Revolution  of  1848.  The  paper  was  first  a 
weekly,  called  the  Lmig  Island  Anzeiger,  printed  in  New 
York  for  a  few  weeks  and  then  transferred  to  Darbee's 
office  in  South  First  street.  Soon  after,  type  and  a  hand- 
press  were  bought,  and  a  printing  and  publishing  office 
was  opened  at  No.  98  Montroge  avenue.  After  about  a 
year  the  paper  was  discontinued. 

Nearly  ten  years  later  Henry  Edward  Roehr,  eldest 
son  of  Edward  F.,  entered  into  partnership  with 
his  father  in  the  printing  business,  and  the  long 
Island  Anzeiger  again  appeared  December  3d,  1864. 
It  prospered  so  well  that  it  was  several  times  enlarged, 
and  October  13th,  1869,  was  issued  serai-weekly; 
July  18th,  1871,  its  issues  were  made  tri-weekly; 
September  30th,  1872,  it  was  published  daily,  and  its 
name  changed  to  the  Freie  Presse.  In  1873  Colonel 
Henrj'E.  Roehr  purchased  his  father's  half  interest  and 
became  sole  proprietor,  and  in  1875  secured  the  premises 
at  No.  30  Myrtle  avenue.  April  20th,  1873,  a  success- 
ful Sunday  issue  was  commenced,  called  the  Long 
Islander,  which  was  the  first  Sunday  edition  issued  by 
any  Brooklyn  paper;  in  1882  it  was  enlarged.  The 
circulation  of  the  F'eie  Presse  having  increased  so 
largely,  greater  press  facilities  became  necessary  and, 
in  1882,  Colonel  Roehr  purchased  a  Hoe  type-revolv- 
ing, Webb-perfecting  press,  which  prints,  cuts  and 
folds  from  the  type,  two  sides  at  a  time,  12,000  im- 
pressions per  hour. 

The  paper  is  edited  with  marked  ability,  and  reflects 
great  credit  on  its  enterprising  publisher. 


Col.    henry  EDWARD    ROEHR. 


TSE  PRESS. 


11V5 


COL.    HENRY    EDWARD    ROEHR. 


CoLONKL  Henry  Edward  Roehr.— Among  the  German- 
Ameiican  citizens  of  Brooklyn,  who,  by  their  energy,  perse- 
verance and  business  tact,  have  made  a  mark  for  themselves, 
no  one  ranks  higher  than  Col.  Henry  Edward  Roehr,  the  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch.  Born  in  Schleiz,  in  the  Piincipality  of 
Reuss,  Germany,  in  the  year  1841,  he  was  but  seven  years  old 
when  the  ever  memorable  revolution  of  1848  broke  forth  and 
shook  up  the  old  bones  on  the  tlu-ones  ot  Europe  in  a  lively 
style.  One  of  the  leaders  in  tlie  revolutionary  movement  in 
the  small  Principality  where  Col.  Roehr  hails  from,  was  his 
father,  Mr.  Edward  Franz  Roehr,  who,  although  being  an 
officer  of  the  small  military  establishment  of  that  little  poten- 
tate, Prince  Henry  the  LXII.,  by  word  and  deed  did  his  ut- 
most to  arouse  the  people  against  their  tyrants.  He  assisted 
in  organizing  the  Land  wehr  (militia),  and  was  elected  a  dele- 
gate to  different  bodies.  But  the  overthrow  of  the  revolution 
of  1848,  and  the  collapse  of  tlie  uprising  of  the  people  in  the 
southern  part  of  Germany  in  1849,  sent  him  with  thousands 
of  other  refugees  to  the  ideal  land  of  their  dreams,  the  great 
republic  of  America. 

In  common  with  all  immigrants,  and  not  being  a  mechanic, 
Mr.  Roehr's  first  experience  in  America  was  anything  but 
pleasant.  He  came  to  Williamsburgh,  our  present  Eastern 
District,  shortly  after  landing,  and,  after  working  on  a  farm, 
in  a  whalebone  factory,  and  trying  to  make  life  sweeter  by 
manufacturing  candy  with  a  fellow-refugee,  he  at  last  en- 
gaged in  an  enterprise  more  to  his  liking  and  taste.  It  con- 
sisted in  selling  German  books,  periodicals  and  papers;  the 
first  few  dollars  earned  by  this  occvipation  were  sent  to  Ger- 
many, and  soon  enough  was  saved  to  bring  Jlrs.  Roehr  and 
four  children  to  the  shores  of  this  country,  after  a  most 
tedious  sea  voyage  of  nine  weeks.  This  arrival  happened  in 
1850,  in  August,  and  as  shortly  thereafter  a  new  German 
paper  was  started  in  New  York,  called  the  Abend  Zeituvg, 
Mr.  Roehr  took  the  agency  for  Brooklyn,  and  young  Edward, 
not  quite  nine  and  a  half  years  old,  was  soon  actively  engaged 
in  carrying  out  these  papers. 

The  business  of  Mr.  Roehr  jirospered,  and,  in  1853  he 
opened  a  bookstore  in  South  7tli  street,  or  what  is  now  Broad- 
way. Edward  had  to  assist  in  tending  the  store,  and  here  at 
an  early  age  acquired  a  taste  for  books  that  has  never  left  him. 
The  book-store  was  soon  thereafter  moved  to  No.  90  Montrose 
avenue,  into  the  heart  of  our  present  "  Dutchtown,"  where  it 
was  thought  a  better  chance  for  selling  German  books  would 
exist.  Here  Mr.  Roehr,  Sr.,  conceived  the  idea  of  establishing 
a  GermaJi  paper,  which  he  carried  out  September  3d,  1854, 
by  commencing  the  publication  of  the  Long  Island  Anzeiger, 
and  establishing  a  German  newspaper  and  job  printing  office. 
The  subject  of  this  sketch  here  thoroughly  learned  the 
mysteries  of  the  "black  art,"  and  many  a  day  rolled  forms 
on  the  hand-press  and  "  stuck  "  type  together.  But  the  Aii- 
zelger  did  not  prosper,  and  expired  peacefully  August  23d, 
1855.  Meanwhile,  Mr.  Roehr  however  had  established 
another  journal,  "  T/ie  TViarigeZ,"  a  German  Masonic  paper 
which  was  published  for  35  years  in  succession. 

Young  Roehr,  however,  stuck  to  his  case  and  press,  and, 
although  still  very  young,  became  quite  an  efficient  printer. 
In  1857,  however,  he  thought  it  was  about  time  that  he 
should  see  something  of  this  great  country,  and  he  accord- 
ingly set  out  on  a  journey  to  see  the  land  and  improve  him- 
self in  his  trade.  Albany  was  the  first  place  where  he  stopped, 


and  obtained  work  at  the  office  of  the  Albany  Freie  Blaetter, 
at  the  big  salary  of  $3.50  per  week  and  board.  Here  he  set 
type,  made  up  the  forms  and  printed  the  paper  on  a  hand 
press,  and  also  began  to  write  small  items  for  the  paper. 
From  here  he  went  to  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  where  he  worked  but 
little  in  difl'erent  offices,  because  business  was  very  dull.  In 
the  fall  of  1858,  he  was  about  to  attach  himself  to  the  German 
Theatre  in  Cincinnati,  he  having  previously  attempted  a  little 
amateur  acting,  when  he  received  a  call  to  assume  charge  of 
the  job  printing  office  of  an  Evansville  German  paper  at  a 
very  liberal  salary.  In  this  position  lie  remained  about  eight 
months,  when  he  left  the  situation,  much  to  the  regret  of  his 
employer,  Mr.  Val.  Schmuck.  After  visiting  other  cities,  he 
returned  to  Williamsburgh  in  the  fall  of  1859,  and  resumed 
work  in  the  printing  office  of  his  father,  where  he  remained 
until  the  spring  of  1861. 

When,  in  the  spring  of  1861,  President  Lincoln  issued  his 
first  proclamation  for  volunteers,  and  the  young  and  patri- 
otic men  of  the  country  flew  to  arms,  young  Roehr,  then  in 
his  twentieth  year,  was  the  fourth  man  who  signed  his  name 
to  a  call  for  \'oluuteers  that  was  issued  by  the  Turner  Socie- 
ties of  New  York,  Brooklyn,  Williamsburgh,  and  other  cities 
in  the  vicinity  of  New  York,  and  assisted  in  organizing  com- 
panies I  and  K  of  the  Twentieth  New  York  Volunteers  (Col. 
Max  Weber),  also  known  as  the  "  Turner  Rifles."  He  marched 
out  as  First  Sergeant  of  Company  I;  and,  although  he  had 
never  before  handled  a  musket,  he  soon  made  himself  pro- 
ficient and  acquainted  with  all  the  details  of  the  service.  In 
a  little  skirmish  that  took  place  at  New  Market  Bridge, 
about  five  miles  from  Hampton,  Virginia,  in  December,  1861, 
he  was  wounded  in  the  head,  and  came  very  near  having  his 
military  and  other  career  suddenly  stopped.  He,  however, 
soon  recovered,  got  a  furlough  for  a  month,  and  soon  there- 
after, when  Col.  Weber  was  promoted  Brigadier-General,  and 
one  step  of  promotion  went  through  the  regiment,  was 
promoted  Second-Lieutenant.  It  is  said  that  he  never  felt 
so  proud  in  all  his  life,  as  when  he  first  donned  shoulder- 
straps.  With  his  regiment,  after  leaving  Norfolk,  Va.,  he 
joined,  in  June,  1862,  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  in  front  of 
Richmond,  when  the  20th  Regt.,  N.  Y.  Vols.,  was  assigned  to 
the  Third  Brigade,  Second  Division,  Sixth  Army  Corps. 
With  these  troops  the  regiment  took  part  in  the  "seven  days' 
fight,"  resulting  in  the  retreat  to  Harrison  Landing.  Here 
Lieutenant  Roehr  was  taken  ill  with  camp  fever,  and  when 
again  sufficiently  well  to  assume  duty,  he  was  assigned  to  the 
command  of  the  Brigade  Ambulance  Corps.  He  continued 
in  charge  of  this  trust  through  the  campaigns  in  Maryland 
(South  Mountain  and  Antietam)  and  the  first  battle  at  Fred- 
ericksburgh,  Va.,  when,  having  been  promoted  First  Lieu- 
tenant, he  joined  his  regiment  again,  and  assumed  his  duties 
as  such.  As  First  Lieutenant  he  also  performed  the  duties 
of  Adjutant,  Quartermaster  and  Commandant  of  Companies, 
and  finally  took  part  with  his  regiment  in  the  battle  of 
Mary's  Heights,  in  tlie  rear  of  Fredericksburgh,Va.,  May  4th, 
1863.  The  time  of  service  of  the  regiment  having  now  ex- 
pired, the  sanie  was  ordered  home  May  6th,  and  he  returned 
with  his  comrades  a  few  days  later  to  New  York  and  Wil- 
liamsburgh. 

In  the  attempted  re-organization  of  the  30th  Regt.,N.  Y. 
Vols.,  he  was  selected  as  a  Captain,  but  as  it  soon  became 
apparent  that  there  was  no  chance  of  I'e-organizing  the  regi- 


1176 


SISTORT  OF  KINGS  COtTNTT. 


ment,  he  laid  aside  all  further  military  aspirations,  and  re- 
turned to  his  former  business.  After  working  in  a  few  offices 
in  New  York,  he  thought  of  establishing  a  small  printing 
ofUee  for  himself,  when  his  father  offered  him  a  share  in  his 
business.  It  was,  of  course,  accepted,  and,  with  the  money 
that  he  put  in,  a"  Campbell  Country  Press"  was  bought,  and 
the  old  hand-press,  which  had  done  service  for  ten  years,  was 
jjut  in  a  corner.  It  now  occurred  to  young  Roehr  that  there 
would  be  a  splendid  chance  of  starting  a  German  paper  in 
that  part  of  the  city,  at  that  time  and  now  known  as  "  Dutch- 
town."  Numerous  German  societies  had  sprung  into  existence 
in  the  last  few  years,  business  prospects  seemed  very  good, 
and  many  matters  of  common  interest  to  the  German  popula- 
tion of  the  Eastern  District  of  Brooklyn  seemed  to  demand 
their  discussion  by  a  German  paper.  When  this  idea  was  first 
broached  to  Mr.  Roehr,  he,  however,  strenuously  opposed  the 
Ijlan,  believing  that  this  second  enterprise  would  in  no  wise 
end  differently  from  the  first.  But,  persistently  arguing  the 
matter,  and  showing  that  things  were  quite  different  from 
ten  years  before,  when  the  whole  German  population  of 
Brooklyn  perhaps  did  not  number  more  than  10,000,  while 
in  186-1  it  counted  at  least  40,000,  young  Roehr  at  last  suc- 
ceeded in  getting  his  father's  consent  to  the  publication  of 
the  new  paper,  for  which  the  old  name.  Long  Island  Anzei- 
fjer,  was  again  chosen.  As  it  was  not  intended  that  the 
paper  should  be  looked  upon  as  a  campaign  issue  only,  the 
iniblication  of  the  same  was  postponed  until  after  the  elec- 
tion of  1864,  when,  on  Saturday,  December  3d,  the  first  num- 
ber of  the  new  Long  Island  Anzeiger  was  published.  Tlie 
office  of  the  paper  at  that  time  was  in  No.  40  Stagg  street, 
and  the  paper  itself  was  four  pages  of  five  columns  each  ; 
eacli  page  measuring  23xl6i — or,  23x33  over  all.  To  be  can- 
did, it  should  be  said  that  the  typographic  appearance  and 
the  i>ress-work  left  much  to  be  desired.  However,  the  start 
was  made,  and  many  were  the  predictions  that  about  six  or 
eight  months  would  be  sufficient  to  lay  the  new  paper  to  its 
forerunners.  But  this  proved  to  be  a  mistake,  for  the  paper 
crejit  on  slowly,  it  Is  true;  but  already,  on  the  38th  of  July, 
1866,  it  was  presented  to  its  readers  in  an  enlarged  form,  as  a 
seven-column  paper,  24x38  inches.  The  growing  business 
soon  made  it  necessary  to  look  out  for  larger  quarters  than 
the  hovise.  No.  40  Stagg  street,  could  afford,  and  in  conse- 
quence thereof,  the  three-story  brick  house.  No.  61  Montrose 
avenue,  was  erected,  and  the  business  moved  into  the  same 
on  the  7th  day  of  August,  1869.  Larger  quarters  now  hav- 
ing been  secured,  the  paper  was  published  twice  a  week, 
commencing  October  13th,  1869,  and  the  price  reduced  from 
five  cents  to  four  cents  per  copy.  This  increase  in  the  edi- 
tions proved  such  a  success,  that,  not  quite  two  years  later, 
on  July  18,  1871,  it  was  again  determined  to  enlarge  the  scope 
of  the  paper,  and  to  publish  it  three  times  a  week ;  the  size 
of  tlie  paper  was  cut  down  to  its  former  length  and  width,  and 
the  price  also  again  reduced,  this  time  to  three  cents  per  copy. 
It  now  seemed  as  if  the  Long  Island  Anzeiger  would,  for  a 
long  time,  remain  what  it  was,  a  tri-weekly  paper,  but  the 
intermission  of  one  day  in  its  publication  only  served  to  more 
distinctly  show  that  there  was  quite  a  "link"  missing  to 
report  faithfully  and  extensively  the  events  of  each  da3^ 

If  the  proprietors  of  the  Anzeiger  had  possessed  a  sufficient 
amount  of  capital,  the  solution  of  this  dilemma  would  have 
been  easy  enough,  and  the  publication  of  a  daily  paper  the 
very  next  thing.  But  the  publication  of  a  daily  paper  would 
not  only  increase  the  running  expenses  of  the  paper  to  very 
nearly  double  the  amount;  it  might,  also,  if  the  enterprise 
should  turn  out  unsuccessful,  carry  down  with  it  the  hard 
and  unceasing  labor  of  eight  years.  After,  however,  taking 
everj  thing  into  consideration,  and  fully  believing  that  the 


German  people  would  also  fully  support  the  daily,  as  it  had 
heretofore  given  its  unstinted  help  to  the  earlier  publications, 
it  was  finally  resolved  to  publish  the  jjaper  daily,  and  Sep- 
tember 30,  1872,  was  decided  upon  as  the  day,  from  whence 
the  paper  should  so  greet  its  readers. 

The  paper  up  to  this  time,  with  its  name  of  Long  Island 
Anzeiger,  had  been  principally  known  as  an  Eastern  Disti'ict 
enterprise,  and  as  an  organ  of  the  Germans  of  that  district ; 
and  in  order  to  give  it,  with  its  entrance  upon  the  field  of 
dally  journalism,  a  wider  scope,  and  make  it  the  representa- 
tive of  the  Germans  of  the  whole  city,  it  was  resolved  to 
change  the  name  to  the  Brooliyn  Freie  Presse,  and  an  office 
was  established  in  the  Western  District.  The  price  of  the 
paper  was  fixed  at  15  cents  jier  week,  and  a  Hoe  double- 
cylinder  press  was  procured  for  the  press-work.  The  publi- 
cation office  remained  at  No.  61  Montrose  avenue. 

The  expected  success  of  the  daily  issue,  however,  did  not 
come,  and  Col.  Roehr  about  this  time  did  some  of  the  hardest 
work  of  his  life.  He  not  only  attended  to  the  business  part 
of  the  concern  almost  alone,  but  also  superintended  the  job 
printing  room,  procured  advertisements,  and  even  personally 
canvassed  for  subscribers  among  the  (iermans,  and  paid  due 
attention  to  the  editorial  conduct  of  the  paper ;  and  last, 
but  not  least,  commanded  the  32d  Regiment  of  the  National 
Guard.  In  the  year  1873,  he  purchased  his  father's  interest 
in  the  business,  and  became  the  sole  owner  of  the  pajier. 

Slowly  the  paper  kept  growing  in  circulation;  the  puUica- 
tion  office,  however,  being  about  two  and  a  half  miles 
away  from  the  City  Hall  and  the  Courthouse,  the  Post 
Office  a  mile  distant,  it  soon  became  apparent  that,  to  make 
a  real  success  of  the  paper,  a  change  of  base  was  necessary, 
and  that  to  the  Western  District,  near  the  public  offices  of  the 
city,  and  its  mercantile  and  political  centres. 

After  looking  about  for  some  time,  the  house.  No.  30 
M3'rtle  avenue,  was  at  last  secured,  and,  in  May,  1875,  the 
erection  of  a  two-story  brick  extension  was  begun  and  other 
alterations  made  to  prepare  the  house  for  its  new  use.  As 
the  publication  of  the  paper  at  the  old  office  had  to  be  con- 
tinued, a  new  steam  boiler  and  engine  had  also  to  be  bought. 
On  Saturday  night,  June  5,  1875,  the  presses,  type,  &c.,  were 
moved  from  61  Montrose  avenue  to  30  Myrtle  avenue. 
Everything  having  carefully  been  previously  arranged,  on 
the  following  Monday,  June  7,  1875,  the  Freie  Presse,  for  the 
first  time,  was  issued  from  its  present  location,  No.  30  Myrtle 
avenue,  a  block  away  from  the  City  Hall,  Court-house,  and 
Municipal  Department  Building. 

This  "  change  of  base  "  proved  to  be  of  great  service  to  the 
paper,  for  it  not  only  enabled  it  to  publish  the  latest  munici- 
pal news,  but  it  also  gave  it  a  position  of  influence  and 
prominence.  The  circulation  also  at  once  commenced  to 
grow,  and  has  done  so  steadily  up  to  the  time  of  this  writing, 
and  will  no  doubt  do  so  in  future. 

To  the  Freie  Presse  also  belongs  the  distinction  of  having 
been  the  first  paper  to  come  out  with  a  Sunday  edition.  This 
occurred  on  April  19,  1873,  when  the  Long  Islander  made  its 
first  appearance.  It  was  given  gratis  to  the  readers  of  the 
Freie  Presse,  and  consisted  only  of  four  small  pages.  But  it 
was  so  much  favored  by  the  public,  that  on  December  6, 
1874,  it  was  enlarged  to  eight  pages.  On  April  14,  1878,  it 
was  again  enlarged,  and  the  price  for  the  same  fixed  at  three 
cents,  while  that  for  the  daily  issue  was  reduced  to  two 
cents.  On  January  14,  1880,  the  paper  was  again  increased 
so  its  size  was  28x43  inches.  One  page  was  devoted 
to  Masonic  matters,  this  page  taking  the  place  of  the 
Triangel,  mentioned  above,  which,  after  an  existence  of  25 
years  (and  in  the  latter  j'ears  being  edited  by  Colonel  Roehr), 
was  merged  into  the  Long  Islander. 


7^ 


^^^^-^^ur 


THE  PRESS. 


\ihi 


This  venture,  however,  not  finding  that  appreciation  which 
it  was  expected  it  would,  the  Masonic  page  ceased  to  exist  on 
Jauuary  1,  1881,  having  had  an  existence  of  just  two  years. 
On  September  23,  18S3,  another  enlargement  tooli  place,  and 
a  cohimn  being  added  to  each  page,  its  size  measured  33x46 
inches,  making  it  one  of  tlie  largest  and  best  Sunday  papers 
publislied  in  tlie  German  language  in  tlie  United  States. 

The  increased  circulation  of  the  paper  made  it  necessary  to 
look  for  some  l)etter  facilities  to  do  the  press- work.  After 
examining  a  number  of  presses,  it  was  finally  resolved  to 
order  one  of  Hoe's  web  perfecting  presses,  which  prints  di- 
rect from  type,  cuts  and  folds  the  paper  at  the  rate  of  12,000 
copies  an  hour.  This  press  was  put  in  operation  in  the  month 
of  December,  1882,  and  proved  itself  a  great  success.  It 
necessitated  an  outlay  of  nearly  |18,000,  but  gave  the  paper 
the  opportunity  to  supply  all  the  demands  for  it  in  seasonable 
time. 

Thus,  Col.  Roehr  lias  the  proud  distinction  of  being  at  an 
early  age  (42  in  1888),  at  tlie  head  of  a  paper  wliich  is,  in  a 
great  measure,  his  own  work,  and  wJiicli  liids  fair  to  become, 
in  the  near  future,  one  of  the  best  German  papers  in  tlie 
United  States. 

His  rank  as  Colonel,  Mr.  Roehr  lias  earned  by  eight  years 
of  service  in  the  National  Guard  of  the  State  of  New  York. 
In  the  summer  of  1868,  he  was  authorized  to  raise  a  battahon 
of  Infantry  of  four  companies,  in  the  Eastern  District  of 
Brooklyn,  for  the  11th  Brigade,  at  tliat  time  commanded 
by  that  genial  soldier  and  gentleman,  General  Jere.  V. 
Meserole.  In  October  of  that  year,  the  battalion  was 
mustered  into  the  state  service,  designated  as  tlie  Battalion 
of  Infantry,  32d  Regiment,  with  six  companies.  Mr.  Roehr 
was  elected  Major,  and  rose  to  the  position  of  Lieutenant- 
Colonel:  and  when  the  Regimental  organization  was  com- 
pleted, he  was  elected  Colonel,  and  retained  command  until 
November,  1876,  when  he  resigned  his  commission.  It  must 
be  said  that  the  Regiment  has  never  again  maintained  that 
degree  of  perfection  in  drill,  discipline  and  appearance  it  en- 
joyed under  the  command  of  Col.  Roelir. 

In  politics.  Col.  Roehr  early  espoused  the  Republican  cause 
but  with  many  others,  in  1ST3,  joined  tlie  "  Liberal "  move- 


ment. After  the  collapse  of  that  attempt  to  reform  party 
politics,  he  again  joined  the  Republican  forces  and  served  as 
member  of  the  General  Committee  and  delegate  to  nu- 
merous conventions.  In  1879  he  acquiesced  in  the  wish  of  a 
great  number  of  his  party-friends,  and  accepted  tlie  Repub- 
lican nomination  as  State  Senator  against  the  Hon.  John 
C.  Jacobs,  one  of  the  most  prominent  Democrats  of  the 
Empire  State.  Of  course  he  did  not  expect  to  be  elected; 
but  the  great  number  of  votes  he  received,  under  especially 
unfavorably  circumstances,  astonished  even  his  political 
enemies. 


A  German  paper  called  The  Ameiger  was  started 
by  A.  Fries,  in  1851,  three  years  before  its  name- 
.sake  by  Mr.  Roehr,  and  was  afterward  published  as 
a  daily  under  the  name  of  the  Long  Island  Zeitung, 
but  it  died  in  1854,  the  year  Mr.  Roehr  first  started 
his  paper. 

Another  and  more  recent  Anzeiger  was  published  at 
14  Boerum  Place  in  1880,  by  II.  Soshinsky. 

The  Brooklyn  Times. — On  the  28th  of  February, 
1848,  the  WilUamsburgh  Daily  Times  first  appeared. 
It  is  now  known  as  the  Brooklyn  Daily  Times.  It 
was  published  by  George  C.  Bennett  and  Aaron  Smith. 
It  sprang  up  from  a  quarrel  among  the  proprietors  of 
the  Morning  Post,  which  was  issued  about  a  year  be- 
fore by  Thomas  Devyr  and  Messrs.  Bennett  and  Smith. 
The  Times  was  at  first  neutral  and  independent,  but 
soon  became  Whig  and  afterward  Republican.  The 
paper  was  a  success  from  the  start.  In  1856,  Mr. 
Bennett  was  the  sole  proprietor  and  became  wealthy. 
A  few  years  ago  he  sold  it  to  Messrs.  Bernard  Peters 
and  George  H.  Fisher,  in  whose  hands  it  is  now  in  a 
prosperous  condition.  Mr.  Peters  edits  it  with  ability 
and  eminent  success. 


BERNARD    PETERS. 


Bernard  Peters. — The  work  of  editing  a  daily  newspajier 
is  peculiarly  exacting,  requiring  special  gifts  in  him  who  at- 
tempts it.  He  must  be  quick  to  choose  the  right  course  in  the 
difficult  situations  that  constantly  occur,  must  foresee  the 
effect  of  every  move  upon  the  political  chessboard;  must 
judge  correctly  tlie  drift  of  popular  sentiment;  in  short, 
must  in  every  sense,  know  everything  and  make  no  mis- 
takes. Moreover  a  Broohhjn  newspaper  lias  peculiar  diffi- 
culties. Published  in  a  city  suburban  to  the  metropolis,  its 
field  is  necessarily  limited,  while  it  is  compelled  to  cope  on 
its  own  ground  witli  the  metropolitan  journals  that  are  sure 
to  have  a  field  so  much  more  extended;  its  price  must  be  as 
low,  its  enterprise  must  equal,  and  its  quality  and  literary 
standard  must  compare  favorably  with  the  best  New  York 
papers.  The  successful  growth  of  the  Brooklyn  Times,  in  the 
face  of  such  disadvantages,  to  its  present  commanding  posi- 
tion in  the  journalistic  field,  is  a  monument  to  the  ability  of 
its  editors.  Its  phenomenal  prosjierity  since  1869  is  largely  due 
to  the  clear-headed,  liberal,  intelligent  management,  and  the 
talents,  honesty  and  enterprise  of  its  editor,  Mr.  Bernard  Peters. 


Mr.  Peters  is  a  native  of  Durckheim,  in  the  Rhine  Palatin- 
ate, a  region  noted  for  the  beauty  of  its  natural  scenery,  and 
the  intelligence,  the  thrift,  and  the  progressive  spirit  of  its 
citizens.  He  inherited  from  his  ancestors  a  love  of  liberty, 
those  progressive  ideas,  and  the  breadth  of  intellect  which 
have  given  him  the  strength  that  served  to  crown  him  with 
success  in  after  years.  He  came  to  this  country  as  a  child  with 
his  father,  John  Philip  Peters;  he  grew  to  manhood  in  Marietta, 
Ohio,  receiving  a  thorough  education.  By  his  father's  desire  he 
began  the  study  of  the  law,  but  when  sixteen,  reverses  com- 
pelled him  to  take  a  clerkship  in  a  dry-goods  store.  A  youth 
of  his  ambition  could  not  tamely  relinquish  his  plans  for  a 
profession,  so  in  spare  moments  he  read  the  elementary 
text-books  of  the  law,  under  the  direction  of  a  preceptor, 
Ferdinand  Buell,  Esq.  He  also  took  a  deep  interest  in  the 
jiolitical  history  of  this  country,  mastering  its  early  records, 
perusing  attentively  the  hves  and  works  of  the  fathers  of  the 
Republic,  familiarizing  himself  with  constitutional  questions, 
and  studying  the  speeches  of  contemporary  political  orators. 
These  studies  strongly  influenced  his  mind  in  the  direction  of 


117S 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


the  work  which  he  was  destined  to  perform  in  future  years. 
But  new  influences  turned  his  course  from  his  first  inten- 
tions. He  became  an  intimate  friend  of  Rev.  T.  C.  Eaton, 
at  that  time  the  genial,  popular,  and  kindly  Pastor  of  the 
Universalist  Church  in  Marietta,  and  the  clergyman  in  turn 
became  solicitous  that  the  young  student's  bright  intellect  and 
aptitude  for  public  speaking  should  be  used  in  the  service  of 
the  church.  After  months  of  thought,  and  not  without  his 
father's  consent,  he  decided  to  study  for  the  ministry,  enter- 
ing in  August,  1848,  the  Clinton  Liberal  Institute,  at  Clinton, 
N.  Y.,  then  in  charge  of  Rev.  Dr.  T.  J.  Sawyer,  who  was  for 
many  years  Pastor  of  the  Orchard  Street  Universalist  Church 
in  New  York.  In  1853  Mr.  Peters  was  ordained,  soon  there- 
after taking  charge  of  the  Second  Universalist  Church  in 
Cincinnati.  In  1856  Mr.  Peters  was  called  to  All  Souls' 
Church,  Brooklyn,  E.  D.,  where  his  pastorate  lasted  for  eight 
years,  during  which  time,  however,  he  made  an  extensive 
tour  in  Eurojae.  While  abroad  he  wrote  letters  to  the 
Brooklyn  Times  and  other  journals.  Soon  after  his  return 
the  war  broke  out.  Mr.  Peters'  political  studies  made  him 
thoroughly  conversant  with  the  constitutional  questions  in- 
volved, and  he  ardently  embraced  the  Union  cause.  His 
clear  and  intelligent  discussion  of  the  important  themes  of 
the  day  drew  crowds  of  eager  hearers  to  his  church  on 
Fourth  St.,  while  his  services  as  a  patriotic  speaker  were  in 
great  demand.  But  in  time  his  health  gave  way  under  the 
stra'u  of  such  active  and  continuous  labor.  The  result  was, 
that  in  1804  he  was  called  to  and  settled  over  a  church  in 
Hartford,  Ct.,  in  the  hope  of  better  health  from  the  change. 
The  startling  events  of  1865,  the  end  of  the  war.  President 
Lincoln's  assassination.  President  Johnson's  extraordinary 
course  soon  thereafter,  and  the  problems  of  reconstruction 
interested  Mr.  Peters  intensely;  he  freely  expressed  his 
views  on  national  questions,  and  this  to  the  satisfaction  of 
men  of  both  parties.  About  this  time,  David  Clark,  Esq., 
proprietor  of  the  Hartford  Post,  applied  to  Mr.  Peters  to  take 
editorial  charge  of  his  paper  and  make  it  an  advanced  Re- 
publican organ.  The  latter  wrote  the  leading  articles  in  his 
study  for  some  months,  then  resigned  his  pastorate,  notwith- 
standing the  earnest  remonstrances  of  his  people,  and  gave 
his  time  whoUy  to  editorial  work.  This  work  he  found  not 
only  every  way  congenial,  but  in  the  highest  degree  satis- 
factory; and  particularly  so,  as  he  was  in  the  prosecution  of 
it  restored  to  the  best  possible  condition  of  health. 

After  two  years,  the  Post  changed  hands  and  Mr.  Peters 
returned  to  the  ministry,  taking  charge  of  a  church  at  Read- 
ing, Pa.  But  his  health,  after  a  short  but  successful  pastor- 
ate, again  broke  down.  It  became  evident  to  him  then  that 
if  his  life  was  to  be  preserved  he  must  permanently  abandon 
the  ministry.  Therefore,  in  1868,  he  bought  a  half  interest  in 
the  Brooklyn  Times,  which  had  been  founded,  in  1848,  by 
Hon.  George  C.  Bennett. 

The  estimation  in  which  Brooklyn  people  held  Mr.  Peters 
is  evinced  by  a  business  man's  remark  at  the  time  :  "That 
adds  twenty-five  thousand  dollars  to  the  value  of  the  Times." 
For  six  J  ears  Messrs.  Bennett  and  Peters  managed  the  paper 
jointly,  when  the  latter  purchased  his  partner's  interest  and 
became  sole  director.  The  paper's  remarkable  success  shows 
his  wisdom,  forethought,  political  sagacity  and  literary  skill. 
Three  times  he  enlarged  it,  and  increased  its  facilities. 
Within  three  years  the  Times  building  has  been  doubled  in 
size;  two  Scott  web  presses  of  large  capacity  have  been  put 
in,  and  an  outfit  provided  equal  to  that  of  any  evening  paper 
in  the  country.  In  fact,  the  Times  is  one  of  the  few  successes, 
both  financial  and  literary,  among  newspapers.  A  large 
fire-proof  building,  with  an  entrance  on  South  Eighth  street, 
has  been  built  during  the  current  year.     In  this  the  improved 


presses,  with  a  capacity  of  sixty  thousand  copies  per  hour, 
are  to  be  placed,  and  on  which  all  the  work  pertaining  to  the 
printing  of  the  Times  is  hereafter  to  be  done. 

Mr.  Peters'  characteristics  as  an  editor  are  widely  known. 
At  once  liberal  and  cautious,  enterprising  and  careful,  he 
has  never  spared  any  outlay  for  improvements  that  would 
advance  his  purpose  of  making  a  thoroughly  good  newspaper. 
He  has  always  had  strong  faith  in  the  people,  believing  that 
the  masses  of  men  are  honest  and  true  to  their  convictions  of 
right.  Himself  a  man  of  principle,  upright  and  truthful,  he 
gauges  the  opinions  and  feelings  of  others  by  his  own;  hence 
he  voices  popular  opinion  with  remarkable  accuracy.  He  is 
no  trimmer,  but  a  courageous  advocate  of  his  ideas  of  right. 
His  writings  are  firm  and  dignified  in  tone,  not  vacillating 
or  temporizing;  hence  they  have  the  weight  with  men  that 
the  words  of  an  honest,  earnest  man  always  carry.  The 
Times  is  a  leader  of  jiublic  sentiment,  and  its  course  has  ac- 
corded with  the  views  of  the  better  class  of  citizens.  Its  at- 
titude in  reference  to  the  third  term,  the  stalwart  move- 
ment, civil  service  reform,  "  bossism,"  and  business  methods 
in  municipal  affairs  has  been  in  favor  of  a  pure  government 
"of  the  people,  for  the  people,  and  by  the  people."  It  was  one 
of  the  first  to  advocate  a  sound  currency  founded  upon  the 
national  banking  system.  It  believes  m  the  inherent  right 
of  government  to  restrain  corporations  within  proper  limits, 
and  it  deals  with  the  problems  of  the  da}-  in  a  wise  and  fearless 
way.  W^ith  all  facilities  for  gathering  foreign  news,  it  by 
no  means  neglects  local  interests,  its  columns  being  a  faith- 
ful chronicle  of  life  in  the  City  of  Churches. 

The  people  of  Brooklyn  are  to  be  congratulated  upon  hav- 
ing in  their  midst  a  journal  that  with  such  alertness  guards 
their  interests  at  home,  in  Legislature  and  Congress;  while 
the  Times  is  equally  to  be  congratulated  upon  the  suppoit 
given  it  by  the  people,  and  its  signal  success  under  the 
management  of  its  conscientious  and  far-seeing  editor. 
Judging  from  the  past,  the  fondest  anticipations  may  be 
indulged  in  as  to  the  future  of  the  Brooklyn  Times. 


Brooklyn  Daily  Union.— During  the  War  of  the 
Rebellion  the  need  was  felt  of  a  newsjjaper  which 
should  more  perfectly  reflect  the  sentiment  of  the  dom- 
inant party  in  the  Nation's  struggle  for  life;  and, 
therefore,  on  Sept.  14,  1863,  S.  B.  Chittenden,  A.  A. 
Low,  and  some  sixty  other  prominent  Republicans  es- 
tablished the  Union,  in  an  office  on  Front  street.  The 
paper  met  with  great  success  ;  and,  after  a  time,  the 
building  on  the  corner  of  Front  and  Fulton  streets,  was 
erected,  into  which  it  moved  in  1869.  Mr.  Edward  Gary 
was  then  the  editor.  Owing  to  unwise  management  the 
Union  was  not  so  prosperous  after  the  war,  and  was 
purchased  by  Henry  C  Bowen  and  bis  sons,  Henry  E. 
and  Edward  A.  Bowen,  on  the  1st  of  January,  ISVO. 
Gen.  Stewart  L.  Woodford  was  editor  and  H.  E. 
Bowen,  publisher.  Mr.  Woodford  retired  May  1st, 
1870,  and  was  succeeded  by  Theodore  Tilton.  The 
Union,  under  Mr.  Bowen's  management,  increased  rap- 
idly in  circulation  and  influence.  In  1872,  Jan.  1st, 
Mr.  Tilton  retired  from  the  editorial  chair,  and  was 
succeeded  by  Henry  C.  Bowen.  After  a  time  certain 
Republicans  made  offers  for  its  purchase,  and  on  the 
Ist  of  October,  1873,  it  was  bought  by  Benjamin  F. 
Tracy,  F.  A.  Schroeder,  John   F.  Henry  and    others; 


THE   PRESS. 


n^g 


William  Burch  became  its  editor.  After  several 
changes  it  came  into  the  hands  of  Loren  Palmer,  who 
then  became  its  editor  and  publisher.  In  February, 
1877,  the  Union  purchased  the  name  and  good  will  of 
the  Brooklyn  Argus,  owned  by  Demas  Barnes,  and  its 
name  was  changed  to  the  Union-Argus.  More  recently 
it  has  passed  into  new  hands,  with  Mr.  John  Foord  as 
editor,  and  assumed  its  old  name,  the  Union.*  It  is 
now  much  improved  in  every  way  and  promises  a  pros- 
perous future.     During  its  progress,  a  number  of  vig- 


orous writers  have  been  employed  on  its  editorial  staff. 
Sept.  28,  1867,  and  again  in  1875,  attempts  were  made 
to  establish  a  Morning  Union.  The  first  continued 
for  over  two  years,  the  second  with  less  success. 

•The  certiflcate  of  the  incorporation  of  the  Broolslyn  TInion  Pubiish- 
ing  Company  was  filed  March  19,  1SS4.  Incorporators:  Eugene  G. 
Blacliford,  Alexander  J.  C.  Sltene  and  John  Foord.  The  objects  of  the 
company  are  to  print  and  publish  a  newspaper  and  carry  on  a  general 
printing  and  publishing  business.  Capital  stoclj,  $100,000.  the  number 
of  shares  100.  The  time  of  the  existence  of  the  company  is  fifty  years. 
The  trustees  are  three  in  number,  and  for  the  first  year  the  gentlemen 
named  above. 


JOHN    FOORD. 


John  Foord,  editor  of  the  Brooklyn  Union-Argus,  was 
born  in  Perthshire,  Scotland,  in  1843.  While  yet  quite 
young  he  was  employed  on  several  Scotch  and  Noith-of- 
England  newspapers.  As  traveling  correspondent  he  visited 
France  and  Germany,  and  his  letters  are  said  to  have  attract- 
ed attention  by  their  freshness  of  view  and  original  observa- 
tions on  a  well-trodden  field.  In  1868,  he  went  to  London, 
where,  for  a  short  time,  he  was  editorial  contributor  to  one 
or  two  newspapers;  but  his  heart  was  set  on  the  New  Repub- 
lic beyond  the  seas,  and  early  in  1869  he  embarked  for  New 
York. 

His  first  work  in  the  United  States  was  the  contribu- 
tion of  editorial  matter  to  the  New  York  Times  and  the  Tri- 
bune. In  the  latter  part  of  1869,  he  was  appointed  Brooklyn 
reporter  for  the  Times,  which  place  he  held  until  he  was 
called  to  an  editorial  position  on  the  regular  staff  of  the 
paper;  Mr.  L.  J.  Jennings  being  then  the  editor-in-chief. 

During  the  struggle  against  the  Tweed  ring,  in  which  the 
Times  soon  after  engaged,  Mr.  Foord  did  distinguished  and 
telling  work.  His  accurate  knowledge  of  municipal  affairs 
and  his  tenacity  of  purpose  served  him  in  good  stead,  and  his 


share  of  the  labor,  although  necessarily  confined  to  the  priv- 
acy of  the  editorial  room,  was  of  the  greatest  value.  It  may 
be  claimed  for  Mr.  Foord,  that  he  contributed  handsomely  to 
the  campaign  which  brought  the  Tweed  ring  to  ruin.  In  1876, 
Mr.  Jennings  withdrew  from  the  management  of  the  Times, 
and  was  succeeded  by  Mr.  Foord,  then  the  senior  editorial 
writer  on  the  staff,  many  cTianges  having  meantime  occurred. 
Under  his  direction,  the  Times  won  an  enviable  name  for 
fearlessness,  courage,  honesty,  fairness  and  ability. 

In  March,  1883,  Mr.  Foord  assumed  the  editorial  manage- 
ment of  the  Brooklyn  Union-Argus,  to  which  he  brought  a 
ripe  experience  and  a  reputation  only  to  be  acquired  by  year*, 
of  faithful  and  arduous  service  in  one  of  the  most  exacting 
callings  of  the  age.  As  a  newspaper  editor,  he  has  won  the  re- 
spect and  regard  of  his  associates,  both  by  his  gentle  man- 
ners and  his  firm  grasp  of  the  details  of  the  complex  duties 
devolving  upon  the  chief  of  a  great  journal.  Under  his 
management  the  Union-Argus  has  shown  a  marked  improve- 
ment. Its  editorial  columns  have  been  absolutely  free  from 
every  thing  that  would  stain  a  journalistic  record,  and  the 
general  tone  of  the  paper  has  been  lofty  and  pure. 


ROBERT    H.    ANGELL. 


Robert  H.  Angell,  managing  editor  of  the  Union-Argus, 
was  born  in  New  Haven,  Ct.,  in  1840.  When  he  was  eight 
years  of  age  his  parents  removed  to  Huntsville,  Ala.,  where 
his  boyhood  days  were  spent,  first  in  school  and  afterward  in 
the  office  of  the  village  newspaper  as  apprentice.  At  sixteen 
he  was  a  compositor.  Two  years  later  he  came  to  New  York 
and  soon  to  Brooklyn,  where  he  went  as  compositor  upon 
the  Eagle.  This  was  in  IS-'JO.  Thomas  Kinsella  worked  op- 
posite him  at  the  same  case.  At  the  breaking  out  of  the  war, 
Mr.  Angell  enlisted  on  board  a  man  of  war,  and  saw  consid- 
erable service  off  the  Carolinas,  much  of  the  time  aboard  the 
Monitor  Catskill,  which  was  struck  a  hundred  times  from  the 
enemy's  guns.  He  was  in  .all  the  engagements  ofl'  Charleston, 
Port  Royal,  and  that  part  of  the  coast. 

After  the  close  of  the  war  Mr.  Angell  returned  to  Brook- 
lyn to  the  Eagle.  He  had  before  contributed  to  the  paper, 
and  now  he  was  appointed,  in  1865,  on  the  reportorial  staff 
and  continued  three  years,  when  he  went  on  the  staff  of  the 


Union  for  a  time,  and  then  back  to  the  Eagle  oMce.  He 
was  appointed  Secretary  to  Mayor  Kalbfleisch  during  his  last 
term,  and  then  returned  to  the  Eagle.  In  1873,  he  went  to 
the  Union  as  city  editor,  where  he  has  since  remained,  acting 
as  managing  editor  and  editor-in-chief  at  times.  By  seniority 
of  service  he  is  now  the  oldest  editor  in  Brooklyn. 

As  an  indication  of  the  growth  of  journalism  in  this  city, 
it  may  be  stated  that  when  he  first  went  into  the  composing 
room  of  the  Eagle,  that  paper  had  the  services  of  a  city  editor 
and  half  the  work  of  two  reporters,  who  also  reported  for 
the  New  York  journals.  Now,  the  Eagle  needs  the  whole 
services  of  sixteen  reporters  and  the  Union  the  same  number 
also. 

It  is  worthy  of  note  that  while  Mr.  Angell  was  serving  in 
the  U.  S.  Navy,  his  brother,  who  was  a  strong  secessionist, 
was  in  the  Confederate  ranks.  His  father,  an  ardent  Union 
man,  was  forced  to  leave  the  gouth  in  1861,  stripped  of  hia 
property. 


1180 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


The  Brooklyn  Record. — A  law  and  real  estate 
journal,  -(vas  first  issued  by  J.  R.  MeDivitt,  Feb.  13, 
1882,  on  the  plan  of  the  JSTeio  York  Daily  Record.  It 
contains  notices  of  the  sittings  of  the  courts,  causes  on 
the  day  calendar,  synopses  of  decisions  and  orders 
entered;  also  transfers  of  real  estate  by  deed  and  mort- 
gage; judgments  and  liens  entered  of  record.  After  a 
few  weeks,  Mr.  MeDivitt  sold  his  interest  to  a  stock 
company  of  which  he  is  manager  and  principal  editor. 

The  Brooklyn  Daily  Programme  has  been  quite 
an  interesting  paper.  Started  on  the  1st  of  October, 
1863,  by  E.  L.  Briggs;  chiefly  devoted  to  places  of  amuse- 
ment. 

The  Echo  was  established  in  1^11,  at  Bath,  in 
Steuben  County,  and  removed  to  Brooklyn  in  1880; 
devoted  to  the  advancement  of  the  colored  people.  Its 
founder  and  present  editor  and  proprietor  is  Prof. 
J.  R.  B.  Smith. 

Brooklyn  Advance.  The  first  number  of  this 
magazine  was  issued  in  September,  1877,  as  a  sixteen- 
page  monthly,  under  the  name  of  Our  Neighborhood. 
In  September,  1878,  the  name  was  changed  to  the 
Brooklyn  Advance.  In  May,  1879,  it  absorbed  the 
Brooklyn  Monthly.  In  March,  1882,  its  form  was 
changed  to  a  4S-page  magazine.  A  feature  of  this 
publication  is  the  large  space  devoted  to  local  and  his- 
torical articles,  and  the  prominence  given  by  its  illus- 
trations (which  are  of  a  very  high  artistic  merit)  to 
home  matters.  Its  editor  and  proprietor  is  Charles 
D.  Baker,  and  Mr.  Allen  Forraan  its  assistant  editor. 

The  Brooklyn  Review  was  projected  as  a 
weekly  paper  March  23,  1873,  by  William  C.  Hudson, 
Thomas  B.  Sidebothani,  Jr.,  and  Andrew  McLean. 
Mr.  Hudson  had  just  retired  from  the  editorship  of  the 
Eac/le.  Mr.  McLean  was  managing  editor  of  the  same, 
and  Mr.  Sidebotham  was  the  publisher  of  the  Pro- 
gramme. The  Rcvieio  was  started,  and  is  still  contin- 
ued, as  an  independent  sheet.  It  is  now  conducted  by 
Mr.  Sidebotham,  his  partners  having  retired  some  few 
months  after  it  started. 

The  Deutsches  Wochenblatt,  an  independent 
Democratic  weekly,  has  been  published  for  18  years 
by  Charles  S.  Schleier,  the  founder  of  the  city  of 
Breslau,  on  Long  Island.  It  is  now  published  at  202 
Atlantic  avenue.  It  is  a  paper  of  extensive  influence 
among  the  independent  German  population;  and  Mr. 
Schleier,  its  proprietor,  is  a  gentleman  of  great  worth 
and  extensive  influence  among  his  fellow-countrymen. 
It  has  a  large  circulation  in  the  city  of  Breslau  and 
over  Long  Island,  and  in  almost  every  State  in  the 
Union,  as  well  as  in  Canada  and  Euro})e. 

The  Brooklyner  Volksfreund,  a  German  paper, 
is  published  at  242  Atlantic  avenue. 

The  New  York  Stats  Svenska  Argus  is  pub- 
lished at  662  Fourth  avenue.  South  Brooklyn. 

Among  other  periodicals  of  more  or  less  promi- 
nence are  included  the  Greenpoint  Globe,  The  Journal 


(German  Catholic),  the  Lance,  the  Philomathean  Re- 
view, the  Plymouth  Chimes,  the  Polytechnic,  The 
Radical,  The  Reform,  Tlie  Svenska  Posten.  Other 
papers  had  a  periodical  existence,  chiefly  designed  for 
catching  political  advertising,  and  charging  payment 
for  the  publication  of  the  official  announcement  of  the 
election  returns. 

The  Kings  County  Rural  and  Brooklyn  Ga- 
zette (see  also  page  236,  History  of  Flatbush,  in  this 
volume)  was  established  April  20th,  1872,  by  H.  J. 
Egleston,  its  present  editor  and  manager.  It  is  pub- 
lished weekly  at  Flatbush,  Long  Island,  and  is  the 
official  and  only  paper  in  the  four  towns  of  Flatbush, 
Flatlands,  Gravesend  and  New  Utrecht,  in  each  of 
which  it  has  a  large  circulation.  It  is  a  four-page 
weekly,  is  independent  in  politics,  conservative  in  tone, 
and  truthful  in  detail.  In  the  summer  it  publishes  a 
"Brighton"  edition  for  Coney  Island.  The  name 
"  Brooklyn  "  has  been  added  to  it  recently  as  an  edition 
for  Brooklyn  circulation.  Its  edition  is  said  to  be 
20,000;  is  published  every  Wednesday,  while  the  rural 
edition  appears  on  Saturday.  Mr.  Egleston  is  a  na- 
tive of  Rochester,  N".  Y.,  where  he  learned  the  art  of 
printing  on  the  Advertiser  in  1858,  and  afterward  on 
the  Democrat,  under  George  Dawson,  late  of  the  Al- 
bany Evening  Journal.  Its  Brooklyn  office  is  590 
Atlantic  avenue. 

The  Brooklyn  Blade  is  a  spicy  little,  four-page, 
one-cent  paper,  published  weekly  by  H.  Weinrauch  & 
Brother,  at  601  and  603  Bushwick  avenue,  and  claiming 
a  circulation  of  12,000.  Its  first  number  was  dated 
April  2,  1881,  and  in  April,  1882,  it  was  enlarged  from 
twelve  to  twenty-four  columns.  Its  editor  was  Gustave 
Weinberg,  who  was  succeeded  by  the  present  editor, 
J.  Joseph  Goodwin,  a  young  but  vigorous  writer.  The 
Blade  keeps  fully  abreast  of  all  that  is  of  interest  in  art, 
litei'ature  and  society,  treating  pithily  and  frankly  all 
subjects  in  all  fields  of  culture  and  taste. 

The  Brooklyn  News  is  a  weekly  paper,  published 
in  Fifth  avenue,  near  10th  street.  It  has  a  large  circu- 
lation in  South  Brooklyn. 

The  Brooklyn  Catholic  Examiner  was  com- 
menced in  1882.  It  was  first  started  as  a  monthly  by 
Feeney,  Fitzgerald  and  Ilagerty  (John  Fitzgerald,  edi- 
tor), at  343  Fulton  street.  It  is  now  published  as  a  large 
and  handsome  weekly  by  Edward  Feeney  &  Co.,  John 
Fitzgerald  continuing  its  editor;  the  office  being  re- 
moved to  9  Henry  street. 

The  East  New  York  Press  has  maintained  a  credit- 
able standing  in  the  Kings  county  press.  The  Sentinel, 
The  Record  and  I'he  Laterne,  have  given  to  New  Lots 
a  very  creditable  local  journalism.  The  Sentinel  has 
been  published  for  twenty  years,  and  Mr.  Cooper  is 
among  the  veterans  of  the  Kings  county  editors. 

There  are  now  four  well-established,  daily  papers 
published  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn.  The  Eagle,  The 
Ereie  Presse,  The  Times  and  The  Union,  and  it  is  some- 


THE  PRESS. 


1181 


what  remarkable  that  they  should  all  be  edited  by 
naturalized  citizens — the  Eagle  and  the  Union  by 
Scotchmen;  thejPreie  Presseand  the  7'*mes  by  Germans. 
There  is  also  The  Record,  a  daily  paper  devoted  to 
law  and  real  estate. 


MM  1 1 1 1  i  ill 


THE    liliOOlvLYN    E.\i;LE    BUILDING. 

The  Brooklyn  Eagle,  by  primogeniture,  circula- 
tion and  influence,  deservedly  claims  the  first  place 
among  its  contemporaries.  It  was  founded  in  1841,  in 
the  same  year  with  the  Neio  York  Tribune,  but  the 
Tribune  had  the  start  by  a  few  months.  The  Tribune 
was  founded  in  April,  1841;  'Y^V^  Eagle,  in  the  October 
following.  Both  papers  were  the  outgrowth  of  cam- 
paign sheets.  The  Tribune  sprang  from  the  Log 
Cabin  of  1840,  and  The  Eagle  from  the  campaign  sheet 
of  the  following  year.  Kings  county,  at  this  time,  was 
Whig;  and  that  party  had  two  organs.  The  Star  and 
The  Advertiser.  The  Democrats  very  naturally  be- 
lieved that  they  were  entitled  to  an  organ,  and  that  it 
should  be  a  daily  one.  The  Long  Island  Patriot  had 
given  weekly  contributions  to  Democracy,  and  while 
under  the  management  of  James  A.  Bennett,  it  ap- 
peared as  the  Brooklyn  Advocate.  General  Harrison, 
the  Whig  candidate,  bad  been  elected  President  by  an 
immense  majority,  but  died  in  one  month  after  his  in- 
auguration. The  Democrats  re-organized  with  new  vigor, 
and  in  Kings  county  opened  the  fall  campaign  with  The 
Brooklyn  Daily  Eagle  and  Kiitgs  County  Democrat. 
The  first  number  appeared  October  26th,  1841.  Like 
most  of  the  Kings  county  papers  it  had  a  compound 
name,  and  the  venerable  patriot,  still  living  in  honored 
age  in  Brooklyn,  Judge  John  Greenwood — who  was  a 
trusted  student  in  the  law  office  of  Aaron  Burr,  and 
who  is  now  the  sole  survivor  of  those  who  founded 
the  Eagle — is  credited  with  giving  it  its  name.  Strange 
as  it  may  appear  the  name  has  never  been  popular 


with  its  owners,  but  they  have  kept  magnifying  it,  and 
making  it  an  increasing  power.  That  it  was  not  called 
the  Times  or  some  such  name  was  owing  to  the  devo- 
tion of  the  Democratic  party  to  the  bird  of  Jove. 

Among  its  founders  were  several  prominent  Demo- 
crats, chief  of  whom  was  Henry  C.  Murphy,  who,  with 
Richard  Adams  Locke,  performed  the  part  of  its  first 
editors.  It  was  published  by  Alfred  G.  Stevens  as  a 
morning  paper.  Mr.  Murphy  was  then  a  lawyer  in  suc- 
cessful practice,  and  Mr.  Locke  had  been  a  writer  on  The 
New  York  Sun,  Jh  which  he  published  the  celebrated 
"  Moon  Hoax."  The  paper  succeeded  beyond  the  hopes 
of  its  projectors  and  more  than  paid  its  expenses;  and  the 
party  of  which  it  was  the  organ  was  successful.  The 
first  number  issued  as  a  permanent  daily  paper  was  on 
the  27th  of  December,  1841,  with  William  B.  Marsh  as 
editor.  In  March,  1842,  Isaac  Van  Anden  purchased 
the  paper.  Mr.  Marsh  continued  as  editor,  but  he  died 
February  26th,  1846.  He  was  succeeded  by  Walter 
Whitman,  whose  contributions  to  the  poetry  and  prose 
of  our  generation,  have  gained  for  him  a  distinguished 
name  wherever  the  English  language  is  spoken.  Of  Mr. 
Whitman,  the  traditions  which  survive  as  an  editor 
are  somewhat  meager;  but  enough  remains  to  show  that 
he  had  little  taste  for  the  unremitting  duties  of  a  daily 
editor.  He  was  succeeded  in  1847,  by  Mr.  S.  G. 
Arnold,  an  old  Brooklyn  journalist,  and  Mr.  Van  Anden's 
old  partner,  who  remained  in  charge  until  1852.  In 
1850,  the  name  was  abbreviated  to  the  Brooklyn  Daily 
Eagle,  dropping  the  Democrat.  Mr.  Arnold  left  the 
Eagle  because  he  found  himself  at  variance  with 
his  constituency  on  the  question  of  slavery.  He  was 
disposed  to  go  farther  in  the  direction  of  free-soil, 
than,  just  then,  seemed  reasonable  to  the  supporters  of 
the  paper.  Henry  McCloskey,  a  native  of  Ireland,  who 
had  been  a  reporter  under  Mr.  Arnold,  now  assumed 
the  chief  position,  and  speedily  obtained  for  the  Eagle 
an  importance  in  the  journalism  of  the  country,  which 
it  had  not  reached  under  any  of  his  predecessors.  He 
was  an  accomplished  scholar,  an  effective  public  speaker, 
a  graceful  writer  of  verse,  and  a  most  thorough-going 
Democrat  of  the  straightest  sect;  but,  above  all,  he 
wielded  a  pen,  which,  in  controversy,  smote  like  a 
broad-sword.  He  retired  from  the  Eagle  in  1861;  hav- 
ing by  his  extreme  affirmations  of  the  right  of  secession 
brought  the  Eagle  into  collision  with  the  government. 
The  short  alternatives  presented  to  Mr.Van  Anden,  the 
proprietor,  was  either  to  put  a  loyal  man  at  the  head  of 
the  paper,  or  have  its  publication  suspended.  Mr.  Van 
Anden,  whose  sympathies  were  all  on  the  Union  side, 
had  no  difficulty  in  making  a  choice.  In  the  office  there 
was  a  young  man,  a  reporter  and  assistant  editor,  who 
filled  the  bill  of  loyalty,  and  came  up  to  the  full  measure 
of  the  ability  required.  This  young  man  was  Thomas 
Kinsella,  and  upon  his  shoulders  the  editorial  duties 
were  devolved.  A  little  farther  on  in  our  narrative  we 
shall  outline  the  story  of  Mr.  Kinsella's  career.  Here  a 


1182 


HISrOR  Y  OF  KINGS   CO  UNTY. 


■word  is  in  order  about  the  more  distinguished  of  his  as- 
sociates. The  first  of  these,  in  point  of  time,  if  not  of 
merit,  was  Mr.  William  Wood,  who  served  him  in  the 
capacity  of  managing  editor,  and  had  full  charge  of  the 
paper  during  the  time  Mr.  Kinsella  served  the  city  as  a 
Commissioner  of  City  Works.  Wood  was  a  thoroughly 
trained  journalist.  He  began  the  practice  of  his  pro- 
fession in  England,  his  native  country,  and  had  risen  to 
an  honorable  position  there,  when  he  resolved  to  trans- 
fer his  fortunes  to  America.  He  joined  to  habits  of 
industry  and  great  thoroughness  in'  his  work,  a  vast 
fund  of  general  information,  an  intimate  knowledge  of 
Brooklyn  affairs,  and  a  remarkable  capacitj'  for  stating 
a  case  clearly.  He  remained  in  the  Eagle  till  the  time 
of  his  death,  which  occurred  in  ISVl.  The  managing 
editorship  then  descended  to  Robert  A.  Burch,  who 
now,  after  an  interval  of  ten  years,  again  holds  the  posi- 
tion. Between  the  time  of  Mr.  Burch's  retirement 
from  and  his  return  to  the  Eagle,  Andrew  McLean,  the 
present  editor-in  chief,  was  managing  editor.  Mr.  St. 
Clair  McKelvey,  the  present  chief  editor  of  the  Albany 
Argus,  was  for  many  years  under  Mr.  Kinsella,  and  as 
the  associate  of  Mr.  McLean,  one  of  the  Eagle's  most 
important  writers.  John  Stanton,  an  Englishman  by 
birth,  familiarly  known  as  "  Corry  O'Lanus,"  was  also 
among  those  whose  labors  contributed  in  a  noticeable 
degree  to  the  prosperity  of  the  Eagle,  under  Thomas 
Kinsella's  direction. 

During  the  war  an  effort  was  made  to  issue  a  morn- 
ing edition  of  the  Eagle,  but  the  design  was  soon 
abandoned.  In  1877,  January  1st,  the  Sunday  Eagle 
was  started,  and  now  forms  a  very  interesting  part  of 
the  Daily  Eagle.  In  1870,  Mr.  Van  Anden  was  in- 
duced to  sell  out  the  whole  establishment  to  an  associa- 
tion, and  retired  for  a  time  altogether  from  the  Eagle,' 


but  he  soon  afterward  purchased  some  shares  from  a 
member  of  the  Association,  and  continued  his  connec- 
tion with  the  business  department  till  his  death  on  the 
6th  day  of  August,  1875. 

In  giving  more  at  length  the  history  of  the  Eagle, 
we  give  the  history  of  the  other  journals  ;  its  prog- 
ress from  the  time  that  Isaac  Van  Anden  pulled  the 
Columbia  hand-press,  through  the  developments  of  the 
single-cylinder,  the  double-cylinder,  the  four-cylinder, 
the  eight-cylinder,  and  the  Hoe  web  perfecting 
presses,  which  Patrick  Gelston  pulls  by  powerful  en- 
gines ;  from  the  time  when  it  had  four  writers  and 
twenty  employees  till  now,  its  progress  is  the  same 
which  its  contemporaries  have  made  in  journalism,  and 
along  that  line  of  progress  certain  names  shine  con- 
spicuous— some  living,  and  many  dead. 

The  sudden  and  wonderful  development  of  Coney 
Island  was  largely  due  to  the  Eagle.  Its  editorials  on 
the  New  Wonderland  at  our  doors  were  vigorous  and 
comprehensive;  and  its  correspondence  was  by  far  the 
best  written  from  the  Island.  And  this  development 
of  Coney  Island  opened  a  new  field  for  local  journal- 
ism. The  Coney  Island  Sim,  the  Coiiey  Island  Neics, 
and  other  journals  rose  on  the  excitement.  The  Daily 
News  we  think  was  the  only  paper  that  established  a 
complete  newspaper  establishment  upon  the  island,  with 
a  steam  press  and  all  the  equipments  of  a  printing  office. 
It  was  suspended  at  the  close  of  its  second  season. 

In  1842,  the  Weekly  Eagle,  containing  choice  selec- 
tions from  the  Daily,  was  issued  for  country  circula- 
tion, but  it  was  suspended  in  1855. 

The  Sunday  Evening  Miscellany  was  also  issued  for 
several  years  from  the  Eagle  office,  and  attained  a 
large  circulation  in  Kings  county  and  throughout  the 
Island. 


ISAAC    VAN    ANDEN. 


Isaac  Van  Anden  chiefly  desired  to  be  remembered  among 
men  as  the  founder  of  the  Brooklyn  Daily  Eagle.  He  early 
put  before  himself  the  purpose  of  establishing  in  this  city  a 
newspaper  which  should  be  considered  the  equal  of  any 
paper  of  its  class  in  the  country ;  and  when,  in  his  latter 
days,  he  saw  his  favorite  object  accomplished,  he  loolied 
upon  it  as  a  monument,  speaking  of  him,  to  posterity.  To 
sketch  the  life  of  Isaac  Van  Anden  is  to  ou.tline  the  history 
of  the  Eagle,  and,  indeed,  of  Brooklyn,  for  nearly  forty 
years.  He  lived  and  labored  for  the  city,  because  with  its 
prosperity  was  bound  up  the  fate  of  his  darling  project,  and 
in  that  newspaper  were  centered  his  brightest  hopes  and 
loftiest  ambitions.  Apart  from  other  considerations,  the  es- 
tablishment of  an  institution  which,  in  various  ways,  gave 
employment  to  over  two  hundred  persons,  which  received 
and  expended  in  Brooklyn  nearly  a  million  dollars  per  an- 
num, was  no  slight  claim  for  recognition  among  men.  To 
Isaac  Van  Anden,  the  journal  which  he  may  be  said  to  have 


founded,  and  which  he  certainly  nursed  to  manhood,  took 
the  place  of  sweetheart,  wife  or  family.  He  saw  Brooklyn 
emerge  from  the  chrysalis  of  its  village  state  and  advance 
to  the  third  position  among  the  cities  of  the  land;  and,  under 
his  eye  and  hand,  the  paper  of  his  affection  kept  pace  with 
the  growth  of  the  public  interests  and  population  around  it. 
Mr.  Van  Anden  was  single  in  his  purpose,  as  men  whi>  make 
their  mark  usually  are;  and  he  lived  to  see  in  success  the  re- 
sult which,  as  a  rule,  waits  upon  courage  and  persistency,  in- 
telligently directed. 

Isaac  Van  Anden  came  of  the  old  Knickerbocker  stock. 
His  grandfather  was  a  native  of  Holland,  who,  in  early 
manhood  settled  as  a  farmer  in  Dutchess  county,  N.  Y. 
Thus  Isaac,  the  son  of  a  farmer,  passed  all  his  earlier  years 
amid  agricultural  surroundings.  But,  when  old  enough  to 
scan  for  himself  the  horizon  of  the  future,  he  turned  his 
l)ack  upon  farm-life  and  chose  a  trade.  As  an  apprentice  in 
the  office  of  the  PougliJceepsie  Telegraph,  then,  as  now,  the 


TBE  PRt:SS. 


1183 


ISAAC    VAN   ANDEN. 

chief  paper  of  Dutchess  county,  the  lad  hent  himself  assidu- 
ously to  the  acquirement  of  every  detail  of  hi.s  chosen  craft. 
Long  after  he  had  ceased  to  do  munual  work,  and  when  he 
had  come  to  be  ranked  with  the  most  influential  men  in 
Brooklyn,  he  was  fond  of  relating  how  he  won  attention  in 
Westchester  by  the  excellence  of  his  printing.  When  his 
apprenticeship  ended,  Van  Anden  was  well  versed  in  every 
branch  of  the  business;  and  purchasing  (in  partnership  with 
a  fellow-workman,  Alexander  Lee)  the  Wcstcliester  Spy,  in 
1837,  he  settled  at  White  Plains.  Tlieir  success,  though  slow, 
was  promising;  but,  receiving  a  proposition  from  Mr.  Samuel 
G.  Arnold  (from  whom  he  liad  purchased  the  -Spy)  to  join 
him  (as  the  business  manager)  in  publishing  a  paper  called 
the  Advocate,  in  Brooklyn,  he  sold  out  to  his  partner  and 
came  to  this  city.  Together,  Arnold  and  Van  Anden  con- 
ducted the  Advocate  until,  in  1838,  the  Democratic  party  of 
the  State  was  overturned;  William  H.  Seward  (Whig)  was 
elected  Governor,  and  the  political  patronage  of  their  paper 
seemed  about  to  slip  from  their  hands.  To  obviate  this  dan- 
ger, as  well  as  to  obtain  an  advantage  over  the  rival  Brook- 
lyn paper,  they  purchased  a  power-press  and  started  the 
Brooklyn  Daily  News,  as  a  non-partisan  paper.  This  was 
subsequently  bought  out,  in  the  Whig  interest,  by  Wm.  A. 
Green,  and  the  firm  of  Arnold  &  Van  Anden  was  dissolved; 
the  latter,  who  had  retained  a  large  portion  of  the  materials 
of  the  old  Advocate,  endeavoring  to  get  a  Uving  by  conduct- 
ing a  small  job  printing  office.  About  this  time  (the  winter  of 
1840-'41)  the  Democracy  plucked  uj)  courage,  and  determined 
to  contest,  with  increased  vigor,  the  supremacy  in  Kings 
county  of  the  then  dominant  Whig  party;  and,  as  a  factor  in 
this  contest,  resolved  to  start  a  newspaper  which  should  dis- 
cuss and  proclaim  Democratic  principles.  Hon.  Henry  C. 
Murphy,  then  a  young  and  ambitious  politician,  in  company 
with  some  of  the  older  Democrats  of  the  locality,  commenced 
the  publication  of  the  Brooklyn  Eagle.  Soon  they  felt  the 
necessity  of  some  practical  business  man,  acquainted  with 
newspaper  work,  and  Van  Auden's  skill,  industry  and  ex- 
cellent habits  having  already  attracted  their  attention,  they 
deemed  it  advisable,  both  for  the  interests  of  the  part}'  and 
of  the  paper,  to  place  the  Eagle  under  his  management. 
Overtures  were  made  to  the  young  printer,  which  resulted 
in  his  becoming  the  publisher,  with  the  promise  that  in  time 
he  might  become  its  proprietor. 

The  Eagle  at  this  time  occupied  very  modest  quarters  on 
Fulton  street,  just  opposite  the  present  Eagle  building.  In 
the  fall  of  the  year  succeeding  this  transfer,  Hon.  Henry  C. 


Murphy  was  elected  Mayor  of  the  city,  and  in  that  campaign 
the  Eagle's  influence  as  a  political  factor  may  be  said  to  have 
first  developed.  In  the  second  year  of  its  existence,  it  be- 
came instrumental  in  securing  for  the  Democracy  in  Brook- 
lyn an  ascendancy  which  has  never  been  lost.  In  this  year, 
also,  the  owners  of  the  Eagle  offered  it  for  sale  to  the  young 
publisher;  and,  while  the  price  asked  seemed  somewhat  large, 
it  was  far  within  what  Mr.  Van  Anden  lived  to  see  covered 
by  a  single  day's  receipts  over  the  Eagle  counters.  For  $1,500 
Mr.  Van  Anden  became  sole  proprietor  of  the  Eagle;  and  the 
monej-  paid  represented  the  savings  which  industry  and 
economy  up  to  that  time  had  enabled  him  to  make.  From 
this  point,  the  history  of  the  Eagle  may  properly  be  said  to 
liave  commenced.  Hitherto,  it  had  been  simply  a  political 
organ.  Mr.  Van  Anden  made  the  Eagle  a  newspaper.  He 
was  a  Democrat,  but  he  clearly  distinguished  between  the 
exigencies  and  the  interests  that  legitimately  affect  all 
classes  of  society,  and  which  no  publisher  is  at  liberty  to 
subordinate  to  partisan  ends.  The  Eagle,  in  Van  Anden's 
hands,  did  not  cease  to  be  Democratic  in  the  broad  and 
proper  sense  of  the  term;  but  it  did  cease  to  have  more  re- 
gard to  the  success  of  fortunate  candidates  than  to  the  gen- 
eral welfare  of  the  public  and  the  city.  The  new  man  and 
the  new  spirit  made,  to  all  intents  and  pui'ixises,  a  new 
paper — a  i)aper  which  has  ultimated  in  the  Eagle  of  to-day, 
and  of  which  we  write  when  we  speak  of  Mr.  Van  Anden's 
newspaper  career  in  Brooklyn.  In  those  days,  how  feeble, 
how  barren,  how  dependent  the  most  successful  papers  were 
in  contrast  with  the  leading  journals  of  the  present  day. 
Then,  no  paper  could  live  except  as  an  organ.  Patronage 
was  the  reward  of  supporting  a  party;  and,  without  patron- 
age, it  was  assumed  there  could  be  no  newspapers.  In  this 
respect,  the  journalist  of  the  day  was  as  much  concerned  in 
the  voting  on  election  day  as  the  rough  political  candidates. 
Mr.  Van  Anden  resolved  that  his  paper  should  be  indeiiend- 
ent  of  politicians  and  of  parties.  He  became  convinced  that 
it  might  be  made  interesting  as  a  newspaper;  and  that  the 
public  could  be  induced  to  support  frank  discussion,  even 
when  they  did  not  agree  with  the  conclusions  reached,  and 
impartial  reporting  when  they  regretted  the  facts.  That  he 
was  not  mistaken  in  his  judgment,  the  Eagle  is  a  living  at- 
testation. Of  his  determination  on  this  point,  one  incident 
among  many  may  be  mentioned.  Shortly  after  he  had  be- 
come proprietor  of  the  paper,  Henry  C.  Murphy  came  to  him 
with  a  speech,  in  pamphlet  form,  by  Hon.  Thos.  Cummings, 
Member  of  Congress  for  the  Long  Island  District;  and,  in  a 
matter-of-course  way,  throwing  it  upon  the  table,  said  he 
wished  it  published  in  the  Eagle.  Such  publications  were 
ordinarily  made  by  all  organs.  They  had  been  made  in  the 
past  by  the  Eagle,  and  Mr.  Murphy  could  see  no  reason 
why  the  custom  should  not  continue  in  force.  "But,"  said 
Van  Anden,  addressing  Murphy,  "The  Eagle  is  not  big 
enough  to  hold  that  speech."  "  Oh,  well,"  rejoined  the 
Mayor,  "  you  can  publish  it  in  installments;  it  has  got  to  be 
published."  " Well,"  rejoined  Van  Anden,  "it  has  not  got 
to  be  published  unless  the  readers  of  the  paper  want  to  see 
it.  I  don't  think  they  want  to  see  it.  I  am  not  going 
to  publish  it.  I  won't  publish  it."  It  is  hardly  necessary 
to  say  that  the  politician  was  astonished,  and  that 
the  action  of  the  Eagle's  proprietor  was  for  some  time 
spoken  of  in  local  political  circles  as  an  almost  unjusti- 
fiable revolt;  but  the  politicians  concluded  to  content  them- 
selves with  the  speech  in  pamphlet  form,  and  thereafter  they 
never  again  informed  the  proprietor  of  the  Eagle  that  any- 
thing "  had  got  to  be  published."  He  assumed  to  be  the  sole 
judge  of  what  should  go  into  the  columns  of  his  paper.  For 
years  after  this  event,  the  Eagle's  history  in  Brooklyn  was 


1184 


BISTORY  01  KINGS  COUNTY. 


one  of  unremitting  effort  to  maintain  life.  Early  and  late 
he  toiled  and  struggled — for  those  were  days  of  trial,  when  a 
great  burden  rested  upon  his  shoulders,  and  each  day's  issue 
was  an  exiieriiuent.  He  secured  Richard  A.  Locke  as  his 
first  editor;  for,  as  for  himself,  then  and  since,  he  never  un- 
dertook to  edit  the  paper.  He  probablj'  thought  more,  then, 
of  the  job-i"oom,  which  brought  him  in  his  daily  bread,  than 
of  the  newspaper  which  was,  in  time,  to  control  a  coun- 
try, influence  a  party,  and  lead  the  van  of  local  journalism. 
For  this  he  was  not  to  be  blamed;  Brooklyn,  at  that  time,  was 
but  a  "one-horse  place." 

The  then  influential  men  of  the  city  were  Whigs;  and  the 
.idvertising  men  were,  as  a  class,  of  the  same  party;  and  had 
it  not  been  for  Mr.  Van  Anden's  skill  and  industry  as  a  jol) 
printer,  the  Eagle  would,  in  all  probability,  have  been 
abandoned.  By  industry  and  economy,  however,  he  suc- 
ceeded in  making  enough  out  of  the  job  office  to  meet  the 
deficiences  of  the  journal's  income  and  to  keep  himself,  at 
least,  out  of  debt.  He  was  peculiar!}'  adajjled  to  conduct  a 
struggle  of  this  kind,  from  the  fact  that  he  had  no  political 
ambition;  no  desire  for  distinction  of  any  kind,  except  from 
his  newspaper.  When  that  prospered  he  was  happy ;  when 
things  went  well  with  it  and  the  prospect  brightened,  all  the 
hopes  he  cared  to  indulge  seemed  realized.  Beside  the  Eagle, 
there  were  in  those  early  days  two  newspapers— the  Adver- 
tiser and  the  Star — both  of  which  had  circulations  larger 
than  the  Eagle,  which,  for  the  first  few  years  of  its  existence, 
was  third  in  the  race  for  popular  favor.  The  result,  how- 
ever, was  certain  from  the  first.  The  Advertiser  and  the  Star 
died  long  ago;  the  former,  because  of  bad  business  manage- 
ment; because  its  managers  were  weak  where  Mr.  Van  Anden 
was  strong;  because  they  squandered  the  resources  which  he 
took  care  to  husband;  the  Star  failed,  because  the  proprietor 
did  not  understand  the  new  times  that  came  with  the  advent 
of  the  Netv  York  Herald  and  the  Eagle  in  journalism.  Mr. 
Van  Anden  worked  at  the  press,  worked  at  the  case,  worked 
in  the  oflice,  worked  outside,  to  the  end  that  he  might  meet 
his  obligations;  and  he  met  them,  thereby  overcoming  his 
less  frugal  and  judicious  rivals  on  the  Advertiser.  He  was 
keenly  alive  to  the  current  of  popular  sentiment;  he  saw  and 
availed  himself  of  every  innovation  in  the  production  and 
distribution  of  his  paper,  and  thereby  distanced  hopelessly  all 
rivals.  As  already  mentioned,  Mr.  Van  Anden's  absorbing 
ambition  came  to  be  the  establishment  of  a  great  paper  m 
Brooklyn;  and,  to  the  accomplislunent  of  that  object  he 
sacrificed  nearly  every  passion  and  desire.  He  had  no  ex- 
pensive habits;  no  longings  that  affected  his  income;  no 
tastes  that  were  allowed  to  diminish  his  resources.  What- 
ever the  Eagle  made  was  allowed  to  remain  in  the  Eagle, 
strengthening  it  in  whatever  way  seemed  most  judicious. 
The  new  era  that  was  opening  he  comprehended,  and  con- 
formed his  actions  to  its  spirit.  The  old  "  blanket  sheets  " 
of  New  York  were  falling  into  decay;  and  a  journalism  with 
a  basis  of  independence,  and  with  currents  of  enterprise  run- 
ning through  it,  was  coming  into  power. 

Thirty  y  ears  ago,  the  newsboy,  now  so  familiar  a  figure,  first 
appeared  on  the  stage  of  journalism.  Before  he  was  un- 
known. Mr.  Van  Anden  was  shrewd  enough  to  see  the  use 
that  might  be  made  of  this  new  personage;  and  he  lost  no 
time  in  making  his  acquaintance.  This  appreciation  of  the 
newsboy  is  only  illustrative  of  the  spirit  in  which  every  de- 
partment of  the  Eagle  was  being  conducted.  The  two-cylin- 
der press  was,  in  time,  exchanged  for  one  of  four  cylinders; 
and,  realizing  how  much  quicker  printing  and  rapid  distri- 
bution might  do  for  circulation,  Mr.  Van  Anden  practictd 
self-denial  until  he  had  on  the  premises  an  eight-cylinder 
press.     Nor  was  he  ever  quite  hajjpy,  until  he  saw  the  Eagle 


possessed  of  machines  that  would  print  50,000  copies  an 
hour.  Nor  did  his  desire  to  improve  and  enlarge  stop  there. 
One  of  the  last  things  he  did  for  the  Eagle  was  to  devise  the 
improved  process  by  which  it  is  now  enabled  to  use  both  type 
and  stereotype  plates,  and  by  so  doing  preserve  all  the  advan- 
tages of  the  stereotyping  process,  while  losing  none  of  the 
advantages  enjoyed  by  those  who  ju-int  with  type.  No  mother 
ever  watched  a  child  with  more  solicitude  than  he  watched 
the  Eagle.  There  was  no  sacrifice  be  was  not  prepared  to 
make  in  its  behalf,  and  there  was  nothing  that  pleased  him 
so  much  as  the  facts  that  appeared  from  time  to  time,  evinc- 
ing itsjaugmentiug  prosperity.  He  declared  that  the  happiest 
day  of  his  life,  and  the  happiest  he  ever  expected  to  enjoy, 
was  that  in  which  he  learned  that  he  could  truthfidly  put  at 
the  head  of  his  paper  the  lines  so  familiar  now  to  all  readers 
of  the  Eagle,  "  The  Brooklyn  Daily  Eagle  has  the  largest  cir- 
culation of  any  evening  newspaper  published  in  the  United 
States.''  Mr.  Van  Anden  published  a  Democratic  newspaper, 
because  he  was  a  Democrat  by  conviction;  had  been  reared 
in  that  faith,  and  held  to  it  with  the  steadiness  characteristic 
of  his  people  and  race.  He  believed  that  the  welfare  of  the 
country  depended  upon  the  operation  of  Democratic  prin- 
ciples, as  he  understood  them — honesty  in  public  life, 
economy  in  government,  and  no  interference  by  government 
in  affairs  in  which  the  people  are  competent  to  manage  for 
themselves.  For  Brooklyn,  as  a  city,  he  had  a  profound  love. 
He  bad  made  his  fortune  in  it;  his  friends  were  here  and  all 
that  he  anticijiated  of  material  prosperity  centered  here.  He 
not  only  never  sought  office,  but  again  and  again  rejected 
offers  that  would  have  moved  any  one  less  single  of  purpose 
than  himself.  There  is  no  doubt  that  he  could  have  been 
Maj'or  of  Brooklyn;  for  the  nomination  for  that  position  was 
tendered  him  by  men  who  could,  by  their  influence,  have 
secured  his  election.  But  he  had  no  political  ambitions,  and 
would  form  no  connection  of  any  kind  likely  in  the  slightest 
degree  to  embarrass  the  cause  of  the  paper.  No  man,  perhaps, 
who  has  ever  been  identified  with  a  newspaper  had  fewer  jjcr- 
sonal  ends  to  serve  than  Mr.  Van  Anden,  and  to  this  must  be 
attributed  in  no  insignificant  degree  the  influence  which  the 
Eagle  gained  while  under  his  management.  Of  his  attach- 
ment to  Brooklyn  he  desired  in  some  way  to  give  attestation. 
He  was  among  the  foremost  and  firmest  friends  of  the 
Bridge  enterprise,  and  the  $35,000  which  he  gave  for  stock 
of  the  company  at  its  incipiency  was  paid  in  the  behef  that 
he  never  would  receive  a  cent  in  return.  "  That  much,"  he 
said,  "  I  am  willing  to  give  toward  the  betterment  of  Brook- 
lyn." He  was  an  early  friend  of  the  Prospect  Park  enterprise; 
he  was  one  of  the  Commissioners  intrusted  with  its  conduct; 
and,  so  firm  was  his  belief  in  the  character  of  the  men  as- 
sociated with  him  in  it,  as  regarded  the  commendable  nature 
of  the  project,  that  he  would  listen  to  no  man  who  assailed 
either.  To  the  Park,  as  to  the  Bridge,  he  gave  his  time  and 
thought  cheerfully,  animated  by  a  desire  to  serve  the  city 
and  the  citizens,  to  whom  he  felt  an  abounding  gratitude  for 
the  success  which  had  covered  his  business  career.  He  was, 
also,  a  director  in  the  Mechanics'  Bank,  the  Brooklyn  and 
the  Standard  Life  Insurance  Companies,  the  Safe  Deposit 
Company,  and  was  a  helper  in  many  charities.  He  was  upon 
the  Democratic  Electoral  ticket  in  1865  and  1869 — once  de- 
feated, once  elected. 

Mr.  Van  Anden,  in  social  life,  was  what  his  business  and 
public  life  implied.  Unostentatious,  somewhat  retiring, 
never  demonstrative,  but  kindly  and  unmistakably  honest  in 
his  utterance.  He  was  the  friend  of  every  man  for  whom  he 
pretended  friendshii^,  and  for  no  man  did  he  pretend  even 
respect,  when  he  believed  him  unworthy  of  it.  He  cared 
but  little  for  company;  and,  so  it  came  that  his  friends  were 


1184 


HISTORY  01  KINGS  COUNTY. 


one  of  UDreniitting  effort  to  maintain  life.  Early  and  late 
he  toiled  and  struggled — for  those  were  days  of  trial,  when  a 
great  burden  rested  up<in  his  shoulders,  and  each  day's  issue 
was  an  exiieriment.  He  secured  Ricliard  A.  Locke  as  his 
first  editor;  for,  as  for  himself,  then  and  since,  he  never  un- 
dertook to  edit  the  paper.  He  probably  tliouglit  more,  then, 
of  tlie  job-room,  whicli  brought  him  in  liis  daily  bread,  than 
of  the  newspaper  which  was,  in  time,  to  control  a  coun- 
try, influence  a  party,  and  lead  the  van  of  local  joui-nalism. 
For  this  he  was  not  to  be  blamed;  Brooklyn,  at  that  time,  was 
but  a  "one-horse  place." 

The  then  influential  men  of  the  city  were  Whigs;  and  the 
advertising  men  were,  as  a  class,  of  the  same  party;  and  had 
it  not  been  for  Mr.  Van  Anden's  skill  and  industry  as  a  job 
printer,  the  Eaijle  would,  in  all  probability,  have  been 
abandoned.  By  industry  and  economy,  however,  he  suc- 
ceeded in  making  enough  out  of  the  job  office  to  meet  the 
deficiences  of  the  journal's  income  and  to  keep  himself,  at 
least,  out  of  debt.  He  was  peculiarly  adapted  to  conduct  a 
struggle  of  this  kind,  from  the  fact  that  he  had  no  political 
ambition;  no  desire  for  distinction  of  any  kind,  except  from 
liis  newspaper.  Wlieu  that  prospered  he  was  happy;  when 
things  went  well  with  it  and  the  prospect  brightened,  all  the 
hopes  he  cared  to  indulge  seemed  realized.  Beside  the  Eagle, 
there  were  in  those  early  days  two  newspapers— the  .4dt;er- 
iiser  and  the  Star — both  of  which  had  circulations  larger 
than  the  Eagle,  which,  for  the  first  few  years  of  its  existence, 
was  third  in  the  race  for  popular  favor.  The  result,  how- 
ever, was  certain  from  the  first.  The  Advertise!'  and  the  Star 
died  long  ago;  the  former,  because  of  bad  business  manage- 
ment; because  its  managers  were  weak  where  Mr.  Van  Auden 
was  strong;  because  they  squandered  the  resources  which  he 
took  care  to  husband;  the  Star  failed,  because  the  proprietor 
did  not  understand  the  new  times  that  came  with  the  advent 
of  the  Netv  York  Herald  and  the  Eagle  in  journalism.  Mr. 
Van  Anden  worked  at  the  press,  worked  at  the  case,  worked 
in  the  office,  worked  outside,  to  the  end  that  he  might  meet 
his  obligations;  and  he  met  them,  thereby  overcoming  his 
less  frugal  and  judicious  rivals  on  the  Advertiser.  He  was 
keenly  alive  to  the  current  of  popular  sentiment;  he  saw  and 
availed  himself  of  every  innovation  in  the  production  and 
distribution  of  his  paper,  and  thereby  distanced  hopelessly  all 
rivals.  As  already  mentioned,  Mr.  Van  Anden's  absorbing 
ambition  came  to  he  the  establishment  of  a  great  paper  ni 
Brooklyn;  and,  to  the  accomplishment  of  that  object  he 
sacrificed  nearly  every  passion  and  desire.  He  had  no  ex- 
pensive habits;  no  longings  that  affected  his  income;  no 
tastes  that  were  allowed  to  diminish  his  resources.  What- 
ever the  Eagle  made  was  allowed  to  remain  in  the  Eagle, 
strengthening  it  in  whatever  way  seemed  most  judicious. 
The  new  era  that  was  oi)ening  he  comprehended,  and  con- 
formed his  actions  to  its  spirit.  The  old  "  blanket  sheets" 
of  New  York  were  falling  into  decay;  and  a  journalism  with 
a  basis  of  independence,  and  with  currents  of  enterprise  run- 
ning through  it,  was  coming  into  power. 

Tliirty  years  ago,  the  7iewsboy,  now  so  familiar  a  figure,  first 
appeared  on  the  stage  of  journalism.  Before  he  was  un- 
known. Mr.  Van  Anden  was  shrewd  enough  to  see  the  use 
that  might  be  made  of  this  new  personage;  and  he  lost  no 
time  in  making  his  acquaintance.  This  appreciation  of  the 
newsboy  is  only  illustrative  of  the  spirit  in  which  ever}'  de- 
partment of  the  Eagle  was  being  conducted.  The  two-cylin- 
der press  was,  in  time,  exchanged  for  one  of  four  cylinders; 
and,  realizing  how  much  quicker  i)rinting  and  rapid  distri- 
bution miglit  do  for  circulation,  Mr.  Van  Anden  practiced 
self-denial  until  he  had  on  the  premises  an  eight-cylinder 
press.     Nor  was  he  ever  quite  hajipy,  until  he  saw  the  Eagle 


possessed  of  machines  that  would  print  50,000  copies  an 
hour.  Nor  did  his  desire  to  improve  and  enlarge  stop  there. 
One  of  tlie  last  things  he  did  for  tlie  Eagle  was  to  devise  the 
improved  process  by  which  it  is  now  enabled  to  use  both  type 
and  stereotype  plates,  and  by  so  doing  preserve  all  the  advan- 
tages of  the  stereotyping  process,  while  losing  none  of  the 
advantages  enjoyed  by  those  who  print  with  type.  No  mother 
ever  watched  a  child  with  more  solicitude  than  he  watched 
the  Eagle.  There  was  no  sacrifice  he  was  not  prepared  to 
make  h\  its  behalf,  and  there  was  nothing  that  pleased  him 
so  much  as  the  facts  that  ai)peared  from  time  to  time,  evinc- 
ing its^ugmenting  prospei-ity.  He  declared  that  the  happiest 
day  of  his  life,  and  the  happiest  he  ever  exjiected  to  enjoy, 
was  that  in  which  he  learned  that  he  could  truthfully  put  at 
the  head  of  his  paper  the  lines  so  familiar  now  to  all  readers 
of  the  Eagle,  "  Tlie  Brooklyn  Daily  Eagle  has  the  largest  cir- 
culation of  any  evening  newspaper  published  in  the  United 
States."  Mr.  Van  Anden  published  a  Democratic  newspaper, 
because  he  was  a  Democrat  by  conviction;  had  been  reared 
in  that  faith,  and  held  to  it  with  the  steadiness  characteristic 
of  his  people  and  race.  He  believed  that  the  welfare  of  the 
country  depended  ui)on  the  operation  of  Democratic  prin- 
ciples, as  he  understood  them — honesty  in  public  life, 
economy  in  government,  and  no  interference  by  government 
in  affairs  in  which  the  people  are  competent  to  manage  for 
themselves.  For  Brooklyn,  as  a  city,  he  had  a  profound  love. 
He  had  made  his  fortune  in  it;  his  friends  were  here  and  all 
that  he  anticipated  of  material  prosjierity  centered  here.  He 
not  only  never  sought  office,  but  again  and  again  rejected 
offers  that  would  have  moved  any  one  less  single  of  purpose 
than  himself.  There  is  no  doubt  that  he  could  have  been 
Mayor  of  Brooklyn;  for  the  nomination  for  that  position  was 
tendered  him  by  men  who  could,  by  their  influence,  have 
secured  his  election.  But  he  bad  no  political  ambitions,  and 
would  form  no  connection  of  any  kind  likely  in  the  slightest 
degree  to  embarrass  the  cause  of  the  paper.  No  man,  jterhaps, 
who  has  ever  been  identified  with  a  newspaper  had  fewer  per- 
sonal ends  to  serve  than  Mr.  Van  Anden,  and  to  this  must  be 
attributed  in  no  insignificant  degree  the  influence  which  the 
Eagle  gained  while  under  his  management.  Of  his  attach- 
ment to  Brooklyn  he  desired  in  some  way  to  give  attestation. 
He  was  among  the  foremost  and  firmest  friends  of  the 
Bridge  enterprise,  and  the  |25,000  which  he  gave  for  stock 
of  the  company  at  its  incipiency  was  paid  in  the  belief  that 
he  never  would  receive  a  cent  in  return.  "That  much,"  he 
said,  "  I  am  willing  to  give  toward  the  betterment  of  Brook- 
lyn. "  He  was  an  early  friend  of  the  Prospect  Park  enterprise; 
he  was  one  of  the  Commissioners  intrusted  with  its  conduct; 
and,  so  firm  was  his  belief  in  the  character  of  the  men  as- 
sociated with  him  in  it,  as  regarded  the  commendable  nature 
of  the  project,  that  he  would  listen  to  no  man  who  assailed 
either.  To  the  Park,  as  to  the  Bridge,  he  gave  his  time  and 
thought  cheerfull}',  animated  by  a  desire  to  serve  the  city 
and  the  citizens,  to  whom  he  felt  an  abounding  gratitude  for 
the  success  which  had  covered  his  business  career.  He  was, 
also,  a  director  in  the  Mechanics'  Bank,  the  Brooklyn  and 
the  Standard  Life  Insurance  Companies,  the  Safe  Deposit 
Company,  and  was  a  helper  in  many  charities.  He  was  upon 
the  Democratic  Electoral  ticket  in  1865  and  1869 — once  de- 
feated, once  elected. 

Mr.  Van  Anden,  in  social  life,  was  what  his  business  and 
jiublic  life  implied.  Unostentatious,  somewhat  retiring, 
never  demonstrative,  but  kindly  and  unmistakably  honest  in 
his  utterance.  He  was  tbe  friend  of  every  man  for  whom  he 
l^retended  friendship,  and  for  no  man  did  he  pretend  even 
respect,  when  he  believed  him  unworthy  of  it.  He  cared 
but  little  for  company;  and,  so  it  came  that  his  friends  were 


THE  PRESS. 


1185 


rather  few  than  numerous.  His  attachments,  when  formed, 
were  of  an  enduring  kind.  Toward  men  who  served  him  he 
had  a  gratitude  that  was  constant.  Murphy,  Lott,  and  Van- 
derbilt,  the  men  who  helped  him  in  his  younger  days,  were 
men  that  he  always  held  himself  under  obligations  to  serve  ; 
and,  from  Mr.  Van  Anden,  the  younger  servants  of  the  Eagle 
learned,  as  they  took  positions  of  trust,  that,  come  what 
might,  these,  his  early  friends,  were  to  be  treated  as  friends. 
He  was  not  less  attached  to  old  servants.  He  disliked  changes 
among  the  persons  about  him.  One  department  was  under 
the  charge  of  a  man  who  counted  35  years  in  Mr.  Van 
Anden's  service.  Another  had  come  as  a  boy  to  the  EagU 
office,  and  had  grown  gray  without  leaving  it.  A  third  had 
commenced  his  career  as  a  journalist,  and  had  continued  it, 
without  a  break,  from  youth  to  advanced  age ;  and  so  on. 
These  things  pleased  Mr.  Van  Anden  hardly  less  than  the 
growth  of  the  paper  itself,  and  in  that  they  gave  him  joy  we 
have  an  evidence  of  the  gentle  character  of  his  mind.  Mr. 
Van  Anden  was  a  bachelor.  He  was  accustomed  to  say  that 
the  Eagle,  in  early  days,  was  his  mistress,  and  that  he  in- 
dulged the  passion  until  it  became  too  late  to  transfer  his 
affections  to  any  other  object. 


Mr.  Van  Anden's  birthplace  is  a  mile  and  a  half  north 
from  the  main  street  of  Poughkeepsie,  and  is  not  now  in 
possession  of  the  Van  Anden  family.  The  house  stands 
on  a  high  bluff  overlooking  the  Hudson,  and  commanding 
a  fine  view  of  the  Catskills  in  the  distance.  His  Brooklyn 
residence  was  on  Columbia  street,  where,  for  many  years, 
he  lived  with  his  venerable  mother  and  widowed  sister; 
and  here,  in  his  well-stocked  and  pleasant  library,  he 
passed  nearly  all  his  leisure  hours,  amusing  himself  in 
viewing  the  ever-changing  scene  presented  by  the  busy 
harbor  before  him;  in  storing  his  mind  with  useful  informa- 
tion, or  in  laying  out  the  plans  for  the  development  and 
conduct  of  his  darling  newspaper,  which  his  subordinates 
were  to  work  out  to  the  letter  by  his  schedule.  His  pleas- 
ures, aside  from  the  one  great  pleasure  of  his  life,  were  few 
and  simple;  his  dress  elegant,  without  being  finical;  his  man- 
ner plain  and  unaffected.  His  life — which  ended  at  the  resi- 
dence of  his  brother,  at  Poughkeepsie,  August  4,  187.5 — was 
marked  by  gentle  consideration  for  the  poor  and  humble; 
generosity  and  self-sacrifice  in  the  interests  of  those  less 
prosperous  than  himself;  and  by  courtesy  and  good  wUl  to- 
wards all  mankind. 


THOMAS    KINSELLA. 


Thomas  Ktnsella,  editor  of  the  £jgZe.— Among  the  names 
of  the  really  great  men  whom  Brooklyn  has  delighted  to 
honor,  none  stand  forth  more  prominently  than  that  of 
Thomas  Kmsella,  the  editor  of  the  Eagle,  whose  career  was 
as  intimately  associated  with  her  public  interests  as  with 
that  of  the  newspaper  whose  prosperity  was  linked  with  his 
fame.  His  death,  at  the  comparatively  early  age  of  fifty-two 
years,  was  the  supreme  test  by  which  his  value  to  the  city  of 
his  adoption  was  established.  Tried  by  this  ordeal,  the  great 
soul  of  Thomas  Kinsella  st(jod  forth  before  his  fellow  men, 
larger  and  nobler  and  wiser  than  in  life  it  had  been  permit- 
ted to  reveal  itself.  Every  principle  for  which  he  had  con- 
tended with  pen  and  voice  was  proved  to  have  been  defended 
from  motives  that  had  for  tlieir  foundation  the  best  interests 
of  the  greater  number,  and  the  rights  of  all  races  and  creeds. 
The  man  was  greater  than  his  works,  and  the  depth  and 
breadth  and  the  height  of  the  sum  total  of  his  character  the 
world  realized  when  death  had  unveiled  iiis  life,  and  the 
higher  nature  was  exhaled  from  the  material  form  that 
had  hidden  it  from  the  general  view.  It  was  then  realized 
that  Brooklyn  had  lost  a  true  son,  wliose  unselfish  love  for 
her  was  a  part  of  his  patriotic  love  for  free  institutions  and 
governments  founded  on  the  truest  ideals  of  freedom. 

Thomas  Kinsella  was  an  adopted  citizen  of  tlie  United 
States,  having  been  born  in  the  county  Wexford,  Ireland,  in 
December,  Vi'Ai.  He  came  to  this  country  so  early  m  life, 
that  while  the  basis  of  his  character  was  Irish,  its  develop- 
ment and  embellishment  were  wholly  American.  His  entry 
in  the  United  States  was  through  the  Bay  of  New  York,  and 
he  has  often  said  that  it  remained  always  for  him  a  vision  of 
heaven,  typical  of  the  cultivation  and  advancement  that  his 
character  was  to  receive  in  the  new  country  which  opened 
her  ai'ms  to  him,  as  she  had  done  to  so  many  of  his  race  be- 
fore. America  was  at  that  time  the  El  Dorado  of  all  Irish 
youth,  and  while  they  scarcely  believed  the  wUd  traditions 
that  the  precious  metals  could  be  picked  up  in  the  streets,  all 
of  Thomas  Kinsella's  friends,  as  well  as  he  himself,  fully  be- 


lieved that,  in  that  far-off  land  there  were  fortunate  Isles  on 
whose  shining  shores  were  peace,  happiness  and  a  larger 
future  for  both  mind  and  body.  The  biography  of  this  man 
is  of  an  ideal  self-made  man.  An  ancient  philosopher  has 
said,  that  a  man  is  his  own  friend  and  also  his  own  enemy, 
and  should  try  to  raise  himself  by  his  own  means,  for  if 
raised  by  the  means  of  another,  the  power  of  the  enemy  in 
himself  is  not  weakened.  Thomas  Kinsella  instinctively 
knew  this,  and  presents  in  his  life  and  character  an  example 
of  one  who  has  raised  himself  solely  by  his  own  means.  He 
came  to  America  unknown,  an  orjjhan,  a  foreigner  ;  and  he 
left  it  when  deatli  came  upon  him,  one  of  the  best  known 
men  in  the  nation;  identified  with  its  laws,  its  cities,  its  gov- 
ernment and  history.  More  than  all  this,  he  was  beloved  by 
all  who  rightly  knew  his  greatness  of  heart,  his  nobility  of 
nature. 

A  characteristic  incident  is  related  of  him  during  his  early 
work  in  Cambridge,  New  York,  which  shows  what  was  in 
the  man,  and  how  not  even  jileasure  could  divert  him  from 
the  improvement  of  his  mind.  It  was  in  the  year  1857.  A 
few  friends  made  ujj  a  ti'out-fishing  party,  and  Tliomas,  as 
he  was  called,  was  invited.  They  proceeded  to  the  piscato- 
rial shambles  and  threw  in  their  "flies,"  but  very  soon 
"Thomas"  was  observed  lying  upon  his  back,  with  the  rod 
in  one  hand  and  a  volume  of  Burns'  poems  in  the  other, 
which  he  was  industriously  reading,  oblivious  of  his  sur- 
roundings. 

We  cannot  picture  him  going  through  any  academy,  or 
show  him  at  the  head  of  any  class,  or  as  the  writer  of  vale- 
dictories and  theses;  but  he  must  be  looked  for  at  all  times  in 
his  life  battling  with  circumstances,  while  he  imbibed  learn- 
ing and  acquired  culture.  Such  a  man  never  fails  to  make 
his  mark  in  the  times  in  which  he  lives,  and  he  very  fre- 
quently occupies  a  much  larger  share  of  the  attention  of  the 
world,  than  one  who  has  been  favored  by  fortune  or  born  in 
the  lap  of  a  happy  inheritance.  Mr.  Gardiner,  who  published 
the  Washington  N.  Y.  Post  in  1851,  and  for  whom  Mr.  Kin- 


1186 


HISTORY   OF  KING  &    COUNTY. 


sella  worked  as  a  compositor,  -wrote  that,  observing  the  lat- 
ter's  fondness  for  study,  he  gave  him  the  free  use  of  his 
library  of  300  volumes,  every  one  of  which  Kinsella  read. 
His  adoption  of  journalism  may  very  clearly  be  traced  to  a 
train  of  accidental  circumstances.  He  said,  in  a  letter  to  a 
friend,  that  while  a  compositor  on  the  Post,  at  tlie  time  of 
Henry  Clay's  last  sickness,  the  editor  was  compelled  to  go 
away,  but  wrote  a  leader,  and  left  instructions  for  Kinsella, 
in  co-operation  with  a  lawyer  of  the  village,  to  write  an  arti- 
cle upon  the  great  Whig.  Clay  died,  but  Kinsella  took  pains 
to  write  the  article  alone  and  then  submitted  it  to  the  lawyer, 
who  gave  it  unstinted  praise.  This  elated  the  young  com- 
positor, and  he  then  and  there  resolved  to  take  up  journalism. 
"Wliether  he  had  or  had  not  any  prophetic  vision  of  his  future 
at  tliat  time,  and  of  the  way  it  was  realized,  is  not  known,  but 
we  find  him  covering  a  great  deal  of  territory  in  wandering 
before  his  final  settlement  in  Brooklyn.  Leaving  the  Cam- 
bridge Po&t,  he  went  to  Troy,  N.  Y.,  working  there  as  com- 
positor and  occasional  contributor,  for  a  time  not  exceeding 
a  year.  From  Troy  he  came  again  to  New  York,  from  whence 
he  went  in  1854  to  the  Southern  States.  Alternating  between 
New  Orleans  and  Vicksburg,  he  worked  at  his  trade,  and  at 
the  same  time  diligently  studied  the  burning  question  of 
slavery  upon  its  own  ground  and  in  its  very  presence.  This 
he  declared  was  his  chief  object  in  going  South.  Tiie  Jeflfer- 
soniau  principles  had  been  early  adopted  by  him,  and  his  ex- 
perience in  the  South  confirmed  his  hostility  to  the  "  peculiar 
institution,"  and  made  his  soul  revolt  at  tlie  enormity  of  put- 
ting up  for  sale  a  human  body,  the  tenement  of  alivmg  spirit. 

Therefore,  wlien  in  1858,  he  returned  Nortli  to  Brooklyn, 
lie  was  fully  aroused  against  the  giant  that  had  so  long  raised 
its  horned  head  unmolested  in  the  fairest  portion  of  our 
country,  and  was  ready  to  join  those  fearless  fighters  for 
human  brotherhood,  wlio  were  resolved  not  to  tolerate  the 
secession  of  the  South,  nor  to  permit  slavery  to  gain  a  foot- 
hold in  the  Western  States. 

Up  to  this  time  he  liad  been,  so  to  say,  in  a  nebulous  con- 
dition, unfixed,  unpermanent;  not  definitely  attached  to  any 
point  from  which  he  might  grow  in  any  dn-ection  and  shed 
whatever  liglit  was  vouchsafed  to  him.  But  here  we  are  to 
look  for  tlie  beginnings  of  his  "future;"  for,  as  his  history 
afterward  showed,  this  was  the  moment  when  his  wanderings 
were  to  cease,  and  his  active,  concentrated  work  as  journalist, 
citizen,  statesman,  editor,  was  to  begin.  He  had  always 
asjiired  to  be  an  editor,  for  justly  he  looked  upon  the  editor 
as  the  greatest  educator,  the  most  efficient  moulder  of  men 
and  events  aUke;  and  had  he  written  in  tlie  order  of  his  esti- 
mation, the  various  avocations,  he  would  have  put  that  of 
editor  highest  and  first.  He  idealized  the  press  and  the  type- 
stick.  The  mere  mechanical  view  of  them  he  could  not  abide, 
for  they  were  to  him  not  only  the  chief  instrument  of  modern 
thought,  but  the  almost  conscious  ministers  of  intelligence. 
He  said  himself,  "  only  a  born  dunce  can  be  a  printer  and 
not  learn  to  love  literature;"  and  thus  we  see  that  he  ad- 
vanced from  the  composing-stick  to  the  editor's  chair  of  the 
most  powerful  and  well-conducted  afternoon  journal  in  the 
United  States,  through  his  high  ideal  of  the  vocation  of  a 
printer,  and  a  prophetic  view  of  liis  own  future. 

Having  pitched  his  tent  in  Brooklyn,  he  applied  to  Isaac 
Van  Anden,  and  obtained  emi)loj'ment  upon  the  Brooklyn 
Daily  Eagle,  which  was  then  a  fair  paper,  but  did  not  possess 
the  importance  to  which  it  attained  under  his  management. 
At  first  his  duties  were  mechanical,  but  lie  speedily  wrote 
himself  into  another  position,  one  step  toward  his  final  goal. 
He  began  with  short  notices  of  current  events,  then  reviews 
of  books,  and  at  last  the  attention  of  the  editor-proprietor 
was  attracted  to  him,  resulting  in  his  appointment  as  liead 


of  the  then  rather  limited  reportorial  staff  of  the  paper.     The 

editor  was  Henry  McCloskey,  a  trenchant  writer,  and  an  ac- 
complished scholar,  with  a  warm  heart,  but  convictions  as 
strong  as  they  were  sometimes  erroneous.  He  remained  in 
his  position  from  1853  until  September,  18G1,  when  the 
Civil  War  evolved  the  juncture  which  was  destined  to  give 
Thomas  Kinsella  his  great  opportunity.  McCloskey  believed 
in  the  right  of  secession,  while  Kinsella  did  not,  but  insisted 
upon  the  right  of  the  government  to  put  it  down.  "Van 
Anden  counselled  moderation,  while  he  upheld  the  freedom 
of  his  editor.  The  government,  however,  interdicted  the 
Eagle  as  a  treasonable  sheet,  unless  a  loyal  man  was  ap- 
pointed its  editor.  McCloskey,  unable  to  give  up  his  con- 
victions, which  he  claimed  as  his  own  possession,  resigned, 
and  Mr.  Van  Anden  immediately  appointed  Thomas  Kinsella 
to  his  vacant  chair,  who  at  this  moment  could  see  stretching 
before  him,  the  wide  road  to  fame,  wealth,  and  a  command- 
ing infiuence  and  power  as  a  journalist.  The  light  breaks 
clearly,  and  Thomas  Kinsella  can  see  before  him  the  fi-uitiou 
of  his  earliest  hopes;  they  were  realized,  and  before  long  he 
became  the  controller,  the  guide,  the  censor,  the  preserver 
of  a  journalistic  property  worth  one  million  of  dollars,  and 
that  has  lately  paid  annual  dividends  of  |135,000.  A  man 
of  his  large  powers  and  trained  ability,  joined  to  a  splendid 
physique,  and  who  drew  strength  from  perennial  fountains  of 
true  Irish  wit,  sentiment  and  cheerfulness,  could  not  be  at 
the  head  of  a  journal  like  this  and  fail  to  reach  a  high  posi- 
tion in  the  community.  At  the  same  time,  like  all  earnest 
men,  he  was  sure  to  make  enemies.  These  he  always  had, 
but  they  never  succeeded  in  accomiilishing  aught  to  his  in- 
jury. Upon  his  paper  all  were  his  friends,  from  the  most 
tusignificant  boy  to  his  associate  editors,  and  he  commanded 
from  each  a  loyalty  and  devotion  which  is  ever  sure  to  be 
accorded  to  a  loyal  heart.  a. 

In  1869,  he  was  appointed  Commissioner  of  the  old  Brook- 
lyn Water  Board,  where  he  served  one  year  and  a  half,  then 
returned  to  his  editorial  duties.  He  was  a  warm  advocate 
of  President  Johnson,  who  appointed  him  Postmaster  of  the 
city  for  a  short  time.  In  1870  he  was  elected  to  represent  the 
Second  District  in  Congress.  Mr.  Kinsella  was  one  of  the 
earliest  advocates  of  a  union  between  the  Democrats  and  the 
Liberal  Republicans;  and,  in  the  nomination  of  Horace 
Greeley  for  President,  he  was,  of  the  Democratic  leaders, 
the  one  most  active  and  influential.  In  this,  his  own  city, 
no  man,  save  perhaps  Mr.  Hugli  McLoughlin,  has  exercised 
as  much  influence  upon  its  politics  as  Mr.  Kinsella. 

For  years  he  opposed  the  one-man  power,  and  stood  fear- 
lessly in  the  path  of  all  "  bosses."  This,  of  course,  made  for 
him  many  political  enemies.  But  he  loved  the  city  of  his 
adoption.  No  citizen  of  ancient  Venice  had  more  affection 
for  the  Bride  of  the  Sea  than  Mr.  Kinsella  had  for  Brooklyn, 
and  thus  no  party  politics  or  mean  expedients  of  hack  iioliti- 
cians  could  make  him  waver  from  the  course  he  deemed  the 
best  for  Brooklyn.  He  filled  the  oflace  of  Bridge  Trustee, 
and  was  also  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Education.  His 
positive  nature  and  really  patriotic  feeling  for  Brooklyn,  joined 
to  great  administrative  and  organizing  ability,  drove  him  al- 
ways into  politics,  but  not  for  profit.  Far  from  that,  for  he 
spent  much  money  and  time  in  going  to  Albany  whenever 
any  measures  concerning  the  city  were  before  the  Legislature. 
He  could  not  bear  to  see  his  own  city  liurt  by  adverse  or 
narrow  legislative  action,  and  was  wiUing  to  spend  of  his 
substance  for  her  benefit. 

It  was  the  same  with  him  when  in  Congress.  His  large 
heart  was  ever  ready  to  move  him  into  action  for  widows  and 
orphans,  whose  just  claims  for  pensions  were  delayed  by  in- 
efiicieut  clerks  and  departmental  red  tape. 


THE  PRESS. 


1187 


In  many  instances  he  has  worked  night  and  day  to  procure 
for  some  of  the  needy  citizens  of  his  city  who  could  not  em- 
ploy counsel,  the  distribution  at  an  early  date  of  what  money 
was  their  due.  After  leaving  Congress,  Mr.  Kinsella  devoted 
himself  to  the  Eagle  and  local  politics,  taking  an  active  part 
in  the  latter.  He  was  a  hearty  supporter  of  Mr.  Tilden  in 
1876;  and,  in  1880,  was  largely  instrumental  in  the  selection 
of  Gen.  Hancock  for  nomination,  as  the  Eagle  was  the  first 
paper  that  mentioned  liis  name  for  the  Presidency.  There 
were  hardly  any  political  conventions  of  his  party  held  in  the 
city  that  did  not  see  Mr.  Kinsella  a  delegate. 

A  slight  diflference  occurred,  in  1883,  between  him  and  the 
owners  of  tlie  paper,  growing  out  of  an  interference  with 
his  policy  as  editor  and  freedom  of  action,  so  that  he  made  a 
threat  to  purchase  a  rival  paper  and  leave  the  Eagle  alto- 
gether, unless  he  was  left  untrammeled.  This  threat  was 
currently  taken  in  Brooklyn  for  definite  action,  and  many 
expected  to  see  the  Eagle's  prestige  decreased.  But  the  un- 
pleasantness was  healed  over,  and  Mr.  Kinsella  recovered 
undisputed  sway. 

But  constant  work,  both  of  body  and  mind,  told  on  his 
iron  constitution,  so  that  he  was  compelled  to  go  to  Europe 
in  the  summer  of  1883,  to  recuperate,  returning  mucli  im- 
proved in  some  respects.  But,  as  usual,  the  restless  Irish 
spirit  drove  him  again,  and  threw  him  into  the  centre  of  the 
political  battle  during  tlie  mvinicipal  election  of  1883,  and 
that,  coupled  with  subsequent  hard  work  in  Washington, 
where  his  efforts  were  instrumental  in  the  election  of  Mr. 
Carlisle  for  Speaker,  broke  him  down  again  in  the  month  of 
November  of  tliat  year.  He  went  home  from  his  office  one 
rainy  afternoon,  to  return  no  more.  His  illness,  not  alarm- 
ing, continued  through  three  months  ;  his  disease,  an  aggra 
vated  form  of  jaundice. 

The  estimation  in  which  he  was  held  was  vividly  brought 
out  during  his  battle  with  death,  as  all  classes  of  people  in- 
quii-ed  daUy  for  him,  watching  the  papers  and  bulletins  for 
news  of  his  condition  ;  and  when,  at  last,  on  the  afternoon 
of  the  11th  of  February,  1884,  the  relentless  hand  of  the  de- 
stroyer could  be  no  longer  averted,  and  he  passed  away  from 


the  scene  of  his  busy  and  useful  life,  all  Brooklyn  mourned 
him,  and  the  flags  at  half  mast  throughout  the  city  bore 
mute  testimony  that  an  honored  and  regretted  soul  had  fled 
away. 

The  chief  characteristic  which  endeared  Mr.  Kinsella  to  his 
friends  was  his  kindlj',  humane  interest  in  his  fellow  beings. 
The  trials  and  sorrows  of  his  friends  bore  with  heavy  weight 
upon  his  sensitive  heart.  Where  he  could  not  alleviate 
misery,  he  suffered  with  an  intensity  often  screened  by  an  as- 
sumed roughness  of  exterior.  As  he  advanced  in  life,  his 
sympathies  became  more  keenly  sensitive,  while  his  larger 
cliarity  and  benevolence  were  constantly  remarked  by  those 
about  him.  His  finest  trait,  perhaps,  was  his  gratitude  to  those 
who  had  ever  befriended  him  or  his.  Towards  those  who  had 
won  his  regard  through  real  or  fancied  service,  his  friendship 
was  unalterable;  and,  though  the  bond  was  often  strained  by 
selfishness  on  the  part  of  others,  it  was  kept  in  the  fullest 
fidelity  by  him. 

Before  the  writer  lies  the  draft  of  a  letter,  one  of  the  last 
he  ever  wrote  at  his  desk  before  leaving  it  forever,  which 
eloquently  attests  his  appreciation  of  kindness  shown  him. 
In  this  letter  he  asks  of  a  prominent  business  man  in  New 
York  emjjloyment  in  some  lowly  position  for  a  fellow-coun- 
tryman, apologizing  for  making  the  request  in  these  words  : 
"When  I  was  a  friendless  boy,  Dennis  did  me  a  favor." 
Fortunate  "Dennis,"  who  had  won  the  gratitude  of  this 
"friendless  boy,"  who  never  forgot  or  passed  by  an  old 
friend.  The  letter  goes  on  to  explain  that  the  writer  is  in  a 
position  to  repay  the  debt,  but  not  in  the  way  that  will  best 
serve  the  recipient,  and  then  follows  a  eulogy  upon  the  man 
whose  cause  he  makes  his  own.  No  better  tribute  to  his 
nobility  of  character  could  be  paid  than  is  portrayed  in  this 
letter,  written  to  a  friend  and  designed  for  no  other  eye. 

Over  the  narrow  plot  of  earth  that  holds  all  that  remains 
of  this  self-made  man,  far-seeing  statesman  and  patriotic 
citizen,  Brooklyn  has  paid  her  last  tribute  of  respect,  and  no 
more  fitting  inscription  can  be  placed  above  it  than  those 
words  of  Abou  Ben  Adhem  :  "  One  who  loved  his  fellow 
men."  LAURA  C.  BOLLOWAY. 


COL.   WILLIAM    HESTER. 


Col.  William  Hester,  President  of  the  Brooklyn  Eagle 
Association,  was  born  in  Poughkeepsie,  N.  Y.,  in  December, 
1835.  His  father,  Mr.  Samuel  Hester,  now  of  Kingston,  conies 
of  good  old  English  stock ;  his  mother  was  a  sister  of  the  late 
Isaac  Van  Anden  whose  name  will  always  be  identified  with 
the  Eagle.  Col.  Hester,  therefore,  represents  two  of  the  stur- 
diest and  most  enterprising  European  nationalities,  the 
English  and  the  Dutch.  His  early  education  was  received  at 
a  Poughkeepsie  public  school,  from  which,  as  he  grew  older, 
he  was  transferred  to  the  Rhinebeck  Academy,  where  he  was 
prepared  for  the  business  career  in  which  he  has  been  so  suc- 
cessful. Early  in  1853,  while  he  was  in  his  seventeenth  year, 
he  left  home  to  begin  life  on  his  own  account,  and  not  unnat- 
urally, with  strict  injunctions  to  place  himself  under  Mr.  Isaac 
Van  Anden's  care.  His  uncle  was  a  thorough  business  man, 
and  entertained  old-fashioned  and  conservative  ideas  upon  the 
subject  of  giving  young  men  a  start  in  life.  Favoritism  was 
especially  abhorrent  to  him.  Mr.  Van  Anden  had  begun  at 
the  foot  of  the  ladder,  and  he  was  determined  that  if  his 
nephew  rose  to  distinction,  it  should  be  through  his  own 
efforts  and  capabilities.    The  young  gentleman  from  Pough- 


keepsie was  therefore  put  to  work  with  the  boys  in  the  office, 
doing  such  %vork  as  fell  to  an  apprentice.  In  a  sliort  time 
he  had  mastered  the  intricacies  of  the  composing-room,  and 
awaited  his  turn  of  recognition  as  a  comiiositor.  At  the  age 
of  twenty -one  years,  he  was  setting  type  at  his  case  with 
other  gentlemen  who  have  attained  eminence  in  this  city. 
The  Eagle  was  rapidly  growing  in  importance,  and  the  staff 
was  increasing  with  its  needs  in  all  the  departments.  It  was 
young  Hester's  ambition,  when  a  vacancy  occurred  in  the  fore- 
manship  of  the  comjiosing  room,  to  win  that  distinction,  but 
Mr.  Van  Anden  could  not  bear  even  the  suggestion  of  favorit- 
ism, and  another  candidate  won  the  coveted  position.  Shortly 
afterward  a  vacancy  occurred  in  the  clerical  force  of  the 
counting-room.  It  was  a  step  higher  and  the  young  compositor 
determined,  if  possible,  to  secure  the  appointment.  There  was 
no  question  here  of  superior  merit,  and  Mr.  Van  Anden  with 
a  clear  conscience  was  enabled  to  place  his  nephew  behind 
the  counter,  in  which  he  speedily  justified  the  wisdom  of  his 
appointment.  From  being  book-keeper  he  worked  his  way 
up  to  the  head  of  the  department,  and  while  Mr.  Van  Anden 
gonti'olled  the  business  of  the  Eagle,  his  nephew  became  the 


118S 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


manager  and  attended  to  all  the  details  of  the  office.  In  1870, 
llr.Yan  Anden  sold  the  Eagle  to  a  number  of  gentlemen  who 
formed  a  stock  company  the  following  year.  Both  he  and 
his  nephew  became  stockholders,  and  Sir,  Van  Anden  was 
elected  President,  Ck)l.  Hester  occupying  the  position  of 
publisher. 

In  1875,  5tr.  Isaac  Van  Anden  died,  and  at  the  next 
meeting  of  the  directors  of  the  Eagle  Association,  Col. 
Hester  was  elected  President.  In  his  earlier  days  he  had  a 
share  in  public  affairs:  was  a  member  of  the  Vohmteer  Fire 
Department;  the  National  Guard  of  the  State,  and  later  was 
Quartermaster  upon  Gen.  Dakin's  staff,  serving  rather  more 
than  five  years.  In  these  circumstances  it  was  not  singular 
that  the  leaders  of  the  Democratic  party,  to  which  Col.  Hester 
always  belonged,  should  have  turned  to  him  as  the  most 
available  candidate,  through  his  popularity,  to  contest  with 
the  Hon.  Darwin  E.  James,  the  Third  Congressional  District 
of  the  State  in  1882.  That  district  commands,  naturally,  the 
highest  respect  in  Congress.  It  is  doubtful  if  a  more  intelli- 
gent and  wealthy  constituency  exists  in  the  country.  It  was 
RepubUcan,  up  to  Col.  Hester's  candidacy,  by  a  majority  of 
7,000  votes.  To  reduce  this  majority  was  all  that  could  be 
reasonably  expected,  and  the  compliment  was  paid  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  Eagle  Association  of  making  him  the  standard- 
bearer  in  a  forlorn  hope.  In  an  editorial  article  commenting 
on  his  acceptance,  the  Hon.  Thomas  Kinsella,  who  was  a 
fellow-compositor  on  the  Eagle,  and  who  has  been  in  almost 
constant  intercourse  with  Col.  Hester  for  over  thirty  years — 
in  fact,  the  business  life  of  both  has  passed  within  the  bound- 
ary of  the  four  walls  of  the  Eagle  office,  although  those  limits 
during  the  time  have  expanded  from  18x40  feet,  to  an  area 
of  over  12,000  square  feet — among  other  words  of  praise,  paid 


the  following  hearty  and  characteristic  tribute  to  his  friend 
and  associate:  "The  writer  of  this  article  began  life  with 
him  at  '  the  case  '  and  from  an  acquaintance  of  thirty  years 
bears  testimony  to  the  fact  that  he  is  a  considerate  employer, 
a  helpful  and  genial  friend,  and  as  honest  a  man  as  lives.  If 
he  should  be  elected  to  Congress,  he  will  represent  the  Third 
District  intelligently,  and  in  a  conservative  spirit.  This  much 
may  be  relied  on:  wealth  has  no  attraction  and  power  no 
blandishment  adequate  to  turn  him  from  supporting  what  he 
conceives  to  be  right.  Of  course  he  did  not  seek  this  nomi- 
nation; it  sought  him.  He  is  not  desirous  even  of  political 
honors.  He  has  been  well  content  with  a  faithful  perform- 
ance of  all  the  duties  and  obligations  devolving  on  him  as  a 
private  citizen.  If  the  voters  of  the  Third  District  desire  to 
be  represented  in  Congress  by  an  intelligent,  upright  business- 
man who  has  no  sinister  ends  to  subserve,  and  who  will 
make  a  personal  sacrifice  by  accepting  a  public  trust,  thej- 
might  assiduously  seek  through  a  long  summer  day  and  fail 
to  find  a  better  man  than  William  Hester." 

Col.  Hester  was  a  stronger  candidate  than  even  his  friends 
had  ventured  to  hope,  for  the  majority  against  his  party  of 
7,000  was  reduced  to  2,400.  This  was  his  first  appearance  on 
the  stage  of  politics,  and  was  far  more  gratifying  to  his 
friends,  and  more  honorable  to  himself,  than  many  a  victory 
upon  which  famous  men  have  been  congratulated.  He  ac- 
cepted the  call  as  a  matter  of  party  duty.  With  the  cares  of 
so  important  an  entei-prise  as  the  business  management  of 
the  Brooklyn  Eagle  constantly  pressing  upon  his  attention, 
and  the  obligation  to  liis  fellow-citizens  irrespective  of  party 
involved  in  his  position,  Col.  Hester  is  more  than  content  to 
remain  in  private  life  as  the  head  of  a  great,  beneficent  and 
prosperous  concern. 


ANDREW    MCLEAN. 


Andrew  JIcLean,  the  present  Chief  Editor  of  the  Brooklyn 
Daily  Eagle,  is  a  native  of  Scotland.  He  was  bom  in  the  vil- 
lage of  Renton,  in  Dumbartonshire,  on  the  banks  of  the  river 
Leven,  on  the  7th  of  August,  1848.  In  his  fourteenth  year, 
he  came  to  the  United  States,  and  made  his  home  in  Brook- 
lyn with  his  uncle  Andrew,  who  was  then  a  dry  goods 
merchant  in  Myrtle  avenue.  In  this  city,  he  prepared  himself 
for  journalism,  to  which  his  active  life  has  been  devoted. 
He  attended  Brown's  Commercial  College  till  his  eighteenth 
year;  when,  equipped  for  work  with  a  sound  English  educa- 
tion, and  a  knowledge  of  the  art  of  short-hand  writing,  he 
began  operations  on  the  press.  After  bohemianizing  for  sev- 
eral months  on  the  New  York  papers,  he  went  west,  and  re- 
mained there  for  something  over  two  years;  during  which 
time  he  worked  on  the  Chicago  and  Cincinnati  papers:  served 
as  a  stenographer  in  the  Legislature  of  Illinois;  started  a 
weekly  paper  in  the  village  of  Harrison,  near  Cincinnati: 
and  had  a  variety  of  experiences  in  journals  devoted  to 
labor  interests  in  special  departments  of  trade.     lU  health 


compelled  him  to  return  east.  After  a  sickness  of  many 
months,  he  got  employment  on  the  Brooklyn  Times,  from 
which  he  transferred  his  services  to  the  New  York  Times, 
representing  that  paper  in  Brooklyn  for  about  two  years. 
From  the  Times  he  passed  to  the  Union;  and  from  the  Union 
(1874)  to  the  Eagle,  where  he  has  remained  ever  smce,  as 
managing  editor.  On  the  Eagle  he  has  done  every  kind  of 
writing  which  a  reporter  or  editor  can  be  called  upon  to  do. 
He  is  a  writer  of  undeniable  ability,  nervous  force,  and  has 
made  a  reputation  as  a  journalist  which  is  remarkable  con- 
sidering his  years,  for  in  point  of  age,  he  is,  perhaps,  the 
youngest  managing  editor  of  a  daily  newspaper  in  the 
country.  Mr.  McLean  is  intense  in  his  political  feelings, 
and  as  an  anti-machine  Democrat  has  made  himself  widely 
known  in  Brooklyn.  His  views  on  all  questions  of  the  day 
command  respect;  while  as  a  writer  he  is  able  and  compre- 
hensive. Those  who  know  him  best,  and  hive  watched 
his  course  most  closely,  feel  assured  that  the  brightest  por- 
tion of  his  journalistic  career  is  but  just  opening  before  him. 


WILLIAM    HERRIES. 


WiLLiAll  Herries  was  born  in  Glasgow,  Scotland,  June  9, 
1828,  where  he  received  a  liberal  education.  In  the  year  1852 
he  came  to  the  city  of  New  York,  and  there,  carrying  out  his 
early  favorite  plan  for  life,  began  his  journalistic  career  in  the 
office  of  the  Xew  York  Tribune,     His  education,  intelligence. 


and  practical  talents,  soon  made  him  a  useful  and  well  a])- 
preciated  member  of  the  staff  of  the  Tribune,  with  which  he 
was  connected  until  1863;  when  he  left,  to  assume  the 
editorial  charge  of  the  Brooklyn  Times.  This  charge  con- 
tinued about  one  year,  during  which  time  he  made  many 


THE  PJiESS. 


1189 


friends,  among  whom  was  C.  D.  Bingham,  the  accomplished 
editor  of  the  Pittsburg  Commercial.  In  the  summer  of  1865, 
he  was  invited  by  Mr.  Bingham  to  become  his  associate  in 
editing  that  journal.  Tliis  invitation  was  accepted,  and  was 
a  pleasing  and  profitable  relation.  After  continuing  in  it  for 
some  time,  Mi\  Herries,  in  connection  with  Mr.  John  W. 
Kttock,  established  the  Pittsburg  Sunday  Leader,  which 
soon  bec£me  one  of  the  most  successful  and  influential 
papers  in  western  Pennsylvania. 

Having  parted  advantageously  with  his  interest  in  that 
journal,  Mr.  Herries  returned  to  the  city  of  New  York,  to  be 
connected  with  the  New  York  Times,  assuming,  after  a 
short  time,  charge  of  the  Brooklyn  aflfairs  of  that  paper. 

In  1872,  his  connection  with  the  Brooklyn  Eagle  began, 
and,  with  ihe  exception  of  a  few  intervals,  has  continued 
down  to  the  present  time.  We  believe  tliat  Mr.  Henies  has 
always  discharged  the  duties  of  the  various  positions  he  has 
occupied  in  a  highly  acceptable  manner.  He  loves  and  honors 
the  journalistic  profession,  justly  believing  that  it  largely 
furnishes  the  intellectual  element  of  the  time. 

Few  of  the  members  of  this  profe.-^sion  are  more  industi'ious 
and  thorough  in  the  discharge  of  their  duties  than  he;  few 
have  a  larger  or  more  practical  knowledge  of  books  than  he; 
few  can  apply  a  more  critical  and  appreciative  analysis  to 
their  rontents;  few  are  less  pretentious  in  exhibiting  their 
endowments.  Indeed,  his  modesty  has,  in  some  sense, 
militated  against  a  more  rapid  advancement  in  his  pro- 
fession. 

As  he  has  long  been  a  resident  of  Brooklyn,  he  is  exceed- 
ingly well  accjuainted  with  all  its  affairs.     He  is  accessi- 


ble,  affable    and    obliging,    and    always  ready   to   impart 

any  information  that  is  desired  of  him;  and  such  infor- 
mation is  almost  constantly  sought.  When  we  say  Mr. 
Herries  is  a  highly  useful  citizen  in  and  out  of  his  profession, 
we  feel  assured  that  public  sentiment  will  heartily  concur 
with  us.  Beyond  the  limits  of  the  Eagle  office,  Mr.  Herries 
has  a  large  circle  of  friends,  both  in  New  York  and  Brooklyn, 
who  hold  him  in  high  esteem. 

Asa  writer  he  is  concise,  direct,  lucid,  and  graceful;  his 
productions  have  an  ethical  interest,  evidently  the  offspring 
of  a  full  mind,  sound  judgment,  and  practical  good  sense. 
Mr.  Herries  is  not  without  merit  as  a  speaker,  though  he 
seldom  appears  before  the  public  in  that  character,  and  never, 
unless  strongly  solicited;  but  when  he  does  appear,  he  acquits 
himself  in  a  highly  commendable  manner.  Among  his  public 
productions  was  his  address  at  the  Kemble  banquet,  given  at 
the  Hotel  Brunswick,  New  York,  on  the  evening  of  Septem- 
ber 29,  1883,  to  commemorate  the  great  actor,  John  KLemble. 
On  that  occasion  addresses  were  made  by  Judge  Brad}-,  Rev. 
Dr.  Hall,  Collector  Robinson,  Mr.  Raphael  J.  DeCordova,  and 
other  distinguished  writers  and  speakers.  Mr.  Hen-ies  re- 
sponded to  the  following  sentiment:  "The  Drama,  the  Co- 
laborer  with  the  Pulpit  in  Reprehending  Vice  and  Encourag- 
ing Virtue."  His  response  won  for  him  the  commendation 
of  every  person  present.  As  it  was  published  and  exten- 
sively read,  it  speaks  for  itself,  and  needs  no  other  encomium. 
Mr.  Herries  is  strongly  attached  to  his  brethren  in  the  pro- 
fession; never  forgetting  the  amenities  and  courtesies  that  so 
strongly  characterize  those  attached  to  the  great  calling  of 
journalism. 


ROBERT    A,    BURCH. 


Robert  A.  Bdech,  a  native  of  Albany,  N.Y.,  has  spent  the 
greater  portion  of  his  life  in  New  York  and  Brooklyn.  He 
first  studied  law,  and  wasadmitted  to  the  bar.  but  his  literary 
tastes  predominatmg,  drew  him  to  the  field  of  journalism. 
He  has  been  connected  at  different  times  with  the  Star, 
Standard,  Union,  and  Eagle  of  Brooklyn,  and  with  the 
World  and  the  Evening  Post  of  New  York.  In  1872,  he  was 
managing  editor  of  the  Eagle;  in  1873.  editor-in-chief  of  the 
Union;  and  for  about  six  years  was  the  principal  editorial 


writer  of  the  Evening  Post,  dirring  the  last  yeare  of  the  life 
of  its  late  editor-in-chief,  Mr.  William  C.  Bryant.  When, 
after  his  death,  the  Post  changed  hands,  he  became  man- 
aging editor,  which  position  he  retained  until  1883.  In 
1884,  he  was  again  managing  editor  of  the  Eagle. 

Mr.  Burch  is  a  graceful  writer,  thoroughly  in  love  with  his 
profession,  and  of  a  social,  generous  disposition  which  makes 
and  retains  many  friendshiiis.  Brooklyn  has  always  enlisted 
his  sincerest  interest  in  all  that  pertained  to  her  public  affairs. 


The  Weekly  Advertiser  is  published  by  Mr. 
George  H.  Ayres,  at  416  Grand  street,  Brooklyn,  E.  D., 
and  was  established  at  107  Broadway,  June  5th,  1874. 
Its  editor  is  Mr.  N.  B.  Jacobs.  Heretofore  it  has  been 
devoted  soleh^  to  the  interests  of  advertisers,  but  its 
character  will  soon  be  so  changed  that  it  will  give 
much  local  news ;  thus  gaining  a  popularity  with  readers 
which  will  render  it  more  than  ever  valuable  to  adver- 
tisers. 

The  Brooklyn  Daily  Lance  was  established  in 
September,  1880,  by  Mr.  George  J.  May,  as  a  penny 


daily.  Its  publication  office  was  located  at  119  Frank- 
lin street,  Greenpoint.  Subsequently  Mr.  James  F. 
Rowins  associated  himself  with  Mr.  May,  and  the 
Lance  was  published  by  the  firm  of  May  &  Rowins. 
Mr.  Rowins  shortly  after  severed  his  connection  with 
the  paper.  Its  publication  was  continued  by  Mr.  May 
alone  at  the  location  named,  until  about  August  of 
1882,  when  the  Lance  became  the  Brooklyn  Daily 
Advertiser,  and  its  publication  office  was  removed  to 
its  present  location,  72  Greenpoint  avenue.  It  is  issued 
every  afternoon  except  Sunday. 


HIS2  0RY  Ot  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Among  other  papers  published  were  the  Hepublican, 
the  True  HepiMiean,  tlie  Chronicle,  and  the  Post. 
They  are  now  dead. 

An  edition  of  the  Long  Island  Star,  of  Long  Island 
City,  owned  and  published  hy  Mr.  Thomas  H.  Todd,  is 
printed  for  and  circulated  in  Greenpoint. 

The  Greenpoint  Globe  is  a  special  local  edition  of 
the  Newtown  Register,  owned  by  Charles  White,  of 
Newtown,  L.  I.,  which  is  circulated  every  Saturday. 

Messrs.  Hewitt  &  Hosier  publish  an  advertising  sheet 
called  the  Grten][>oint  Independent. 

The  East  New  York  Sentinel  and  Brooklyn 
Herald  was  established  in  1866  by  Mr.  Matthew 
(Jooper,  the  present  editor  and  proprietor;  and"was  the 
earliest  paper  published  in  Kings  county  outside  of 
Brooklyn.  It  is  radical  in  politics,  and  is  circulated 
extensively  throughout  the  five  county  towns,  as  well  as 
in  the  Eighteenth,  Twenty-fourth,  and  Twenty-fifth 
Wards  of  Brooklyn,  and  has  many  subscribers  in  New 
England  and  the  West,  and  in  other  parts  of  the  Union. 
The  regular  issue  is  2,-500.  The  Sentinel  and  Herald 
is  an  eight-column,  four-page  paper,  containing  much 
reading  matter  of  an  interesting  character,  and  well 
patronized  by  advertisers. 

The  Long  Island  Record,  published  weekly  in 
East  New  York,  was  established  in  1871,  by  Messrs. 
A.  H.  W.  Van  Siclen  and  Richard  Pickering.  One 
year  later,  Mr.  Van  Siclen  (who  had  in  the  meantime 


been  elected  Supervisor  of  the  town)  retired  from  the 
business,  leaving  Mr.  Pickering  as  sole  proprietor  and 
editor.  The  Record  has  always  maintained  an  "  inde- 
pendent" position  in  politics,  and  has  wielded  an  im- 
portant influence  in  local  matters.  Its  merit  has  been 
recognized  from  time  to  time  by  the  Board  of  Super- 
visors, in  its  designation  as  one  of  the  official  county 
papers.  Its  circulation  is  by  no  means  limited  to 
the  township  in  which  it  is  published,  but  extends 
into  the  neighboring  towns  of  Kings  and  Queens 
counties. 

The  Brooklyn  News  is  published  by  James  F. 
Denehan  at  249  Atlantic  avenue,  between  Court  and 
Boerum  streets,  with  a  branch  office  at  John  Delmar's 
real  estate  office,  Fifth  avenue  and  Ninth  street,  and 
claims  a  larger  circulation  in  South  Brooklyn  than  any 
other  paper.     It  was  established  in  1868. 

The  Hornet  is  a  small  eight-page  weekly  journal 
devoted  to  jnilitary,  masonic  and  social  interests.  It 
is  published  by  G.  F.  McSkimming  &  Co.,  74  and  76 
Myrtle  avenue,  and  is  now  in  its  second  volume. 

An  Ephemeris  of  Materia  Medica,  Pharmacy, 
Therapeutics  and  Collateral  Information.  By 
Dr.  Edward  R.,  Edward  H.  and  Chas.  F.  Squibb,  A.B., 
now  in  its  second  volume.  An  occasional  issue,  "  as 
time  and  material  may  admit."  A  neat,  well  edited 
quarto,  and  valuable  to  the  medical  profession,  espe- 
cially with  reference  to  pharmaceutical  matters. 


HON.   WILLIAM    ERIGENA    ROBINSON. 


Hon.  William  Eeigena  Robinson,  Member  of  Congress 
from  the  Second  N.  Y.  District. — Ireland  lias  given  birth  to 
many  eminent  citizens  of  Brooklyn,  and  among  those  who 
have  done  our  city  and  county  good  service,  our  distin- 
guished fellow-citizen,  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  claims  Erin 
as  his  native  land,  and  Unagh,  near  Cookstown,  County 
Tyrone,  in  the  Province  of  Ulster,  as  his  birthplace,  where  he 
first  saw  the  light  in  1814.  His  father  and  brothers  were  re- 
spectable and  i)ros23erous  tradesmen  in  Cookstown,  Coleraine, 
and  Ballymeney,  and  his  father  wished  him  to  follow  the 
same  occupation;  but  the  boy  was  resolute  to  obtain  a  colle- 
giate education,  and,  unknown  to  his  father,  with  the  assist- 
ance of  his  teacher,  who  lent  him  money  for  the  purpose,  he 
procured  the  Greek  and  Latin  text-books,  and  pursued  his 
studies  in  the  night.  His  father,  discovering  the  eagerness  of 
his  son  for  study,  ceased  his  opposition  and  sent  him  to  Bel- 
fast, where,  in  due  time,  he  entered  college.  His  zeal  in  im- 
proving his  new  opportunities  probably  contributed  to  throw 
him  into  a  typhoid  fever,  from  which  he  was  long  in  recover- 
ing, and  by  the  urgent  advice  of  his  physicians,  he  was  com- 
pelled to  return  home,  and  abandon  for  the  time,  his  studies. 
He  amused  himself  at  home  ))y  efforts  at  landscape  garden- 
ing on  his  father's  farm;  and  the  gravelled  walks,  the  haw- 
thorn hedges,  and  the  now  stately  forest  trees,  planted  by 
liis  hands,  still  exist,  and  give  evidence  of  his  love  of  natural 
beauty. 


He  also  undertook  to  obtain  the  means,  and  to  erect  a 
school-house  at  Unagh,  which  should  be  far  superior  to  any- 
thing in  that  region;  and  enlisting  the  interest  and  contribu- 
tions of  the  neighboring  gentry,  and  even  of  the  Lord  Lieuten- 
ant of  Ireland,  for  the  purpose,  he  achieved,  as  he  had  usually 
done  since  in  his  undertakings,  a  grand  success.  But  tlie  health 
so  earnestly  sought  for  did  not  retvirn,  and,  thougli  with 
many  misgivings  that  he  was  to  be  a  lifelong  invalid,  he  re- 
solved upon  an  ocean  vo3'age,  and  turned  his  face  resolutely 
toward  New  York,  which  city  he  reached  in  Sej^t.,  1836,  after 
a  tedious  and  perilous  voyage  of  nearly  three  months.  His 
long  detention  at  Belfast,  Liverpool,  and  on  the  voyage,  had 
so  far  reduced  his  finances,  tliat  he  landed  in  New  York  city 
with  only  a  sovereign  in  his  pocket.  He  was  too  independent 
to  write  home  for  more,  but  he  sought  at  once  for  work,  and 
mainly  by  labor  with  his  pen,  he  not  only  sustained  himself, 
and  reviewed  his  studies,  but  entered  Yale  College  in  Sept., 
1837,  with  ten  dollars  in  his  pocket,  having  doubled  his  origi- 
nal capital  at  landing.  Notwithstanding  his  financial  difficul- 
ties and  the  debts  he  was  obliged  to  incur  (but  which  he 
afterward  paid  in  full,  principal  and  interest),  he  took  a  high 
position  in  Yale,  and  that  in  a  class  very  remarkable  for  the 
ability  of  its  members.  He  founded  the  Yale  cliapter  of  the 
Psi  Upsilon,  started  the  publication  of  the  Yale  Banner,  was 
President  of  tlie  Brothers  in  Unity,  then  one  of  the  two  lead- 
ing college  societies,  and  while  keeping  well  up  in  his  studies, 


^^£  ^<. 


z^  ^:^/  /<£^^<^ 


THE  PRESS. 


1191 


wrote  much  of  the  editorial  matter  of  the  New  Haven  Daily 
Herald,  thus  partly  paying  his  way,  and  at  the  same  time 
making  the  paper  a  very  Uvely  and  racy  one.  He  had  proved 
himself  also  a  graceful  and  eloquent  speaker  (his  farewell 
oration  to  his  class  in  1841  having  been  published  at  the  re- 
quest of  the  class);  and  during  the  two  years  which  followed 
his  graduation  in  1841,  while  pursuing  his  studies  in  the  Yale 
law  school,  his  services  were  much  in  demand  in  Albany, 
Utica,  Buffalo,  New  York  city,  Providence,  Boston,  Phila- 
delphia, Washington,  Richmond,  Pittsburgh,  Cincinnati, 
Lexington,  K}.,  and  elsewhex'e,  for  the  delivery  of  some  elo- 
quent lectures  he  had  prepared  on  Ireland  and  the  Irish.  These 
lectures,  which  were  afterwards  published  and  widely  circu- 
lated, received  the  highest  commendation  from  Henry  Clay 
and  others  of  the  most  eminent  men  of  the  time.  He  was 
then,  as  ever  since,  thoroughly  and  ardently  loyal  to  his 
native  country,  and  notliing  could  rouse  his  indignation  or 
x-aise  his  eloquence  to  fervid  heat  more  effectually  than  an 
attack  on  Ireland  or  the  Irish  leaders  of  the  time. 

In  December,  1843,  he  went  to  Washington  as  correspond- 
ent there  of  the  New  York  Tribune;  he  retained  this  position 
for  many  years,  his  articles  over  the  signature  of  Richelieu, 
being  very  attractive,  and  aiding  materially  in  giving  that 
paper  the  high  reputation  it  has  always  maintained.  His 
final  separation  from  tliat  paper,  though  not  from  pleasant 
intercourse  with  its  editors,  grew  out  of  his  loyalty  to 
Ireland.  Meantime  he  had  engaged  in  several  other  news- 
paper ventures.  He  had  been  chief  editor  of  the  Buffalo 
Express,  and  of  the  Newark  Mercury,  and  in  18-lS),  with 
Devin  Reilly,  commenced  the  publication  and  editing  of 
The  People,  which  had  a  brilliant  though  not  long  career. 
In  1853,  he  married  Miss  Dougherty,  of  Newark,  the  marriage 
cei'emony  being  performed  by  Archbishop  Hughes.  The 
next  year  he  commenced  the  practice  of  law  in  New  Yoi'k 
city,  and  soon  attained  a  good  practice.  In  1859  he  revisited 
Ireland,  where  he  was  received  with  great  honors,  and  de- 
livered a  most  eloquent  Fourth  of  July  oration.  He  came  to 
Kings  county  in  1859,  making  his  home  at  first  at  Bath, 
where  he  still  owns  a  fine  summer  residence.  In  1862  he  re- 
moved to  Brooklyn,  where  he  has  since  resided,  excej^t  in 
the  summer.  He  had,  while  in  New  York,  been  nominated 
for  the  Legislature,  for  Congress,  and  for  District  Judge,  but 
residing  in  a  Tweed  district  (most  of  the  districts  were  for 
Tweed  at  that  time),  he  failed  of  election.  After  his  removal 
to  Brooklyn,  his  polilical  and  executive  abilities  were  better 
appreciated.  In  18tia,  he  was  appointed  by  President  Lin- 
cohi's  own  nomination.  Assessor  of  Internal  Revenue  for  the 
Third  Congressional  District,  an  office  then  of  great  import- 
ance. He  held  this  office  for  five  years,  only  resigning  it  to 
take  his  seat  in  the  Fortieth  Congress  as  successor  of  Hon. 
James  Humphreys,  and  being  elected  by  over  1,8U0  majority 
over  his  competitor.  His  services  in  this  Congress  were  of 
signal  value  and  importance.  He  advocattd,  and  carried 
thi-ough  Congress,  the  great  doctrine  of  the  sanctity  of 
American  citizenship  for  naturalized  citizens,  in  opposition 
to  that  doctrine  of  perpetual  allegiance,  which  had  previously 
been  held  by  European  powers;  and,  largely  through  his 
exertions,  this  American  doctrine  was  acknowledged  and  ac- 
cepted by  the  principal  states  of  Europe;  he  procured  some 
modifications  of  the  Internal  Revenue  Law,  which  added  to 
its  efficiency,  and  took  away  its  objectionable  features;  he 
entered  very  vigorously  into  the  debates  on  Reconstruction. 
He  was  also  instrumental  in  the  passage  of  several  excellent 
bills  of  local  character.  From  1869  to  1880,  though  several 
times  proposed  for  different  positions,  as  State  Senator, 
Mayor,  etc.,  he  was  not  on  the  winning  side,  sometimes  from 
pai-ty  factions,  and  sometimes  from  his  reluctance  to  engage 


in  violent  partisan  campaigns.  During  this  period  he  was 
engaged  in  the  practice  of  his  profession,  and  in  literary 
pursuits.  The  death  of  his  excellent  wife  in  1875,  weiglied 
heavily  on  his  spirits,  and  his  health  was  much  impaired.  In 
1880,  he  was  elected  by  a  large  majority  to  the  Forty -Seventh 
Congress,  and  in  1882  was  re-elected  by  an  increased  majority 
to  the  Forty-Eighth.  In  the  Forty-Seventh  Congress,  some 
of  his  speeches,  denunciatory  of  the  imprisonment  of  Ameri- 
can citizens  by  the  English  government,  showed  much  of  his 
old  fire  and  enthusiasm.  He  also  earnestly  advocated  in  a 
brief  speech,  the  granting  of  a  pension  to  the  only  surviving 
granddaughter  of  Thomas  Jefferson;  another  important 
measure  advocated  by  him  in  both  sessions  of  the  Forty- 
Seventli  Congress,  was  one  for  the  reduction  of  letter  postage 
to  one  cent.  This  attracted  much  attention  in  all  parts  of 
the  country,  and  will  again  be  pressed  by  him  in  the  Foity- 
Eighth  Congress.  His  speeches  on  American  shipping, 
American  citizenship,  and  in  opposition  to  the  increase  of 
our  military  force,  were  also  listened  to  with  great  interest. 
Among  more  local  measures  proposed  or  earnestly  advocated 
by  him,  was  one  for  the  construction  of  iron  and  stone  piers, 
to  be  paid  for  by  a  small  percentage  of  customs  collected, 
and  another,  a  bill  for  the  erection  of  a  public  building  for 
government  use  in  the  City  of  Brooklyn,  which  had  been 
long  pending,  and  which  was  passed  successfully  near  the 
close  of  the  second  session  of  the  Forty-Seventh  Congress. 
He  is  a  valuable  Member  of  Congress  for  Brooklyn,  always 
mindful  of  her  interest,  and  helpful  to  all  the  causes  that 
need  and  deserve  help.  Mr.  Robinson,  in  addition  to  his 
long  labors  as  a  journalist,  has  published  but  little;  three 
or  four  public  orations,  a  fine  poem  on  the  American 
flag,  and  five  or  six  of  his  speeches  in  Congress,  constitute 
the  whole  of  his  works  thus  far  given  to  the  public;  but  he 
is  understood  to  be  preparing  a  work  on  "  Tlie  Early 
Settlers  and  Prominent  Men  of  our  Colonial  and  National 
History."  Horace  Greeley  wrote  a  biographical  sketch  of 
him  for  "Barnes'  Fortieth  Congress."  Personally,  Mr.  Rob- 
inson is  a  genial  gentleman,  and  interesting  and  pleasant 
companion,  full  of  anecdote  and  reminiscence,  and  possess- 
ing a  wide  range  of  general  as  well  as  special  culture. 


Among  the  oi\iev  journalists  and  piiblishers,  etc.,  of  Kings 
county,  we  may  mention: 

Louisa.  Wendt,  of  1522  Pacific  st.,  who,  after  finishing 
studies  in  connection  with  Mr.  G.  B.  McCloskey,  a  nephew 
of  Henry  J.  McCloskey,  late  editor  of  Brooklyn  Eagle, 
started  a  paper,  The  Brooklyn  Barb,  which,  not  proving  as 
decided  a  financial  success  as  was  anticipated,  was  aban- 
doned; then  entered  in  the  commission  business  (dry  goods), 
in  which  pursuit  he  is  still  engaged. 

George  H.  Rowe,  159  Meserole  ave.,  local  editor  Green- 
point  Daily  Star,  1873;  born  in  N.  Y.,  1847;  prominently 
identified  with  the  Masonic  fraternity,  being  a  32d  Degree 
Member  of  the  N.  Y.  Consistory;  belonging  to  all  the  Scottish 
Rite  bodies  of  Brooklyn;  and  also  of  Mecca  Temple,  of  the 
Ancient  Arabic  Order,  Nobles  of  the  Mystic  Shrme;  was 
formerly  connected  with  the  Newark  Daily  Journal,  Newark, 
N.  J.,  and  the  Brooklyn  Daily  Times. 

Thomas  B.  Sidebotham,  Jr.,  391  and  393  Fulton  st.,  print- 
ing and  publishing,  established  in  1871;  publisher  of  the 
Brooklyn  Review,  established  in  1873;  and  contractor  for  city 
and  count}'  printing. 

Gaylord  Watson,  278  Pearl  st.,  near  Beekman,  N.  Y., 
is  the  publisher  of  various  maps,  etc.,  and  of  The  Handbook 
of  the  United  States  of  America,  and  Guide  to  Emigration; 
compiled  by  L.  P.  Brockett,  M.  D.,  1883. 


1192 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COtTKTT. 


Among  jir inters: 

Michael  Kino,  446  Grand  st.,  printer;  was  established  1870; 
was  member  of  East  River  Engine  Co.,  No.  170,  N.  Y. 
Volunteer  Fire  Department. 

Charles  H.  McIlvaine,  274  Hooper  st.,  book  and  job 
printer,  established  1866,  in  N.  Y. ;  Lieut.  47th  Regiment, 
National  Guard. 

Andrew  H.  Rome,  377  Fulton  st.,  job  printer,  established 
1848,  cor.  Cranberry  and  Fulton  sts. ;  printed  Walt  Whitman's 
first  edition  of  Leaves  of  Grass,  also  published  The  Index, 
weeklj^,  three  years. 

John  Woehr,  Jr.,  60  Bergen  St.,  printer,  established  1876, 
under  the  name  of  TTie  BrooMyn  Printing  Co.,  from  an  out- 
fit costing  $3.75,  which  has  gradually  increased  to  its  present 
large  extent. 

Among  booksellers  and  stationers: 

Henry  Thorpe,  454  Sackett  st.,  bookseller;  born  in  Eng- 
land, 1847;  resident  of  Brooklyn  since  1861:  established  1870, 
at  84  Nassau  St.,   N.  Y.      Pres.  L.   I.  Fortster  Club;    Sec. 


Fountain  Gun  Club,  and  Sec.  L.  I.  Sportsman's  Association; 
contributor  to  sporting  papers  under  the  pseudonym  of 
"Walton." 

James  P.  Rappelyea,  Mansion  House,  Brooklyn;  stationer; 
57  Maiden  Lane. 

Walter  John  Weedon,  122  Myrtle  ave.  and  90  Chambers 
St.,  N.  Y.,  books  and  stationery;  born  in  England;  came  to 
United  States  1865;  established  in  Brooklyn,  1869;  annual 
sales,  140,000. 

Mr.  T.  B.  Ventres,  dealer  in  Biljles,  books  and  stationery, 
62  Court  St. ;  established  his  business  at  that  place  in  1866, 
and  by  close  attention  to  the  interests  of  his  customers,  has 
extended  his  sales  very  greatly,  covering  large  portions  of 
several  states;  his  si)ecialties  are  Sunday-school  heli)s,  Bible- 
texts  and  picture  cards  for  all  seasons  and  birthdays. 

David  S.  Holmes,  89  Fourth  st.,  Brooklyn,  E.  D.;  station- 
ery, music,  and  musical  instruments;  established  1849,  in 
New  York;  removed  to  his  present  location  in  1859;  one  of 
the  most  extensive  establishments  of  the  kind  in  Brooklyn, 
E.  D. 


JOHN    T.    RUNCIE. 


The  Eastern  District  of  the  City  of  Brooklyn  num- 
bers among  its  "old  inhabitants"  none  more  enterpris- 
ing, or  more  respected,  than  the  gentleman  whose 
portrait  is  presented  on  the  opposite  page.  Fifty  years 
ago,  a  young  man,  twenty-two  years  of  age,  he  came 
to  the  then  Village  of  Williamsburgh,  and  commenced 
the  manufacture  of  tobacco,  especially  of  cigars.  In 
this  he  continued  until  1849,  when  he  entered  upon  the 
real  estate  and  brokerage  business,  and  prosecuted  it 
with  that  degree  of  judgment  and  successwhich  enabled 
him,  in  1860,  to  retire  from  its  active  duties  with  a 
handsome  competence.  For  a  brief  time,  in  1847,  and 
again  in  1853,  he  also  held  the  position  of  Postmaster 
in  Williamsburgh,  discharging  its  duties  with  fidelity 
and  acceptability  to  his  fellow  citizens. 

Since  his  retirement  from  active  busines.s,  Mr.  Runcie 
has  been  largely  identified  with  the  public  interests  of 
the  Eastern  District — more  particularly  with  its  street 
railroads  and  ferries.  In  1859,  he  (with  the  Hon.  Ira 
Buckman)  inaugurated  the  plan  for  the  Grand  street  and 
Newtown  R.  R. ;  and,  despite  powerful  political  opposi- 
tion and  maneuvering  in  behalf  of  a  rival  scheme, 
secured  a  charter  and  completed  it.  Of  this  road,  which 
formed  a  much-needed  and  direct  route  to  Calvary 
Cemetery,  Mr,  Runcie  was  president,  until  1868,  when 
ill-health  led  him  to  withdraw  from  its  management 
aad  interests. 


When,  some  ten  years  since,  the  lease  of  the  Grand 
street  ferry  having  expired,  it  was  not  renewed  because 
of  a  dispute  between  the  Dock  Commissioner  and  the 
Comptroller  of  the  city  of  New  York,  as  to  the  disposi- 
tion of  the  rent  therefrom,  Mr.  Runcie,  in  behalf  of  the 
suffering  interests  of  the  Eastern  District,  drafted  and 
(with  the  help  of  Hon.  Charles  L.  Lyon)  secured  the 
passage  of  a  bill  by  the  Legislature,  which  broke  the 
"  dead-lock,"  by  forcing  the  Comptroller  to  sell  the 
franchise  of  the  ferry  for  a  term  of  ten  years — under 
which  lease  the  ferry  is  at  present  run. 

In  1875,  Cypress  Hills  Cemetery  being  in  a  bad  con- 
dition, financially  and  otherwise,  Mr.  Runcie  was  chosen 
a  trustee.  Upon  him  soon  devolved  the  duties  of  man- 
aging trustee,  and  finally  those  of  the  Comptrollership. 
His  experience  in  the  management  of  employees,  his 
strict  methods  of  business,  his  abilities  as  an  organizer, 
together  with  his  social  and  political  influence,  soon 
produced  a  marked  improvement  in  the  affairs  of  the 
institution.  Order  emerged  from  confusion,  solvency 
from  bankruptcy,  and  a  large  floating  debt  was  sensibly 
reduced — placing  Cypress  Hills  Cemetery  in  the  front 
rank  of  similar  institutions,  as  regards  prosperity  and 
efficiency. 

Mr.  Runcie  lost  his  wife,  by  death,  many  years  ago  ; 
and  his  son  William  J.  Runcie  is  a  prosperous  merchant 
in  Buffalo,  N.  Y.  A  more  extended  sketch  of  Mr. 
Runcie  will  be  found  on  page  608, 


<^^L^ 


HISTORY 


MILITARY     ORGANIZATIONS 

IN 

KINGS     COUNTY. 


AN  efficient  military  organization  is  necessary 
to  every  goyernment,  not  only  as  a  pro- 
tection from  external  hostilities  and  invasion, 
bnt  also  to  ensure  the  enforcement  of  its  laws 
and  the  preservation  of  good  order.  In  actual  war- 
fare, our  government  depends  somewhat  upon  its  small 
regular  army,  but  more  upon  volunteers  for  its  defense. 
In  time  of  peace,  the  power  of  the  nation  lies  dormant, 
but  the  knowledge  that  it  can  be  called  forth  tends 
strongly  to  repress  mob  violence  and  to  secure  obe- 
dience to  the  laws.  The  military  system  of  the  United 
States  recognizes  the  rights  of  the  sovereign  States  and 
assumes  only  to  act  where  all  are  concerned.  The 
militia  includes  all  the  arms-bearing  citizens  of  the 
republic,  who,  in  time  of  need,  may  be  called  to  its 
defense.  Congress  has  the  power  to  "  provide  for 
calling  forth  the  militia  to  execute  the  laws  of  the 
Union,  suppress  insurrections  and  repel  invasions," 
while  to  the  separate  States  is  reserved  "  the  appoint- 
ment of  the  officers,  the  authority  of  training  the 
militia  according  to  the  discipline  prescribed  by  Con- 
gress." 

The  militia  is  essentially  a  State  Institution,  so  rec- 
ognized by  the  Constitution,  while  the  regular  army 
remains  under  the  exclusive  control  of  the  general 
government.  Though  the  entire  militia  of  the  State  is 
liable  to  military  service,  it  is  undesirable  that  a  large 
portion  should  be  permanently  organized  or  under  con- 
stant training,  but  it  is  necessary  that  a  small  number 
should  be  kept  in  training  and  discipline,  ready  for  any 
emergency  that  might  suddenly  arise;  in  the  cities  they 
are  a  valuable  auxiliary  to  the  police,  while  their 
presence  maintains  good  order  and  prevents  lawlessness. 
A  force  of  10,000  men  in  this  State  has  proved  suf- 
ficient, and  these  are  located  in  the  cities  where  their 
assistance  is  most  likely  to  be  required.  In  every  in- 
stance, where  the  New  York  State  National  Guard  was 
called  on  by  the  State  authorities  or  the  National 
Government,  it  responded  promptly  and  effectively. 
In  April,  1861,  New  York  State  sept  eleven  regiments 


of  her  National  Guard,  more  than  seven  thousand  offi- 
cers and  men,  to  the  threatened  National  Capital;  in 
addition,  six  regiments  of  the  State  Militia  volunteered 
in  the  beginning  of  the  war  and  served  honorably  for 
three  years;  more  than  five  thousand  officers  for  volun- 
teer regiments  were  furnished  by  the  Militia  of  this 
State.  In  1862  and  '63,  twenty -six  regiments,  N.  G.,  S. 
N.  Y.,  marched  to  the  relief  of  Pennsylvania  and  Mary- 
land; some,  returning,  quelled  the  draft  riots  in  New 
York;  in  1864,  ten  regiments  were  mustered  into  the 
United  States  service  for  a  hundred  days;  in  1864  and 
'65,  the  National  Guard  stood  on  duty  on  the  frontier 
against  threatened  raids  from  Canada,  and  protected 
the  lives  and  property  of  our  citizens.  Fortunately, 
since  the  war,  there  has  been  little  occasion  to  call 
upon  the  National  Guard,  still  they  are  the  pride  of  the 
State  for  their  public  spirit  and  discipline. 

The  supreme  command  of  the  State  Militia  is  vested 
in  the  Governor,  ex-officio,  who  appoints  his  staff  and 
commissions  the  officers  of  the  force,  after  their  elec- 
tion. 

The  National  Guard,  State  of  New  York.— The  Constitu- 
tion of  the  State,  of  April  20,  1777,  ordained  that  the  militia 
at  all  times,  hereafter,  as  well  in  peace  as  in  war,  shall  be 
armed  and  disciplined  and  in  readiness  for  service. 

Act  of  the  Legislature,  passed  April  4,  1786,  provides  for 
the  organization  of  the  militia  :  Each  company  of  infantry 
to  consist  of  11  officers,  and  not  less  than  sixty-five  privates; 
each  company  of  horse  of  11  officers,  and  forty  horsemen; 
each  company  of  artillerj'  of  17  officers  and  44  men.  Four 
companies  of  infantry  to  constitute  a  battalion,  and  two 
battalions  a  regiment;  each  regiment  to  have  two  light  in- 
fantry companies  as  flank  companies.  Four  regiments  to 
form  a  brigade,  commanded  by  a  brigadier-general,  and  one 
troop  of  horse  and  one  company  of  artillery  attached  to  each 
brigade.     The  whole  to  be  divided  into  two  divisions. 

Act  passed  April  17,  1854,  organizes  the  State  in  eight 
military  divisions,  each  of  not  less  than  two  nor  more  than 
four  brigades;  each  brigade  of  not  less  than  two  nor  more 
than  four  regiments;  each  regiment  to  be  of  eight  companies, 
to  which  may  be  added  two  flank  companies  of  cavalry, 
artillery,  light  artillery  or  riflemen,  and  one^section  of  flying 
artillery. 


1194 


HISTORY  OF  KINO S  COUNTY. 


Act  passed  April  23,  1863,  directs  the  organized  militia  to 
be  known  hereafter  as  the  National  Guard,  and  to  consist  of 
eight  divisions,  thirty-two  brigades,  one  hundred  and  twenty- 
eight  regiments  and  battalions,  and  sucli  number  of  batteries, 
troops  or  squadrons  as  may  be  formed  according  to  law,  but 
empowers  the  Commander-in-Chief  to  increase  this  force  in 
case  of  war,  invasion,  etc. 

Act  passed  April  25,  1866,  directs  that  the  National  Guard 
should  not  exceed  50,000  enlisted  men,  except  in  case  of  war, 
invasion,  etc. 

Act  passed  May  6,  1868,  provides  that  the  strength  of  the 
National  Guard  should  not  exceed  30,000  enlisted  men,  except 
in  case  of  war,  invasion,  etc. 

Act  passed  May  8,  1869,  reduces  the  strength,  except  in 
time  of  war,  invasion,  etc.,  to  20,000  enlisted  men. 

Act  passed  April  30,  1875,  creates  an  inspector  of  rifle 
practice  for  each  regiment. 

Act  passed  May  18,  1878,  leaves  the  number  of  divisions 
discretionary  with  the  Commander-in-Chief,  and  authorizes 
the  organization  of  separate  companies. 

Act  passed  April  23,  1883,  fixes  the  aggregate  force  of  the 
National  Guard  in  time  of  peace  to  be  no  less  than  10,000, 
nor  more  than  15,000  enlisted  men;  a  regiment  to  consist 
of  not  less  than  8  nor  more  than  10  companies,  with  3 
field  and  7  staff  officers  and  11  non-commissioned  staff  offi- 
cers; a  battalion  to  consist  of  not  more  than  six  nor  less  than 
four  companies,  with  2  field  and  4  staff  officers  and  11  non- 
commissioned staff.  Companies  are  each  to  consist  of  18 
officers  and  not  less  than  31  nor  more  than  64  privates. 
Batteries  are  each  to  consist  of  3  commissioned  and  13  non- 
commissioned officers,  and  2  drummers,  and  not  less  than  48 
nor  more  than  93  privates.  A  Gatling  gun  battery  shall  con- 
sist of  3  commissioned  and  13  non-commissioned  officers,  and 
1  trumpeter,  not  less  than  32  nor  more  than  84  privates. 

December  31,  1883,  the  National  Guard  consists  of  forty 
separate  companies  of  infantry,  of  one  battalion  of  infantry 
of  four  companies,  of  fifteen  regiments  of  infantry  of  one 
hundred  and  thirty-three  companies,  of  seven  batteries  of 
artillery;  in  all,  one  hundred  and  eight}'-four  companies  or- 
ganized in  eight  brigades,  and  these  in  four  divisions; 
armed,  the  infantry  with  the  Remington  breech-loading  rifle, 
calibre  50,  and  the  artillery  with  three-inch  steel  guns, 
twelve-pounder  mountain  howitzers,  twelve-pounder  field 
howitzers,  twelve-pounder  Napoleon  guns,  and  Gatling 
guns. 

By  the  consolidation  of  the  National  Guard  in  Jan.,  1883, 
the  Fifth  Brigade  became  the  Third  and  the  Eleventh  was 
made  the  Fourth. 

Second  Division,  National  Guard,  State  of  New  York, 
Head-quarters,  49  Court  street,  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. — Maj.  Gen. 
Edward  L.  Molineux  joined  the  Brooklyn  City  Guard  (Co.  G, 
13th  Regt.)  in  1854.  In  1861,  he  joined  the  7th  ;  was  promi- 
nent in  the  formation  of  the  23d,  and  afterwards  its  Lieut. - 
Colonel;  was  Brigade  Inspector  and  helped  to  re-organize  the 
11th  Brigade.  In  August,  1863,  he  raised  the  1.59th  N.  Y. 
Vols,  as  Lieut. -Colonel;  in  October,  was  commissioned  Colo- 
nel ;  took  part  in  Banks'  expedition  in  Louisiana ;  was 
wounded  in  the  face  at  Irish  Bend,  April  14,  1863  ;  in  July 
was  appointed  Asst.  Inspector-General  on  Gen.  Franklin's 
Staff ;  subsequently  Provost-Marshal  General  and  Commis- 
sioner to  Exchange  Prisoners  ;  in  1804,  he  was  Military  Com- 
mander of  the  La  Fourche  District,  and  later,  had  command 
of  all  the  forces  north  of  the  Red  river;  afterwards  was  with 
Sheridan  in  Shenandoah  Valley,  and  promoted  Brig.-General 
for  gallantry  at  Fisher's  Hill,  Winchester  and  Cedar  Creek  ; 
in  1865,  held  command  at  Savannah,  and  in  June  was  made 
Military  Cotnmander  of  Northern  Georgia  ;   was  brevetted 


Major-General  for  "gallant  and  meritorious  services."  He 
has  been  an  active  supporter  of  the  National  Guard,  and 
an  original  director  of  the  National  Rifle  Association.  His 
labors  in  behalf  of  military  instruction  in  schools  resulted  in 
the  adoption  of  his  method  in  many  schools.  He  was  ap- 
pointed Major-General  August  30, 1868;  of  2d  Div.,  May,  1884. 

Brig.-Gen.  Christian  T.  Christensen,  Third  Brigade,  Com- 
manding Second  Division  Sept.  17,  1883,  to  May,  1884.  First 
Lt.,  1st  N.  Y.  Vol.  Inf.,  April  23,  1861  ;  Aide-de-Camp  to 
Brig.-Gen.  Phelps,  August  5,  1861;  Capt.,  1st  N.  Y.  Vols., 
Nov.  5,  1861;  Aide-de-Camp  to  Gen.  Wool,  Dec.  31,  18G1; 
Prov.  Mar.  of  Norfolk  and  Portsmouth,  Va.,  April  9,  1863; 
Maj.  and  Aide-de-Camp  to  Gen.  Wool,  July  17,  1863  ;  Asst. 
Adj. -Gen.,  Dept.  East,  March  11,  1863;  on  duty  in  office  of 
Secretary  of  War,  Sept.  18,  1863  ;  Lt.-Col.  and  Asst.  Adj.- 
Gren.,  Military  Division  of  West  Mississippi,  May  11,  1864; 
honorably  discharged,  July  23,  1865;  Brevet  Brig.  Gen.  U.  S. 
Vols.;  Major,  13th  Regt.,  July  17,  1879;  Lt.-Col.,  Dec.  19, 
1879;  Brig.-Gen.,  July  12,  1880. 

Lt.-Col.  J.  Henry  Storey,  Inspector.  Lt.-Col.  Herbert  S. 
Jewell.  Inspector  of  Rifle  Practice.  Lt.-Col.  John  Y.  Culyer, 
Engineer.  Lt.-Col.  Albert  E.  Lamb,  Judge-Advocate.  Lt.- 
Col.  J.  Lester  Keep,  Surgeon.  Lt.-Col.  Henry  Arthur, 
Quartermaster.  Lt.-Col.  William  B.  Overton,  Commissary 
of  Subsistence.  Maj.  Robert  Herbert,  Aide-de-Camp.  Maj. 
Walter  K.  Rossiter,  Aide-de-Camp.  Col.  Henry  T.  Chapman, 
Jr.,  Supernumerary  Officer,  attached  to  duty  with  Staff  as 
A.  D.  C.  And  Third  and  Fourth  Brigades,  and  the  Third 
Battery  of  Artillery. 

TTiird  Brigade,  Head-quarters,  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.  Col.  James 
McLeer,  Fourteenth  Regiment,  Commanding  Third  Brigade 
since  September  17,  1883.  Lt.-Col.  William  J.  Denslow,  As- 
sistant Adjutant-General.  Maj.  Philip  Ferdinand  Kobbe,  In- 
spector. Maj.  Howard  Ackerman,  Inspector  of  Rifle  Prac- 
tice. Maj.  M.  Frederick  Christenfen,  Ordnance  Officer. 
Maj.  George  Washington  McNulty,  Engineer.  Maj.  William 
C.  Beecher,  Judge- Advocate.  Maj.  James  Watt,  Surgeon. 
Maj.  Edwin  R.  Trussell,  Quartermaster.  Maj.  Gustave  A. 
Jahn,  Commissary  of  Subsistence.  And  Thirteenth  and 
Fourteenth  Regiments  of  Infantry,  and  the  Seventeenth 
Separate  Company. 

Fourth  Brigade,  Head-quarters,  49  Court  street,  Brooklyn, 
N.  Y. — Brig.-Gen.  Wm.  H.  Brownell,  Commanding.  Private, 
Co.  E,  47th  Regt.,  Oct.  13,  1809;  Corp.,  Nov.  20,  1871;  Sergt., 
July  24,  1872;  2d  Lieut.,  May  13,  1873;  1st  Lieut.,  Jan.  30, 
1874;  Capt.,  Oct.  10,  1874;  Maj.,  Dec.  23,  1874;  Lt.-Col.,  Dec. 
29,  1875  ;  Col.,  Sept.  5,  1877  ;  Brig.-Gen.,  Sept.  5,  1881.  Lt.- 
Col.  Charles  N.  Manchester,  Asst.  Adj. -Gen.:  Private,  1st  R. 
L  Cavalry,  fall  of  1861;  2d  Lieut.,  Sept.  37,  1861;  Capt.,  June 
31,  1863;  Maj.,  2d  R.  I.  Cavalry,  Jan.  19,  1863;  Lt.  Col.,  June 
33,  1863;  resigned  July  11,  1863;  Lt.-Col.  and  Asst.  Adj. -Gen., 
11th,  now  4th  Brigade,  June  16,  1879.  Maj.  Gustave  A. 
RouUier,  Inspector.  Maj.  Morris  B.  Farr,  Inspector  of  Rifle 
Practice.  Maj.  Harrison  B.  Moore,  Ordnance  Officer.  Maj. 
Richard  H.  Poillon,  Engineer.  Maj.  Wm.  W.  Goodrich, 
Judge-Advocate.  Maj.  Joel  W.  Hyde,  Surgeon.  Maj.  David 
S.  Babcock,  Jr.,  Quartermaster.  Major  Clifford  L.  Middle- 
ton,  Commissary  of  Subsistence.  Capt.  William  T.  DeNyse, 
Aide-de-Camp.  And  Twenty-third,  Thirty-second  and  Forty- 
seventh  Regiments  of  Infantry. 

The  Second  Division,  National  Guard  of  the  State  of 
New  York,  has  existed  since  the  institution  of  the  Milit'a. 
Formerly,  the  district  comprised  the  counties  on  Long  Island 
and  the  five  counties  north  of  New  York,  and  included  the 
5th,  6th,  7th  and  11th  Brigades.  But  a  new  district  was 
made,  leaving  Kings.  Queens  and  Suffolk  counties  in  the 
District  of  the  Second  Division,  including  the  5th,  fith  and 


Military  organizations. 


1195 


lltli  Brigades;  the  district  of  the  5th  and  11th  Brigades  was 
Kings  county,  and  of  the  6th,  the  counties  of  Queens  and 
Suffolk.  In  tlie  consolidation  of  the  National  Guard,  the 
3d  and  4th  Brigades  were  assigned  to  Kings  county.  Maj. 
Gen.  Aaron  Ward,  of  Sing  Sing,  commanded  the  Second 
Division  until  1858,  when  he  was  succeeded  by  Gen.  Har- 
nianus  B.  Duryea  (of  whom  an  extended  sketch  will  be 
found  elsewhere),  previously  in  command  of  the  5th  Brigade. 
In  1869,  Gen.  Duryea  resigned,  and  Maj.  Gen.  John  B.  Wood- 
ward was  appointed. 

After  the  organization  of  the  National  Guard,  the  Second 
Division  leaped  into  new  life  aud  activity.  Gen.  Woodward 
is  an  old  militiaman.  In  1854,  he  joined  Co.  G.  of  the  13th, 
and  served  as  private,  Corporal,  Sergeant  and  First  Sergeant; 
was  elected  3d  Lieut.,  Feb.  13th,  1861;  Captain  of  Co.  E., 
Nov.  13th,  1861;  Lieut.-Colonel,  June  3.5th,  1863;  Lieut. -Col. 
of  the  23d,  Feb.  5th,  1863;  Colonel  of  the  13th,  Mar.  23d, 
1863;  and  was  apj^ointed  Major-General  of  the  Second  Divi- 
sion March  34th,  1869.  He  weut  out  with  liis  regiment  when 
it  was  called  out  by  the  government. 

The  Third  Brigade  (the  5th  prior  to  1883)  was  formed  at 
tlie  same  time  with  the  Second  Division.  Until  1862,  it  was 
the  only  Brigade  in  Brooklyn,  and  comprised  the  13th,  14th, 
28th  (formerly  73d)  and  70th  Regiments;  the  first  thne  were 
infantry;  the  last  named  comprised  three  companies  of 
artillery  and  five  of  cavalry;  it  has  since  been  disbanded  and 
the  3d  (cavalry)  Regiment  and  a  battalion  of  artillery  formed 
from  the  old  organization,  were  for  a  short  time  attached  to 
the  Brigade.  Previous  to  1858,  Maj. -Gen.  H.  B.  Duryea  com- 
manded the  5th  Brigade,  aud  wa^  then  succeeded  by  Brig. -Gen. 
Philip  S.  Crooke  (a  biographical  sketch  is  given  elsewhere), 
until  his  resignation  in  1870.  His  successors  in  command 
were  :  Bvt.  Brig.-Gen.  Fowler,  of  the  14th;  Col.  Cropsey, 
senior  Colonel  of  the  Brigade;  Brig.-Gen.  Thomas  S.  Dakin 
(of  whom  more  extended  mention  is  made  hereafter);  Brig.- 
Gen.  James  Jourdan,  Jan.,  1876. 

The  Thirteenth  Regiment,  N.  G.  S.  N.  Y.*— In  1847,  the 
State  resolved  upon  a  thorough  re-organization  of  the  militia, 
to  reduce  the  number  of  Ijrigades  and  regiments,  and  place  the 
citizen  soldiery  on  a  military  basis.  Under  this  re-adjustment 
the  13th  Regiment  was  organized  on  the  5th  of  July,  1847, 
with  Abel  Smith  as  Colonel,  Edwin  Beers  as  Lieutenant- 
Colonel,  and  John  H.  Gaus  as  Major.  The  companies  were : 
Right-flank,  company  of  light  artillery,  Brooklyn  City 
Guard,  Capt.  J.  N.  Olney;  Co.  A,  Pearson  Light  Guard, 
Capt.  J.  J.  Dillon;  Co.  B,  Washington  Horse  Guard,  Capt.  J. 
McLeer;  Co.  C,  Brooklyn  Light  Guard,  Capt.  Charles  Mor- 
rison; Co.  D,  Williamsburg  Light  Artillery,  Capt.  Lewis;  Co.  E, 
Williamsburg  Light  Artillery,  Capt.  Hanford;  Co.  F,  Oregon 
Guard,  Capt.  Walsh;  Co.  G,  Washington  Guards;  and  Co. 
H,  Jefferson  Guard,  Capt.  Willys.  The  companies  at  this 
time  had  different  uniforms,  one,  at  least,  wearing  the  dress 
of  the  old  Continentals.  The  City  Guard  (Capt.  R.  V.  W. 
Thorne,  now  deceased)  wore  red  coats,  and  the  City  Light 
Guard,  white  coats.  The  Continentals  were  commanded  by 
Captain  Burnett. 

After  a  few  years,  the  German  companies  from  Williams- 
burg were  detached,  and  formed  the  nucleus  of  the  Twenty- 
eighth  Regiment. 

The  Thirteenth,  among  other  troops,  was  called  out  June 
4,  1854,  to  assist  in  quelling  the  disturbance  caused  by  the 
fanatic  who  called  himself  the  "Angel  Gabriel,"  and  it 
rendered  effective  service  in  restoring  order. 

In  18.55,  there  was  a  Division  Encampment  at  Kingston. 
Gen.  H.  B.  Duryea  commanded  the  Brigade  (including  the 

*  By  Horatio  C.  King. 


Thirteenth),  and  Gen.  Aaron  Ward,  the  Division,  which  was 
composed  of  militia  from  several  counties.  In  1858,  the  gray 
uniform  was  adopted,  and  the  Regiment  made  its  first  parade 
in  the  new  dress  at  the  celebration  of  the  introduction  of  water 
into  Brooklyn,  on  the  27th  of  April,  1859.  Some  of  the  com- 
panies, which  refused  to  adopt  the  gray,  withdrew  from  the 
Regiment,  which  comprised  at  this  time  the  Artillery,  Capt. 
Richard  Thorne;  Co.  A,  Capt.  John  Sullivan;  Co.  B,  Capt. 
Oliver  Cotter;  Co.  C.  Capt.  Joseph  S.  Morgan;  Co.  E,  Capt. 
B.  G.  Edmonds;  and  the  left-flank  company,  Capt.  Charles 
Bethon;  in  all  about  four  hundred  men  on  the  rolls.  Col. 
Smith  still  commanded,  with  Robert  B.  Clark  as  Lt.-Col.,  and 
Elbert  Willetts,  Major. 

In  1860,  Co.  B  was  consolidated  with  Co.  C,  and  Co.  B 
of  the  14th  Regiment  (the  celebrated  drill  company  of 
the  city)  was  transferred,  and  became  Co.  B  of  the  Thirteenth 
Regiment.-  The  command  then  comprised  eight  companies 
in  a  good  state  of  drill  and  discipline  and  f  uUy  equipped, 
including  knapsacks  and  overcoats.  During  all  this  period, 
the  organization  occupied  the  armory  at  the  corner  of  Henry 
and  Cranberry  sti-eets,  subsequently  used  by  the  Galling 
Battery,  and  now  given  over  to  commercial  purposes. 

During  the  exciting  times  immediately  preceding  the  out- 
break ot  the  war  of  the  Rebellion,  the  Regiment  was  several 
times  assembled  secretly  to  assist  the  police  in  case  of  neces- 
sity. In  April,  1861,  occurred  what  was  characterized  as  the 
"  Navy  Yard  Scare."  Captain  (afterwards  Commodore)  Foote, 
then  in  command  of  the  yard,  communicated  to  Mayor  Powell 
his  belief  that  an  organized  attemj)t,  by  rebel  sympathizers  in 
New  York,  would  be  made  to  burn  the  government  i)roperty. 
Captain  Foote  had  but  eighty  men,  the  attack  was  feasi- 
ble, and  the  assailants  could  have  readily  escaped.  The 
Mayor  stationed  a  thousand  jiolicemen  near  the  Yard  and 
the  principal  ferries,  and  the  militia  (including  the  13th) 
were  under  arms.  The  preparations,  thus  promptly  and 
effectually  made,  frustrated  the  designs  of  the  sympatliizers. 

Immediately  upon  the  call  of  President  Lincoln  for  75,000 
men,  the  13th  unanimously  tendered  its  services;  and,  on  the 
23d  of  April,  1861,  the  Regiment,  600  strong,  left  the  armory 
on  Cranberry  street  for  the  seat  of  war.  Over  200  were  left 
behind,  ovring  to  lack  of  equipments,  who  joined  their  com- 
rades about  two  weeks  later.  Embarked  on  a  steamer,  the 
Regiment  proceeded  to  Anuai>olis,  reported  to  Gen.  B.  F. 
Butler,  and  was  quartered  in  the  Naval  Academy.  The 
militia  regiments  of  New  York  left  in  the  following  order  : 
the  7th  on  the  19th;  the  6th,  13th,  and  7l8t  on  the  31st,  and 
the  13th  (the  fifth  in  succession)  on  the  23d. 

It  remained  in  Baltimore,  and,  at  the  expiration  of  its 
thi-ee  months'  term  of  service,  at  the  request  of  Gen.  Dix, 
then  in  command  at  Baltimore,  who  made  an  appeal  in  per- 
son, it  remained  a  fortnight  longer,  and  until  the  demorali- 
zation consequent  upon  the  first  battle  of  Bull  Run  had 
passed  away.  During  its  absence,  a  relief  guard  of  Co.  G 
had  been  formed,  which  became,  subsequently,  the  nucleus 
of  the  33d  Regiment.  On  the  return  of  the  Regiment  in  July, 
this  guard  turned  out  to  receive  it.  Capt.  (afterwards  Col.) 
Ever  Jell  commiuded  the  escort,  and  the  welcome  was  mag- 
nificent and  hearty.  A  collation  was  served  at  the  Park 
Barracks,  New  York,  the  site  of  the  present  Post-ofiice, 
under  the  auspices  of  the  Common  Council  Committee. 
Lt.-Col.  Robert  B.  Clark  was  m  command,  and  the  Regiment 
still  comprised  eight  companies. 

Many  of  its  officers  and  men  then  and  later  entered  the 
Volunteer  service,  and  it  is  said  that  the  13th  furnished  a 
larger  number  of  officers  from  its  ranks  than  any  militia  or- 
ganization, except  the  7th.  One  entire  company  of  the  5l3t 
N.  Y.  Vols.  (Col.  Ferrero)  was  recruited  by  Capt.  Samuel  H. 


1196 


HISTORY  01  KINGS   COUNTY. 


Sims,  formerly  Lt.  in  Co.  B.  Col.  Abel  Smith  raised  the 
8Tth  New  York,  and  was  killed  by  accident  while  superin- 
tending the  organization.  Capt.  Joseph  Morgan,  of  Co.  C, 
afterwards  became  Col.  of  the  90th  N.  Y.  Vols.,  in  which 
Capt.  John  Sullivan,  of  Co.  A,  was  a  Captain.  Capt.  Morgan 
also  raised  and  commanded  the  l^lSth  N.  Y.  Vols.  John 
Manly  was  made  Captain  in  the  159th  N.  Y.  Vols.,  and  was 
killed  at  Irish  Bend,  La.  The  3d  N.  Y.  Vols.,  Col.  Abel 
Smith,  Jr.;  51st  N.  Y.,  139th  N.  Y.,  79th  N.  Y.  (Highlanders), 
47th  N.  Y.,  5th  N.  Y.  Artillery,  and  37th  N.  Y.,  were  indebted 
to  the  13th  for  many  excellent  officers.  Maj.  John  H. 
Walker,  of  Rankin  Post  10,  G.  A.  R.,  was  taken  from  the 
ranks  of  Co.  D,  by  Gen.  Scott,  and  made  an  officer  in  the 
Regular  Army.  But  it  is  impossible  to  follow  the  names  in 
detail.  At  least  COO  of  those  who  were  connected  with  the 
13th  entered  the  army  and  navy  and  served  their  country 
with  zeal  and  fidelity. 

Upon  the  retuement  of  Col.  Smith,  Lt.-Col.  R.  B.  Clark 
was  elected  Colonel,  with  John  B.  Woodward  as  Lt.-Col., 
and  S.  K.  Boyd  as  Major.  May  2,  186J,  the  Regiment  again 
responded  to  the  call  of  the  Federal  Government,  and  pro- 
ceeded to  Baltimore,  where,  after  a  march  of  four  miles,  it 
encamped  just  outside  of  Fort  McHenry.  The  camj)  was 
christened  "Camp  Crescent."  June  6th,  four  companies  of 
the  Regiment  embarked  for  Fortress  Monroe,  thence  to  Nor- 
folk. The  remaining  four  companies,  which  left  Baltimore 
June  7th,  went  direct  to  Portsmouth,  Va.,  and  the  entire 
Regiment,  a  few  days  later,  arrived  at  Suffolk,  Va.  Here  it 
was  brigaded  with  the  2d,  4th,  and  25th  N.  Y.,  and  the  1st 
Del.,  Gen.  Max  Webber,  commanding,  relieving  veteran 
regiments,  which  were  sent  at  once  to  the  Peninsula.  The 
country  around  was  held  by  the  Confederates,  and  the  duty 
was  both  arduous  and  fraught  with  danger.  The  camp  at 
Suffolk  was  called  "  Camp  Crooke,"  after  the  commander  of 
the  5th  (N.  Y.)  Brigade,  General  Philip  S.  Crooke,  recently  de- 
ceased. It  formed  a  part  of  the  extreme  left  wing  of 
McClellan's  army,  and  rendered  very  effective  and  valuable 
service.  At  a  review  by  Gen.  Dii,  commanding  the  Corps, 
accompanied  by  Gen.  Mansfield,  the  Division,  and  Gen. 
Webber,  the  Brigade  Commander,  Gen.  Dix  complimented 
the  organization  as  a  "  sujierior  Regiment."  Picket  dutj- 
and  the  usual  accessories  of  war,  except  actual  collision  with 
the  enemy,  occupied  the  time  until  the  expiration  of  the 
term  of  service,  when,  on  August  31st,  the  men  turned  their 
faces  homeward,  and  again  received  a  most  cordial  welcome. 

Again,  in  June,  18G3,  and  for  the  third  time,  the  Regiment 
was  called  ijito  active  service,  and,  with  other  New  York 
militia,  was  hurried  to  the  front.  Col.  John  B.  Woodward 
was  in  command,  with  W.  A.  McKee  as  Lt.-Col.  The  pres- 
ence of  the  militia  organizations  in  Pennsylvania  enabled 
veteran  regiments  to  go  to  the  immediate  front,  and,  al- 
though no  one  of  them  was  under  fire,  their  service  was  of 
incalculable  benefit  to  the  Union  cause.  They  had  many 
weary  marches,  and  suffered  privations  hard  for  unseasoned 
troops  to  bear.  The  overwhelming  defeat  of  the  Confeder- 
ates, at  Gettysburg,  and  their  final  I'etirement  across  the 
Potomac,  rendered  the  services  of  the  militia  no  longer  in- 
dispensable, and,  in  consequence  of  the  draft  riots  in  New 
York,  in  July,  1863,  the  13th  was  ordered  home,  and  during 
August  did  guard  duty  in  the  city  whde  the  draft  proceeded, 
preventing  further  outbreak. 

In  1866,  Col.  Woodward  was  succeeded  by  Col.  James 
Jourdan,  late  commanding  the  Second  Division.  He,  in 
turn,  was  succeeded  by  Col.  Thomas  S.  Dakin,  in  1869, 
and  upon  the  latter's  election  as  Brigadier-General,  Lt.-Col. 
Frederick  A.  Mason  was  chosen  Colonel.  In  1870,  Philip  H. 
Briggs  (Inspector-General  on  the  Staff  of  Governor  Grover 


Cleveland)  was  Lt.-Col.;  Edward  S.  Daniell,  Major,  and 
Samuel  Richards  (late  Asst.  Adj. -Gen.  of  the  Second  Division), 
Adjutant.  The  Drnm  Corps  Association  was  organized  in 
1869. 

Col.  Jourdan  was  re-elected  in  February,  1872.  The  last 
parade  from  the  old  armory  took  place  at  the  Prospect  Park 
Parade-ground,  October  12,  1875,  with  a  review  by  the  Com- 
mander-in-Chief, and  the  Regiment  was  mustered  and  in- 
spected in  its  present  armory,  corner  of  Hanson  jilace  and 
Flatbush  avenue,  on  October  26tli  of  that  year. 

Lt.-Col.  Briggs  was  elected  Colonel  in  Jan.,  1876,  (■«■«  Gen. 
Jouidan,  elected  Commander  of  the  Fifth  Brigade.  Capt. 
Harry  H.  Beadle  was  elected  Lt.-Col.,  and  William  R.  Syme, 
for  some  time  Adjutant,  was  made  Major.  Lt.  William  A. 
McKee  succeeded  Major  Syme  as  Adjutant. 

Since  the  war,  the  Regiment  has  rendered  some  practical 
duty  worthy  of  special  mention.  It  was  ordered  out  to  pre- 
vent the  threatened  lynching  of  the  murderer  of  Mr.  Van 
Voorhis,  a  popular  builder  of  South  Brooklyn.  On  the  oc- 
casion of  the  Orange  riots  in  New  York,  July  12,  1871,  it  was 
called  into  service  to  repress  disorder  in  Brooklyn,  and  was 
then  sent  to  New  York,  where  it  assisted  in  the  maintenance 
of  order  mitil  relieved  by  Gen.  Shaler,  of  the  First  Division. 
When  the  duties  consequent  upon  the  terrible  catastroijhe  at 
the  Brooklyn  Theatre  (December,  1876)  had  neai'ly  exhausted 
the  jiolice,  the  13th  volunteered  its  services,  and  remained  on 
guard  at  the  Morgue,  and  the  buildings  on  Adams  street, 
where  the  remains  of  the  burned  were  collected. 

On  July  23,  1877,  the  Regiment  was  ordered  under  arms  by 
the  Governor,  together  with  all  the  State  troops,  and  the 
prompt  action  of  Governor  Robinson,  undoubtedly,  preserved 
the  State  from  the  deva,station  which  befell  Pennsylvania 
and  Maryland  in  the  destructive  raihoad  riots  of  that  year. 

Col.  David  E.  Austen  was  commissioned  July  13,  1877.  He 
was  a  national  guardsman  of  long  experience,  having  en- 
listed in  Co.  H,  7th  Regiment,  in  February,  1859,  accompany- 
ing that  Regiment  in  its  camjjaign  at  the  opening  of  the  war. 
In  Nov.,  1862,  he  was  elected  First  Lieutenant,  Co.  I,  47th 
Regiment,  and  was  made  Adjutant,  August,  1863  (promoted 
while  crossing  the  Long  Bridge);  Captain  of  Co.  I,  March, 
1864 ;  Major,  October,  1865  ;  Lieutenant-Colonel,  January, 
1868 ;  and  Colonel,  May  9,  1868,  which  position  he  retained 
until  his  election  to  the  command  of  the  13th.  In  the  sum- 
mer of  1863,  he  accompanied  the  47th  Regiment  to  Virginia, 
in  response  to  the  call  of  the  government.  He  was  relieved 
at  his  own  request  Dec.  3,  1888,  and  was  succeeded  in  com- 
mand by  Gen.  A.  C.  Barnes,  April  20,  1884. 

Lieut.  George  A.  Phelan  was  Adjutant  of  the  13tli  on  the 
accession  of  Col.  Austen,  and  was  succeeded  by  Lieut.  Henry 
D.  Stanwood.  The  latter  resigned,  and  was  followed  by 
Lieut.  Cyrus  A.  Hubbard;  and,  at  the  decease  of  Lieut.  Hub- 
bard, the  present  Adjutant,  George  B.  Davis,  was  selected. 

Rev.  Henry  Ward  Beecher  was  appointed  Chaplain  in 
March,  1878.  Among  Mr.  Beecher's  predecessors  were  Rev. 
Edward  Taylor,  Rev.  J.  Halstead  Carroll,  and  Rev.  Dr.  Hemy 
M.  Storrs.  In  May,  1876,  Brevet-Col.  Horatio  C.  King  was 
elected  Major.  In  June  was  commenced,  in  the  lecture- 
room  of  Plj'mouth  Church,  the  recruiting  for  Co.  G,  com- 
monly known  as  the  Plymouth  Company,  the  largest  of  the 
companies,  and  Capt.  W.  L.  Watson,  a  veteran  of  the  war  of 
the  Rebellion,  was  elected  Captain  in  July,  1878.  An  import- 
ant acquisition  was  made,  also,  in  the  selection  of  the 
"veteran"  Harvey  B.  Dod worth,  in  September  of  the  same 
year,  as  band-master,  which  position  he  still  holds. 

May  15,  1879,  a  parade  and  review,  by  Maj. -Gen.  Alexander 
Shaler,  commanding  the  First  Division,  were  had  in  Madison 
Square  Garden,  New  York,  preparatory  to  the  departure  of 


MILITARY    ORGANIZATION'S. 


1197 


the  Regiment,  on  May  22d,  on  its  ever  memorable  trip  to  Mon- 
treal, Canada,  to  assist  in  the  celebration  of  the  Queen's  birth- 
day. The  reception  by  our  Canadian  neighbors  was  unprece- 
dentedly  enthusiastic  and  hospitable.  The  Regiment  partici- 
pated in  the  sham-battle  and  the  grand  review  by  the 
Governor-General  (the  Marquis  of  Lome)  and  the  Princess 
Louise,  and  the  banquet  tendered  the  officers  at  the  Windsor 
House,  at  which  the  Governor-General  presided,  will  long 
be  remembered  for  the  generous  utterances  of  the  speakers 
respectively,  concerning  the  cordial  relations  existing  be- 
tween the  United  States  and  Great  Britain  and  her  colonies. 
A  magnificent  flag — one  side  Canadian,  the  other  American, 
the  gift  of  the  ladies  of  Montreal — is  treasured  with  peculiar 
pride. 

In  July,  1879,  Bvt.  Brig. -Gen.  C.  T.  Christensen  was  elected 
Major  vice  King,  appointed  Judge  Advocate  on  the  staff  of 
Gen.  E.  L.  Molineux,  11th  (now  4th)  Brigade,  and  subse- 
quently Lt.-Col.,  vice  Beadle,  honorably  discharged.  Capt.  J. 
Frank  Dillont  (Co.  F)  was  chosen  Major  and  subsequently  Lt.- 
Col.,  and  resigned  in  the  spring  of  1881. 

October  15th,  1881,  it  started  for  Yorktown;  remained 
three  days,  eliciting  the  warmest  praise  for  completeness  as  a 
militia  organization. 

Attached  to  the  Regiment  is  a  fine  cadet  corps,  now  num- 
bering over  seventy  members,  mainly  from  the  Polytechnic 
and  Adelphi  academies. 

A  Veteran  Association,  formed  about  ten  years  ago,  has 
proved  a  valuable  aid  to  the  Regiment.  Its  past  commanders 
were:  Col.  Henry  Heath,  Gen.  J.  B.  Woodward,  Col.  Adam 
T.  Dodge,  and  Col.  Willoughby  Powell.  Its  present  officers 
are:  Frederick  A!  Baldwin,  Col.;  Michael  Chauncey,  Lt.-Col. ; 
Smith  H.  Wing,  Major;  Henry  R.  Darby,  Adj.;  William  H. 
Welsh,  Quartermaster;  and  Burdett  S.  Oakes,  Commissary. 
It  usually  parades  with  the  Regiment  on  occasions  of  cere- 
mony, and  accompanied  it  to  Montreal,  Boston  and  Yorktown. 
In  this  body,  and  also  in  the  Regiment  proper,  there  are  many 
war  veterans. 

Present  status  of  the  Thu-teenth  Regiment — Ten  companies. 
Third  Brigade,  Second  Division.     Armory  at  corner  of  Flat- 
bush  avenue  and  Hanson  place,  Brooklyn. 
Colonel,  Alfred  C.  Barnes,  April  30,  1884.   (See  page  878). 
Lieutenant-Colonel,  Theodore  B.  Gates,  May  10,  1881 ;  Bvt. 
Major-Gen.,   May  23,    1881;  Lt.-Col.,  30th  mil.   (80th  N.  Y. 
vols.),  June  15th,  1861;  Col.  Sept.  39,  1863;  res.  Nov.  34,  1864; 
Bvt.  Brig.-Gen.,  U.  S.  vols.,  March  36,   1860.     First  Lt.  and 
Paymaster,  30th  mil.,  Sept.  11, 1854;  Cap.  and  Eng.,  20th  mil., 
Dec.  5,  1854;  Maj.,  May  19,  1855;  Lt.-Col.,  June  15,  1861;  Col., 
Sept.  29,  1862;  res.  Nov.  34,  1864;  Maj.-Gen.,  5th  Div.,  Feb. 
6,  1867;  res.  March  36,   1873;  Lt.-Col.,  13th  Regt.,  May  10, 
1881. 
Major,  William  H.  H.  Tyson,  May  10,  1881. 
Adjutant — First  Lieutenant,   George  B.   Davis,    Sept.    3, 
1880. 

Quartermaster — First  Lieutenant,  J.  Fred  Ackerman,  July 
32,  1880;  Bvt.  Capt.,  Dec.  13,  1880. 

Commissary  of  Subsistence—First  Lieutenant,  Lewis  M. 
Reed,  June  18,  1883. 
Surgeon— Major,  James  J.  Terhune,  April  23, 1883. 
Assistant   Surgeon— First    Lieutenant,  Chas.    E.    De  La 
Vergne. 
Chaplain— Captain,  Henry  Ward  Beecher,  Feb.  8,  1878. 
Jnsjiector  of  Rijle  Practice  —  Captain,  Theodore  H.  Babcock, 
March  10,  1881. 

Captouis— William  L.  Watson,  July  8, 1878,  Co.  G.  George 
B.  Squires,  Aug.  15,  1879,  Co.  K.  Edward  Fackner,  Aug.  13, 
1881;  Bvt.  Major,  Oct.  36,  1881,  Co.  E.  William  J.  Collins, 
Aug.   13,   1881,  Co.  A.     Charles  P.  Kretchsmar,  July  5,  1883, 


Co.  H.  Frank  B.  S.  Morgan,  June  8,  1883,  Co.  C.  William 
H.  Courtney,  Aug.  8,  1883,  Co.  F.  William  A.  Brown,  Feb., 
1884,  Co.  B.  David  M.  Demarest,  Co.  D.  J.  DeMandeville, 
Co.  I. 

First  Lieutenants— Pi..  Fuller  Tomes,  December  5,  1878,  Co. 
G.  John  T.  Jennings,  Co.  B.  William  Kerby,  June  17,  1881, 
Co.  E.  Chas  T.  Snow,  Co.  K.  Chas.  O.  Davis,  Co.  A.  Rus- 
sell Benedict,  Co.  H.  Samuel  W.  Smith,  Co.  C.  Robt.  L. 
Sillman,  Co.  T. 

Second  Lieutenants — Samuel  T.  Skinner,  Mar.  3,  1879,  Co. 
G.     Chas.  W.  Held,  Co.  B.     Chas.  Bradshaw,  Co.  A.     Henry 
J.   Jordan,   Mar.   39,   1883,   Co.   K.     Geo.  W.  Hunt,  Co.   C. 
C.  F.  Stagg,  Co.  I.     Charles  W.  Topping,  Co.  E. 
Sergeant-Major,  William  F.  Seymour. 
Quartermaster-Sergeant,  Chas.  Werner. 
Com.  Sergeant,  H.  P.  Smith. 
Ordnance-Sergeant,   Jas.  McNevin. 
Hospital  Steward,  Chas.  G.  Curtis. 
Color  Sergeants,  Heyward  Smith,  W.  L.  Conley. 
Drum  Major,  Edward  Mclntyre. 
Band  Master,  Harvey  B.  Dodworth. 
Right  General  Guide,  Arthur  Genus. 
Left  General  Guide,  W.  Roch. 

The  Fourteenth  Regiment,  N.  G.,  S.  N.  Y.,is  an  old  mil- 
itia regiment,  first  known  as  the  Brooklyn  Chasseurs,  organ- 
ized in  1846,  with  Gen.  Piiilii)  S.  Crooke  of  Flatbush,  its  first 
Colonel;  he  was  succeeded  Jan.,  1853,  by  Col.  Jesse  C.  Smith, 
and  he  by  Col.  Alfred  M.  Wood.  Like  the  other  old  regiments 
it  was  composed  of  separate  comiianies,  each  of  which  had 
its  own  uniform,  and  it  was  not  until  1861,  that  a  common 
uniform  was  adopted;  i.  e.,  the  red  zouave  dress,  in  which 
the  regiment  won  such  renown,  and  from  which,  and  its 
valor,  it  received  its  popular  name  in  the  civil  war,  "red- 
legged  devils."  The  14th  has  a  glorious  record  of  service  dur- 
ing the  late  sectional  struggle;  having  early  won  a  reputation 
for  gallantry  and  intrepidity,  it  was  always  put  in  the  front 
when  any  arduous  or  dangerous  duty  was  to  be  done;  thus 
it  lost  heavily.  It  enlisted  for  three  years  as  the  84th  N.  Y. 
Vols. 

It  was  mustered  into  the  service  of  the  United  States  from 
May  to  July,  1861,  and  took  part  in  the  following  battles: 
Bull  Run,  Falmouth,  SpottsylvaniaC.  H.,  Aug.  33,  Rappahan- 
nock Station,  Sulphur  Springs,  Gainesville,  Groveton,  Manas- 
sas Plains,  Chantilly,  South  Mountain,  Antietam,  Fredericks- 
burg, Port  Royal,  Chancellorsville,  Gettysburg,  Mine  Run, 
Wilderness,  Laurel  Hill,  Spottsylvania  C.  H.,  besides  many 
skirmishes.  On  the  expiration  of  its  term  of  service  the  ori- 
ginal members  (except  veterans)  were  mustered  out,  and  the 
veterans  and  recruits  transferred  to  the  5th  New  York 
Volunteers. 

Colonels— A.  M.  Wood,  dis.  Oct.  18,  1863.  E.  B.  Fowler 
(Bvt.  Brig.-Gen.,  U.  S.  V.),  mustered  out  June  1st,  1864. 

Lieutenant-Colonels— E.  B.  Fowler,  promoted  Col.,  Oct. 
34,  1863.  W.  H.  De  Bevoise,  dis.  May  11,  1863.  Robert  B. 
Jordan,  mustered  out  June  1,  1864. 

il/(yors— James  Jourdan,  dis.  Jan.  3,  1863.  Wm.  H.  De 
Bevoise,  promoted  Lt.-Col.,  Oct.  24,  1863.  C.  T.  Baldwin,, 
dis.  Dec.  34,  1863.  R.  B.  Jordan,  promoted  Lt.-Col.,  June  38, 
1863.     H.  T.  Head,  mustered  out  June  1,  1864. 

Adjutants— n.  T.  Head,  promoted  Maj.,  June  23,  1868. 
John  Vliet,  mustered  out  June  1,  1864. 

Surgeons— Jas.  L.  Farley  (Bvt.  Lt.-Col.,  U.  S.  V.),  dis.  June 
10,  1863.  David  Larrabee,  dis.  March  16,  18G4.  O.  Smith, 
mustered  out  June  1,  1864. 

Captains— A.  B.  Jordan,  promoted  Maj.,  March  19,  1863. 
J.  W.  Redding,  mustered  out  June  1,  1864.  G.  B.  Mallery, 
killed  in  battle.     I.  Uflenddl  (Bvt.  Maj.,  U.  S.  V.),  mustered 


1198 


SIST0R7  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


out  June  1,  1864.  David  Myers,  died  Sept.  35,  1862.  Chas. 
B.  Toby,  res.  Feb.  1,  1863.  T.  A.  Burnett,  mustered  out  June 
1,  1864.  C.  F.  Baldwin,  promoted  Maj.,  Oct.  24,  1862.  W.  M. 
Baldwin  (Bvt.  JIaj.,  U.  S.  V.),  mustered  out  June  1,  1864. 
W.  L.  B.  Stears,  res.  Dec.  11,  1861.  A.  G.  A.  Harwickle,  dis. 
Sept.  29,  1862.  Jas.  H.  Jordan,  dis.  Jan.  13,  1863.  W.  A.  Ball, 
mustered  out  June  1,  1864.  G.  Plass,  dis.  Nov.  10,  1863.  S 
Mandeville,  mustered  out  June  1,  1864.  J.  McNeil  (Bvt.  Maj., 
U.  S.  v.),  mustered  out  June  1,  1864.  A.  W.  H.  Gill  (Bvt. 
Maj.,  U.  S.  v.),  dis.  March  12,  1863  (prisoner  of  war).  C.  H. 
Morris,  dis.  Jan.  18,  1863.  W.  F.  Twibill,  mustered  out.  G. 
S.  Elcock,  mustered  out  June  1,  1864.  W.  M.  Bennett,  res. 
June  30,  1861.  G.  R.  Davey,  killed  in  battle,  Aug.  29, 
1862. 

Immediately  after  the  attack  upon  Fort  Sumter,  the  14th 
was  placed  upon  a  war  footing;  vacancies  among  officers  and 
in  the  ranks  were  filled  so  quickly  that  on  April  18,  1861,  the 
Regiment  was  reported  to  head-quarters  as  ready  to  niarcli  to 
the  front.  Until  May  18,  it  remained  in  Brooklyn,  awaiting 
orders;  by  this  time  the  Government  declined  to  receive  any 
more  militia  regiments,  accepting  only  such  organizations  as 
enlisted  for  three  years  or  the  war.  Accordingly  the  com- 
panies of  the  14th  were  assembled  in  camp  at  Fort  Greene, 
and  terms  of  enlistment  into  tlie  U.  S.  service  proposed  to 
them,  wliich  were  enthusiastically  received,  and  without  a 
dissenting  voice.  May  18,  1861,  eight  companies  of  the  line 
and  an  Engineer  Corps  (aggregating  825  officers  and  men), 
under  command  of  Col.  Alfred  M.  Wood,  started  for  Wash- 
ington, amidst  great  enthusiasm.  They  were  encamped  on 
Meridian  Hill,  two  miles  north  of  the  city  of  Washington, 
where  they  were  regularly  mustered  into  the  United  States 
service.  May  23,  by  Gen.  Irwin  McDowell,  as  the  81th  Regt., 
N.  y.  Vols.  A  detachment  from  the  Regiment  was  among  the 
first  to  cross  into  Virginia.  July  2,  the  regiment  crossed  tlie 
Potomac  and  camped  near  Arlington  House,  where  two  com- 
panies were  added,  making  a  total  of  960  men,  and  the  14th 
was  assigned  to  the  Brigade  of  Gen.  Andrew  Porter.  It  took 
part  in  the  battle  of  Bull  Run,  July  21,  and  suffered  severe 
loss.  Col.  Wood  was  wounded  and  taken  prisoner;  afterward 
exchanged  and  honorably  discharged,  Sept.  28.  The  Regi- 
ment, under  Lt.-Col.  E.  B.  Fowler,  ijarticipated  in  the  ad- 
vance upon  MuQson's  and  Hall's  Hills;  afterwards  went  into 
winter  quarters  on  Upton's  Hill,  until  the  Spring  of  1862. 
April  16  it  marched  to  the  Rappahannock,  before  Frede- 
ricksburg, and  engaged  with  the  enemy.  Through  the  Sum- 
mer, the  14th  was  on  the  march  much  of  the  time,  following 
the  enemy  and  repelling  attacks.  Aug.  28  occurred  the  sharp 
battle  of  Groveton,  near  Gainesville,  in  which  Col.  Fowler, 
Col.  (then  Cajit.)  McLeer,  and  Lt.  Schurig  wore  severely 
wounded,  and  Surg.  Farley  was  taken  prisoner;  Aug.  30  was 
the  second  battle  of  Bull  Run,  in  which  the  Regiment  suffered 
severely.  The  capture  of  South  Mountain  followed,  Sept.  14, 
where  the  Regiment  lost  30  per  cent,  of  the  men  engaged; 
three  days  later  it  was  again  badly  cut  up  on  Antietam 
Creek;  after  several  months  of  marching  and  skirmishing,  it 
crossed  the  Rappahannock,  Dec.  12,  1862,  under  heavy  fire; 
fighting  was  continued  for  tliree  successive  days.  Dec.  23  the 
Regiment  returned  to  camp  at  Belle  Plains,  and  Col.  Fowler 
returned  to  command.  Feb.  24,  lt>63,  a  handsome  stand  of 
colors,  sent  from  Brooklyn,  was  presented  to  the  Regiment. 
Apr.  9,  the  Corps  under  Gen.  Reynolds  was  received  by  Pre- 
sident Lincoln.  Apr.  27,  The  14th  assisted  in  crossing  the 
Rappahannock  at  Port  Royal  and  driviag  the  enemy  from 
their  entrenchments.  May  2,  4  and  5,  occurred  the  battle  of 
Chancellorsville,  where  the  14th  was  on  the  right  of  the  line. 
It  was  continually  in  active  service  and  pushed  northward  to 
Gettysburg,  where  it  took  part  in  the  engagements  of  July  1, 


2  and  8,  losing  fifty  per  cent,  of  the  men  engaged.  The  Regi- 
ment then  returned  to  Virginia,  and  through  the  Summer, 
Fall  and  Winter  of  1863,  was  marched  from  place  to  place 
in  the  Rappahannock  and  Rapidan  Valleys.  May  4,  1864, 
the  Regiment  left  Culpepper,  on  the  memorable  Campaign  of 
the  Wilderness.  May  6,  orders  came  for  every  available  man 
to  proceed  to  the  front.  Col.  Fowler  reported  to  Gen.  War- 
ren 383  officers  and  men  fit  for  duty.  On  the  8th  the  Regiment 
lost  sixty-five  men,  near  Spottsylvania  C.  H. ;  Lieut. 
Schurig  was  wounded  in  the  arm;  on  the  10th,  61  officersand 
men  were  killed  or  wounded,  Gen.  Rice  and  Lieut.  Rae 
killed,  and  Capt.  Baldwin  and  Adj.  Vliet  wounded.  May  23, 
1864,  came  the  orders  that  those  of  the  14th  who  had  en- 
listed in  1861  should  be  honorably  discharged  and  return 
home;  those  who  had  enlisted  later  were  transferred  to  the 
5th  N.  Y.  Veteran  Vols.,  and  afterwards  distinguished  them- 
selves. The  returning  regiment  was  most  heartily  wel- 
comed with  roar  of  cannon  and  cheers  of  the  multitude,  ex- 
pressing Brooklyn's  pride  in  the  "fighting  14th." 

After  the  war  the  Regiment  was  reorganized.  Col.  Fowler 
remained  in  command  until  18T3,  when  Col.  McLeer  was 
commissioned. 

Lt.-Col.  Schurig  was  a  member  of  the  14th  long  before  the 
civil  war;  at  the  beginning  of  the  conflict  he  enlisted  with  his 
old  Regiment  and  went  to  the  front  as  4th  Serg.  of  Co.  H; 
was  afterwards  piomoted  for  gallantry  and  good  conduct  to 
be  1st  Lieutenant.  He  was  with  the  14th  in  all  its  engage- 
ments, except  when  wounded  and  in  ho.spital;  hij  first  wound 
(in  the  breast)  was  received  at  Groveton  in  1862,  but  he 
returned  to  the  front  as  soon  as  recovered.  At  Lam-el  Hill, 
while  the  14th  made  a  desperate  charge  on  the  enemy's  bat- 
teries, he  was  shot  through  the  arm,  which  had  to  be  amputa- 
ted at  the  shoulder.  After  the  war,  he  rejoined  the  14th  and 
served  as  Lieutenaat,  Captain,  Major  and  Lieutenant-Colonel. 
In  1867  he  was  elected  Register  on  the  Republican  ticket;  two 
years  later  he  was  nominated  for  County  Treasurer,  but  was 
not  elected.  In  1880  he  was  api^ointed  Deputy  Collector  of 
Internal  Revenue  in  this  District.  He  died  in  June,  1883,  and 
was  buried  with  military  honors. 

Present  status  of  the  Fourteenth  Regiment — Ten  com- 
panies. Third  Brigade,  Second  Division.  Armory  at  corner 
of  North  Portland  avenue  and  Auburn  place,  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 

Colonel,  James  McLeer,  June  6,  1873  (see  page  867);  Brevet 
Capt.,  N.  y.  S.  vols.;  1st  Lt.,  Co.  C,  14th  Regt.,  May  37,  1865; 
Quartermaster,  14th  Regt.,  Sept.  9, 1867;  Major,  Aug.  16,  1869; 
Lt.-Col.,  Nov.  7,  1870;  Col.,  June  6,  1873;  Commanding  3d 
Brigade  since  Sept.  17,  1883. 

Lieutenant-Colonel,  Harry  W.  Michell,  Oct.  29,1883;  Private, 
14th  N.  Y.  S.  militia(81thN.  Y.  vols.),  April  18,  1861;  Corporal, 
Aug.  1,  1861;  Serg.,  Nov.  1,  1861;  2d  Lt.,Feb.  11,1863;  IstLt., 
July  27,  1863;  honorably  discharged  March  12,  1865;  Capt., 
May  25,  1865;  Major,  14th  Regt,  Mar.  25,  1875;  Lt.-Col., 
Oct.  29,  1883. 

Major,  Selden  C.  Clobridge,  Oct.  39,  1883;  Private,  Co.  G., 
115th  N.  Y.  vols.,  Aug.,  8,  1862;  Corp.,  Aug.,  1862;  Serg.,  Jan. 
15,  1863;  1st  Lt.,  April  29,  1865;  discharged  (loss  of  right  arm), 
June  5,  181)5;  Brevet  Major,  N.  Y.  S.  vols.;  Adj.,  14th  Regt., 
May  1,  1878;  Major,  Oct.  29,  1883. 

Quartermaster — First  Lieutenant,  Alexander  Barnie,  Jr., 
Feb.  11,  1876. 

Commissary  of  Subsistence — First  Lieutenant,  Alexander 
R.  Samuels,  July  1,  1873. 

Surgeon — Captain,  James  L.  Farlej',  Sept.  5,  1864;  Brevet 
Colonel. 

Assistant  Surgeon — Captain,  George  R.  Fowler,  June  4, 
1877. 

Chaplain — Captain,  J.  Oramel  Peck,  May  22,  1883. 


MILITAR  Y   OR  GA  NIZA  TIOJSTS. 


1199 


Inspector  of  Rifle  Practice— Captain,  Edwin  S.  Browe, 
June  17,  1878. 

Captains— John  McNeill,  Aug.  27,  1863;  Brevet  Major,  Co. 
H.  Ramon  Cardona,  July  17,  1865,  Co.  I.  Benjamin  S. 
Steen,  Nor.  33,  1873,  Co.  C.  Augustus  D.  Limlierger,  Mar. 
11,  1879,  Co.  D.  Joseph  R.  K.  Barlow,  Mar.  33,  1880,  Co.  E. 
"William  V.  Beacon,  Co.  F.  William  Wendell,  April  11,  1881, 
Co.  G.     Jolin  J.  Dixon,  Co.  A. 

First  Lieutenants — John  Cutts,  Bee.  17,  1872,  Co.  H.  Has- 
sell  Nutt,  July  36,  1876,  Co.  I.  John  J.  Dixon,  Mar.  29,  1878, 
Co.  C.  James  M.  White,  Sept.  3,  1879,  Co.  B.  William  F. 
Morris,  April  27,  1881,  Co.  K.  John  H.  Curran,  May  36,  1883, 
Co.  E.  Owen  Lewis,  June  19,  1883,  Co.  D.  G.  Edward  Ben- 
net,  Co.  G. 

Second  Lieutenants — Peter  Eriok  Erickson,  Mar.  9,  1876, 
Co.    G.    Peres  A.   Packard,   Mar.   29,    1878,    Co.    C.     John 

F.  York,  Sept.  16,  1879,  Co.  H.     Adolph  L.   Kline,  Jan.  2.3, 
1883,  Co.  E.     Austin  O.  Crane,  Apr.,  1881,  Co.  I. 

The  Twenty-Eighth  Regiment,  N.  G.,  S.  N.  Y.,  was  organ- 
ized in  1860,  with  Michael  Bennet,  Colonel,  who  was  suc- 
ceeded, at  his  resignation  in  1864,  by  David  Bokee,  and  in  1865 
by  Caspar  Urban.     In  1869  Major  Bvirger  was  elected  Colonel. 

The  Regiment  vcas  ordered  April  31,  1861,  to  inarch  to 
Washington,  D.  C,  where  it  arrived,  under  Col.  Michael  Ben- 
nett, eight  days  later;  was  quartered  in  the  Capitol  building; 
participated  in  the  advance  into  Virginia,  built  "  Fort  Ben- 
net"  and  several  redoubts;  did  guard  duty,  and  was  mustered 
out  Aug.  5,  1861,  many  of  the  men  then  enlisting  in  the 
volunteer  service.  It  was  again  ordered  out  in  1863,  but  did 
not  leave  Brooklyn.  Juue  16,  1863,  the  Regiment  was  ordered 
to  Harrisljurgh  Pa. ;  was  held  in  reserve  at  Gettysburgh,  and 
summoned  home  by  the  Governor  on  account  of  the  Draft 
riots  in  New  York,  with  Lt.  Col.  Bokee  in  command:  .July 
23,  the  Regiment  was  mustered  out,  Lt.-Col.  Schf-pper  being 
in  command.  Col.  Caspar  Urban  was  afterwards  mustered 
in  as  Colonel.     It  has  since  been  disbanded. 

"Wlien  the  old  70th  disbanded,  that  portion  which  was  cav- 
alry formed  the  nucleus  of  the  Second  Regiment  Cavalry.  N. 

G.  S.  N.  Y.,  under  command  of  Col.  Wni.  J.  Cropsey,  with 
about  400  men  in  the  regiment,  but  has  since  disbanded. 

The  Third  (Gatling)  Battery  was  first  organized  as  Co. 
"A."  1st  Battalion  Light  Artillery,  August  i.5th,  1864,  Brig.- 
Gen.  Jesse  C.  Smith,  then  commanding  the  11th  Brigade,  de- 
tailing Major  E.  O.  Hotchkiss,  of  his  staff,  to  organize  it, 
and  that  officer  remained  in  command  for  some  time  after.  It 
was  armed  with  howitzers,  and  made  its  first  public  parade 
in  New  York  City  at  the  funeral  obsequies  of  the  lament'^d 
President  Lincoln. 

Major  Hotchkiss  was  succeeded  by  1st  Lt.  Joseph  S.  Amoore. 
In  1868  Capt.  Amoore  resigned,  let  Lt.  Ira  L.  Bsebe  was 
elected  Captain,  who,  early  in  1870,  was  appointed  upon  the 
2d  Division  Staff  as  Chief  of  Ai-tillery,  giving  place  to  1st 
Lt.  Wm.  H.  H.  Beebe,  but  the  latter  subsequently  resigned, 
and  1st  Lt.  Julius  F.  Simons  was  elected  Captain,  who  re- 
signed in  1873,  and  Capt.  Ira  L.  Beebe  was  re-elected  to  the 
Captaincy.  During  this  time  the  organization  was  quartered 
in  the  old  State  Arsenal  in  Portland  avenue,  the  site  of  the 
present  14th  Regiment  Armory.  In  May,  1875,  the  Battery 
having  been  supplied  with  Gatling  guns  and  complete  horse 
equipments,  it  was  re-organized  into  a  Gatling  Battery,  and 
changed  its  name  to  Gatling  Battery,  Eleventh  Brigade.  In 
the  fall  of  1875  the  Batter}'  changed  its  quarters  to  the  old 
City  Armory  in  Henry  street,  previously  occupied  by  the  13th 
Regiment.  Capt.  Beebe  being  shortly  afterward  eluded 
Brigadier-General  of  the  11th  Brigade,  was  succeeded  in  the 
Captaincy  by  1st  Lt.  John  A.  Edwards.  Tne  Battery  served 
during  the  railroad  labor  riots,  July,  1877. 


About  Jan.  1st,  1878,  the  name  of  the  Battery  was  changed 
by  the  Adjutant-General  of  the  State  to  "Battery  N;"  Jan. 
Ist,  1883,  its  name  was  again  changed  to  Tiiird  Battery,  and 
it  was  detached  from  the  11th  Brigade  and  attached  to  the  3d 
Division. 

Capt.  John  A.  Edwards  resigned  in  1882,  and  1st  Lt.  Henry 
S.  Rasquin,  the  present  commandant,  was  elected  in  May, 
1883,  to  the  Captaincy.  In  March,  188?,  the  City  Armory 
having  been  sold,  the  Battery  was  quartered  in  Gothic  Hall, 
Adams  st.  On  the  night  of  Dec.  19th,  1883,  it  was  swept  by 
fire,  and  in  a  short  hour  the  Battery  was  again  homeless. 
Since  then  the  organization  has  met  and  drilled  in  the  14th 
Regiment's  Armory,  by  kind  permission  of  Col.  McLeer.  Al- 
though made  heartily  welcome  by  the  14th  Regiment,  the 
Battery  is  necessarily  crippled  in  its  efficiency,  through  hav- 
ing no  fixed  quarters  of  its  own;  but  its  prospects  are  good 
for  soon  being  provided  for  in  this  respect,  the  Board  of 
Supervisors  of  Kings  County  having  recently  purchased  a 
plot  of  ground  on  Dean  st.,  between  Washington  and  Grand 
avenues,  over  100  feet  square,  for  the  erection  of  an  Armory 
for  the  command. 

The  present  commandant,  Capt.  Henry  S.  Rasquin,  was 
elected  May  22,  1882,  having  previously  been  1st  Lt.  and  Ser- 
geant since  his  enlistment  as  private  in  1877.  He  was  made 
Serg.,  Sept.  39th,  1878;  1st  Lt.  June  20th,  1881;  Capt..  May 
22,  1883.  To  his  popularity  and  indefatigable  energy  is  in  a 
large  measure  due  the  present  creditable  efficiency  and  esprit 
de  corps  of  the  command,  numbering  70  men. 

First  Lieutenant,  William  W.  Hanold,  was  elected  Sept.  2d, 
1883,  from  Co.  D.,  13th  Regiment.  In  U.  S.  Navy  from  1865 
to  1871;  Private,  Gatling  Battery.  Nov.  15,  1875:  Corp.,  Feb. 
17th,  1876:  Serg..  March  4th,  1878:  2d.  Lt.  Co.  D.,  18th  Regt., 
Dec.  10th.  1879;  1st  Lt.,  Nov.  30th.  1880;  1st  Lt.,  3d  Battery, 
Sept.  2d,  1883.  His  forte  is  the  howitzer  drill,  many  of  the 
movem°nts  therein  executed  having  been  introduced  by  him, 
based  upo-i  experience  gained  in  this  branch  of  artillery  while 
in  the  United  States  naval  service. 

Second  Li.eiitennnt.  William  N.  Toshach,  is  also  from  the 
ranks  of  the  Battery,  having  been  elected  to  the  Lieutenancy 
in  1884. 

Assistant  Surgeon — First  Lieutenant,  Charles  P.  W.  Mer- 
ritt,  3d  Battery,  July  30th,  1883. 

The  armament  of  this  Battery  is  4  12-pound  mountain 
howitzers;  4  Gatling  guns,  calibre  50;  71  Remington  carbines, 
calibre  50;  and  9  artillery  sabres.  A  new  vmiform,  consisting 
of  white  helmet,  scarlet  coat  and  regulation  trousers,  was 
adopted  by  the  Battery  in  the  spring  of  1884,  and  first  worn 
in  April. 

The  Fourth  (formerly  Eleventh)  Brigade  was  organized 
Dec.  31,  1861,  by  Jesse  C.  Smith,  who  was  elected  its  General. 

The  Brigade  comprises  the  23d  and  47th  Regiments,  and 
the  33d  Regiment  Battalion  (organized  in  place  of  the  dis- 
banded 52d).  It  originated  in  the  necessities  of  the  war.  Im- 
mediately after  the  Bull  Run  disaster,  1861,  companies  of 
Home  Guards  sprang  into  existence  in  every  part  of  the  city. 
The  23d  and  47th  Regiments  were  organized  entirely  from 
companies  of  home  guards,  which  had  been  called  together 
by  the  disasters  at  the  front.  The  first  commander  was  Gen. 
Jesse  C.  Smith,  from  1861  till  1868.  In  1862  he  took  the 
greater  part  of  the  Brigade  to  Pennsylvania,  when  that  State 
was  threatened  with  invasion.  In  1868  Col.  J.  V.  Meserole, 
of  the  47th  was  unanimously  elected  in  his  stead.  Gen. 
Meserole  joined  the  7th  Regiment  June  14th,  1855,  and  served 
seven  years  as  private,  corporal  and  sergeant.  In  1861  he 
took  command  of  Co.  A,  47th  Regiment,  then  forming;  wr  s 
elected  Colonel  of  the  47th  in  March,  1863.  He  commanded 
the  regiment  both   times  when  it  was  called  into  active 


HISTORY   OF  KINGS   COUNTY. 


service.  After  holding  command  for  about  eight  years,  Gten. 
Sleserole  resigned  in  January,  1876,  followed  by  Brig. -Gen. 
IraL.  Beebe,  March  16, 1876;  Brig.-Gen.  Edward  L.  Molineux, 
June  10th,  1879,  and  Brig.-Gen.  W.  H.  Brownell,  Sept.  5th, 
1881. 

Twenty-Third  Regiment,  N.  G.,  S.  N.  Y.— After  the  de- 
parture of  the  old  13th  from  Brooklyn  to  the  seat  of  war  in 
April,  1861.  a  number  of  friends  of  Co.  G.,  known  as  the 
Brooklyn  City  Guard,  organized  for  the  purpose  of  aiding 
the  families  of  its  absent  members,  and  of  making  themselves 
proficient  in  military  service.  This  movement  was  followed, 
May  1st,  by  a  meeting  in  Gothic  Hall,  at  which  a  company 
was  organized  for  the  purposes  above  stated,  and  to  act  as  a 
substitute  for  Co.  G.  in  the  protection  of  the  city;  hence  its 
name.  Relief  Oiinrrl,  Co.  <?.,  13th  Regt.  Its  oificers  were: 
Wm.  Everdell,  Jr.,  Capt.;  Thos.  Brooks,  1st  Lt.;  L.  D.  At- 
water,  2d  Lt. ;  John  M.  Pratt,  Ord.  Sergt.  A  gray  uniform 
was  adopted,  Gothic  Hall  was  secured  for  drills,  and  the 
name  of  City  Guard  Reserve  was  soon  after  assumed.  Other 
companies  of  Home  Guards  sprang  into  being,  and  a  desire 
for  a  regimental  organization  was  soon  manifested.  A  com- 
mittee appointed  to  consider  the  matter,  reported  the  exist- 
ence of  the  following  detached  companies,  comprising  some 
700  men:  Brooklyn  Grays,  Capt.  Blakslee;  City  Guard,  Capt. 
Bassett;  Carroll  Hill  Guards.  Capt.  Heath;  South  Brooklyn 
Indepemlent  Guards,  Pres.,  N.  Lane;  Capt.  Bent's  Company; 
Union  Rifles,  Capt.  Morgan;  Guard  Lafayette,  Capt.  J.  H. 
Perry;  Union  Grays,  Capt.  Wylie;  Relief  Guard,  Co.  G,  13th 
Regt.,  Capt.  Everdell;  Washington  Home  Guard,  Capt, 
W.  H.  Crane;  Clinton  Guards,  Capt.  Noyes;  hid.  Zouaves, 
Capt.  Slipper;  Excelsior  Guards,  Capt.  Beers. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  City  Gtiard  Reserve,  Jan.  6,  1863,  after 
the  question  of  a  regimental  organization  had  been  left  to 
the  commissioned  ofiBcers,  Capt.  Everdell  rejiorted  that  the 
company  had  been  pledged  to  start  the  23d  Regiment. 
Messrs.  Farnham,  Pratt,  Titus,  and  Everdell,  were  appointed 
a  committee  to  select  from  the  roll  a  permanent  committee, 
with  power  to  draft  a  plan  to  organize  the  23d  Regiment, 
Eleventh  Brigade,  N.  G.,  S.  N.  Y.  The  committee  proposed 
that  half  the  City  Guard.  Reserve  should  form  Co.  A  of  the 
new  regiment,  that  Capt.  Beers'  Company  should  be  Co.  B, 
and  the  remainder  of  the  Reserve  should  constitute  Co.  C; 
Jan.  20,  1863,  Co.  A  was  mustered  into  tlio  11th  Brigade, 
Gen.  Jesse  C.  Smith.  Capt.  Everdell  was  elected  first  Colonel 
of  the  regiment,  July  14,  1862,  res.  Oct.  10,  1863,  and  was 
succeeded  by  Col.  Calvin  E.  Pratt,  who  in  turn  resigned  in 
March,  1868,  when  Lt.-Col.  Rodney  C.  Ward  was  elected 
Colonel;  he  resigned,  and  was  placed  by  the  Commander-in- 
Chief  upon  the  supernumerary  list;  Lt.-Col.  Partridge  was 
his  successor,  but  upon  his  resignation.  Col.  Ward  was  again 
elected  Colonel,  and  still  retains  command.  The  Regiment 
participated  in  the  Gettysburg  campaign,  July,  1863,  but  was 
not  organized  in  time  to  take  part  in  the  other  campaigns 
with  the  National  Guard.  During  the  labor  riots  of  July, 
1877,  Gov.  Robinson  ordered  out  a  portion  of  the  militia;  .Jul}' 
22d,  orders  came  to  Col.  Ward  to  proceed  with  the  33d  to 
Hornellsville  as  soon  as  possible;  at  eight  in  the  evening,  the 
Regiment  marched  from  the  armory,  300  strong,  leaving  a  de- 
tachment to  follow  on  the  next  day,  under  Major  A.  C. 
Barnes.  The  command  arrived  in  Hornellsville  at  3.15  P.M., 
July  23,  was  stationed  in  and  around  the  station,  round- 
house and  yards,  guarding  railroad  propert}-  against  the 
attacks  of  the  rioting  strikers;  it  took  out  the  first  train  that 
had  been  moved  east  for  several  days,  repelled  several  at- 
tacks, protected  track  repairers,  assisted  in  the  administration 
of  justice,  and  finally  restored  order,  without  the  necessity 
of  firing  at  the  rioters.     On  its  return  to  Brooklyn,  July  27, 


it  was  given  an  enthusiastic  reception  by  the.  citizens,  with 
illuminations,  pyrotechnics,  welcoming  speeches  and  hearty 
handshakings.  Gov.  Robinson  thanked  the  Regiment  for  the 
service  it  had  done  the  State. 

Tlie  23d  had  the  honor  of  opening  the  State  encampment 
at  Peekskill  in  July,  1883,  and  its  percentage  of  attendance 
was  85,  being  greater  than  that  of  any  other  organiza- 
tion. 

Present  status  of  the  Twenty-Third  Regiment — Ten  com- 
panies. Fourth  Brigade,  Second  Division.  Armory,  Cler- 
mont avenue,  near  Myrtle  avenue,  Brookhn,  N.  Y. 

Colonel,  Rodney  C.  Ward,  June  25,  1868;  Corp.,  7th  Regt., 
N.  Y.  S.  Mil.,  April  19  to  June  3, 1861;  Capt.,  13th,  N.  G.,  S. 
N.  Y.,  May  28  to  Sept.  5,  1863;  Capt.,  23d  Regt.,  N.  G.,  S.  N.  Y., 
June  18  to  July  22,  1863.  Private,  7th  Regt.,  Jan.  22,  1857; 
Corp.,  1859;  Capt.,  13th  Regt.,  Dec.  31,  1861:  Capt.  33d  Regt., 
Jan.  30,  1863;  Maj.,  Oct.  24,  1863;  Lt.-Col.,  June  15, 1864;  Col., 
June  35,  1868;  res.,  but  placed  on  retired  list  by  Commander- 
in-Chief,  Dec.  26,  1879;  re-elected  Col.,  23d  Regt.,  March  8, 
1882. 

Lieutenant-Colonel,  John  B.  Frothingham,  April  11,  1881; 
Brevet  Colonel,  June  22,  1883;  Private,  5th  Mass.  Vol.  Mil., 
three  months'  service.  May  to  July,  1861.  Private,  23d  Regt., 
Dec.  3,  1869;  Corp.,  March  4,  1870;  Sergt.,  Jan.  3,  1872;  Adj., 
April  6,  1874;  Maj.,  Jan.  10,  1880;  Lt.-Col.,  AprU  11,  1881. 

Major,  Charles  S.  Fincke,  May  2,  1881;  Private,  23d  Regt., 
June  9,  1866;  3d  Lt.,  June  19,  1877;  1st  Lt.,  Feb.,  25,  1879; 
Capt.,  March  18,  1879;  Maj.,  May  2,  1881. 

Adjutant — Fi7-st  Lieutenant,  Henry  Stanwood. 

Quartermaster — First  Lieutenant,  Arthur  A.  Thompson, 
Sept.  18,  1882. 

Commissary  of  Subsistence — First  Lieutenant,  Richard 
Oliver. 

Surgeon — Major,  Edwin  A.  Lewis,  April  23,  1883. 

Assistant  Surgeon — First  Lieutenant,  Edward  S.  Bunker, 
February  3,  1880. 

Chaplain— Cai^tain,  Charles  H.  Hall,  February  9,  1881. 

Lispector  of  Rifle  Practice,  William  H.  Greenland. 

Captains — Alfred  H.  Williams,  Dec.  6,  1873;  Brevet  Major, 
February  16,  1877,  Co.  G.  Darius  Ferry,  Jr.,  January  10, 
1876;  Brevet  Major,  November  0,  1879,  Co.  D.  Cliarles  E. 
Waters,  March  4,  1880,  Co,  K.  Arthur  B.  Hart,  March  8, 
1880,  Co.  A.  George  H.  Pettit,  April  6,  1880,  Co.  F.  Alexis 
C.  Smith,  October  16,  1882,  Co.  H.  Ezra  DeForest.  January 
29,  1883,  Co.  C.  Willard  L.  Candee,  October  17,  1883,  Co.  B. 
Eugene  W.  Burd,  Co.  E.     William  L.  Langley,  Co.  I. 

First  Lieutenants — Marshall  W.  Brigham,  August  3,  1881, 
Co.  F.  Harold  L.  Crane,  February  27,  1880,  Co.  G.  Richard 
M.  Jolmson,  December  11,  1882,  Co.  D.  Curtis  P.  Davies, 
January  29,  1883,  Co.  C.     Cyrus  P.  Smith,  Co.  A. 

Second  Lieutenants— Aaron  G.  Perham,  April  19,  1880,  Co. 
G.  David  Moffatt,  Jr.,  July  11,  1881,  Co.  E.  Darwin  Ray- 
mond Aldridge,  December  29,  1881,  Co.  K.  George  L.  Fox, 
June  13,  1882,  Co.  F.  Francis  P.  Harron,  October  16,  1883, 
Co.  H.  John  S.  Shepherd,  December,  11, 1882,  Co.  D.  Fred- 
erick L.  Smith,  January  21,  1883,  Co.  A.  William  S.  Banfa, 
January  29,  1883,  Co.  C.  Franklin  P.  Swazey,  February  19, 
1883,  Co.  B. 

Sergeant-Major,  James  M.  Rankin,  Jr. 

Quartermaster-Sergeant,  Chas.  A.  Fi-ost. 

Commissary-Sergeant,  ^V^leaton  B.  Despard. 

Ordnance-Sergeant,  Chas.  E.  Bryant. 

Hospital  Steicard,  Wm.  E.  Spencer. 

Color-Sergeants,  Edward  Britton,  Geo.  H.  Thomas. 

Drum  Major,  Chas.  H.  Brown. 

Band  blaster,  Felix  I.  Eben. 

Right  General  Guide,  Geo.  H.  Schwacofer. 


MILITA  RY    OR  GANIZA  TIONS. 


The  Forty-seventh  Regiment,  N.  G.,  S.  N.  Y.— The  47th 
Regiment  was  born  of  that  spirit  of  fiery  enthusiasm  which 
prevailed  during  tlie  years  of  the  Civil  War. 

Early  in  1862,  Gen.  J.  V.  Meserole,  then  a  non-commissioned 
officer  of  the  Fourth  Company,  Ttli  Regiment,  began  to 
agitate  tlie  question  of  tlie  formation  of  a  militia  regiment, 
composed  of  residents  of  the  Eastern  District  of  Brooklyn. 
Through  his  efforts  a  vigorous  organization  was  effected,  and 
he  was  commissioned  the  first  Colonel  on  the  mxistering  of 
the  Regiment  into  the  State's  service — March  29,  1862.  Six 
companies  were  in  existence  at  this  time,  which  hadlieen  re- 
cruited mainly  in  tlie  various  churches,  and  had  been  drilled 
in  the  church  chapels,  stores,  and  other  places  of  the  district. 
After  the  organization  had  been  effected,  the  building  on 
Fifth  street,  known  as  the  Odeon,  now  the  Novelty  Theatre, 
was  used  as  an  armory.  It  is  said  that  the  name  of  the  47th 
was  selected  out  of  compliment  to  Col.  Meserole,  as  he  was 
formerly  connected  with  the  Fourth  Companj-  of  the  7th 
Regiment. 

Col.  Meserole  found  very  earnest  coadjutors  in  the  work  of 
organization  and  in  the  early  history  of  the  Regiment,  in  the 
following-named  gentlemen  among  others:  George  Sangster, 
E.  R.  Young,  Ralph  W.  Kenyon,  Jeremiah  Johnson,  Fred- 
erick Scholes,  John  W.  Van  de  Water,  Charles  C.  Barnes, 
Henry  W.  Banks,  James  C.  Bloom,  Wm.  H.  Irwin,  Isaac  J. 
Geery,  Thomas  S.  Cooper  and  Truman  V.  Tuttle. 

In  May,  1863,  after  the  defeat  of  Gen.  Banks,  the  47th 
was  suddenly  called  to  the  defense  of  the  National  Cap- 
itol. The  field  and  line  officers,  at  this  time,  were  as  follows: 
Colonel,  J.  V.  Meserole;  Lieutenant-Colonel,  George  Sangs- 
ter; Major,  Edward  R.  Young;  Adjutant,  William  J.  Irwin: 
Surgeon,  Dr.  Dougherty ;  Paymaster,  Orrin  M.  Beach;  Quarter- 
master, Frederick  Scholes;  Chaplain,  Rev.  E.  S.  Porter,  D.  D. 
Co.  A— Henry  W.  Banks,  Capt.;  J.  C.  Harding,  1st  Lt.;  J.  C. 
Bloom,  2d  Lt.  Co.  B— M.  A.  Tappen,  Capt.;  C.  E.  Hunting- 
ton, 1st.  Lt.;  W.  L.  Foster,  3d  Lt.  Co.  C— J.  C.  Anderson, 
Capt.;  G.  H.  Sanford,  1st  Lt.;  J.  B.  Griffin,  2d  Lt.  Co.  D-T. 
S.  Cooper,  Capt.;  A.  H.  Rogers,  1st  Lt.;  H.  W.  Taylor,  2d  Lt. 
Co.  E— S.  B.  Murphy,  Capt.;  J.  J.  Suydam,  IstLt.;  E.  H. 
Fales,  2d  Lt.  Co.  F— R.  W.  Kenyon,  Capt. ;  H.  Irwin,  1st  Lt. ; 
H.  R.  Lee,  2d  Lt.  Co.  G— T.  T.  Betts,  Capt.;  R.  C.  Stearns,  1st 
Lt.;  W.  J.  Taylor,  2d  Lt.  Co.  H— C.  B.  Morton,  Capt;  S.  T. 
Maddox,  1st  Lt.;  T.  K.  Chichester,  3d  Lt. 

Great  enthusiasm  was  manifested  among  the  residents  of 
Williamsburg  when  the  newly-organized  Regiment  took  their 
departure  for  the  seat  of  war.  A  chronicler  of  this  event 
says:  "The  Regiment,  with  drums  beating  and  flags  flying, 
got  into  line  on  Fifth  street,  on  May  30,  at  6  P.  M.,  and  at  the 
word  of  command  marched  cheerfully  away.  The  entire 
population  seemed  to  have  poured  into  the  streets  to  bid  them 
good-bye." 

The  47th,  having  traveled  all  night,  reached  Baltimore  on 
the  last  Saturday  of  June,  1863,  very  early  in  the  morning, 
and  was  soon  after  ordered  to  Washington,  and  stationed  at 
Fort  Ethan  Allen. 

The  Regiment  did  duty  at  Alexandria,  at  Fairfax  Court 
House  and  other  places  in  front  of  Washington. 

When  the  Draft  Riots  broke  out,  the  Regiment  returned 
home  to  assist  the  authorities  in  maintaining  order.  The 
command  was  mustered  out  of  the  United  States  service  July 
33,  1863,  special  guard  duty  having  been  performed  at  the 
Armory  for  several  months  thereafter.  It  should  be  men- 
tioned that  in  the  year  1863  two  companies  were  organized, 
to  accompany  the  command  to  the  seat  of  war,  that  did  not 
take  commissions  in  the  Regiment  on  its  return.  Co.  I,  Capt. 
Dougherty,  was  organized  during  the  absence  of  the  Regiment 
and  joined  it  on  its  return.   Col.  David  E.  Austen,  afterwards 


commanding  the  13th  Reg.,  was  Lt.  in  this  company.  During 
the  absence  of  the  Regiment  in  Virginia,  in  1863,  and  while 
the  Draft  Riots  were  progressing,  members  of  the  Regiment 
under  the  command  of  Lieut.  Brown  kept  guard  at  the  regi- 
mental armory,  and  also  did  duty  at  the  Atlantic  Docks,  in 
the  western  part  of  the  city. 

The  Regiment  was  sent  to  do  garrison  duty  at  Fort  Mc Henry, 
in  Baltimore  Harbor,  thus  relieving  veteran  regiments,  who 
were  sent  to  participate  in  the  active  scenes  at  the  front.  At 
the  expiration  of  the  three  months'  service  the  Regiment  re- 
turned to  Brooklyn. 

In  the  early  summer  of  1863,  Gen.  Lee  was  in  Pennsylvania 
and  marching  upon  Harrisburg.  The  Regiments  of  the  N.  Y. 
N.  G.,  in  condition  to  move,  were  hurried  off  to  the  seat  of 
war.  The  47th  of  Brooklyn  belonged  to  Gen.  Jesse  C. 
Smith's  11th  Brigade.  Three  of  the  regiments  had  gone 
and  were  in  the  neighborhood  of  Harrisburg. 

During  this  period  the  command  had  been  quartered  in  the 
old  Odeon  building  on  Fifth  street,  but  the  Regiment  having 
outgrown  these  narrow  quarters,  a  site  was  selected  at  the 
corner  of  Fourth  and  N.  Second  streets,  for  the  erection  of  an 
armory  building.  The  corner-stone  was  laid  with  imposing 
Masonic  ceremonies  on  July  14,  1864,  the  entire  2d  Div. 
parading  in  honor  of  the  occasion. 

This  was  the  first  regimental  armory  erected  in  Kings 
county,  and  though  considered  commodious  at  that  time,  has 
for  many  years  been  entirely  inadequate  for  the  accommoda- 
tion of  the  Regiment. 

When  competitive  drills  were  first  advocated.  Col.  Meserole 
was  among  the  first  to  adopt  the  idea,  and  accordingly  a 
friendly  contest  between  the  right  and  left  wings  of  the  Regi- 
ment took  place  March  23,  1867. 

On  the  resignation  of  Gen.  Jesse  C.  Smith,  Col.  Meserole 
was  promoted  to  the  command  of  the  11th  Brigade,  3d  Div., 
and  May  9,  1868,  David  E.  Austen  was  commissioned  Col.  to 
succeed  him. 

On  the  retirement  of  Col.  Meserole  from  the  Regiment,  he 
was  presented  with  a  handsome  service  of  plate,  which  bore 
the  following  inscription:  "  Presented  to  Col.  J.  V.  Meserole 
by  members  of  the  47th  Reg.,  N.  G.  (Brooklyn  Greys),  as  a 
token  of  love  and  esteem." 

Col.  Austen  was  succeeded  by  Lt.-Col.  William  H.  Brown- 
ell,  who  was  commissioned  Sept.  5,  1877.  Col.  Brownell  was 
a  graduate  of  Co.  E,  and  under  his  command  the  47th  Reg. 
attained  a  very  high  degree  of  discipline.  He  originated  a 
system  of  street-riot  tactics,  which  he  has  published  in  the 
form  of  a  manual,  that  has  been  adopted  and  put  into  use  in 
many  States  of  the  Union. 

On  the  retirement  of  Gen.  Molineux,  Col.  Brownell  was 
promoted  to  the  command  of  the  11th,  now  the  4th  Brigade, 
2d  Div.,  which  he  still  retains. 

Col.  Truman  V.  Tuttle,  who  next  commanded  the  Regiment, 
was  a  competent,  faithful,  enterprising  and  industrious  offi- 
cer. He  has  been  connected  with  the  command  since  its  in- 
ception, and  has  risen  to  his  present  rank  by  merit,  having 
filled  every  surbordinate  position  with  credit  to  himself  and 
with  honor  to  the  regiment. 

The  47th  has  been  noted  for  the  success  attending  its  social 
entertainments.  It  is  also  well-known  for  its  efforts  in  the 
cause  of  charity,  having  largely  contributed  to  the  Sanitary 
Commission  Fair  during  the  war;  to  the  E.  D.  Industrial 
School;  the  E.  D.  Hospital  Building  Fund;  towards  erecting 
a  monument  to  the  late  Lieut.  Col.  James  Creny,  95th  N.  Y. 
Vols.,  and  to  numerous  other  charitable  objects. 

The  command  visited  Albany  in  1868,  where  it  was  pre- 
sented with  a  magnificent  stand  of  colors  by  Lieut. -Gov. 
Stewart  L.  Woodford,  on  behalf  of  the  State. 


1202 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


The  present  strength  of  the  command  is  five  hundred  and 
nine,  rank  and  file. 

Gen.  William  H.  Brownell,  to  whom  allusion  has  previously 
been  made,  has  been  untiring  in  his  exertions  to  secure  the 
new  armory,  and  for  the  adoption  of  such  plans  as  will  jiro- 
vide  the  best  possible  quarters  for  the  Regiment. 

The  imiformof  the  Regiment  is  grey,  as  it  belongs  to  the 
' '  Grey  Brigade. "  Its  head-quarters  were  on  Fourth  st. ,  near 
Grand,  but,  in  1884,  a  new  armory  was  built  lietween  Har- 
rison and  Marcy  avenues  and  Lynch  and  Hey  ward  streets,  at 
a  cost  of  $125,000,  without  the  site;  it  is  of  brick,  with  stone 
trimmings;  is  200  by  204  feet,  with  eight  company  rooms, 
each  19  by  42  feet,  and  a  drill  room,  130  by  128  feet.  In  the 
basement  are  eight  rifle  galleries,  each  204  feet  long. 

The  47th  Regiment  has  always  resjionded  readily  to  the 
calls  for  duty,  in  the  spirit  of  its  motto,  "Ducit  Amor  Pa- 
tria',"  and  with  its  companions  in  arms,  was  publicly  thanked 
by  the  civil  and  military  authorities  for  its  promptness 
and  excellent  conduct  in  service.  It  has  a  Cadet  Corps,  com- 
posed of  the  sons  of  leading  families;  the  boys  are  uniformed 
and  excellently  drilled  under  command  of  Capt.  Wm.  H. 
Eddy,  of  Co.  I. 

Present  status  of  the  Fortj-Seventh  Regiment — Nine  com- 
panies. Fourth  Brigade,  Second  Division.  Old  armory, 
corner  of  Fourth  and  North  Second  streets,  Brooklyn,  E.  D. 

Colonel,  Truman  V.  Tuttle,  Sept.  28,  1881  (resigned  Jan., 
1884);  was  Serg.,  47th,  N.  G.,  S.  N.  Y.,  June  17  to  July  23, 1863; 
Private,  Co.  F,  Mar.  8, 1862;  Serg.,  Nov.  7, 1862;  1st  Serg.,  Nov. 
6,  1866;  Capt.,  Mar.  6,  1871;  Maj.,  47th  Regt.,  Sept.  5,  1877; 
Lt.-Col.,  Jan.  13,  1881;  Col.,  Sept.  28,  1881-84. 

Lieutenant-Colonel,  George Conover,  Sept.  28,  1881;  Private, 
Co.  E,  May  14,  1867;  2d  Lt.,  1st  Regt.,  Nov.  13,  1870;  1st 
Lt.,  Dec.  20,  1870;  Ca])t.,  Nov.  1.5,  1872;  transferred  to  47th 
Regt.,  rank  July  28,  1873;  Maj.,  June  13,  1881;  Lt.-Col.,  Sept. 
28,  1881. 

Major,  Edward  F.  Gaylor,  Sept.  28,  1881;  Private,  Co.  G, 
Nov.  20,  1871;  Corp.,  Feb.  20,  1873;  Serg.,  April  29,  1874;  2d 
Lt.,  Oct.  14,  1874;  1st  Lt.,  Dec.  27,  1875;  Capt.,  Aug.  2,  1876; 
Maj.,  Sept.  28,  1881. 

Adjutant — First  Lieutenant,  John  G.   Eddy,  April  6,  1881. 

Quartermaster — First  Lieutenant,  Edward  Slilner,  January 
10,  1882. 

Commissary  of  Subsistence — First  Lieutenant,  Edward 
Walker,  Cctoher  3,  1883. 

Surgeon — Major,  Edward  Hilborne  Ashwin,  April  23,  1883. 

Assistant  Surgeon — First  Lieutenant,  John  Edwin  Morgan, 
June  28,  1882. 

Cltaplain — Captain,  Newland  Maynard,  Maj'  26,  1875. 

Lispector  of  Rijle  Practice — Captain,  Alvah  G.  Brown, 
January  16,  1876. 

Cop^uws— Alfred  A.  Doughty,  May  25,  1869;  Brevet  Major, 
Oct.  29,  1877,  Co.  B.  George  H.  Streat,  July  7,  1874;  Brevet 
Major,  April  22,  1881,  Co.  E.  Daniel  C.  Sullivan,  April  1, 
1878,  Co.  H.  William  R.  Pettigrew,  Sept.  11,  1878,  Co.  G. 
Frank  J.  Le  Count,  Jr.,  Nov.  25,  1881,  Co.  K.  John  M.  Ran- 
ken,  Dec.  1,  1881,  Co.  A.  George  L.  Davenport,  Feb.  8,  1882, 
Co.  D.  Wm.  H.  Eddy,  Co.  I.  Edward  Schwalbach,  May  3, 
1884,  Co.  F. 

First  Lieutenants — Stanley  Oliver,  Jan.,  1884,  Co.  D.  Lean- 
der  V.  Roberts,  May  5,  1884,  Co.  F. 

Second  Lieutenants — John  H.  Cornell,  July  15,  1881,  Co. 
K.  Charles  H.  Mcllvaine,  Aug.  1,  1881,  Co.  B.  Edward  J. 
Clarry,  March  30,  1883,  Co.  D.  John  A.  Swett,  June  4,  1883, 
Co.  G.    Tnos  McCormick,  Jan.,  1884,  Co.  A. 

The  Thirty-second  Regiment,  N.  G.,  S.  N.  Y.,  was  organ- 
ized by  Major  Henry  Ed,  Roehr  as  a  battalion  of  four  com- 
panies, on  Oct.  8th,  1863.     It  was  composed  principally  of 


Germans.  Major  Roehr  worked  hard  to  effect  the  organiza- 
tion of  a  regiment,  and  with  such  success  that  in  less  than 
one  year  two  new  companies  were  raised,  making  a  total  of 
six,  and  he  was  commissioned  Lieutenant-Colimel,  and  F.  J. 
Karcher,  Major.  Colonel  Roehr  was  an  excellent  tactician, 
and  a  good,  practical  instructor.  In  1870  the  7th  and  8th 
companies  were  added,  making  the  battalion  ai'egiment,  with 
H.  E  Roehr,  Colonel;  John  Rueger,  Lieutenant-Colonel,  and 
M.  J.  Retry,  Major,  in  place  of  F.  J.  Karcher,  resigned,  and 
who  had  been  appointed  Adjutant;  much  credit  isdue  him  for 
the  work  performed  and  assistance  rendered  the  field  officers. 

In  1877  Co.  "  I "  was  added,  and  m  1878  Co.  "  K,"  making 
ten  companies  in  all.  These  latter  companies,  and  also  Co. 
"H,"  were  formed  by  native-born  joung  men,  whose  advent 
into  the  regiment  brought  a  decided  change.  Bare  company 
rooms  were  fitted  up  and  furnished,  and  the  old  members  be- 
gan to  feel  more  interest  and  pride  in  tlieu'  Regiment.  In 
1877  Col.  Roehr  resigned,  and  the  field  was  made  up  as  fol- 
lows: Colonel,  John  Rueger:  Lieutenant-Colonel,  Louis  Bos- 
sert;  Major,  Louis  Finkelmeier,  with  F.  J.  Karcher,  Adjutant. 

During  the  riots  of  July,  1877,  the  Regiment  was  transferred 
to  the  23d  Regiment  Armory,  until  the  latter's  return  from 
Hornellsville. 

Nearly  all  the  otficers  at  this  time  were  veterans  of  the  Civil 
War,  and  patient,  jiainstaking  instructors. 

In  1880  Col.  John  Rueger  resigned,  leaving  Major  Finkel- 
meier in  command,  Lt.-Col.  Bossert  having  resigned  some 
time  before  Col.  Rueger. 

Difficulties  now  came  thick  and  fast,  and  in  1881  rumors 
were  rife  that  the  command  would  be  disbanded.  Louis  Bos- 
sert was  elected  Colonel,  but  not  getting  the  support  of  line 
officers,  resigned,  leaving  the  command  again  with  Lt.-Col. 
Finkelmeier,  wiih  E.  Broggelwirth  as  Adjutant.  Lt.-Col. 
Finkelmeier,  by  hard  and  good  work  soon  had  the  command 
in  good  trim,  and  steadily  it  increased  both  in  numbers,  dis- 
cipline, and  soldieily  bearing.  In  November,  1881,  Lt.-Col. 
Finkelmeier  took  command  as  Colonel,  with  E.  M.  Wunder 
Lieutenant-Colonel,  F.  W.  Parisette,  Major,  and  E.  Broggel- 
wirth, Adjutant,  and  an  entirely  different  complement  of 
men,  many  of  the  old  members  having  dropi)ed  out.  The 
new  men  ranged  from  eighteen  to  twenty-five  years  of  age; 
the  Germian  language  was  dri)j)ped  during  company  meeting, 
and  English  substituted.  The  command  was  in  good  hands; 
the  line  officers  were  all  young  men  familiar  with  soldiering, 
having  come  to  a  great  extent  from  the  Turner  Cadet  Corps. 

In  1883  Co.  "  E  "  was  disbanded,  and  the  letter  was  dropped; 
officers  and  men  had  previously  been  transferred  to  different 
companies. 

The  Regiment  is  at  this  time  in  good  shape,  435  strong,  and 
turns  out  a  good  percentage,  some  companies  reaching  80 
per  cent,  and  over,  the  lowest  percentage  for  1883  being  65 
per  cent.  It  is  composed  mostly  of  strong  and  hardy  young 
men,  well  able  to  stand  the  hardships  of  a  campaign.  Offi- 
cers and  men  have  worked  hard  to  bring  the  command  up  to 
a  good  standard,  with  excellent  prospects  for  its  future. 

The  32d  Regiment  was  to  take  quarters  in  the  new  aiinory, 
on  Marcy  ave. ,  now  in  couise  of  construction,  in  connection 
with  the  47th;  but  officers  and  men  declined;  requests  were 
made  to  have  the  command  remain  in  its  old  quarter.  Had 
steps  been  taken  to  enlarge  the  present  armory,  instead  of 
using  influence  to  procure  a  new  armory,  some  advantage 
would  certainly  have  been  gained. 

Colonel,  Louis  Finkelmeier,  Oct.  8,  1881;  private,  Co.  B, 
20th  N.  Y.  Vols.;  Corp.  and  Serg.,  1st  Serg.,  Dec.  26,  1862; 
dis.  at  expiration  of  service,  June  1,  1863;  1st  Lieut.,  32d 
Battery,  Oct.  8,  1868;  Capt.,  32d,  Sept.  14,  1872;  Major,  Dec. 
19,  1876;  Lt.-Col.,  March  29,  1881;  Col.,  Oct.  8,  1881. 


MILITA  R  Y    OR  GA  NIZA  TIONS. 


1203 


Lieutenant-Colonel,  Edward  M.  Wunder,  Oct.  8,  1881; 
private,  Co.  H,  28th  N.  Y.  S.  Mil.,  April  23  to  Aug.  5,  1861; 
private,  Co.  A,  47th,  N.  Cx.,  S.  N.  Y.,  May  2.S  to  Sept.  1,  1863, 
and  June  17  to  July  23,  1863;  Capt.,  Co.  A,  32d  Regt.,  Sept. 
18, 1875;  res.  March  16, 1881;  Lt.-Col.,  82d  Regt.,  Oct.  8,  1S81. 

Major,  Frederick  W.  Farisette,  Oct.  8,  1881;  2d  Lt.,  Co.  F, 
83d  Regt.,  Nov.  16,  1876;  1st  Lt.,  Co.  D,  Sept.  20,  1878;  Capt., 
Jan.  28,  1880;  Maj.,  32d  Regt.,  Oct.  8,  1881. 

Adjutant — First  Lieutenant,  Emil  Broggelwirth,  April  6, 
1881. 

Quartermaster — First  Lieutenant,  Louis  A.  Bleudermann, 
April  20,  1883. 

Surgeon— Major,  John  F.  Valentine,  April  33,  1883. 

Assistant  Surgeon — First  Lieutenant,  August  Hardrich, 
March  35,  1883. 

Chaplain — Captain,  John  Meury,  Nov.  11,  1881. 

Lispeetor  of  Rifle  Practice — Captain,  Charles  Vorgang, 
March  24,  1877. 

Captains — Charles  Waage,  March  29,  1876;  Brevet  Major, 
Dec.  4,  1879,  Co.  V.  William  F.  Grotz,  March  37,  1878,  Co.  H. 
Louis  J.  Leonhardt,  Nov.  4,  1880,  Co.  K.  John  Bettenhaeu- 
ser,  Oct.  29,  1881,  Co.  G.  Edward  Verdeckberg,  March  31, 
1882,  Co.  D.    William  Strining,  Aug.  29,  1SS8,  Co.  B. 

First  Lieutenants — Stanislaus  R.  Bluemke,  Dec.  33,  1876, 
Brevet  Captain,  Oct.  8,  1881,  Co.  F.  John  J.  Klein,  Oct.  39, 
1881,  Co.  G.  William  Goedel,  Nov.  25,  issi,  Co.  C.  Louis 
Haas,  July  28,  1882,  Co.  L  William  Tiedemann,  Sept.  7,  1883, 
Co.  D.  Frederick  Voelbel,  April  13,  1883,  Co.  H.  Philip  Gros- 
back,  Jr.,  April  20,  1883,  Co.  A. 

Sec07id  Lieutenants — WiUiam  Distellamp,  Aug.  23,  1876, 
Co.  K.  Ferdinand  Funk,  Dec.  27,  1H79,  Co.  H.  Philip  Wagen- 
hauser,  Nov.  25,  Issi,  Co.  C.  Elliott  D.  Martin,  Oct.  13,1882, 
Co.  D.     Charles  J.  Richter,  Dec.  15,  1SS2,  Co.  I. 

The  Fifty-sixth  Regt.,  N.  G.,  S.  N.  Y.,  was  org.  in  1862, 
with  Col.  Talmage  as  its  fiist  commandant,  who  was  followed 
by  Col.  De  Bevoise,  and  he  in  turn  by  Col.  J.  Q.  Adams. 
Under  command  of  the  latter  it  proceeded  to  Pennsj'lvania 
and  Maryland  at  the  call  of  the  Government  for  thirty  days, 
and  was  afterwards  for  three  months  at  Elmira,  N.Y.,  to  guard 
prisoners  confined  there.  After  Col.  Adams'  resignation 
Maj.  Henry  T.  Chapman,  Jr.,  of  the  23d,  was  elected  Colo- 
nel. The  Regiment  had  eight  companies,  and  a  total  of 
about  500  men.  The  Armory  and  head-quarters  were  at 
Phenix  Hall,  16  Court  Street,  but  the  organization  has  since 
disbanded. 

Seventeenth  Separate  Company,  Third  Brigade,  Second 
Division.  Armory  on  Broadway,  corner  Lawrence  avenue. 
Flushing,  Queens  county,  N.  Y.  Organized  as  the  First 
Separate  Company,  2d  Division,  in  July,  1876;  its  designa- 
tion changed  to  17th  Separate  Company,  Dec.  8,  1«77. 

Captain,  Thomas  Miller,  Jr.,  Feb.  35,  ISHO;  1st  Lt.,  17th 
Co.,  June  20,  1878. 

First  Lieutenant,  John  Hepburn,  Feb.  25,  1880;  3d  Lt., 
17th  Sep.  Co.,  June  20,  1878. 

Second  Lieiitoiant,  Joseph  Fitch,  Feb.  1,  1881;  private, 
17th  Sep.  Co.,  Nov.  27,  1880. 

The  Department  of  Rifle  Practice  was  created  by  chap.  275, 
laws  of  1878,  for  the  purpose  of  affording  to  members  of  the 
National  Guard  facilities  for  improving  their  marksmanship. 
The  rank  of  the  General  Inspector  was  raised  to  that  of  Brig- 
adier-General, and  Geo.  W.  Wingate  was  first  appointed  to 
the  office,  with  Col.  J.  Howard  Cowperthwait  his  assistant. 
Rifle  ranges  some  fifty  yards  long  were  built  in  all  the  arm- 
ories of  the  city;  ammunition  was  issued,  and  the  men  re- 
quired to  shoot  for  practice.  The  weapon  in  use  by  the  N.  C, 
S.  N.  Y.,  is  the  Remington  breech-loading  rifle,  50  caliber. 
Out- door  rifle  ranges,  for  long  distance  shooting,  were  estab- 


lished throughout  the  State,  the  best  being  at  Creedmoor, 
Queens  county;  this  was  largely  due  to  the  exertions  of 
Brooklyn  members  of  the  National  Guard,  and  has  become 
celebrated  by  reason  of  the  inter-State  and  international 
matches  shot  there.  During  the  summer  season  the  different 
comjjanies  are  ordered  to  the  out-door  ranges  for  practice;  an 
equal  number  of  cartridges  are  issued  to  each  man,  a  record 
kept  of  his  targets  at  100,  150,  200,  and  300  yards,  his  grade 
advancing  with  his  proficiency.  The  State  issues  medals 
as  prizes  for  the  best  marksmanship,  which  are  contended  for 
with  keen  rivalry,  both  by  individiials  and  organizations. 
The  imjirovement  in  accuracy  of  firing  has  been  marked;  it 
might  perhaps  be  still  further  inci-eased  should  the  State  au- 
thoi'ities  substitute  a  weapon  of  smaller  bore,  like  the  U.  S. 
Government  standard,  44  caliber,  in  which  case  the  ball 
would  be  less  affected  by  atmospheric  variations.  The  various 
officers  in  this  department  are  mentioned  elsewhere. 

Annual  Muster. — Sec.  130,  chap.  547,  laws  of  1880,  pro- 
vides that  an  annual  muster  of  all  general  and  staff  officers, 
and  of  all  organizations  of  the  National  Guard,  shall  be  made 
at  such  time  and  place  between  the  first  day  of  May  and  the 
first  day  of  November,  as  the  Commander-in-Chief  shall 
order  and  direct,  at  which  all  members  must  appear  suitably 
uniformed,  armed  and  equipped  ;  the  muster  to  be  made  by 
the  Inspector- General  or  an  acting  assistant,  and  three 
muster-rolls  shall  be  officially  certified  to  by  such  inspectors, 
one  of  which  is  to  be  filed  with  the  Adjutant-General,  one 
with  the  commandant  of  the  troop,  battery  or  company,  and 
one  to  be  retained  by  himself. 

State  Camp  of  Instruction. — Section  70  of  the  Military 
Code  provides  that  the  Commander-in-Chief  may  cause  the 
National  Guard,  or  portions  thereof,  to  perform  at  least  five 
consecutive  days  of  camp  duty  in  each  jear,  but  no  organi- 
zation two  years  in  succession;  such  encampments  to  be  held 
at  the  State  Camping  Ground,  and  all  expenses  to  be  borne 
by  the  State.  Under  this  provision,  a  camping-ground  was 
leased  on  a  fine  plateau  overlooking  the  Hudson  river,  at 
Peekskill,  and  prepared  for  use  in  the  summer  of  1883. 
Tlie  33d  was  the  first  Regiment  encamped  there,  July,  1883, 
followed  in  order  by  the  12th,  11th,  8th,  with  2d  and  11th 
Separate  Companies,  47th,  with  17th  Separate  Company,  and 
the  33d.  In  1883,  the  following  regiments  were  ordered  into 
camp:  the  71st,  with  5th  Separate  Company.  7th,  13,  65th, 
with  the  19th,  38th,  40th  and  41st  Separate  Companies,  the 
9th,  with  6th  Separate  Company,  the  74th,  with  Co.  B,  10th 
Battalion,.  30fh  and  30th  Separate  Companies. 

Volunteer  Regiments  in  the  Civil  War. — In  this  connec- 
tion brief  mention  will  be  made  o'  the  Volunteer  Regiments 
that  went  from  Kings  county  in  defense  of  the  Government, 
during  the  Civil  War. 

The  Regiments  recruited  (whole,  or  in  part)  in  Brooklyn 
and  Kings  county,  were  the  5th  Artillery,  15th,  31st,  47th, 
48th,  50th,  51st,  67th,  73d,  87th,  90th,  133d,  139th,  158th, 
159th,  164th,  165th,  173d  and  176th.  In  the  above  enumeration 
uf  our  city's  contributions  to  the  war,  the  representatives  in 
the  navy  have  not  been  included;  they  will  number  at  least 
half  as  many  as  entered  the  military  branch  of  the  service. 

Bvt.  Brig-Gen.  William  De  Lacy,  at  the  outbreak  of  the 
rebellion  raised  and  maintained  a  full  company  at  his  own 
expense,  until  July  1,  1861,  when  it  was  mustered  into  the  37th 
Regt.,  N.  Y.  Vols.,  then  commanded  by  Samuel  B.  Hayman  of 
the  old  7th  Regulars,  and  was  subsequently  attached  to 
Kearney's  Division  of  the  3d  Corps,  commanded  by  Gens. 
Heintzelman  and  Sickels.  Rapidly  promoted  through  the 
grades  of  1st  Lieutenant  and  Captain,  he  became  Major,  Oct. 
8,  1863.  During  his  service  in  the  37th,  Major-Gen.  H.  G. 
Berry,    in    a  report   to  Adj. -Gen.    Thomas,   says: — "Major 


1204 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


William  De  Lacy  has  served  uuder  me  nearly  a  year.  I  have 
had  occasion  to  notice  his  conduct  in  battle  many  times.  He 
was  wounded  at  Williamsburgh,  May  5,  1862.  He  is  brave, 
intelligent,  cool,  intrepid  and  devoted."  He  served  in  all  the 
engagements  that  Kearney's  Division  was  engaged  in.  and 
after  the  death  of  that  distinguished  officer,  was  chosen  by 
the  officers  of  the  Division  to  design  and  procure  the 
"Kearney  Cross."  The  Thirty-seventh,  having  served  the 
period  of  enlistment,  was  mustered  out,  and  Maj.  De  Lacy, 
formed  a  veteran  company,  which  was  added  to  the  5th 
Regt.,  Duryea's  Zouaves,  now  the  4th  Regt.  National  Guard. 
He  was  commissioned  Lt.-Col.  of  the  164th  Regt.,  N.  Y. 
Vols.,  2d  Division,  2d  Corps.  At  Spottsylvania,  May  28, 
1864,  Col.  De  Lacj'  was  wounded  in  the  wrist  and  through 
•the  abdomen,  and  was  reported  to  be  mortally  wounded.  He 
recovered,  however,  in  about  three  months,  was  commis- 
sioned Colonel,  and  returned  to  duty  in  front  of  Petersliurgh, 
bemg  in  command  of  "Battery  Nine,"  inmediately  to  the 
right  of  the  famous  "  Fort  HUl."  Gen.  William  Hays,  in  his 
report  of  the  capture  of  Fort  Steadman,  Mar.  25,  1865,  says: 
— "  Col.  William  De  Lacy,  of  the  164th  Regt.,  Division  officer 
of  the  day,  was  severely  wounded;  this  is  the  third  or  fourth 
time  this  gaUant  officer  has  been  wounded  during  the  war." 
In  Aug.,  1865,  Col.  De  Lacy,  was  mustered  out  with  the  164tli 
Regt.,  but  was,  Mar.  4,  1869,  unanimously  elected  Col.  of  the 
4tli  Regt. ,  N.  G. ,  his  services  to  the  State  being  further  i-ec- 
ognized  by  the  brevet  rank  of  Brigadier-General,  conferred 
June  2,  1869,  though  the  United  States  Government  bestowed 
that  brevet  rank  upon  him  on  the  13th  of  April,  four  years 
previous,  "for  gallant  and  meritorious  conduct  during  the 
war." 

The  Forty-eighth  Regiment,  N.  Y.  V.,  was  raised  and 
organized  in  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  to  serve  three  years;  was 
mustered  into  the  United  States  service  Aug.  10  to  Sep.  16, 
1861.  The  original  members  (except  veterans)  were  mustered 
out  on  expiration  of  term  of  service,  and  the  Regiment,  com- 
posed of  veterans  and  recruits,  retained  in  the  service  until 
Sept.  1,  1865. 

Engagements — Hilton  Head,  Port  Royal  Ferry,  Fort  Wag- 
ner, Olustee,  Drury's  Bluff,  Cold  Harbor,  Petersburg,  Cha- 
pin's  Farm,  Fort  Fisher,  Wilmington  and  Raleigh. 

CoZoneZs— James  H.  Perry,  died  Fort  Pulaski,  Ga.,  June  18, 
1863.  William  H.  Barton  (Bvt.  Brig. -Gen.  U.  S.  V.),  mustered 
out  Dec.  3,  1864.  William  B.  Coan,  mustered  out  Sept.  1, 
1865. 

June  18,  1883,  was  unveiled  a  handsome  monument  in 
Cypress  Hills  Cemetery,  erected  to  the  memory  of  Col.  James 
H.  Perry,  of  the  48th  N.  Y.  Vols.  Col.  Perry  was  born  in 
Ulster  county,  N.  Y.,  June,  1811,  and  grew  to  be  a  finely 
developed  man.  He  was  fitted  for  West  Point,  but  his 
appointment  was  pigeon-holed,  and  he  studied  law.  He 
rendered  distinguished  service  in  the  Mexican  war.  Having 
decided  that  it  was  his  duty  to  preach  the  Gospel,  he  entered 
the  Methodist  Ministry  and  served  faithfully  until  the  out- 
break of  the  Rebellion.  Then  he  took  up  arms  in  defence  of 
his  country,  and  died  at  Fort  Pulaski,  Ga.,  Juue  18,  1863. 

Lieutenant-Colonels — William  B.  Barton,  prom.  Col.,  June 
30,1862.  Oliver  T.  Beard,  prom.  Lt-Col.,  July  3,  1862.  James 
M.  Green,  killed  at  Fort  Wagner,  S.  C,  July  18,  1863.  Dudley 
W.  Strickland,  res.  June 9, 1864.  William  B.  Coan  (Bvt.  Col., 
U.  S.  v.),  prom.  Col.,  Dec.  10,  1864.  Nere.  A.  Elfwing  (Bvt. 
Col.,  N.  Y.  v.). 

JlTcyors— Oliver  T.  Beard,  prom.  Lt.-Col.,  July  3,  1862. 
James  M.  Green,  prom.  Lt.-Col.,  Jan.  7,  1863.  Dudley  W. 
Strickland,  prom.  Lt.-Col.,  Aug.  28,  1863.  Wilham  B.  Coan, 
prom.  Lt.-Col.,  June  33,  1864.  Samuel  M.  Swartwout,  killed 
July  30,  1864.     iUbert  F.    Miller  (Bvt.   Lt.-Col.,   N.    Y.  V.), 


James  A.  Barrett.  Nere  A.  Elfwing  (Bvt.  Lt.-Col.,  U.  S.  V.), 
mustered  out,  Sept.  1,  1865. 

Capiams— Joseph  G.  Ward,  res.  Jan.  18,  1863.  Asa  H. 
Ferguson,  res.  April  5,  1864;  recom.  John  A.  Fee,  died  July 
15,  1864.  William  E.  D'Arcy,  killed  at  Deep  Bottom,  Va., 
Aug.  14,  1864.  Adolph  Laccopiden,  mustered  out  Sept.  1, 
1865.  Daniel  C.  Knowles,  res.  June  30,  1862.  James  O. 
Paxson,  died  July  31,  1863.  William  J.  Carlton  (Bvt.  Maj., 
N.  Y.  v.),  mustered  out  Dec.  3, 1864.  Hem-y  Lang,  mustered 
out  Sept.  1,  1865.  Samuel  J.  Foster,  res.  Jan.  26, 1863.  Fred- 
erick Hurst,  died  July  31,  1863.  Theodore  C.  Vidall,  declined. 
TownsendL.  Hatfield.  Samuel  F.  Moser,  killed  Palmer  Creek, 
Va.,  May  16,  1864.  James  A.  Barrett,  mustered  out  Sept.  1, 
1865.  Charles  P.  Umpleby,  mustei'ed  out  Sept.  1,  1865.  Louis 
H.  Lent,  killed  Morris  Island,  S.  C,  July  10,  1863.  William 
H.  Dunbar  (Bvt.  Maj.,  U.  S.  V.),  mustered  out  Sept.  1,  1865. 
Edward  R.  Travis,  res.  Aug.  30,  1862.  Nere  A.  Elfwing,  prom. 
Maj.,  June  22,  1864.  Simeon  McGraw.  Henrj-  T.  Carrighan, 
mustered  out,  Sept  1,  1865.  Anthony  Elmendorf,  res.  April 
April  19,  1864.  Van  Rensselaer  K.  Hilliard  (Bvt.  Maj.,  U.  S. 
v.),  mustered  out  Sept.  1,  1865.  William  B.  Coan,  prom. 
Maj.,  Aug.  28,  1863.  James  M.  Nichols,  res.  Sept.  12,  1864. 
Asa  H.  Ferguson,  mustered  out  Sept.  1,  1865.  James  Ferrell, 
killed  Fort  Wagner,  S.  C,  July  18,  1863.  Albert  F.  Miller, 
dis.  Jan.  13,  1865.  James  W.  Dunn,  killeil  Fort  Fisher,  N.  C, 
Jan.  15,  1865.  David  B.  Fletcher.  James  M.  Green,  prom. 
Major,  July  18,  1862.  William  L.  Lockwood,  res.  May  26, 
1864.  Joseph  R.  Taylor,  dis.  Nov.  3,  1864.  Aden  Lippencott, 
(Bvt.  Maj.,  U.  S.  v.),  dis.  April  16,  1865.  Thomas  Dawson. 
Dudley  W.  Strickland,  prom.  Maj.,  Jan.  7,  1863.  Samuel  M. 
Swartout,  prom.  Maj.,  July  4,  1864.  John  M.  Santum. 
Elbridge  J.  Hutchinson,  dis.  May  26,  1865.  Edward  Downer, 
mustered  out  Sept.  1,  1865.  Augustus  M.  Erwin,  mustered 
out,  Sept.  1,  1865. 

The  Sixty-seventh  Regiment,  N.  Y.  Vols.,  was  raised  and 
organized  at  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  and  mustered  into  the  U.  S. 
service  June  24,  1861,  to  serve  three  years.  The  original 
members  (except  veterans)  whose  term  of  service  had  ex- 
pired, were  mustered  out  July  4,  1864,  and  the  veterans  and 
recruits  transferred  to  the  65th  N.  Y.  Vols.  It  participated 
in  the  engagements  of  Yorktown,  Williamsburgh,  Seven 
Pines,  Glendale,  Turkey  Bend,  Malvern  Hill,  Chantilly,  An- 
tietam.  South  Mountain,  Williamsport,  Fredericksburg,  Salem 
Heights,  Gettysbuig,  Rappahannock  Station,  Locvist  Grove, 
Mine  Run,  Wilderness,  Spottsylvania,  Cold  Harbor,  and 
Petersburg. 

Colonels— Swims  W.  Adams,  res.  Oct.  19,  1862.  Nelson 
Cross  (Bvt.  Maj. -Gen.,  U.  S.  V.),  mustered  out  July  4,  1864. 

Lieutenant-Colonels—^.  Cross,  promoted  Col.,  Nov.,  17, 
1862.     H.  L.  Van  Ness,  mustered  out  July  4,  1864. 

Majors— P.  M.  De  Zeng,  dis.  Aug.  30,  1863.  H.  L.  Van 
Ness,  promoted  Lt.-Col.,  July  27,  1863.  C.  O.  Belden  (Bvt. 
Col.,  N.  Y.  Vols.),  mustered  out  July  4,  1864. 

Adjutants— B.  M.  Hogan,  dis.  Sept.  5,  1863.  G.  B.  Lincoln, 
Jr.,  mustered  out  July  4,  1864. 

Surgeons— R.  H.  Hinman,  died  May  23,  1862.  G.  F. 
Adams,  mustered  out  July  4,  1864. 

Chaplains — J.  A.  Penniman,  dis.  April  3,  1863.  J.  C. 
Beecher,  res.  Sept.  8,  1862. 

Captains— G.  Foster,  dis.  March  18,  1863.  T.  M.  K.  Mills, 
mustered  out  July  4,  1864.  G.  W.  Stillwell  (Bvt.  Maj.,  Lt.- 
Col.  and  Col.,  N.  Y.  V.),  res.  Dec.  29,  1862.  H.  E.  Rainals, 
transferred  Nov.  13,  1863.  J.  W.  Fisher,  mustered  out  July 
4,  1864.  E.  A.  Canfield,  res.  June  3,  1863.  H.  C.  Fisher, 
transferred  July  4,  1864.  B.  W.  Goodman,  dis.  Nov.  1,  1861. 
H.  E.  Rainals,  dis.  Nov.  30,  1862,  re-com.  C.  Rathbone, 
mustered  out  July  4,  1864.     A.  H.  Howe  (Bvt.  Maj.,  N.  Y.  V.), 


MILITA R  Y    OR  GANIZA  TIONS. 


1205 


res.  Jan.  24,  1863.  A.  Belknap,  res.  Feb.  6,  1863.  H.  L.  Van 
Ness,  promoted  Maj.,  Nov.  17,  1862.  J.  S.  Bliss  (Bvt.  Lt.-Col. 
U.  S.  v.),  mustered  out  July  4,  1864.  C.  O.  Belden,  promoted 
Maj.,  July  27,  1863.     George  Harper,  mustered  out  July  4, 

1864.  A.  S.  Montgomery,  res.  Nov.  22,  1861.  W.  C.  Der- 
mady,  mustered  out  July  4,  1864.  L.  Brown,  res.  May  30, 
1863.  D.  R.  Sullivan,  died  June  36,  1863.  T.  C.  Cooper, 
killed  in  Wilderness,  May  6,  1864.  J.  C.  Hughes.  L.  M.  Peck, 
res.  Jan.  24,  1863.     E.  K.  Russell,  transferred  July  4,  1864. 

The  Eighty-seventh  Regiment,  N.  Y.  Vols.,  was  raised 
and  organized  at  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  to  serve  three  years.  It 
was  mustered  into  the  service  of  the  United  States  from 
October  to  December,  1861,  and  consolidated  with  the  40th 
N.  Y.  Vols.,  Sept.  16,  1863.  It  participated  in  the  following 
engagements:  Yorktown,  Peach  Orcliard,  Williamsburg, 
Fair  Oaks,  White  Oak  Swamp,  Malvern  Hill,  Manassas 
Junction,  and  Bristow  Station. 

Colonel,  Stephen  A.  Dodge,  mustered  out  Sept.  6,  1862. 

Lieutenant-Colonel,  Richard  A.  Bachia  (Bvt.Col.,  N.  Y.  V.), 
mustered  out  Sept.  6,  1862. 

Major,  George  B.  Bosworth,  res.  July  15,  1863. 

Captains,  John  C.  Lassin  (Bvt.  Maj.,  N.  Y.  V.),  mustered 
out  Sept.  6,  1862.  Samuel  F.  Knight,  res.  April  3,  1862. 
Thomas  T.  Baker,  mustered  out  Sept.  6,  1863.  Robert  Mcln- 
tyre,  dis.  Feb.  6,  1863.  William  H.  Leaycraft  (Bvt.  Maj., 
N.  Y.  v.),  mustered  out  Sept.  6,  1862.  John  L.  Lee,  res. 
April  16,  1863.  Thomas  Bannan  and  John  H.  Stone,  res. 
July  16,  1863.  Edward  B.  Combs,  mustered  out  Sept.  6, 
1863.  John  H.  Betts,  mustered  out  Sept.  C,  1863.  Ezekiel 
Day,  res.  April  19,  1863.  Charles  W.  Courtwright  and  Mat- 
thew W.  Jackson,  killed  August  39,  1862.  John  McMillan, 
dis.  Dec.  14,  1861. 

The  One  Hundred  and  Thirty-Ninth  Regiment,  N.  V. 
Vols.,  was  organized  at  Brookh-n,  N.  Y.,  to  serve  tliree  years. 
The  companies  of  which  it  was  composed,  were  raised  in  the 
counties  of  Kings  and  Queens.  It  was  mustered  into  the 
service  of  the  United  States,  Sept.  9,  1862;  mustered  out 
June  19,  1865,  in  accordance  with  orders  from  the  War  De- 
partment. It  was  in  the  following  engagements:  Drury's 
Bluff,  Cold  Harbor,  Petersburg,  Fair  Oaks,  and  Fort  Har- 
rison. 

Colonels — Anthony  Conk,  dis.  July  9,  1863.  Samuel  H. 
Roberts  (Bvt.  Brig.-Gen.,  U.  S.  V.),  mustered  out  June  19, 
1865. 

Lieutenant-Colonels — Samuel  H.  Roberts,  promoted  Col., 
Sept.  10,  1863.  Edgar  Perry,  killed  at  Cold  Harbor,  Va., 
June  3,  1864.  Thomas  Mulcahy  (Bvt.  Brig.-Gen.,  U.  S.  V.) 
mustered  out  June  9,  1865. 

Majors — Andrew  Morris,  dis.  August  13,  1863.  Thomas 
Mulcahy,  promoted  Lt.-Col.,  June  30,  1864.  Embre  Rogers, 
dis.  Feb.  3, 1865.     Theodore  Miller,  mustered  out  June  19, 1865. 

Captoms— Gilbert  Bogart,  res.  Dec.  26,  1863.  Theodore 
Miller,  promoted  to  5Iaj.,  Feb.  28,  1865.  George  Lock,  mus- 
tered out  June  19,  1865.  Thomas  H.  Lunney,  dis.  Aug.  11, 
1863.  John  H.  B.  Smith,  dis.  Jan.  14,  1865.  Joseph  W. 
Packard,  mustered  out  June  19,  1865.  Henry  Dawson,  Jr. 
(Bvt.  Maj.,  N.  Y.  Vols.),  res.  Nov.  7,  1863.  S.  Clark  Beecher, 
kiUed  at  Cold  Harbor,  Va.,  June  3,  1864.  J.  Oliver  Cum- 
mings.  Embre  Rogers,  promoted  Maj.,  Aug.  13,  1864. 
William  H.  Male  (Bvt.  Maj.,  U.  S.  V.),  mustered  out  June 
19,  1865.  Howard  W.  Phillips,  res.  Aug.  16,  1863.  Dudley 
W.  Haynes,  dis.  Sept.  3, 1864.  William  L.  McCormick,  mus- 
tered out  June  19,  1865.  Edgar  Perry,  promoted  Lt.-Col., 
Aug.  33,  1863.  John  W.  Swift,  killed  at  Chapin's  Farm,  Va., 
Sept.  29,  1864.     George  W.  McComb,  mustered  out  June  19, 

1865.  Jeptha  A.  Jones,  res.  Nov.  13,  1803.  Frederick  H. 
Stafford,  dis".  Sept.  3,  1864.    Henry  W.  Marsh,  mustered  out 


June  19,  1865.  N.  P.  Fitzpatrick,  dis.  Sept.  23, 1864.  Horace 
B.  Fitch,  dis.  May  8,  1865.  Benjamin  Phillips,  mustered  out 
June  19,  1865.  Thomas  Mulcahy,  promoted  Maj.,  Sept.  14, 
1863.  Daniel  P.  Bernard,  Jr.  (Bvt.  Maj.,  U.  S.  V.),  mustered 
out  June  19,  1865. 

The  One  Hundred  and  Fifty-eighth  Regiment,  N.  Y. 
Vols.,  was  organized  at  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  to  serve  three  years. 
The  Companies  of  which  it  was  composed  were  raised  in  the 
counties  of  Kings  and  Queens.  It  was  mustered  into  the 
service  of  tlie  United  States,  Nov.  11,  1863;  mustered  out  of 
service,  June  30,  1865,  in  accordance  with  orders  from  the 
War  Dept. 

Colonels — James  Jourdan  (Bvt.  Brig.-Gen.  and  Maj. -Gen. 
U.  S.  v.),  dis.  March  17,  1865.  William  H.  McNary  (Bvt. 
Brig.-Gen.,  U.  S.  V.),  mustered  out  June  30,  1865. 

Lieut. -Colonels — William  H.  McNary,  pro.  Col.,  Mar.  30, 
1865.     Byron  Kalt. 

Jliojoj-s— -William  M.  Burnett,  dis.,  Nov.  18,  1863.  John 
O'Connor.  Silas  A.  Ilsley  (Bvt.  Lieut.-Col.  U.  S.  V.),  dis. 
Feb.  17,  1805.  Byron  Kalt,  mustered  out  June  30,  1865. 
William  A.  Furey. 

Captains — Simeon  M.  Sanders,  dis.  Dec.  11,  1863.  Jacob 
David,  mustered  out  June  30,  1865.  Charles  H.  Murch,  dis. 
Nov.  33,  1863.  F.  DeWitt  Littlejohn,  dis.  Mar.  2,  1863.  Wil- 
liam Cuff,  mustered  out  June  30,  1865.  Charles  Smith,  dis. 
Aug.  31,  1864.  Theodore  F.  King  (Bvt.  Lieut.-Col.,  U.  S.  V.), 
dis.  June  16,  1865.  John  Smith,  dis.  Dec.  4,  1862.  Peter  B. 
Steele,  dis.  Jan.  9,  1864.  Smith  C.  Roof,  mustered  out  June 
30,  1865.  Jno.  H.  Riedenbach,  dism.  July  14,  1863.  Jacques 
Kalt,  dis.  Mar.  2,  1865.  Henry  M.  Connelly.  Theodore  M. 
Linder.  Byron  Kalt,  pro.  Maj.,  Feb.  35,  1865.  Michael 
Campbell,  mustered  out  June  30,  1865.  Jno.  O'Connor,  dis. 
June  28,  1863.  James  Cain,  dism.  Jan.  13,  1864.  Edward 
Gillen,  mustered  out  June  30,  1865.  William  A.  Furey,  mus- 
tered out  June  30,  1865.  Albert  H.  Lindsey.  George  McCann, 
dis.  April  13,  1865.  Jno.  W.  Dunn,  dis.  Jan.  5,  1863.  Bar- 
tholomew B.  Purdy,  mustered  out  .lune  30,  1865. 

The  One  Hundred  and  Seventy-third  Regiment,  N.  Y. 
Vols.,  was  organized  at  Riker's  Island,  N.  Y.,  to  serve  three 
years.  The  companies  of  which  it  was  composed  were 
raised  in  the  county  of  Kings.  It  was  mustered  into  the 
service  of  the  United  States,  from  Oct.  30th  to  Nov.  10th, 
1863.  It  was  mustered  out  of  service,  Oct.  18,  1865,  in  accord- 
ance with  orders  from  War  Dept. 

Engagement,  Port  Hudson. 

Colonels — Charles  B.  Morton,  res.  Mar.  15,  1863.  Lewis 
M.  Peck  (Bvt.  Maj.-Gen.,  U.  S.  V.),  mustered  out  Oct.  18, 
1865. 

Lieut. -Colonels— 'Le-v, is  M.  Peck,  pro.  Col.,  June  13,  1863. 
William  N.  Green,  Jr.  (Bvt.  Brig.-Gen.,  U.  S.  V.),  died  May 
14,  1864.  Mellen  T.  Holbrook  (Bvt.  Col.,  N.  Y.  V.  and  U.  S. 
v.),  mustered  out  Oct.  18,  1865. 

Majors — A.  Power  Gallaway,  died  July  9,  1863.  George 
W.  Rodgers  (Bvt.  Lt.-Col.,  N.  Y.  V.),  mustered  out  Oct.  18, 
1865. 

Captains— Geo.  W.  Rodgers,  prom.  Maj.,  Jvily  27,  1863. 
Geo.  D.  Weeks,  mustered  out  Oct.  18,  1865.  Maurice  Con- 
way (Bvt.  Maj.,  N.  Y.  V.),  mustered  out  Oct.  18,  1865.  John 
H.  Dobbs,  dis.  Nov.  18, 1863.  Wm.  A.  Green  (Bvt.  Maj.,  N.  Y. 
v.,  and  Lt.-Col.,  U.  S.  V.),  mustered  out  Oct.  18,  1865. 
Howard  C.  Comady  (Bvt.  Maj.,  N.  Y.  V.),  mustered  out  Oct. 
18,  1865.  Henry  R.  Lee,  died  May  5,  1864.  Sidney  H.  Farrell, 
mustered  out  Oct.  18,  1865.  Mellen  T.  Holbrook,  Pro.  Lt.- 
Col,  Nov.  30,  1864.  James  M.  Badgley  (Bvt.  Maj.,  N.  Y.  V.), 
mustered  out  Oct.  18,  1865.  Aaron  F.  Major,  dism.  May  3, 
1863.  William  A.  Robinson,  died  Aug.  28,  1865.  Dennis 
Spellman.      Henry    Wills,    res.    Aug.    21,    1863.      Geo.    A. 


1206 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Dugan  (Bvt.  Maj.,  N.  T.  V.),  mustered  out  Oct.  18,  1865. 
Jno.  H.  Broach,  dis.  June  30,  1864.  William  Barwick, 
mustered  out  Oct.  18,  1865.  John  W.  Gregor}-,  dis.  Jan.  17, 
1863.  Nathan  C.  Gregory.  Nathaniel  A.  Conklin  (Bvt. 
Maj.,  N.  Y.  V.  and  Lt.-Col.,  U.  S.  V.),  dis.  Aug.  3,  1863.  Wil- 
liam H.  Folk  (Bvt.  Maj.,  N.  Y.  V.)     Henry  Cocheu,  kiUed 


Port  Hudson,  June  14,  1863.      Samuel  P.  Dill  (Bvt.  Maj.,  N. 
Y.  v.),  dis.  June  29,  1865.     Geo.  F.  Tallman. 

We  are  indebted  for  the  sources  of  the  foregoing  article  to 
the  rejiorts  of  the  Adjutant-Generals,  the  columns  of  the 
Advance,  to  Gen.  J.  V.  Meserole,  Gen.  W.  H.  Brovrnell,  Col. 
McLeer,  Maj.  Gaylor,  and  others  of  the  National  Guard.— Eds. 


MAJ.-GEN.    THOMAS    S.    DAKIN. 


Major-General  Thomas  S.  Dakin. — No  man  in  this  city 
or  county  has  been  more  iirominently  identified  with  mili- 
tary affairs  than  was  Major-General  Thomas  S.  Dakin;  while 
as  a  rifleman,  the  victor  of  Creedmoor  and  Dollymomit,  lie 
stood  supreme.  The  International  Kifle  contests  spread  his 
fame  through  both  worlds,  and  the  decoration  of  the  Legion 
of  Honor  of  France  was  a  recognition  of  his  merit  that  was 
well  deserved.  In  other  lands  he  was  admired;  in  his  own, 
where  known,  he  was  beloved.  His  influence  in  the  improve- 
ment of  the  National  Guard  will  be  long  felt. 

Like  many  who  attain  distinction  in  after  life,  Thomas 
Spencer  Dakin  was  country  born  and  bred.  He  came  of 
Scotch-English  stock,  notable  for  their  many  excellencies, 
which  were  transmitted  to  him.  In  1831,  the  year  of  his 
birth,  his  father,  Hiram  Dakin,  lived  on  a  firm  in  Orange 
county,  New  York,  but  two  years  later,  removed  to  the  town 
of  New  Paltz,  Ulster  county.  He  was  a  man  of  strong  char- 
acter, of  more  than  ordinary  ability  and  influence,  as  is 
proved  by  his  election  to  the  Board  of  Sujjervisors  for  several 
terms,  also  to  the  Shrievalty  and  other  important  offices,  al- 
ways as  a  staunch  Democrat.  His  son  inherited  his  father's 
mental  superiority,  with  an  active,  hardy,  athletic  body  and 
steady  nerve.  His  educational  advantages  were  limited  to 
the  common  schools  and  the  New  Paltz  Academy,  but  he 
formed  there  a  taste  for  study  which  bore  good  fruit  in  after 
years.  Thus  his  boyhood  was  passed  in  the  quietude  of  coun- 
try life.  But  as  he  neared  the  age  of  eighteen,  he  could  no 
longer  be  content  with  the  monotonous  existence  and  the 
poor  prospect  for  future  advancement.  Full  of  life  and 
energy,  with  a  robust,  sinewy  frame,  a  clear  head  and  stout 
heart,  he  longed  for  the  stir  of  the  busy  world,  conscious  of 
the  ability  to  succeed  there.  He  therefore  left  the  old  farm- 
house, with  his  effects  in  a  little  bundle,  a  half  dollar  in  his 
purse  and  "  all  the  world  before  him  where  to  clioose."  He 
walked  to  New  Vork,  vphere  his  prepossessing  appearance 
soon  procured  him  employment  in  a  commission  house.  There 
his  aptness,  industry,  and  fidelity  raised  him  to  a  responsible 
position,  and  in  after  years,  to  a  partnership.  Most  of  his 
evenings  were  spent  in  the  old  Mercantile  Library,  on  Beek- 
man  Street,  in  satisfying  his  craving  for  knowledge  and 
improving  his  literary  taste. 

In  1858  he  established  the  firm  of  Thomas  S.  Dakin  & 
Co.,  a  commission  house,  where  he  continued  until  1861; 
then  he  became  senior  partner  in  the  oil  firm  of  Dakin 
&  Gulick.  in  Maiden  Lane.  The  same  characteristics  that 
brouglit  success  before,  continued  it  still,  and  in  1870,  Gen. 
Dakin  was  able  to  retire  with  a  competency.  He  bore  a  high 
reputation  among  business  men,  enjoying  the  respect  and 
esteem  of  all  his  associates. 

In  military  affairs  ho  always  took  the  greatest  interest, 
even  in  the  old  days  of  "general  trainings."  In  1858  he 
joined  the  ranks  of   Company  G,  Thirteenth  Regiment.    In 


1863,  he  organized  Company  H,  of  the  same  Regiment,  and 
was  elected  its  Captain.  Afterwards  he  was  appointed  on 
the  staff  of  General  Philip  S.  Crooke,  of  the  Fifth  Brigade. 
Captain  Dakin  accompanied  his  Regiment  to  the  front,  and 
was  in  active  service  in  Virginia  in  1862.  He  was  elected 
Major  in  1866;  the  next  year  Lieutenant-Colonel;  and  in  1869, 
was  chosen  Colonel  in  the  place  of  General  Jourdan  who  had 
resigned.  In  the  autumn  of  the  same  year  he  was  elected 
Brigadier-General  of  the  Fifth  Brigade;  while  in  1875,  Gov- 
ernor Tilden  appointed  him  Major-General  of  the  Second 
Division  of  the  National  Guard,  comprising  all  the  military 
organizations  of  Brooklyn,  -which  commission  he  held  at  the 
time  of  his  death. 

In  1873,  Gen.  Dakin  began  experimenting  in  long-range 
rifle  shooting,  with  a  view  of  increasing  the  efficiency  oi  his 
men.  He  soon  became  exceptionally  proficient,  and  followed 
the  pursuit  with  enthusiasm.  Influential  in  procuring  the 
establishment  of  the  rifle  range  at  Creedmoor,  he  enjoyed  its 
facilities  with  zest.  He  was  victorious  in  all  matches,  while 
his  scores  in  the  International  contests  at  Creedmoor  in  1874 
and  1876,  at  Dollyinount,  Ireland,  in  1875,  proved  him  to  be 
one  of  the  finest  marksmen  in  the  world.  He  had  long  de- 
sired to  have  a  rifle-range  established  in  the  immediate  vicin- 
ity of  Brooklyn,  which  he  would  undoubtedly  have  effected, 
but  for  his  untimely  death. 

Although  General  Dakin  was  always  interested  in  politics, 
as  a  good  citizen  should  be,  he  was  a  candidate  for  office  but 
once,  which  was  in  1876,  when,  after  rejieated  and  urgent 
solicitation,  he  consented  to  become  a  candidate  for  Congress, 
on  the  Democratic  ticket,  in  the  Third  District,  against  S.  B. 
Chittenden.  His  unanimous  nomination  occurred  October 
30tli,  followed  by  a  short  but  brilliant  canvass.  In  his  letter 
of  acceptance  he  said:  "  My  views  are  quite  in  accord  with 
the  principles  of  the  party,  contained  in  the  platform  adopted 
at  St.  Louis;  and  I  am  in  favor  of  nothing  that  wiU 
tend  to  jeopardize  our  commercial  and  financial  interests,  or 
to  paralyze  in  the  least  degree  the  efforts  of  the  Democratic 
party  to  secure  good  government  reform  in  the  administration 
of  public  affairs,  an  economical  and  judicious  expenditure  of 
the  public  money,  competent,  faithful  and  conscientious 
public  officials,  and  a  sacred  regard  for  the  protection,  wel- 
fare and  prosperity  of  the  people  of  our  whole  country."  In 
the  few  days  remaining  before  the  election  he  developed  im- 
mense strength  on  every  side,  but  the  briefness  of  the  can- 
vass and  the  j)rofessional  politicians  pitted  against  him,  suc- 
ceeded in  overcoming  him  by  the  small  majority  of  185.  In 
the  few  months  preceding  his  death,  his  name  was  coupled 
with  the  nomination  for  Sheriff,  to  which  office  he  would  no 
doubt  have  been  elected  had  he  lived. 

General  Dakin  was  a  remarkably  handsome  man,  of  fine 
proportions,  military  bearing  and  commanding  presence.  He 
was  a  thorough  gentleman,  with  manners  couitly  but  genial, 


^"ff^fyAHRitOue 


^4 


1 


MILITAR  r    OR  GANIZA  TIONS. 


1207 


fhile  his  frank,  hearty  ways  made  him  a  universal  favorite. 
P^idely  esteemed  for  his  excellent  moral  qualities,  none  could 
oast  a  wider  circle  of  friends.  He  was  connected  with  the 
rrand  Armj'  vi  the  Republic,  the  National  Rifle  Association, 
lid  other  similar  organizations. 

The  General  first  married  a  Miss  Scholes  of  Brooklyn,  in 
B.57,  but  his  wife  lived  only  a  few  months. 


In  1866,  he  married  a  daughter  of  Mr.  Daniel  Robbins  of 
this  city,  to  whom  he  was  devotedly  attached,  and  with  whom 
he  lived  most  happily  until  his  sudden  death  at  his  home  in 
Pearl  street.  May  13th,  1878. 

General  Dakin  was  universally  mourned;  while  his  memory 
is  still  warmly  cherished  in  the  hearts  of  his  family,  com- 
rades and  friends. 


Gen.    QUINCY    ADAMS    GILLMORE. 


General  Quincy  Adams  Gillmore,  Colonel  in  the  Corps 
■  Engineers  and  Brevet  Major-General,  United  States  Army, 
istinguished  as  an  artillerist  and  engineer  during  our  Civil 
lax,  was  born  at  Black  River,  Lorain  county,  Ohio,  in  182.5. 
is  parentage  was  of  mingled  Scotch,  Irish  and  German  ex- 
action. His  fatlier,  Quartus  Gillmore,  was  born  in  Hamp- 
lire  county,  Mass.,  in  1790,  and  about  the  time  he  reached 
anhood,  removed,  with  liis  father's  family,  to  Lorain 
lunty,  Ohio,  thus  becoming  one  of  the  pioneers  on  the  once 
mous  "Western  Reserve,"  and,  at  the  age  of  thirty-four, 
arrying  there  Mrs.  Elizabeth  Smith,  a  native  of  New  Jersey, 
lughter  of  John  S.  Reid,  who  had  also  settled  in  Black 
Lver. 

The  first  child  of  this  union  was  the  subject  of  this  sketch, 
ho  grew  up  in  the  healthy  atmosjihere  of  farm  life,  and 
hen  old  enough,  began  to  assist  in  the  daily  labor  of  the 
ace.  Like  most  country  boys,  he  obtained  his  rudimentary 
lucation  chiefly  during  the  winter  months.  At  the  age  of 
.'elve,  his  father  sent  him  for  a  short  time  to  Norwalk 
cademy,  twenty-five  miles  away,  where  he  made  great 
ogress  with  his  studies. 

For  three  winters  preceding  his  twentieth  birthday  he 
ught  a  district  school,  and  he  attended  the  high  school  at 
yria,  eight  miles  distant,  for  two  terms  duriog  this  period, 
Uere  he  took  a  high  stand.  A  poem  of  his  entitled  "  Erie," 
liich  was  read  at  an  exhibition  given  by  the  school,  at- 
icted  the  favorable  attention  of  the  Member  of  Congress,  who 
,d  the  nomination  of  a  Cadet  to  West  Point  within  his  gift, 
d  the  position  was  offered  to  young  Gillmore.  After  some 
urs  consideration,  the  offer  was  accepted,  and  the  young 
an  entei-ed  the  Military  Academy  in  184.5,  and  graduated 
the  liead  of  his  class  in  1849. 

He  was  twenty-four  years  old  at  this  time,  and  during  this 
ar  he  married  Miss  Mary  O'JIaher,  only  daughter  of  the 
;ademy  treasurer  of  cadets.  Upon  his  graduation,  he  was 
pointed  Brevet  Second  Lieutenant  of  Engineers,  and  was 
dered  to  duty  as  an  assistant  on  the  fortifications  at  Hamp- 
11  Roads.  Tln'ee  years  later,  he  was  ordered  back  to  West 
lint  and  appointed  instructor  in  the  dejiartment  of  practical 
ilitary  engineering.  Subsequently  he  was  appointed 
easurer  and  Quartermaster  of  the  Academy.  July  1st,  18.56, 
was  promoted  to  First  Lieutenant  in  the  corps  of  en- 
aeers  and  ordered  to  New  York  to  take  charge  of  the 
gineer  agency  there  established.  The  outbreak  of  the  Re- 
llion  found  him  thus  engaged. 

In  August,  1861,  Lieutenant  Gillmore  was  promoted  to  a 
ptaincy  in  liis  own  corps  and  appointed  Engiueer-in-Chief  i 
the  Port  Royal  Expedition,  under  Brigadier- General  T.  W. 
erman. 

riie  reduction  of  Fort  Pulaski,  situated  on  Cockspur  Island, 
the  mouth  of  the  Savannali  river  and  defending  the  water 
proach  to  Savannah,  was  of  primary  importance  to  the 
ccess  of  this  expedition,  and  Caijtain  Gillmore  was  directed 


to  reconnoitre  the  place  and  report  upon  the  practicability  of 
its  capture.  He  reported  that  he  deemed  "  the  reduction  of 
that  work  practicable  by  batteries  of  mortars  and  rifled  guns 
established  on  Tybee  Island,'"  a  mile  distant,  and  was  subse- 
quently placed  in  command  of  the  besieging  force.  Fort  Pulaski 
was  pentagonal  in  form,  with  brick  casemates  on  all  sides  and 
a  brick  scarp-wall,  seven  to  eight  feet  thick.  It  mounted  one 
tier  of  guns  in  embrasure  and  one  en  barbette.  To  effect  its 
reduction.  Chaplain  Gillmore  judiciously  disposed  thirty-six 
pieces  of  artillery  in  eleven  batteries  along  the  shore  of  Tybee 
Island.  The  work  of  investment  required  two  months  of 
incessant  labor,  night  and  day,  and  this  being  fully  comjileted 
and  the  Savannah  river  blockaded.  Captain  Gillmore,  now 
acting  Brigadier-General,  issued  orders  very  minute  in 
character,  for  conducting  the  bombardment. 

Firing  began  at  8:15  A.  M.,  April  10th,  1862,  and  at  9:30  A. 
M.  all  of  the  batteries  were  in  active  operation,  andtlius  con- 
tinued until  dark.  Throughout  the  night  firing  was  kept  up 
with  a  few  pieces,  in  order  to  prevent  the  besieged  confeder- 
ates from  making  any  arrangement  for  their  protection,  by 
fortifying  with  sand-bags  that  portion  of  the  wall  operated 
or  by  the  Union  batteries,  or  similarly  strengthening  the  wall 
of  the  magazine,  which  would  be  exposed  to  direct  fire  when- 
ever a  breach  in  the  scarp-wall  should  be  made.  The  first 
day's  firing  of  the  Federal  artillery  rendered  the  barbetted 
guns  of  the  fort  unserviceable.  Shortly  after  sunrise  on  the 
morning  of  April  11th,  the  bombardment  was  renewed,  all 
the  batteries  participating.  The  breach  in  the  fort  was  rapidly 
enlarged,  and  by  3  P.  M.  about  forty-five  feet  of  the  scarp- 
wall  had  been  battered  into  the  ditch.  As  the  shots  from  the 
Union  guns  now  passed  freely  through  two  of  the  casemates, 
and  endangered  the  safety  of  the  magazine  of  the  fort,  the 
confederates  ran  up  the  white  flag,  and  their  surrender  was 
consummated  during  the  afternoon  and  evening.  The  wall 
of  the  fort  was  found  to  be  shattered  to  such  an  extent  that 
one  hundred  feet  of  its  length  Iiad  to  be  replaced  by  a  new 
brick  wall.  Fort  Pulaski  is  situated  on  a  marsh  island,  and 
the  nearest  ajiproach  to  it  on  firm  ground  is  about  one  mile 
distant.  The  distance  of  the  Federal  guns  from  its  walls 
ranged  from  1,650  to  3,400  yards.  The  instructions  for  firing 
were  published  in  orders  the  day  before  the  bombardment 
opened,  and  they  gave  the  elevation,  charge,  direction,  inter- 
vals between  shots,  etc.,  for  each  piece,  and  were  adhered  to 
throughout.  It  may  be  stated  as  an  interesting  fact  connected 
with  the  siege,  that  the  arrangements  for  protecting  the 
cannoneers  from  the  enemy's  fire  were  so  perfect  that  only 
one  man  on  the  Union  side  was  killed.  The  success  of  this 
operation  placed  Captain  Gillmore  at  once  among  the  leading 
military  engineers  and  artillerists  of  the  army.  For  this 
striking  illustration  of  the  unerring  and  pre-estimated  results 
of  applied  science,  engineers  and  artillerists  hold  his  minute 
instructions  for  the  conduct  of  the  bombardment  as  not 
among  the  least  remaikable  features  of  the  siege.     General 


1208 


BISTORT  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Gillniore  gives  great  credit  to  Lieutenant  (now  General)  Hor- 
ace Porter,  for  most  efficient  and  valuable  services  as  Chief 
of  Artillery  and  Ordnance. 

As  a  matter  of  interest,  it  may  be  stated  that  before  the 
operations  for  investing  the  place  were  begun,  the  fort  was 
inspected  by  several  confederate  officers  of  high  rank,  for- 
merly telonging  to  the  old  regular  army,  who  expressed  the 
opinion  that  the  isolated  position  of  the  fort,  in  the  centre  of 
a  marsh  island,  entirely  sun-ounded  by  deep  water,  while  the 
nearest  firm  ground  consisted  of  nothing  but  a  low,  narrow 
and  shallow  strip  of  land  a  mile  distant,  rendered  any  suc- 
cessful siege  operations  entirely  impracticable.  Confederate 
Greneral  Robert  E.  Lee  entertained  this  view,  as  also  did  Gen- 
eral Joseph  G.  Totten,  Chief  Engineer,  United  States  army, 
who,  in  reply  to  a  letter  reqtiesting  his  views  on  the  subject, 
wrote  that  "  the  work  could  not  be  reduced  in  a  month's  fir- 
ing, with  any  number  of  guns  of  manageable  calibres." 
Indeed,  General  Gillmore  appears  to  have  stood  alone 
among  military  engineers  and  artillerists  in  his  ))elief  that 
the  work  could  be  reduced  and  taken  by  batteries  of  rifle-guns 
and  mortars  established  on  Tybee  Island,  and  he  was,  per- 
haps, placed  in  command  of  the  siege,  in  order  that  if  unsuc- 
cessful, he  would  be  obliged  to  take  to  himself  all  the  dis- 
credit of  failure.  Among  the  incidents  connected  with  the 
investment  of  the  Fort,  and  cutting  off  its  communication 
with  Savannah,  may  be  mentioned  the  difficult  and  hazardous 
operation  of  placing  a  battery  on  the  shore  of  the  Savannah 
river  at  Venus  point,  on  Jones  Island,  about  four  miles  above 
the  Fort. 

Jones  Island  is  nothing  but  marsh,  with  its  surface  at  the 
level  of  high  tide,  formed  of  alluvial  mud,  from  fifteen  to 
eighteen  feet  deep,  overgrown  with  weeds.  As  the  enemy's 
gtmboats  were  in  possession  of  and  constantly  patrolling  the 
river,  the  guns  and  all  the  materials  for  the  battery  had  to  be 
carried  across  the  island  from  the  rear,  a  distance  of  three- 
quarters  of  a  mile,  during  the  night.  Six  siege  guns  mounted 
and  limbered  up,  were  taken  over  on  shifting  runways  of 
planks.  Sand  for  parapet  gun  platforms,  and  magazine 
covering,  was  conveyed  by  the  men  in  bags.  Two  nights  of 
incessant  labor  were  required  to  get  the  guns  over  and  into 
battery.  During  the  intervening  day  they  were  covered  up 
with  marsh-cane,  and  no  men  were  left  on  the  island.  When 
the  battery  was  ready  for  service,  the  spring  tides  came  on 
and  submerged  everything  except  the  parapet-guns  and  maga- 
zine, but  it  fully  answered  the  purpose  for  which  it  was  built. 
On  Tybee  Island  all  the  gims,  mortars  and  battery  material 
were  landed  in  the  surf  on  the  open  beach,  and  conveyed  to 
the  sites  of  the  batteries  during  the  night-time,  by  the  labor  of 
men  alone,  the  use  of  animals  being  impracticable  so  near  the 
fort.  Two  months  of  incessant  labor,  day  and  night,  were  re- 
quired to  get  the  batteries  in  readiness  for  opening  fire. 

In  August,  1863,  Captain  Gillmore  was  assigned  to  the  com- 
mand of  a  division  of  troops  in  Kentucky,  and  by  the  follow- 
ing January  was  placed  in  command  of  the  central  district  of 
that  state.  At  the  battle  of  Somerset,  March  21st,  1863,  he 
defeated  General  Pegram,  and  for  this  success  was  brevetted 
Colonel  in  the  regular  army.  In  June,  1863,  he  was  called  to 
the  command  of  the  Department  of  the  South,  embracing  the 
territory  held  by  the  Union  forces  on  the  coast  of  South  Car- 
olina, Georgia  and  Florida;  and  in  July  following,  was  placed 
in  command  of  the  Tenth  Army  Corps,  which  comprise  all 
the  troops  serving  in  that  department. 

The  small  force  in  the  Department  of  the  South  had  caused 
a  suspension  of  active  hostilities  in  that  quarter.  The  Navy 
department,  chagrined  at  the  repulse  of  the  iron-clads  by  Fort 
Sumter  in  April,  1863,  contemplated  another  attack  upon 
that  work  and  Charleston,  and  it  was  represented  that  the 


operations  of  the  iron-clads  would  be  greatly  aided  by  a  land 
force  prepared  to  assist  the  attack,  and  to  occupy  any  work 
reduced  by  the  ships  of  war.  The  .success  of  the  attack  de- 
pended on  the  military  occupation  of  Morris  Island,  and  the 
planting  of  land  batteries  there  for  the  reduction  of  Fort 
Sumter.  It  was  admitted  that  sui)erior  engineering  skill 
was  requisite  to  the  successful  execution  of  this  plan,  and 
General  Gillmore,  who  had  been  present  at  several  consulta- 
tions between  the  AVar  and  Navy  departments,  was  selected 
as  the  i)roper  officer  to  place  in  charge.  Admiral  Foote,  was 
to  have  control  of  the  naval  forces,  but  he  died  before  taking 
command. 

The  following  plan,  comprising  four  distinct  operations, 
of  which  the  army  was  to  execute  the  first  three,  was  agreed 
upon: 

First. — To  make  a  descent  upon  and  obtain  possession  of 
the  south  end  of  Morris  Island,  known  to  be  fortified  and 
strongly  occupied  by  the  enemy. 

Second. — To  besiege  and  reduce  Fort  Wagner,  a  strong 
'work  near  the  north  end  of  Morris  Island.  With  Fort  Wag- 
ner the  works  at  the  north  end  (Cummings  Point)  would  also 
fall. 

Third. — From  the  position  thus  secured,  to  demolish  Fort 
Sumter,  and  afterwards  co-operate  by  a  heavj-  artillerj'  fire 
with  the  fleet  when  moving  in. 

Fourth. — The  monitors  and  iron-clads  to  enter,  remove  the 
channel  obstructions  if  any  be  found,  run  by  the  James  and 
Sullivan  Island  batteries,  and  reach  the  city. 

History  so  fully  reconls  General  Gillmore'.s  services  in  con- 
nection with  these  important  military  operations,  that  it  is 
deemed  unnecessary  to  give  what  must  be  an  imperfect  ac- 
count of  them  in  this  sketch;  Morris  Island  was  captured  by 
assault  from  small  boats,  and  Fort  Wagner  was  reduced  by 
siege.  Fort  Sumter  was  demolished,  and  its  artillery  entirely 
destroyed  from  a  distance  of  3,.')00  yards.  Some  of  the 
heaviest  guns  used  were  Parrott  rifles,  placed  two  miles  dis- 
tant. Great  gaps  were  rent  in  the  walls  of  the  fortress;  the 
guns  were  all  dismantled  or  removed,  save  one  small  smooth- 
bore on  the  rear  wall,  used  for  firing  the  signal  at  sun-down; 
and  the  fort  was  battered  into  almost  shapeless  ruins. 
General  Gillmore,  at  this  juncture,  called  on  General  Beaure- 
gard to  surrender,  and  added  that  the  complete  destruction 
of  Fort  Sumter  was  a  matter  of  certainty  within  a  few  hours, 
and  stated  that  if  a  reply  was  not  made  at  once,  he  would 
open  fire  on  Charleston.  General  Beauregard  considered 
this  an  idle  boast,  not  knowing  of  the  terrible  "  Swamp 
Angel  "  battery  erected  on  a  reed  marsh  of  alluvial  mud  18 
feet  deej),  hitherto  thought  to  be  impracticable  for  the  pur- 
pose. True  to  his  promise,  a  little  after  midnight.  General 
Gillmore  opened  on  Cliarleston  from  a  200-pounder  Parrot 
gun,  the  shells  from  which  burst  in  the  central  parts  of  the 
city.  Only  thirty-six  shots,  however,  were  fired  from  this 
battery  when  the  gun  broke  in  two,  and  the  bombardment  of 
Charleston  was  not  resumed  until  after  the  fall  of  Fort 
Wagner  and  Battery  Gregg.  General  Halleck,  General-in- 
Chief  of  the  army,  in  speaking  of  the  siege,  said:  "General 
Gillmore's  operations  have  been  characterized  by  great  pro- 
fessional skill  and  boldness.  He  has  overcome  difficulties 
almost  unknown  in  modern  sieges.  Indeed,  his  operations 
on  Morris  Island  constitute  a  new  era  in  the  science  of  en- 
gineering and  gunnery." 

"  Not  less  emphatic,"  says  Whitelaw  Reid,  in  Ohio  in  the 
War,  "  was  the  admiring  testimony  of  Professor  Mahan,  the 
General's  old  instructor  in  engineering  at  West  Point,  and  a 
critic  of  siege  operations  not  surpassed  by  any  living  military 
authority.  The  Professor  saj's:  '  The  siege  of  Fort  Wagner 
forms  a  memorable  epoch  in  the  engineer's  art,  and  presents 
a  lesson  fruitful  of  results.     ...     In  spite  of  these  ob- 


MILITA  RY    ORG  A  NIZA  TIONS. 


Btacles;  in  spite  of  the  shifting  sand  under  him,  over  which 
the  tide  swept  more  than  once  during  his  advances;  in  spite 
of  the  succor  and  relief  of  the  garrison  from  Charleston,  with 
which  their  communications  were  free.  General  Gillmore  ad- 
dressed himself  to  his  task  with  that  preparedness  for  every 
eventuality,  and  tliat  tenacitv  which  are  striking  traits  of  his 
character.  This  reinaikable  exhibition  of  skill  and  industry; 
the  true  and  always  successful  tools  with  which  the  en- 
gineer works,  is  a  triumph  of  American  science  of  which  the 
nation  may  well  be  proud.'" 

The  success  of  those  portions  of  the  plan  of  operations  as- 
signed to  the  ai-my  was  thorough  and  complete,  and  this  was 
acknowledged  not  only  by  the  General-in-Chief,  and  the 
Secretary  of  War,  but  by  the  President  and  the  Secretary  of 
the  Navy. 

General  Gillmore's  commission  as  Major-General  of  Volun- 
teers was  given  for  service  before  Charleston,  in  the  follow- 
ing language:  "  For  the  distinguished  skill,  ability  and  gal- 
lantry displayed  in  the  operations  under  his  charge  in 
Charleston  Harbor;  the  descent  upon  Morris  Island;  the  re- 
duction of  Fort  Sumter,  and  the  taking  of  Fort  Wagner  and 
Battery  Gregg." 

That  the  achievements  before  Charleston  lacked  the  crown 
of  final  success  was  due,  as  appears  from  oittcial  records,  to 
the  circumstance  that  the  naval  commander  declined  to  en- 
counter tlie  channel  torpedoes  and  obstiuctions,  assuming 
them  to  be  of  formidable  character.  He  also  claimed  that 
Fort  Sumter  was  still  armed  with  heavy  guns,  after  the  army 
commander  had  reported  it  a  harmless  ruin.  This  raises  the 
point  whether  the  land  forces,  in  aiding  this  naval  attack  on 
Charleston,  had  fulfilled  its  pledge  to  reduce  Fort  Sumter  so 
as  to  render  it  entirely  powerless  against  a  passing  fleet. 
The  following  extracts  from  Reid's  Ohio  in  the  War,  seems 
to  settle  this  matter  beyond  question. 

"  It  is  his  (Gillmore's)  good  fortune,  however,  since  the 
close  of  the  war,  to  be  able  to  give  a  definite  settlement  to  the 
question,  by  the  testimony  of  the  only  competent  witnesses. 
"  When  at  last  the  citv  against  which  so  many  efforts  had 
failed,  fell  without  a  blow.  General  Gillmore  was  once  more 
in  command  of  the  Department  of  the  South.  He  moved 
directly  up  the  channel— himself  a  passenger  in  the  second 
vessel  that  adventured  upon  the  path  which  the  naval  officers 
thought  so  studded  with  horrors.  Without  encountermg  any 
accident  or  obstructions  of  note,  the  vessel  was  laid  alongside 
the  wharves." 

It  may  be  here  mentioned  that  quite  a  number  of  vessels 
comprismg  army  transports  and  sutlers'  and  traders'  craft 
went  up  to  the  city  wharves  the  same  day  without  encoun- 
tering any  obstructions  or  torpedoes. 

"  What  then  had  stood  in  the  way  of  the  navy  from  the 
23d  of  August,  18(53,  when  the  destruction  of  the  offensive 
power  of  Sumter  was  complete.  Admiral  Dahlgren  said  not 
specially  Forts  Sumter  and  Johnson,  against  which,  at  least, 
in  the  earlier  stages  of  the  campaign,  he  expressed  entire 
readiness  to  conduct  his  iron-clads.  The  channel  obstructions 
he  pronounced  the  real  danger.  But  the  chaimel  obstruc- 
tions seemed  mythical,  when  Gillmore,  sailing  directly  over 
their  alleged  locations,  anchored  before  the  city.  When  had 
they  been  removed?" 

"  An  interesting  correspondence  sprang  up  between  General 
Gillmore  and  General  Riplev,  whom  Beauregard  had  in  com- 
mand of  Charleston.  General  Gillmore  asked  the  question: 
'  Was  there  anything  except  the  shore  batteries  to  prevent 
the  passage  of  our  fleet  up  to  the  city  and  above  it  (at  the 
time  of  the  demolition  of  Sumter)  by  the  channel  left  open 
for  and  used  bv  the  blockade  runners  at  night.'  General 
Riplev  answered  ■  No.'  General  Gillmore  then  asked,  '  What 
were  the  relative  condition  and  efficiency  of  such  obstruc- 
tions and  torpedoes  as  were  used  in  Charleston  harbor  m  the 
autumn  of  1868,  as  compared  with  their  condition  m  Febru- 
arv  1865,  when  the  city  came  into  our  possession  .■'  General 
Ripley  answered,  '  The  efficiency  of  the  obstructions  and  tor- 
pedoes in  the  harbor  was  as  great  in  January,  18Go.  as  in  the 
autumn  of  1863.  The  torpedoes  were  more  efficient  just 
previous  to  the  evacuation,'  and  he  went  on  to  say  that  the 


ideas  prevailing  in  the  fleet  as  to  the  dangerous  nature  of 
these  obstructions  were  due  to  exaggerated  reports  pur- 
posely circulated  by  the  defenders  of  the  city.  The  corres- 
pondence from  which  we  have  quoted  is  of  some  length,  but 
it  all  goes  to  show  tliat,  in  the  estimation  of  the  enemy  them- 
selves, the  channel  was  practically  free  from  any  obstructions 
or  torpedoes  that  ought  to  have  delayed  the  passage  of  the 
fleet. 

"  To  this  emphatic  testimony  should  be  added  the  state- 
ment of  General  Elliott,  who  was  in  command  of  Fort  Sumter 
from  the  4th  of  September.  He  said  to  General  Gillmore, 
after  the  close  of  the  war,  that  there  were  no  mounted  guns 
in  the  fort  from  the  23d  of  August  until  the  ensuing  October. 
This  would  seem  to  rebut  Admiral  Dahlgren's  complaints 
about  the  fire  from  Sumter,  as  emphatically  as  General  Rip- 
ley's statement  does  his  complaint  about  the  channel  obstruc- 
tions. Yet  on  these  obstructions  Admiral  Dahlgren  seems 
to  rest  the  greater  part  of  his  delay;  finally  resulting  in  the 
abandonment  of  offensive  operations." 

General  Gillmore  was  transferred  to  the  James  River  in 
1864,  in  command  of  the  Tenth  Army  Corps,  and,  May  13th 
of  that  year  was  engaged  in  the  landing  at  Bermuda  Hun- 
dred, and  the  action  at  Swift's  Creek.  He  commanded  the 
column  which  turned  and  captured  the  line  in  front  of 
Drury's  Bluff,  and  his  command  took  an  active  part  in  the 
battle  which  ensued  two  days  later,  covering  the  retreat  of 
General  Butler's  army  into  entrenchments  at  Bermuda  Hun- 
dred. He  retired  from  the  command  soon  after,  in  conse- 
(juence  of  a  misunderstanding  between  himself  and  Gen. 
Butler. 

General  Gillmore  was  summoned  to  Washington  when  that 
city  was  menaced  by  Early  in  July,  1864,  and  commanded 
two  divisions  of  the  Nineteenth  Army  Corps  in  its  defense, 
and  while  in  pursuit  of  the  confederate  forces,  was  severely 
injured  by  a  fall  of  his  horse.  From  February  until  Novem- 
ber, 1865,  he  was  again  in  command  of  the  Department  of  the 
South.  In  December,  1865,  he  resigned  his  volunteer  com- 
mission of  Major-General  and  served  one  year  in  the  En- 
gineer Bureau  at  Washington.  He  was  subsequently 
assigned  to  duty  as  engineer-in-charge  of  all  the  fortifications 
on  the  Atlantic  coast,  between  New  York  and  St.  Augustine, 
Florida,  and  was  entrusted  with  the  improvement  of  rivers 
and  harbors  on  the  coast  of  South  Carolina,  Georgia  and 
Florida.  In  the  Corps  of  Engineers  he  was  promoted  to  be 
Major  in  June,  1863,  to  be  Lieutenant-Colonel  in  January, 
1874,  and  to  be  Colonel  in  January,  1883. 

General  Gillmore's  record  is  an  unusually  brilliant  one  and 
has  made  his  name  famous  throughout  the  civilized  world. 
At  the  conclusion  of  the  Rebellion,  he  bore  back  to  his  grade 
in  the  corps  wliich  he  had  so  signally  honored,  the  fourhighest 
brevets  in  the  regular  army  in  reward  of  his  achievements 
during  the  war.  These  were  Brevet  Lieutenant-Colonel, 
United  States  Army,  "for  gallant  and  meritorious  conduct 
at  the  capture  of  Fort  Pulaski,  April  11th,  1862  ; "  Brevet 
Colonel,  United  States  Army,  "  for  gallant  and  meritorious 
services  at  the  battle  of  Somerset,  Kentucky,  March  31st, 
1863;"  Brevet  Brigadier-General,  United  States  Army,  "for 
gallcint  and  meritorious  services  at  the  assault  on  Mon-is  Island, 
July  10,  1863;"  and  Brevet  Major-General,  United  States 
Army,  "' for  gallant  and  meritorious  conduct  at  the  capture  of 
Forts  Wagner  and  Gregg  and  the  demolition  of  Fort  Sumter." 
In  his  work,  0/iio  in  the  War,  Whitelaw  Reid  gives  the 
following  estimate  of  General  Gillmore's  character  as  an 
officer  : 

"General  Gillmore's  military  standing  is  clearly  defined 
bT  his  career  during  the  war.  He  never  displayed  remark- 
able merits  as  a  leader  of  troops  in  the  open  field.  He  wag  a 
good  but  not  briUiant,  Corps  General.  If  he  committed  no 
Srave  faults  on  the  other  hand,  he  never  shone  conspicuous 
above  those  that  surrounded  him.  He  was  prudent,  iudi- 
Cious  circumspect,  not  dashing,  scarcely  enterprismg.    It  18 


1210 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS   COUNTY. 


only  fair  to  add  that  he  was  never  ti'ied  on  a  large  scale  or 
under  favorable  auspices.  But  in  his  proper  province  as  an 
engineer  and  artillerist,  he  was  as  bold  as  in  the  field  he  was 
cautious.  He  ignored  the  limitations  of  the  books.  He  ac- 
cepted theories  that  revolutionized  the  sciences,  and  staked 
his  professional  standing  on  great  operations  based  upon 
them.  He  made  liimself  the  flr^t  artillerist  of  the  war.  If 
not  the  foremost  engineer,  he  was  second  to  none;  and  in  the 
boldness  and  originality  of  his  operations  against  Wagner, 
he  surpassed  any  similar  achievements,  not  only  in  tliis  war, 
but  in  any  war:  so  that  now,  notwithstanding  the  more 
varied  professional  operations  around  Richmond,  and  Atlanta 
and  Vicksburgh,  when  men  sjieak  of  great  living  engineers, 
they  think  as  naturally  of  Gillmore  in  the  New  World  as  of 
Todleben  in  the  Old.  General  Gillmore  is  among  the  hand- 
somest officers  of  the  army.  He  is  above  the  medium  height, 
hea^-ily  and  conapactly  built,  with  a  broad  chest  and  general 
air  of  physical  solidity.  His  features  (shaded,  not  concealed, 
by  his  full  beard)  are  regular  and  expressive.  The  face 
would  be  called  a  good-humored  one;  the  head  is  shapely, 
and  the  forehead  broad  and  high.  He  speaks  with  nervous 
quickness,  the  more  noticeable,  because  of  a  slight  peculiarity 
in  the  enunciation  that  gives  a  suggestion  of  his  having 
sometimes  lisped  or  stammered.  He  is  an  excellent  talker, 
and  is  familiar  with  a  wide^-ange  of  subjects  outside  of  his 
profession.  In  social  life  he  appears  as  an  elegant  and  ac- 
complished gentleman.  He  was  often  remarked  during  the 
war  for  his  ajiparent  indifference  to  physical  danger.  His 
head-quarters  on  ^lorris  Island  were  pitched  under  fire  and 
his  soldiers  used  to  tell  of  him  that  during  the  slow  siege  ap- 
proaches he  often  whiled  away  the  tedium  by  reading  novels 
or  magazines  while  the  enemy's  shells  were  bursting  in  in- 
convenient proximity." 

Among  the   standard  works  on   professional   subjects,  of 
which  General  Gillmore   is  the   author,   are :    Limes,   Hy- 


draulic Cemoits  and  Mortars;  Engineer  and  Artillery 
Operations  against  Charleston  in  1SC3;  Siege  and  Reduc- 
tion of  Fort  Pulaski;  Beton  Coignet  and  other  Artificial 
Stone;  Roads,  Streets  and  Pavements;  and  The  Strength 
of  the  Building  Stones  of  the  United  States.  When  the 
"  Mississii^pi  River  Commission  "  was  created  by  Congress  in 
1879,  he  was  made  its  President.  He  is  President  of  a  Board 
of  Engineers  for  the  improvement  of  Cape  Fear  River,  N, 
C,  and  the  Potomac  River  and  Flats,  near  Washington;  and 
is  member  of  several  Boards  for  the  improvement  of  im- 
portant harbors  on  the  Atlantic  and  Gulf  coast.  He  is  the 
author  of  the  projects  now  in  process  of  execution  for  im- 
proving the  harbors  of  Charleston,  Savannah,  Fernan- 
dina  and  the  mouth  of  St.  John's  River  and  several  less 
important  harbors  and  rivers;  and  has  charge  of  all  the  river 
and  harbor  improvements  on  the  coast  of  South  Carolina, 
Georgia  and  the  eastern  coast  of  Florida,  and  of  the  fortifica- 
tions from  New  York  to  Florida. 

He  was  one  of  the  judges  at  the  Centennial  Exhibition 
in  Philadelphia,  1870,  and  made  special  and  voluminous 
reports  on  articles  embraced  in  Group  II.,  viz.:  "Portland, 
Roman  and  other  cements  and  artifical  stone,"  and  "  Brick- 
making  machinery,  brick  kOns,  perforated  and  enameled 
bricks  and  pavements." 

He  received  the  honorary  degi-ee  of  Master  of  Arts  from 
Oberlin  College,  Ohio,  while  a  Lieutenant,  before  the  Civil 
War,  and,  a  few  years  since,  the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Phil- 
osophy from  Rutgers  College,  New  Jersey. 


THE    GRAND    ARMY    OF    THE    REPUBLIC 

IN     KINGS    COUNTY. 


The  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic*  originated 
in  Indianapolis,  Ind.,  in  1866.  It  was  tliought  best 
that  the  soldiers  who  had  fought  to  maintain  the  Union 
should  unite  for  the  purposes  of  self-defense  and 
mutual  help.  It  was  looked  upon  as  a  proper  thing  for 
the  soldiers  to  band  together  in  their  own  interests. 
It  was  considered  their  slogan  that,  other  things  being 
equal,  they  should  vote  for  a  fellow  soldier,  no  matter 
for  wliat  office  nominated,  or  by  what  party.  Gen.  S. 
A.  HuBLBUET  was  largely  instrumental  in  forming  tlie 
organization,  and  was  elected  its  first  Commander-in- 
Chief  ;  he  afterwards  died  while  U.  S.  Minister  to 
Peru.  The  order  spread  like  wildfire,  from  its  incep- 
tion in  1866  ;  membership  came  to  be  regarded  as  a 
passport  to  employment  in  the  public  service.  The 
time  is  well  remembered,  when,  at  the  close  of  the 
meetings  of  the  order,  men  would  come  before  the 
Commander  and  ask  :  "  When  shall  I  be  put  on  in  the 
yard  ?  "  The  result  was  that  the  organization  soon  fell 
to  the  ground,  and  became  well-nigh  extinct.  But 
there  was,  of  course,  a  better  element  in  the  organiza- 
tion, which  felt  that  the  veterans,  for  the  best  interests 
of   the  order,  ghould  band  together  in  the  spirit  of 

*  Contributed  by  Col.  Edwin  A.  Perry. 


fraternity,  charity,  and  loyalty;  of  fraternity,  for  the 
purposes  of  communion,  the  "  touch  of  elbows,"  and 
the  feeling  of  that  old  martial  spirit  which  was  born 
upon  the  battle-field,  and  can  never  die  ;  of  charity,  to 
redeem  the  promise  made,  when  a  soldier  pledged  a 
dying  comrade  that  his  wife  and  children  should  never 
want  for  anything,  and  also  to  fulfill  the  moral  obliga- 
tion resting  upon  this  nation  to  assist  its  defenders  in 
their  want  and  suffering. 

Through  all  these  years,  no  genuine  call  for  charity 
has  been  refused  by  the  order.  It  is  a  proper  thing  to  say 
that  in  the  ritual  of  the  G.  A.  R.  are  incorporated  these 
questions:  "  Is  any  comrade  sick  or  in  distress?  Has 
any  died  since  the  last  meeting  ?  Has  any  comrade 
any  knowledge  of  any  soldier  or  sailor  within  our 
limits  who  needs  our  assistance  ?  "  That  is  obligatory 
upon  the  commandery,  at  every  meeting  of  the  Post. 
That  is  where  charity  finds  ample  and  positive  ex- 
emplification. The  sj)irit  of  loyalty  in  the  order, 
which  some  have  construed  into  an  idea  of  politics,  is 
simply  loyalty  to  each  other  now,  as  formerly  in  the 
field.  If  a  soldier  is  worthy  of  esteem,  let  his  com- 
rades stand  by  him,  though  the  world  assail  him,  and 
show  to  men  that  they  were  worthy  in  their  loyalty 
to   country,  by  being   loyal   to    each    other.     Among 


GRAND   AR3IY   OF  THE  REPUBLIC. 


other  sentiments  common  to  the  order  are  these :  to 
encourage  honor  and  purity  in  public  affairs,  and  to 
protect  the  flag  of  our  country.  That  is  what  is 
meant  by  the  sentiment  of  loyalty. 

At  the  present  time,  after  twenty  years  of  weeding 
the  order  has  so  melted  away  all  differences  of  political 
and  religious  opinion,  that  no  man  knows  or  think, 
whether  the  comrade  at  his  side  is  a  Democrat  or  Re- 
publican, a  Catholic  or  Protestant,  a  Jew  or  Gentile, 
and  there  is  no  place  in  all  their  ceremonies  where  it 
is  possible  for  those  questions  to  be  thought  of.  It 
would  be  a  matter  of  pride  to  the  order  to  show  its 
ritual  to  the  whole  world,  and  when  the  last  comrade 
dies  and  leaves  to  it  the  written  formula  of  its  organi- 
zation, it  is  only  then  that  they  will  appreciate  how 
beautiful  in  sentiment  and  how  perfect  in  practice  is 
their  ritual. 

Since  1866,  the  Commanders-in-Chief  have  been: 
Gens.  Ilurlburt,  Burnside,  Devins,  Earnshaw,  Merrill 
Hartrauf  t,  Robinson,  Wagner,  Vandervoort,  and  Beath, 
some  of  whom  served  two  years,  others  only  one.  It 
is  important  to  mention  that  the  organization  is  gov- 
erned by  regular  military  formulas,  the  National  or- 
ganization being  subdivided  into  State  and  Territorial 
Departments,  and  they,  in  turn,  into  Posts;  in  practice, 
however,  to  avoid  complication,  the  district  organiza- 
tions have  been  eliminated,  and  the  Posts  report  to  the 
Departments,  and  they  to  National  Head-quarters. 
There  are  Staff  Officers  of  the  National  Department, 
and  of  the  Posts,  who  are  called  bj^  the  same  titles  as 
in  the  field.  There  are  quarterly  reports  from  each 
Post  to  its  Department,  and  from  the  Departments  to 
the  National  Department,  so  that  the  place  of  each  mem- 
ber of  the  order  can  be  definitely  ascertained.  When  a 
man  dies,  his  record  of  service  is  often  best  ascertained 
from  the  rolls  of  the  order,  his  wife  and  children  frequent- 
ly being  ignorant  of  the  company  in  which  he  served, 
and  of  other  details  in  his  service  of  the  country.  A 
good  measure,  which  was  originated  and  carried  through 
by  the  G.  A.  R.,  provides  for  the  separate  burial  of 
indigent  soldiers  and  sailors,  upon  the  production  of 
their  record  and  certificate  of  discharge.  This  act  has 
spurred  the  comrades  to  place  their  records  in  better 
shape. 

The  organization  in  New  York  State  was  made  in 
December,  1866,  Post  No.  1  being  started  in  Rochester 
The^Vsi  in  Kings  county  was  Post  No.  4,  organized  in 
the  same  month.  Among  those  chiefly  instrumental  in 
introducing  the  order  in  this  State  were  Gens.  Baenum, 
Geo.  F.  Hopper,  and  Edward  Cole.  The  first  Com- 
mander of  the  New  York  State  Department  was  Gen. 
McKean.  The  Department  Commanders  since  have 
been:  Gen.  Sickles,  Col.  Lansing,  Gens.  J.C.Robinson, 
Barnum,  Corlies,  Jardine,  Palmer,  Rogers,  Tanner,  Mc- 
Quade,  Young,  Merritt,  J.  S.  Eraser,  Reynolds  and 
Hedges.  Comrade  Dr.  James  W.  Farley,  of  this  city, 
has  been  Adjutant-General  of  the  N.  Y.  Department, 


under  Gen.  Sickles,  and  Adjutant-General  of  the  Na- 
tional Stafl',  under  Gen.  Robinson;  Comrade  Geo.  B. 
Squires  was  Adjutant-General  under  Commander  Tan- 
ner, and  is  now  Adjutant-General  under  Commander 
Hedges. 

In  the  early  days  of  the  order  it  met  with  great  op- 
position in  this  county.  The  fact  that  its  cry  was,  "  a 
place  for  everybody,  and  everybody  in  a  place,"  brought 
an  antagonism  which  almost  crushed  it;  everybody  re- 
garded it  as  a  one-sided  political  organization;  what 
few  Democrats  had  joined  it  soon  left,  and  the  Posts 
were  reduced  to  a  dire  extremity,  when  the  better  ele- 
ment succeeded  in  electing  Gen.  Jambs  Jourdan  as 
Commander,  upon  the  platform  that  politics  should  be 
rooted  out  of  the  order.  Although  he  was  not  com- 
pletely successful  in  accomplishing  this,  a  good  start 
was  made;  then  Col.  E.  A.  Perry  was  chosen,  and 
through  his  influence  a  number  of  leading  and  influen- 
tial Democrats  like  Gens.  Slocum,  Woodward,  and 
Meserole  joined  the  order,  in  token  that  it  was  not  to 
be  swayed  entirely  by  the  Republican  element,  but 
that  partizanship  should  be  banished.  The  Eagle, 
from  being  unfriendly,  became  its  ally,  and  from 
that  time,  no  responsible  authority  has  charged  the 
order  with  being  a  political  organization.  The  growth 
of  the  Grand  Array  in  this  county  has  been  through 
difficulties;  no  appropriations  for  its  benefit  have  been 
made  by  the  city,  in  contradistinction  to  what  has 
been  done  by  other  cities;  but  lately,  a  room  in  the  City 
Hall  has  been  set  apart  for  its  use;  the  use  of  the 
Council  Chamber  for  meetings  has  been  given.  A 
Memorial  and  Executive  Committee  of  the  G.  A.  R. 
has  been  appointed,  and  a  Bureau  of  Employment 
opened,  where  all  indigent  soldiers  and  sailors,  or  their 
widows  and  orphans,  if  worthy,  may  find  relief  and  be 
helped  to  a  livelihood;  and  a  Relief  Fund  has  been 
started  to  aid  those  unable  to  provide  for  themselves. 
Through  the  efforts  of  the  G.  A.  R.,  aided  by  Mayor 
Low  and  Engineer  C.  C.  Martin,  twenty  per  cent,  of 
the  appointments  to  the  Bridge  service  were  given  to 
the  order,  and  ably  filled  from  its  ranks.  Other  legis- 
lation secured  by  the  organization  is  the  bill  to  provide 
a  perfect  record  in  the  Adjutant-General's  office  at  Al- 
bany of  all  the  soldiers  who  went  out  from  New  York 
State;  while  other  States  have  secured  such  records  of 
their  defenders,  and  can  point  to  each  man's  history, 
the  details  of  his  service,  whether  he  was  wounded, 
where  and  when,  New  York  State  has  only  the  original 
muster  rolls  to  show  the  names  of  those  who  enlisted 
in  her  service.  The  most  important,  however,  was  the 
Soldiers' IIome,y^\i\ck  had  its  birth  in  Brooklyn.  There 
had  been  desultory  attempts  to  turn  over  the  property 
which  had  been  set  apart  for  the  Soldiers'  and  Sailors' 
Orphan  Home  in  Manhattanville,  but  the  conditions 
were  such  as  to  place  its  control  entirely  outside  the 
pale  of  the  Soldiers'  organization,  and  it  was  looked 
upon  with  alarm  by  the  representatives  of  the  people  as 


HISTORY  01  KINGS  COUNTY. 


a  scheme  to  assist  the  order  in  aggregating  property,  so 
that  it  failed.  But  from  Brooklyn  went  up  a  delega- 
tion in  ISVS  to  the  Department  Encampments,  which 
asked  to  have  a  committee  appointed  for  the  purpose 
of  raising  money  to  establish  a  Soldiers'  Home,  and  in 
speaking  for  the  resolution,  "Corporal"  James  Tanner 
pledged  Brooklyn  for  $10,000,  which,  in  view  of  the 
difficulty  before  experienced  in  raising  money  for  the 
purpose,  caused  a  ripple  of  astonishment.  After  their 
return,  they  called  upon  the  soldiers'  friend,  Rev. 
Henry  Ward  Beecher,  who  delivered  an  address  in  the 
Academy  of  Music,  for  the  purpose  of  raising  funds 
for  a  Soldiers'  Home.  A  committee  secured  some 
pledges,  and  the  enthusiasm  awakened  by  the  meeting 
swelled  the  amount  to  $14,000,  contributed  by  Brook- 
lyn's most  generous  citizens.  This  meeting  gave  an 
impetus  to  the  movement  throughout  the  State,  which 
culminated  in  the  erection  of  the  Soldiers'  Home  at 
Bath,  Steuben  county.  Since  that  time  they  have  never 
appealed  in  vain  to  the  State  for  aid  in  carrying  on  the 
institution;  it  contains  600  inmates,  and  needs  larger 
quarters,  for  which  an  appropriation  of  $50,000  has 
been  made.  In  connection  with  Corporal  Tanner,  the 
names  of  E.  C.  Parkinson  and  Judson  A.  Lewis,  of 
the  Grand  Army,  and  of  J.  B.  Murray  and  John  F. 
Henry,  citizens,  may  be  mentioned,  as  having  worked 
night  and  day  to  bring  about  the  success  of  the  project. 

The  first  Post  established  in  Kings  county,  was 
Wadsworth  Post,  No.  4,  in  December,  1866;  Rankin 
Post,  No.  10,  was  started  shortly  after;  next  were  Lyon 
Post,  No.  33;  Mansfield  Post,  No.  35;  Thatford,  No.  3; 
it  is  impossible  to  give  them  in  their  exact  order,  but 
tlie  Posts  as  at  present  constituted  are  as  follows: 

"Thatford"  Post,  No.  3. — Commander,  Chas.  J.  Kinsey; 
org.  in  Fallasen'sHall,  cor.  Third  ave.  and  Twenty-second  St., 
May  9th,  1868;  not  incorporated;  original  membership,  10; 
first  Officers:  Jno.  Q.  Adams,  P.  H.  O'Beirne,  J.  Howard 
Young  and  James  Woodliead.     Present  membership,  81. 

"Rankin"  Post,  No.  10. — Commander,  T.  B.  Rutan. 

"Barbara  Fritchi ;  "  Post,  No.  11.— Commajide)-,  H.  Pea- 
sell. 

"Frank  Head"  Post,  No.  16. — Commander,  C.  H.  Grant. 

"  Harry  Lee"  Post,  No.  21. — Commander,  J.  B.  Menden- 
hall. 

"  Mansfield  "  Post,  No.  35. — Commander,  Martin  Short. 

"Mallery"  Post,  No.  84. — Commander,  T.  M.  K.  Mills. 

"J.  H.  Perry"  Post,  No.  89. — Commander,  Geo.  H.  Jack- 
son; org.  Jan.  23,  mustered  into  G.  A.  R.,  Feb.  13th,  1879;  in- 
corp.  Feb.  2H,  1881,  under  State  laws;  The  original  member- 
shij)  was  22;  first  Officers:  Henry  W.  Hughes,  Comm.; 
Robert  B.  Keeler,  Senior  V.-Comm.;  Charles  M.  Hartmann, 
Junior  V.-Comiti.;  Fred  E.  Lockwood,  Adj.  Present  member- 
ship, over  five  hundred;  Officers  (same  order  as  above),  Geo. 
H.  Jackson,  Samuel  Davis,  John  MeiTitt  and  Charles  G.  Cur- 
tis. In  1881,  this  Post  appointed  a  committee  to  draft  a  bill 
and  present  it  to  the  Legislature,  to  provide  that  where  a 


veteran  of  the ' '  War  of  the  Rebellion  "  died  without  siifficient 
means  to  bury  him,  he  should  be  buried  at  the  expense  of  the 
county  in  which  he  last  lived,  in  a  public  grave,  and  not  in  a 
plot  set  aside  for  the  pauper  dead;  this  bill  was  passed,  and  is 
now  a  law  of  the  State.  In  1882,  this  Post  appointed  a  com- 
mittee petitioning  Congress  to  make  an  appropriation  to  pur- 
chase more  land  at  Cypress  Hills,  that  the  National  Cemetery 
may  l)e  enlarged;  the  bill  is  now  in  the  hands  of  J.  Hyatt 
Smith,  and  the  Militarj'  Committee  is  prepared  to  report 
favorably  upon  it.  This  Post  takes  its  name  from  Rev.  James 
H.  Perry,  a  graduate  from  West  Point,  and  a  veteran  of  the 
Texan  War  for  Independence.  He  recruited  the  48th  Regt., 
N.  Y.  S.  Vols.,  and  took  it  to  the  front  in  September,  1861,  in 
the  War  of  the  Rebellion;  he  died  suddenly  in  June,  1862, 
while  in  command  at  Fort  Pulaski,  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Savannah  river,  Genrgia. 

"  German  Metternich  "  Post,  No.  122. — Commander,  C. 
Fredericks. 

"  Devin  "  Post,  No.  148. — Commander,  Louis  E.  McLough- 
lin. 

"  Kerswill"  Post,  No.  149. — Commander,  J.  W.  Werner; 
org.  March  11,  1880,  with  fifteen  charter  members; _/irsi  Offi- 
cers were:  Patk.  H.  McCartliv,  James  S.  Jordan,  John  D. 
Anderson,  John  W.  Werner  and  John  Norton;  present  mem- 
bership is  27. 

"  Hamilton  "  Post,  No.  152. — Commander,  J.  W.  Fox. 

"Ford"  Post,  No.  161.— Comiiiander,  W.  H.  Rogers. 

"  Dupont "  Post,  No.  iZ"].— Commander,  J.  W.  Platte. 

"Winchester"  Post,  No.  i^y.— Commander,  E.  H.  Sinsa- 
baugh;  org.  at  160  Clermont  ave.,  Feb.  2d,  1881;  not  incor- 
porated; original  membership,  13;  the  first  Officers:  C.  W. 
Cowtan,  Jos.  W.  Kay,  and  Wm.  R.  Harding.  Present  mem- 
bership, 81;  olficered  by  E.  H.  Sinsabaugh,  A.  M.  Clark,  and 
William  Warren. 

"  Dakin  "  Post,  No.  206. — Commander,  J.  F.  Sias,  org. 
March  31st,  1881;  not  incorporated;  members  originally,  14; 
members  at  present,  140;  first  Officers:  B.  Jacoljs,  Comm. 
Wm.  S.  Duryea,  V.-Com.;  E,  G.  Hamblin,  J.  V.;  D.  W.  Hol- 
lock,  Chaplain  ;  John  Foley,  Adjt.;  present  Officers:  John 
F.  Sias,  Comm.;  John  Foley,  .9.F.  C;  Geo.  Shepherd,  .7.  F.C; 
William  Bishoji,  Chaplain  ;  C.  G.  Hall,  Adjt. 

"■Wm.  Lloyd  Garrison"  Post,  No.  207.— CommaMcter,  J. 
P.  Johnson  Howard. 

"Gushing"  Post,  No.  231. — Commander,!).  J.  Pillsworth; 
org.  Oct.  8.  1881,  at  Greenwood  Hall,  Fifth  avenue,  cor.  9th 
street;  incorporated;  original  membership,  16;  the  Officers: 
D.  J.  Pilsworth,  Comm.;  Jno.  A.  Duncan,  S.  V.-Comm.;  N 
H.  Ross,  Jr.  V.-Comm.;  H.  L.  Hunt,  Adj.:  present  member- 
bership,  73;  the  Officers  are,  in  .same  order  as  above:  D.  J. 
Pillsworth,  Thos.  W.  Lindsay,  Jolm  H.  Van  Liew,  Walter  E. 
Nason. 

"  G.  K.  Warren  "  Post,  No.  286. — Commander,  J.  W.  Cun- 
ningham. 

"  Post  No.  327,"  of  Brooklyn. — Commander,  Geo.  F.  Tait; 
org.  Jan.  30,  1883,  incorporated  March  26,  1883;  original  mem- 
bership, 105:  present  number,  136;  first  Officers  were:  Geo. 
B.  Squires,  Comm. ;  Geo.  F.  Tait,  S.  V.-Comm.;Jas.  P.  Howatt, 
Jr.V.-Comm.;  John  H.  Stoothoff,  .Idj.  The  present  officers 
are  the  same. 

"  C.  D.  McKenzie  "  Post,  No.  399. — Commander,  P.  T 
Hubbard. 

"Abel  Smith"  Post,  No.  435.— CoTO»na?ider,  F.  Cocheu. 


THE 


Bench  and  Bar  of  Brooklyn 


THE  history  of  the  Bench  and  Bar  of  Kings 
County,  (see  page  339  of  this  work,)  mostly 
relates  to  a  period  prior  to  the  removal  of  the 
seat  of  justice  from  Flatbnsh  to  Brooklyn.  It  con- 
sists largely  of  the  biographies  of  those  who  had  been 
active  in  making  that  history ;  most  of  whom  are  at 
rest  in  honored  graves.  Since  the  removal  of  the  county 
seat,  the  history  of  the  Bench  and  Bar  of  Brooklyn, 
upon  which  we  are  about  to  enter,  embraces  that  of  the 
Bench  and  Bar  of  the  County.  Both  these  histories  re- 
call a  number  of  widely  dissimilar,  but  deeply  interest- 
ing characters,  each  one  in  his  own  identity  a  prominent 
dramatis  j^ersunm  on  the  legal  stage.  But  every  insti- 
tution has  its  defects  ;  every  order  of  men  its  unworthy 
members;  and  so,  doubtless,  has  the  legal  jirofession 
everywhere. 

Speaking  on  this  subject,  Hon.  Henry  S.  Foote,  a 
Senator  in  Congress,  and  one  of  the  ablest  American 
lawyers,  said:  "Were  I  to  indulge  in  indiscriminate 
commendation  of  all  those  whom  it  has  been  my 
fortune  to  meet  in  the  contests  of  the  forum,  or  the 
incidents  of  whose  professional  career  have  been 
brought  to  my  notice,  I  should  greatly  wrong  my  own 
self-respect  and  do  injustice  to  other  professions  and  to 
the  public  at  large  ;  but  I  am  certain  that  I  do  not  go 
too  far  in  declaring  that  in  the  various  States  which  I 
have  from  time  to  time  visited,  in  the  progress  of  a 
now  somewhat  protracted  professional  career,  I  have 
found  my  brethren  of  the  Bar,  w'ith  a  few  exceptions, 
intelligent,  astute,  laborious,  upright  and  manly  in 
their  conduct,  cherishing  a  high  and  delicate  sense  of 
individual  honor,  and  displaying,  on  all  occasions,  a 
projier  regard  for  the  dignity  of  their  own  calling,  as 
well  as  profound  respect  for  the  example  and  counsels 
of  those  illustrious  sages  embalmed  in  the  forensic 
annals  of  our  own  country  and  of  England." 

It  is  certainly  no  extravagance  to  say,  that  this  lan- 
guage of  Senator  Foote  applies  most  appropriately  to 
the  members  of  the  Brooklyn  Bar. 

No  saying  has  been  more  universally  quoted  than 
that  of  Dionysius  of  Hclicarnassus,  "History  is 
philosophy  teaching  by  example."  With  equal  truth 
it  may  bo  said  that  biography  is  a  chief  element  of  his- 
tory, less  formal  and  stately,  disjilaying  the  characters 
of  men  whose  actions  largely  create  history.  Biography 
derives  its  value  from  its  moral  and  personal  parallels 


and  contrasts,  which  are  developed  in  relating  the  his- 
tory of  those  whose  lives  and  careers  are  prominent  in 
nations,  States,  municipalities,  and  in  those  institutions 
which  have  a  bearing  upon  society.  We  shall,  there- 
fore, give  the  lives  and  careers,  the  contrasts  and  paral- 
lels in  the  characters  of  some  of  the  members  of  the 
Brooklyn  Bench  and  Bar;  with  a  description  of  some 
of  the  important  trials  that  have  taken  place  at  that 
bar,  as  its  truest  and  best  history.  We  shall  begin 
with 

JOHN   GREENWOOD, 

the  oldest,  and  one  of  the  most  highly  esteemed  represent- 
atives of  the  Brooklyn  Bar,  and  of  Southern  New  York. 
Although  he  has  reached  his  eighty-sixth  year,  he  is  vigorous 
and  active,  physically  and  mentally.  His  knowledge  is  pro- 
found, his  judgment  clear,  and  his  quickness  in  apprehending  a 
truth  or  the  fallacy  of  a  proposition  or  an  argument  is  surpris- 
ing. He  retains  in  a  remarkable  degree  the  scholarly  accom- 
plishments and  habits  of  his  earlier  years;  few  men  are  more 
interesting  conversationalists;  few  speak  with  a  clearer  expres- 
sion, or  a  more  simple  grace  of  diction.  He  abounds  in 
anecdote  and  incident  which  his  tenacious  memory  brings  up, 
not  only  from  the  present,  but  from  the  long  ago,  with  vivid 
and  truthful  precision. 

His  acquaintance  with  illustrious  men  of  the  past  was  large, 
his  remembrance  of  them  lively,  and  his  description  of  them  is 
given  with  biographical  accuracy. 

Judge  Greenwnod  evinces  the  truth  and  beauty  of  Lord  Lyt- 
ton's  remark,  that  "Nothing  is  more  interesting  and  pleasing 
than  an  old  man  who  has  gone  successfully  through  life's 
battles,, retiring  from  the  field,  strong,  sunny-hearted  andhajjpy, 
old  in  years,  but  young  at  heart." 

There  is,  however,  this  exception  in  Judge  Greenwood's  case 
to  Lord  Lytton's  remark:  he  has  not  ketiked  from  the  field.  He 
still  vigorously  holds  it  with  his  armor  on,  "with  his  visor  up," 
a  prominent  and  successful  contestant  in  many  of  the  lines  of 
legal  warfare;  for  he  loves  his  profession  with  all  the  ardor  of 
his  young  manhood,  and  since  retiring  from  the  bench,  has 
devoted  himself  to  it,  though  in  the  enjoyment  of  ample  fortune. 

Judge  Greenwood  can  now  look  back  upon  the  world  as  from 
an  elevation  from  which  he  has  seen  life  in  all  its  changing 
phases.  He  has  seen  families  rise  and  fall;  has  seen  the  great 
brought  low,  and  the  low  elevated  to  the  places  of  the  great. 
He  has  seen  peace  and  war  succeeding  in  their  turns;  he 
has  seen  the  very  citj'  in  which  he  dwells  rise  from  a  small  town 
into  magnificent  proportions,  that  threaten  to  rival  the  great 
metropolis  to  which  it  is  united  by  the  most  wondrous  cause- 
way in  the  world.  He  has  seen  chancellors,  judLjes,  illustrious 
jurists,  statesmen  and  great  advocates  depart,  as  it  were,  in  long 
procession— from  the  scenes  of  their  ambition  and  their 
triumphs,  to  join  "the  majority  in  the  shadowy  world."  Hence, 
we  may  well  say  of  him  that  hois  one  of  the  few   "through 


I'.'U 


HlfiTOEY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


•nhouj  one  gein-ration  speaks  its  thoughts,  feelings   and   appeals 
to  another." 

John  Greenwood  was  bom  at  Providence,  K.  I.,  November  6, 
1798.  At  the  age  of  ten  years  he  removed  with  his  father  to  the 
city  of  New  York,  where  he  soon  commenced  preparing  for  col- 
lege. He  was  an  industrious,  untiring  student,  early  exhibit- 
ing a  love  of  the  natural  sciences,  which  was  gratified  by  his 
attending  chemical  and  philosophical  lectures.  He  became  a 
proficient  in  Latin  and  Greek,  aci^uired  a  practical  knowledge 
of  French  and  German,  and  a  critical  acquaintance  with  English 
Belles-Lettres.  It  was  the  desire  of  his  father,  a  desire  in  which 
the  young  man  ardently  coincided,  that  he  should  become  a 
lawyer.  There  was  very  much  in  the  organization  of  his  mind, 
in  his  love  of  polemics  and  of  subtle  distinctions,  which  indi- 
cated that  in  the  altercations  of  the  Bar  he  would  find  in  the 
future  his  approjiriate  sphere  of  action. 

In  those  days  Col.  Aaron  Burr,  so  conspicuous  in  American 
history,  though  no  longer  prominent  as  a  statesman,  was  still 
the  acknowledged  leader  of  the  American  Bar. 

One  of  the  amiable  characteristics  of  Aaron  Burr  was  his  love 
of  the  young.  With  that  quick  insight  into  character  which 
characterized  him,  he  saw  in  young  Greenwood  qualities  which 
attracted  his  attention,  and  he  encouraged  his  desire  to  become 
a  lawyer,  inviting  him  to  enter  his  office  as  a  student.  The 
invitation  was  accepted,  and  the  young  man  became  a  pupil  in 
the  office  of  Aaron  Burr. 

Under  the  superintendence  of  Mr.  Burr,  young  Greenwood 
made  rapid  improvement  in  his  legal  studies.  One  of  the  most 
imijortant  branches  of  Mr.  Burr's  extensive  business,  at  this 
time,  was  his  immense  chancery  business.  When  the  young 
student  had  been  in  his  office  two  years  and  a  half,  this  branch 
of  the  business,  in  its  preparation,  was  committed  to  him.  To 
the  legal  practitioner,  this  of  itself  sufficiently  attests  the  abili- 
ties of  Greenwood. 

The  diligent,  careful  study  of  the  cases  that  were  thus  com- 
mitted to  him,  stored  his  mind  with  practical,  living  legal  princi- 
ples. Whatever  was  thus  acquired  was  firmly  rooted  in  his 
memory,  and  with  the  passing  of  each  day,  he  grew  learned  and 
experienced. 

With  the  aid  of  his  accomplished  preceptor,  who  devoted 
much  time  to  him,  he  learned  to  unfold  with  ease  and  per- 
spicuity the  subtleties  and  difficulties  of  legal  questions;  to 
strip  sophistry  of  its  disguises,  and  to  maintain  with  direct 
strength  the  views  he  desired  to  enforce. 

Young  Greenwood  truly  enjoyed  extraordinary  advantages  for 
attaining  a  legal  education.  In  the  office  of  Colonel  Burr  he 
came  in  contact  with  many  of  the  great  legal  and  political  lumi- 
naries of  the  day  ;  and  thus  ho  had  rare  opportunities  for  study- 
ing men  as  well  as  books.  It  was  his  privilege  to  see  how  justice 
was  administered  by  Chancellor  Kent,  Chief  Justices  Spencer 
and  Savage,  by  Golden,  Morris,  Yates  and  Van  Ness.  He  saw 
Josiah  Ogden  Hoffman,  Thomas  Addia  Emmet,  Aaron  Burr, 
William  Lampson,  Griffin,  Wells,  and  other  illustrious  lawyers, 
in  the  contests  of  the  forum,  and  learned  how  forensic  questions 
were  managed  by  those  master  minds. 

Mr.  Greenwood  completed  his  legal  education  in  the  office  of 
Colonel  Burr,  and  was  called  to  the  bar  at  a  General  Term  of  the 
Supreme  Court  of  the  State,  held  at  the  City  Hall,  in  the  city  of 
New  York,  in  October,  1819.  That  illustrious  j  urist,  Ambrose  Spen- 
cer, had  recently  been  appointed  Chief  Justice  of  the  State,  and 
presided  at  the  term  at  which  young  Greenwood  took  his  degree  as 
an  attorney-at-law.  He  still  retains  a  vivid  recollection  of  the  Chief 
Justice,  who  at  that  time  was  one  of  the  controlling  minds  in  the 
State  of  New  York,  and  up  to  the  time  of  his  ascending  the  Bench, 
his  voice  was  jiotent  as  one  of  the  great  politicians  of  the  nation. 
He  was  a  brother-in-law  of  DeWitt  Clinton,  whom  he  opposed 
or  with  whom  he  coincided,  as  ambition  or  policy  dictated. 
That  be  often  successfully  opposed  his  illustrious  and  powerful 
brother-in-law  sufficiently  attests  the  strength  of  his  character, 


and  the  extent  of  his  power  and  influence.  "  His  manner  on 
the  Bench,"  says  Judge  Greenwood,  "was  grave,  dignified,  some- 
times austere,  always  decided  and  impartial.  Lawyers  who  ad- 
dressed him  did  so  in  the  most  respectful  language  and  manner, 
while  he,  in  turn,  observed  a  high-toned  courtesy  toward  them. 
In  demanding  and  observing  these  amenities.  Chief  Justice 
Spencer  did  not  stand  alone.  The  j  udges,  as  well  as  the  lawyers, 
of  that  period  maintained  a  dignity  in  the  court-room  that  be- 
spoke their  consciousness  of  being  in  the  Temple  of  Justice." 

Immediately  after  his  admission  to  the  Bar,  Mr.  Greenwood 
opened  an  office  in  New  York  City,  in  Nassau  street,  near  Maiden 
lane.  He  came  to  the  labors  of  his  profession  with  the  advan- 
tages we  have  described,  having  laid  a  foundation  of  solid  and 
useful  learning,  with  a  classical  and  scientific  superstructure. 
He  had  applied  himself  to  the  study  of  the  law,  not  merely  as  a 
series  of  precedents  and  arbitrary  rxiles,  and  statements  without 
principles  of  reason  or  induction,  but  as  a  science  applied  to 
rational  government,  the  action  of  men  subordinate  only  to  the 
laws  of  God.  At  first  business  came  slow  to  him  ;  but  he  busied 
himself  with  his  books,  becoming  every  day  a  more  profound 
and  appreciative  student. 

His  industry  and  ability  soon  cleared  the  obstructions  which 
impeded  his  way  to  professional  distinction.  Laborious,  pains- 
taking and  keen-sighted,  he  carefully  studied  and  managed 
every  matter  committed  to  him,  whether  important  or  unimport- 
ant, determined  to  bring  it  to  a  successful  termination. 

In  the  history  of  most  distinguished  lawj'ers  there  is  one  cir- 
cumstance which,  "takenatthe  flood,  leads  to  success,  "and  it  was 
so  with  Judge  Greenwood.  While  slowly  working  his  way  to  suc- 
cess, a  lawyer  of  some  eminence  in  the  city,  but  perhaps  not  a  per- 
fect special  pleader,  was  engaged  to  bring  an  action  against  a  man 
for  slander  of  title,  an  action  peculiar  and  difficult  in  its  nature, 
especially  in  those  days,  when  books  of  form  and  precedent  were 
almost  unknown.  Finding  it  difficult  to  draw  up  the  "  Narr.,"  or 
declaration,  he  consulted  several  lawyers,  with  but  little  success. 
At  last,  a  gentleman  who  knew  of  Mr.  Greenwood's  devotion  to 
his  studies,  and  the  dejith  of  his  research,  referred  the  gentle- 
man to  him.  It  so  happened  that  Greenwood  was  deeply  read 
in  that  subtle  and  profound  work,  Clericalles,  written  in  the  old 
Black  letter,  now  known  to  but  few  of  the  profession.  One  of  its 
departments  contained  a  treatise  on  slander  and  the  slander  of 
title,  with  instructions  as  to  drawing  a  declaration  in  that  tech- 
nical form  of  action. 

When  the  lawyer  was  told  to  seek  the  advice  of  Greenwood  in 
a  matter  of  so  much  importance  he  exhibited  much  surprise. 
"Why,  ray  dear  sir,"  said  he,  "is  he  not  too  young  and  inexpe- 
rienced to  know  anything  about  actions  of  this  kind  ?  "  "  Go 
and  see  him,"  said  his  adviser,  "and  I  am  quite  certain  he  will 
give  you  all  the  information  you  desire."  The  lawyer  obeyed, 
and  went  directly  to  Greenwood's  office.  "  Do  you  think,"  he 
said,  as  he  entered,  "  .you  can  draw  a  declaration  in  a  ease  for 
slander  of  title  against  a  very  wealthy  and  powerful  man  ?  "  "Sit 
down  and  tell  me  the  circumstances,"  said  Greenwood.  The 
lawyer  complied,  and  in  a  few  moments  the  young  attorney  was 
in  possession  of  all  the  facts  in  the  case.  "I  think  I  can,"  was 
his  modest  reply;  "call  to-morrow  afternoon,  and  I  will  show 
you  the  best  I  can  do  in  the  matter."  And  the  lawyer  took  his 
leave.  As  soon  as  the  door  closed  upon  him.  Greenwood  took 
down  his  old  Clericalies  and  went  to  work  at  his  declaration. 
"I  labored  closely  all  that  day,"  said  the  Judge,  "and  till  quite 
late  at  night,  resuming  my  labors  the  next  morning,  and  when 
the  gentleman  called  in  the  afternoon  I  laid  before  him  a  very 
complete  and  well  drawn  declaration.  The  lawj'er,  after  care- 
fully reading  it  over,  expressed  both  his  astonishment  and  grati- 
fication at  the  complete  and  well-drawn  document.  'I  believe,' 
said  he,  '  you  are  the  only  lawyer  in  the  city  that  could  prepare 
such  a  declaration. ' " 

Y'oung  Greenwood  was  fortunate  in  making  the  acquaintance 
and  friendship  of  David  S.  Jones,  Esq.,  son  of  Chancellor  Jones. 


BENCH  AND  BAR   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1315 


This  matter  of  the  successful  declaration  was  soon  noised  about 
the  city  among  the  jjrofession,  and,  to  use  the  language  of  Judge 
Greenwood,  "put  him  upon  his  feet,  professionally." 

A  month  or  two  after  the  occurrence  we  have  described,  a  law- 
yer by  the  name  of  Everson,  a  man  of  respectable  attainments, 
with  a  very  fair  practice,  called  on  Mr.  Greenwood,  as  he  said, 
by  the  request  of  Mr.  Jones.  After  some  conversation,  he  said: 
"  Mr.  Greenwood,  I  have  examined  your  declaration,  in  which 
the  slander  of  title  is  set  up,  and  I  am  convinced  that  a  person 
capable  of  drawing  such  a  pleading  is  essentially  an  able  lawyer. 
I  need  a  partner.  I  have  come  to  propose  a  partnership  between 
you  and  myself."  And  so  it  happened  that,  after  due  reflection 
and  consultation  with  friends,  he  became  the  law  partner  of  Mr. 
Everson. 

Judge  Greenwood's  first  partnership  was,  we  believe,  a  fortu- 
nate one  for  both  parties.  It  continued  for  several  years,  and 
after  its  dissolution  Mr.  Greenwood  continued  to  practice  alone 
until  he  became  a  resident  of  Brooklyn.  His  New  York  clientage 
was  respectable,  large  and  remunerative.  His  knowledge  of  the 
French  language  brought  to  him  many  valuable  ]'>ench  clients. 
He  also  had  a  large  equity  practice,  and  often  appeared  before 
the  Chancellor,  and  before  the  Court  for  the  Correction  of  Errors, 
at  Albany,  as  well  as  being  largely  engaged  in  all  the  city  courts. 

In  1823  he  became  a  resident  of  Brooklyn,  but  continued  his 
office  in  New  York,  where  his  business  was  mainly  conducted, 
down  to  1837,  when  his  practice  in  Brooklyn  became  so  exten- 
sive that  he  withdrew  his  business  from  New  York  to  this  city, 
where  ho  has  continued  down  to  the  present  time.  Some  time 
after  Judge  Greenwood  came  to  Brooklyn  he  formed  a  copart- 
nership with  General  H.  B.  Duryea,  a  lawyer  of  high  standing, 
whose  biography  appears  elsewhere  in  this  work.  This  relation 
was  profitable  to  both  partners,  and  the  firm  soon  took  its  place 
among  the  distinguished  law  firms  in  this  part  of  the  State.  It 
continued  lantil  Judge  Greenwood  was  elected  City  Judge,  when 
it  was  dissolved.  Among  the  important  cases  conducted  by 
Judge  Greenwood,  was  that  of  T/ie  People  ex.  rel.  Norris  L. 
Martin  vs.  The  Mayor  and  Common  Council  of  the  City  of  Brooklyn, 
tried  in  1848.  He  was  associated  in  this  case  with  General 
Duryea.  A  full  report  of  the  case  will  be  found  in  another  part 
of  this  work,  among  "ImiJortant  Trials." 

As  an  advocate,  Judge  Greenwood  is  earnest,  natural,  impres- 
sive, and  often  eloquent.  His  capacity  for  reasoning,  whether 
upon  law  or  fact,  is  of  a  kind  which  always  commands  attention, 
and  produces  conviction.  He  never  speaks  on  any  important 
question  without  ample  preparation;  is  never  incoherent,  never 
feeble,  trivial,  or  tedious.  His  language  flows  easily  and  natur- 
ally, and  is  of  the  purest  and  simplest  English. 

Judge  Greenwood  was  early  attracted  to  the  political  arena, 
usually  so  fascinating  to  lawyers,  especially  young  lawyers. 
Very  early  in  his  professional  career,  his  reading  and  his  convic- 
tions led  him  to  the  principles  of  the  Democratic  party,  in  which 
he  became  an  acknowledged  leader.  In  his  more  ardent  and 
active  career  he  made  many  warm  friends  among  the  great  lights 
of  the  Democratic  party.  Among  these  were  William  L.  Marcy, 
Martin  Van  Buren,  Silas  Wright,  C.  C.  Camberling,  and  many 
others.  His  relations  with  Van  Buren  were  particularly  near 
and  pleasing.  When,  in  1832,  the  United  States  Senate  non-con- 
curred in  the  appointment  of  Mr.  Van  Buren,  on  the  nomination 
of  President  Jackson,  as  Minister  to  England,  Judge  Greenwood 
shared  in  the  general  indignation  of  the  Democrats  of  the  na- 
tion. As  he  was  a  vigorous,  pointed  writer,  he  distinguished 
himself  by  his  eloquent  articles,  severely  denunciatory  of  the 
measure.  These  found  their  way  into  all  the  leading  Democratic 
journals,  and  were  read  with  great  interest.  When  the  Sub- 
Treasury  policy  was  started  Judge  Greenwood  became  a  warm 
advocate  of  the  measure,  and  wrote  the  first  article  ever  pub- 
lished in  Brooklyn  in  its  favor.  It  was  a  calm,  dignified,  ex- 
haustive retrospect  of  our  financial  affairs.  He  gave  an  animated 
history  of  the  embarrassments  which  the  Government  had  been 


obliged  to  encounter,  in  consequence  of  the  failure  of  the  State 
banks  to  perform  their  engagements. 

"This  is  the  third  time,"  he  said,  "that  the  Government  has 
made  trial  of  the  capacity  of  the  banks  chartered  by  the  States 
to  transact  its  financial  concerns,  and  each  time  has  proved  a 
failure.  This  should  convince  all — to  use  the  language  of  a 
great  statesman — 'that  there  is  something  inherent  in  the  nature 
and  constitution  of  the  State  banks  which  renders  them  unsuit- 
able and  unsafe  as  the  keepers  and  dispensers  of  the  public 
treasure.' 

"Therefore,  as  a  national  bank  cannot  be  chartered,  and  as 
the  State  banks  are  manifestly  unsafe,  the  Treasury  of  the  peo- 
ple should  be  kept  by  the  ofticers  of  the  people;  and  there  should 
be  entire  and  total  separation  of  the  business  and  property  of 
the  Government  from  the  business  and  concerns  of  the  banks." 
The  sensibility  and  practicability  of  these  remarks  have  been 
amply  demonstrated  by  the  lapse  of  time. 

It  is  pleasing  to  listen  to  Judge  Greenwood's  description  of  tlie 
fierce  political  contests  which  have  often  made  the  politics  of  the 
State  an  anomaly  in  political  history;  "where  the  prostration 
or  fall  of  one  party  has  alternately  produced  the  elevation  of  the 
other,  which  continued  until  that  other  party  in  its  turn  was 
overthrown.  But,  notwithstanding  all  this,  the  State  has  stead- 
ily advanced  in  wealth,  in  population,  in  physical  and  intellect- 
ual power,  with  a  rapidity  quite  unequaled." 

Judge  Greenwood  often  advocated  the  principles  and  policy 
of  his  party  on  the  rostrum,  where  the  ingenuity  and  eloquence 
of  his  speeches  always  rendered  him  popular  with  the  people. 
But  his  exertions  and  influence  were  so  ardently  devoted  to  the 
success  of  his  party  that  he  gave  little  heed  to  his  own  jjolitical 
aggrandizement.  As  we  shall  see  hereafter,  he  never  held  any 
office  not  intimately  connected  with  his  profession. 

He  has  always  been  a  strong  and  useful  supporter  of  the 
interests  of  Brooklyn,  and  his  name  is  identified  with  very 
many  of  its  great  public  improvements  ;  among  these,  esjie- 
cially,  the  obtaining  of  its  city  charter.  The  difficulties 
attending  this  have  already  been  described  on  pages  528-9  of 
this  work.  Among  those  who  threw  themselves  arden  ly  and 
successfully  into  the  fierce  contest  then  waged  between  Brooklyn 
and  New  York  City,  was  Judge  Greenwood.  He  advocated  a  city 
charter  through  the  press,  in  public  meetings,  and  personally 
before  the  Legislature  at  Albany.  In  the  winter  of  1833  he  suc- 
ceeded in  a  measure,  which  led,  the  ne.\t  year,  1834,  to  a  complete 
victory.  Under  the  charter  thus  secured  for  Brooklyn,  it  com- 
menced its  march  towards  its  present  jiroud  position  among  the 
cities  of  the  nation.* 

The  first  Common  Council  organized  under  this  cliarter,  in 
grateful  remembrance  of  Judge  Greenwood's  services,  unani- 
mously gave  him  a  vote  of  thanks  and  the  sum  of  $7.50.  Refus- 
ing at  first  to  accept  the  money,  he  finally  did  so,  only  to  dis- 
burse it  in  giving  a  grand  dinner  to  the  city  officers,  members  of 
the  Bar,  and  all  who  aided  in  making  Brooklyn  a  city.  As  was 
said  of  Cains  Marins,  ohstat  quic  quid  non  adjuvat.  "Content 
with  deserving  a  triumph,  he  refused  the  honor  of  it." 

Immediately  on  the  formation  of  the  City  Government  and  the 

*  AmoDg  those  who  aided  Judge  Greenwood  in  securing  a  city  charter 
for  Brooklyn,  was  Hon.  Philip  Brashee,  who  represented  Kings  County  in 
the  Assembly  in  1834.  Mr.  Brasher  had  been  a  highly  successful  merchant 
in  the  city  of  New  York,  where  he  had  resided  many  years,  during  which 
time  he  had  amassed  a  large  fortune,  and  had  been  honored  by  many  public 
ofBces.  He  represented  New  York  City  in  six  legislative  sessions.  In 
1832,  he  retired  from  business  and  became  a  resident  of  Brooklyn,  and 
warmly  espoused  the  cause  of  a  city  charier.  Owing  to  his  loiig  experience 
in  the  Legislature,  the  citizens  of  Kings  County  elected  him  as  their  rep- 
resentative in  the  Legislature  at  Albany,  the  county  at  that  time  having 
but  one  member.  He  took  his  seat  in  that  body.  January  4,  1834.  At  this 
time  he  held  iu  his  hand  the  City  Charter,  drawn  by  Judge  Greenwood.  On 
presenting  it,  he  said:  "I  shall  never  return  to  Brooklyn  until  (/ia(  SiK  has 
passed  both  houses  of  the  Legislature."  The  bill  finally  passed  by  a  vote  of 
106  to  1,  the  solitary  negative  vote  being  that  of  Peter  S.  Titus,  a  member 
from  New  York. 


L21G 


BISTORT  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


present  City  Co'irt,  Judge  Greenwood's  abilities  and  services 
to  the  city  were  more  fully  recognized  by  his  nomination  and 
election  as  judge  of  that  court,  his  office  being  known  as 
City  Judge.  He  was  appointed  Corporation  Counsel  in  1842, 
serving  until  about  January  27,  18-13,  when  he  was  appointed, 
by  Governor  Bouck,  First  Judge  of  the  Court  of  Common 
Pleas  of  Kings  County.  He  had  previously  served  several  years 
as  Supreme  Court  Commissioner  and  Master  and  Examiner  in 
Chancery. 

One  of  the  remarkable  cases  conducted  by  him  as  Corporation 
Counsel  was  the  great  Mandamus  Case,  entitled  The  People  ex 
rel.  WorfhinglOH  Hodgkinson  vs.  Alfred  0.  Slevans.  A  reading 
of  this  celebrated  case,  found  in  5th  Hill,  C17,  will  largely  repay 
the  legal,  as  well  as  lay,  reader  in  the  information  it  imparts.  An- 
other important  case  was  that  of  The  Brooklyn  Bank  vs.  Degraw, 
23  Wendle,  342;  and  Brooklyn  Bank  vs.  Warren.  A  full  report  of 
these  cases  will  be  found  under  the  head  of /mportoii  Trials,  The 
reporls  of  the  Supreme  Court  and  the  Court  of  Appeals  contain 
many  cases  which  Judge  Greenwood  argued  before  those  tribu- 
nals. His  briefs  and  arguments  are  terse,  logical  productions, 
not  overcrowded  or  loaded  down  with  precedent,  and  yet  with 
enough  of  precedent  to  clearly  demonstrate  the  proposition  he 
would  maintain.  He  always  commands  the  attention  of  the 
judges,  always  enlightens  their  understanding;  and,  if  he  does 
not  alwa3"s  succeed  in  causing  them  to  coincide  with  him,  it  is 
from  no  lack  on  his  part  of  putting  them  fully  in  possession  of 
the  reason  and  the  law  which  he  presents. 

Judge  Greenwood  carried  to  the  Bench  those  legal  accomiilish- 
ments  which  had  previously  rendered  him  a  sagacious  and  suc- 
cessful lawyer.  His  opinions,  oral  and  written,  did  him  infinite 
credit.  They  are  replete  in  jurisprudential  learning,  distin- 
guished by  logical  vigor,  and  impartiality.  Among  the  opinions 
which  strongly  illustrate  this,  is  that  in  the  case  of  Ileeney  vs. 
Brooklyn  Benevolent  Society,  33  Barb.,  360.  This  opinion  per- 
haps has  been  more  frequently  quoted  by  other  judges  than 
any  found  in  the  books.  With  the  Bar  he  was  genial,  affable 
and  courteous,  and  patient  in  listening  to  arguments  of  counsel, 
and  always  desirous  of  hearing  everything  that  touched  the 
case  at  bar  before  going  to  his  decision.  In  his  charges  to 
juries  he  always  dissipated  obscurities,  and  gave  the  jury  the 
case  in  a  plain,  practical  form,  rendering  their  duties  easy  and 
just. 

We  have  described  Judge  Greenwood  as  a  legal  debater  at  the 
Bar,  as  an  occasional  but  successful  political  orator,  and  in  addi- 
tion to  this,  he  often  appeared  before  the  public,  in  the  more 
active  period  of  his  life,  on  the  lecture  rostrum.  Several  of 
these  efforts  gained  more  than  an  ephemeral  fame.  Space  will 
permit  us  to  refer' to  but  one  of  these;  this  was  his  addre.ss 
delivered  at  the  Academy  of  Music,  in  Brooklyn,  on  Colonel 
Aaron  Burr,  a  production  replete  with  interest,  greatly  admired, 
and  still  vividly  remembered.  So  interesting  a  subject  attracted 
an  immense  audience  from  the  elite  not  only  of  Brooklyn,  but  of 
New  York  City. 

To  use'the  language  of  the  Brooklyn  Eagle  :  "  Never  was  there 
congregated  in  Brooklyn  so  much  intelligence  and  refinement-  - 
was  there  an  audience  so  delighted  and  instructed;  never,  per- 
haps, has  the  time,  character  and  history  of  Aaron  Burr  been 
more  ably,  more  justly,  or  more  truthfully  described." 

Without  any  effort  at  eloquence,  his  address  was  delivered  in 
language  severely  correct  and  pure,  with  sufficient  rhetorical 
drapery  to  cause  the  subject  to  stand  out  in  his  full  propor- 
tions, presenting  Aaron  Burr  precisely  as  he  was,  with  his  faults 
as  well  as  his  virtues  clearly  in  view,  with  no  exaggerations, 
no  excessive  lights  or  shades. 

Judge  Greenwood  clearly  showed  that  Colonel  Burr  is  a 
maligned  character  in  history;  that  many  of  the  invented  scan- 
dals and  bitter  partisan  slanders  generated  in  the  bitter  political 
contests  in  which  he  was  engaged  found  their  way  into  history 
and  thus  have  come   down   to  posterity.     Judge  Greenwood 


freely  admitted  that  Burr  had  many  faults,  but  not  more  than 
many  of  his  contemporaries  ;  not  as  many  as  other  illustrious 
men  of  the  past  and  present  have  had;  but  that  Burr's  have 
been  largely  exaggerated  by  political  rivals  and  jealous  and 
envious  contemjjoraries.  His  trial  for  treason  was  a  farce;  not 
a  particle  of  evidence  showing  his  guilt  was  proved  against  him 
by  the  prosecution.  In  speaking  of  Burr's  gallantries,  he  said: 
"  I  do  not  believe  he  was  any  worse  in  that  respect  than  many 
other  men  of  his  own  and  the  present  day  who  pass  for 
better  men.  The  difference  between  them  is,  there  was  much 
less  disguise  on  his  part  than  on  theirs,  and  he  never  pretended 
to  be  that  which  he  was  not.  Elegant  in  his  manners,  attractive 
in  conversation,  and  pleasing  in  his  personal  appearance,  he  was 
quite  as  much  sought  after  by  the  ladies  as  he  was  a  seeker  after 
them.  I  have  often  heard  him  say  that  he  never  deceived  a 
woman  in  his  life  ;  that  a  man  who  would  deliberately  deceive 
a  woman  in  any  way  was  not  fit  to  live." 

It  is  needless  to  add  that  this  address  was  listened  to  with  the 
profoundest  attention,  and  received  enthusiastic  plaudits  from 
the  brilliant  audience  who  listened  to  it.  Down  to  the  delivery 
of  this  remarkable  lecture,  writers  and  speakers  had  vied  with 
each  other  in  describing  Colonel  Burr  as  a  monster  in  human 
shape,  giving  new  light  and  excessive  exaggerations  to  the  stale 
calumnies  which  his  enemies  had  invented  and  set  in  motion. 
It  remains  for  an  impartial  public  to  judge  calmly  between  those 
writers  and  Judge  Greenwood. 

His  recollections  of  other  men,  given  to  those  who  are  fortu- 
nate enough  to  enjoy  his  acquaintance,  are  greatly  attractive  and 
instructive  ;  for  he  is  a  pleasing  conversationalist,  courteous  and 
agreeable  to  all  who  approach  him.  He  possesses  the  virtues 
that  strengthen  and  adorn  the  relation  of  private  life;  nor  is 
any  man  more  truly  and  deeply  respected  and  beloved,  as  a 
husband,  a  father  and  friend.  He  was  twice  married;  his  first 
marriage  took  place  in  1822,  when  he  were  united  to  Miss 
Catherine  Dobbin,  daughter  of  James  Dobbin,  of  New  York  City. 
She  died  in  1834.  He  was  again  married  in  183C,  to  Miss  Lamer 
daughter  of  a  German  gentleman  for  some  time  connected  in 
business  with  John  Jacob  Astor.  This  estimable  lady  died  in 
the  autumn  of  1881.  There  was  born  to  the  first  marriage  two 
sons;  to  the  last  three  daughters,  one  of  whom  is  now  the  wife 
of  Charles  Stodard,  Secretary  and  Treasurer  of  the  Metropolitan 
Gas  Light  Company  of  Brooklyn. 

Such  is  our  view  of  the  character  of  Judge  John  Greenwood, 
we  trust  candidly  and  impartially  related. 


JOSEPH   NEILSON  AND  THE  TILTON-BEECHER 
TRIAL. 

Mr.  Nellson  was  born  at  Argyle,  N.Y.,  on  the  15th  day  of  April, 
1815.  He  is  of  Scotch-Irish  descent.  His  grandfather,  John  Neil- 
son,  the  founder  of  the  family  in  America,  came  from  the  north  of 
Ireland  in  17G0  with  a  band  of  friends,  and  settled  in  Washing- 
tonCounty,  N.  Y.  They  were  Calvinists  of  the  stricter  sort,  and 
brought  with  them  their  pastor.  Rev.  Dr.  Clark.  The  oldest 
son,  John  Rogers  Neilson,  dropped  the  "e"  in  spelling  the 
name,  and  in  that  respect  the  children  followed  his  example. 
Of  these,  and  the  most  distinguished  of  the  name,  was  Samuel 
Nelson,  who  for  the  unexampled  period  of  half  a  century  con- 
tinuously filled  the  judicial  office,  serving  as  Chief  Justice  of  the 
Supreme  Court  of  the  State  of  New  York,  and  as  the  Associate 
Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States.  A  son  of 
his,  Rensselaer  R.  Nelson,  of  St.  Paul,  Minn,,  is,  and  for  some 
years  has  been,  one  of  the  United  States  District  Judges;  a  man 
of  great  learning,  industry  and  influence. 

Samuel  Neilson,  the  third  son  of  John  Neilson,  was  a  physi- 
cian, and  was  highly  distinguished  in  his  profession.  He  re- 
moved to  Canada,  and  died  there  at  the  age  of  eighty-seven  years. 


BENCH  AND   BAR   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1217 


His  son  Joseph  practiced  law  in  Oswego,  N.  Y.,  until  November, 
1844,  when  he  moved  to  the  city  of  New  York.  On  leaving  Os- 
wego, an  affectionate  address  was  presented  to  him  by  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Bar  of  Oswego  County.  We  find  this  address  in  the 
Oswego  ralladium,  with  the  editorial  warmly  commending  the 
subject  of  it.    Among  other  things,  the  members  of  the  Bar  say: 

"During  the  several  years  of  your  practice  as  an  attorney  and 
counsellor  in  this  place,  we  have  had  abundant  opportunities  of 
becoming  acquainted  with  your  principles  and  qualifications, 
and  have  seen  how  certainly  professional  skill,  severe  application 
to  study,  and  untiring  industry  can  v)in  golden  opinions  from  all 
sorts  of  people.  Although  we  cannot  but  feel  that  in  your  removal 
we  are  losing  a  valuable  citizen  and  an  eloquent  advocate,  yet 
we  are  gratified  by  the  confident  belief  that  your  worth  will  se- 
cure to  you  a  position  in  the  ranks  of  the  profession  elsewhere, 
alike  honorable  to  yourself  and  agreeable  to  us." 

Mr.  Neilson  took  up  his  residence  in  Brooklyn  in  1848,  but 
continued  his  practice  in  the  city  of  New  York,  where  he  had  a 
valuable  clientage,  and  was  engaged  in  many  ciises  of  import- 
ance, until  he  was  elected  one  of  the  judges  of  the  City  Court  of 
Brooklyn.  He  entered  upon  the  judicial  service  in  that  court 
on  the  1st  of  July,  1870,  and  retired  from  it  on  the  last  day  of 
December,  1882. 

Judge  Neilson's  services  full}-  entitle  him  to  distinction  as  a 
man,  as  a  writer,  and  as  a  jurist.  He  was  fortunate  in  having 
descended  from  a  notably  long-lived  stock.  His  sturdy  frame, 
and  the  vigor  and  determination  which  have  formed  the  lines  of 
his  countenance  as  their  fittest  expression,  betoken  stamina  and 
vitality.  A  certain  air  of  rugged  energy,  and  a  manly  and  reso- 
lute bearing,  show  him  to  be  a  man  apart,  and  admirably  befit 
his  station.  His  voice  is  peculiar,  and  at  once  attracts  attention; 
capable  of  great  softness  of  expression,  it  rises  in  rapid  grada- 
tions when  excited  or  aroused.  His  mind  is  distinguished  for 
clearness  and  quickness  of  perception,  strength  of  memory  and 
accuracy  of  reasoning.  He  is  possessed  of  great  firmness  of 
purpose,  and,  as  a  consequence,  his  self-possession  and  patience 
are  not  easily  disturbed.  As  stated  by  Mr.  Bigelow  :  "He  holds 
to  John  Calvin,  denying  the  austerities  imputed  to  the  Institutes, 
but  supi^lements  the  qualification  that  fore-ordination  followed, 
as  a  necessary  consequence,  fore-knowledge.  Judge  Neilson  is 
not  bigoted,  however  ;  he  believes  that  a  pure  spirit  and  devout 
worship  are  accepted  without  regard  to  mere  creeds.  He  has  no 
intellectual  fear;  feels  no  need  of  an  index  expurgatorius.  He 
reads  Emerson,  not  for  his  opinions,  but  because  he  finds  in 
him  greater  power  and  fertility  of  expression  than  in  other  mod- 
ern authors.  He  has  said  that  he  believed  Emerson  must  h.ive 
read  the  Bible  until  his  mind  became  imbued  with  its  literary 
spirit;  that  not  only  he,  but  Walter  Savage  Landor,  Daniel  Web- 
ster, Rufus  Choate  and,  in  later  days,  whoso  uses  the  English 
language  most  powerfully,  must  have  drank  freely  at  the  same 
source;  and  that  in  such  instances  the  benefit  can  be  traced  as 
certainly  as  the  indebtedness  of  Tennyson  for  graces  of  thought 
and  expression  can  be  to  the  Greek.  In  a  late  conversation  with 
critics  at  the  club  he  repelled  an  attack  upon  some  old  authors, 
now  fallen  much  out  of  use,  and  confessed  his  regard  for 
Y'oung's  '  Night  Thoughts  '  and  Hervey's  'Meditations,'  the 
companions  of  his  youth.  He  also  claimed  that  the  human  race, 
in  its  intuitive  wants  and  strivings,  had  given  a  suflicient  an- 
swer to  modern  skeptics,  as  in  all  ages,  climes,  and  conditions 
of  men,  there  had  been  a  desire  to  propitiate  an  overruling 
power;  all  down  the  track  of  history,  crumbling  altars  from 
which  the  smoke  of  sacrifice  had  gone  ui^." 

It  seems  desirable,  in  the  first  instance,  to  consider  Judge 
Neilson's  relation  to  Literature,  especially  as  a  writer.  Judge 
Neilson,  has  been  a  great  reader,  this  is  suggested  by  his  style  as  a 
writer.  Bacon,  Milton,  Johnson  and  Shakespeare,  have  been  his 
familiar  companions.  Gifted  with  an  active  imagination,  Burke, 
Jeremy  Taylor  and  Rufus  Choate  are  in  a  special  degree  his 
favorites.  He  thinks  Walter  Scotland  Charles  Dickens  have  done 
missionary  service  in  elevating  the  race;  iu  teaching  a  spirit  of 


charity  and  kindness  toward  the  poor  and  humble.  Indeed,  he 
values  highly  romantic  literature  when  written  in  a  pure  spirit. 
Some  years  ago  he  contributed  to  the  Home  Magazine,  articles  in 
the  form  of  "Imaginary  Convers.ation,"  between  Dr.  Rudd,  of 
the  Gradagrind  school,  and  Mr.  Jarvis,  who  sought  to  persuade 
him  that  works  of  fiction  might  be  useful.  We  have  selected  a 
few  passages  as  illustrations  of  a  free  conversational  stlye: 

Dr.  Rudd.  "  But  I  cannot  believe  that  you  men  of  the  law 
read  works  of  fiction." 

Mr.  Jarvis.  "They  have  done  so,  to  wit:  Chief  Justice  Mar- 
shall, Thomas  J.  Oakley,  George  Wood  and  others." 

Dr.  R.  "I  had  thought  that  such  men  read  the  law,  ex- 
clusively." 

Mr.  Jarvis.  "Did  you,  when  in  practice,  prescribe  the  'tinc- 
ture of  iron' for  every  patient?  Rufus  Choate  said  'that  for  a 
time  he  read  law  exclusively,  and  dried  his  mind."' 

R.  "  I  don't  know  Mr.  Choate;  sensible  man,  no  doubt.  But 
what  good  have  works  of  fiction  wrought  out?" 

J.  "In  the  first  place,  you  must  remember  that  the  novel  or  ro- 
mance is  not  in  its  details  and  circumstances  a  mere  invention. 
The  most  original  of  such  writers  could  not  make  up  their  sub- 
jects, so  the  story  is  generally  founded  on  fact,  or  an  accepted 
fable — the  characters,  the  delineations  of  known  persons  of  special 
or  shining  qualities." 

R.  "  Yet  I  should  prefer  a  veritable  piece  of  biography." 

J.  "You  might.  But  if  the  author  has  some  good  or  great 
purpose  in  view,  that  purpose  is  worked  out  and  illustrated  by 
the  characters,  acting  each  in  bis  place,  according  to  his  own 
nature,  and  the  mere  biography  becomes  subordinate.  You 
may  state  truth  and  virtue,  or  meanness  and  hypocrisy,  in  the 
concrete,  and  with  logical  and  philosophical  reflections,  to  little 
purpose;  but  give  the  facts  a  peisonality,  visible  to  the  eye,  and 
the  argument  becomes  vivid.  Thus,  to  realize  how  the  suitors 
have  been  held  in  suspense,  in  a  given  case,  generation  after 
generation,  in  an  English  Court  of  Chancery,  follow  the  counsel 
and  the  suitors  into  court;  to  know  the  cruelty  and  starvation  of 
the  Yorkshire  schools,  attend  with  the  new  teacher,  whose  soul 
revolts  on  his  first  day's  service;  to  realize  what  the  condition  of 
a  healthy  sane  man  is  when  consigned  to  a  lunatic  asylum, 
stand  by  him,  as  with  beails  of  perspiration  on  his  brow  he 
listens  to  what  chills  your  own  blood.  Then  conviction,  else  so 
passive,  becomes  active  and  irrepressible.  There  are  instances 
where  despite  petitions,  parliamentary  reports,  speeches  and 
statutes,  all  so  decorous,  proper  and  correct,  a  grievous  wrong 
or  abuse  has  lived  on  and  throve  until  the  so-called  romance 
came  to  the  rescue.  Under  the  novelist's  treatment,  the  fact  in 
its  full  proportions  became  so  real,  so  illustrated  and  intensi- 
fied, that  men  called  his  work  fiction.  It  may  not  have  been 
fiction,  but  the  whole  truth  came  in  new  and  unwonted  aspects; 
as  if  upon  the  hateful  thing,  hid  away  in  dark  streets,  or  behind 
stone  walls,  the  full  light  of  day  had  been  poured  out  for  the 
first  time.  Then  the  indignation  of  honest  men  and  women 
became  aroused;  the  popular  heart  beating  loud  enough  to  dis- 
turb drowsy  officials  in  their  easy  chairs.  Then  the  desired  re- 
form became  easy  and  certain." 

As  illustrations  of  Judge  Neilson's  more  finished  works,  we 
quote  from  one  which  impresses  ns  with  its  vigor,  ability,  ele- 
gance, and  vivacity,  and  with  the  penetration  and  discernment 
of  its  author  as  a  reviewer.  It  is  his  review  of  ' '  Parker's  Reminis- 
cences of  Eufus  Choate,"  which  appeared  in  the  Albany  Law 
JournaX,  and  which  was  introduced  by  the  editor  of  that  journal 
as  follows: 

"It  is  full  of  terse  suggestions  to  be  pondered  by  students, 
and  even  by  authors.  It  is,  moreover,  so  happy  in  illustration, 
so  genial  and  sprightly,  that  the  criticism  becomes  as  exquisite 
and  pleasing  as  it  is  pungent  and  severe.  It  is  gratifying  to 
know  that  a  lawyer  of  Judge  Neilson's  conceded  learning  and 
ability  has  had  the  time  and  the  good  taste  to  cultivate  a  style  at 
once  so  forcible  and  so  pure  and  musical." 

It  was  said  of  Lord  Jefferies,  an  illustrious  Judge,  an  unsparing 
but  elegant  reviewer,  that  it  was  not  the  discovery  of  merit,  but 
the  detection  and  exposure  of  defects;  which  guided  his  pen; 
that  everything  was  forgotten  except  the  agonies  of  his  victims, 
enhanced  by  the  ridicule  under  which  he  suffered.  Not  so 
with  Judge  Neilson.  He  reviews  and  criticises  with  humor  so 
broad,  with  wit  so  genial,  as  to  calm  the  resentful,  and  to  dis- 
arm the  malicious.  As  he  passes  on  with  the  review,  to  which 
we  have  referred,  he  reaches  the  point  where  Parker,  describing 
Choate's  great  powers  as  a  lawyer,  says,  "  After  all,  the  jury  ad- 


1218 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Tocate  must,  to  some  extent,  be  a  momitebank,  if  not  a  jnggler 
or  a  trickster."  A  more  pungent  criticism  than  Judge  Neil- 
son  applies  to  this  remark  is  not  found  in  the  language  of  satire, 
and  nowhere  is  there  a  more  enlarged  and  truthful  considera- 
tion of  the  duties  and  responsibilities  of  an  advocate,  in  so  brief 
a  space.     Says  Judge  Neilson : 

"Uncharitable  things  have  been  said  of  many  great  advocates; 
but,  as  an  illustration,  the  worst  thing  ever  said  of  Choate  was, 
that  he  could  play  the  artful  diKli/e  in  reading  an  affidavit.  That 
was  but  a  rude  description  of  jine,  forcible,  effective  reading; 
reading  which  gives  significance  and  character  to  vital  passages, 
discloses  the  latent  sense  and  spirit,  aids  the  apprehension,  and 
receives  a  certain,  and  it  may  be  a  favorable,  interpretation. 
Such  a  reader,  natural,  yet  artistic,  '  tells  the  great,  greatly;  the 
small,  subordinately;'  and  thus  we  have  heard  Macready  play 
the  artful  dodge;  thus  Fanny  Kemble  Butler;  thus  the  gentle 
Melancthon  may  have  read ;  thus  every  pulpit  orator,  from  Whit- 
field down. 

With  all  his  gifts  and  acquisitions,  the  advocate  must  be  a  high- 
toned,  moral  man,  not  a  harlequin;  a  vital  utterance,  not  a  mere 
sham.  Jurors  are  representative  men,  coming  from  the  entire 
circle  of  the  social  zodiac,  and  are  practical,  sensible,  and  often 
sagacious  men,  as  fond  of  fair  dealing  in  counsel  as  in  suitors." 

Speaking  of  the  office  of  the  author  of  those  reminiscences, 
Neilson  says:  "In  personal  delineations  of  this  nature  the  true 
author  is  sympathetic;  his  purpose  fills  his  heart  and  brain, 
takes  possession  of  all  his  faculties;  he  feels  as  one  of  old  did, 
when  he  said:  '  Woe  is  me  if  I  preach  not  this  gospel!'  " 

There  is  much  in  this  review  that  exhibits  the  most  perfect 
critical  skill.  It  closes  with  delicate  and  finely  shaded  touches 
of  sadness,  suggested  by  some  phases  of  Choate's  life,  revealing 
deep  fountains  of  generous  sympathy  in  the  heart  of  the  learned 
reviewer.     He  .says: 

"  We  have  always  had  a  fondness  for  Mr.  Choate,  the  unique 
man  of  his  day,  so  brilliant,  yet  so  logical.  Thanks  to  tlie 
author,  we  now  see  him  in  new  phases  of  life,  and  learn  many 
things  about  him  unknown  before.  But  we  close  the  book,  and 
muse  in  sadness.  Poor  Choate  !  What  severance  and  alienation 
.  from  the  sources  of  life,  health,  and  elasticity  !  He  had  no  Ash- 
land, no  Marshfleld,  no  Sunnyside;  no  flocks  or  herds;  no  fields 
of  golden  grain;  but  the  scl^ool,  the  closed  study,  the  dusty 
street,  the  crowded  forum;  so  half  his  nature  was  stifled  in  its 
growth,  if  not  killed.  How,  through  life,  he  turned  blindly 
from  the  smiling  mother  earth,  when,  as  only  a  true  mother  can, 
she  would  have  comforted  and  soothed  him  !  How  he  looked 
on  coldly  while  his  school-fellows  enjoyed  sports  ordained  for 
him  I  How,  in  later  years,  he  read,  and  read  when  a  gorgeous 
sunset  or  a  waving  forest  would  have  fed  his  famished  spirit ! 
How  he  brooded  about  books,  as  he  passed  inspiring  landscapes, 
and  felt  no  thrill  as  they  spoke  to  him  !  How  he  treasured  up  and 
tried  to  love  a  piece  of  cold  statuary,  but  had  no  interest  in  the 
perfection  of  form  and  motion — man's  friend  in  service — though 
he  trots  the  air,  and  the  earth  sings  as  he  touches  it;  though  his 
neigh  is  like  the  bidding  of  a  monarch,  and  his  countenance  en- 
forces homage." 

An  address  delivered  by  Judge  Neilson  at  the  opening  of 
"The  Annual  Exhibition  of  the  Brooklyn  Industrial  Institute," 
in  1H73  (published  in  pamphlet  form),  was  described  in  the 
newpapers  of  the  day  as  a  remarkable  production  as  to  style, 
comprehensiveness  and  thought.  We  cite  a  few  passages,  feel- 
ing quite  confident  that  they  will  find  a  responsive  acceptance 
in  the  minds  of  our  readers,  although  the  subject  he  discusses  is 
a  dry  one,  in  which  no  man  but  Judge  Neilson  could  touch  a 
chord  of  sympathy.  Thus,  in  speaking  of  labor-saving  machines, 
he  says: 

"The  labor-saving  machine  characterizes  the  nineteenth  cen- 
tury, and  in  its  inception  and  growth  is  indigenous  to  this 
country.  It  has  made  good  a  thousand-fold  the  poetic  concep- 
tions of  the  good  fairies  bringing  gilts;  of  the  Scaudivian  troll 
lifting  the  cart  out  of  the  mire,  and  in  the  dark  threshing  out 
the  corn;  and  of  Briareus  with  a  hundred  hands.  It  works  on 
what  might  be  too  trifling  to  confer  credit,  as  steadily  as  on 
what  the  armies  of  the  Republic  wait  for;  is  neither  proud, 
nor  exclusive,  nor  capricious." 

-  He  then  describes  the  rapid  improvement  in  American  labor- 
saving  machines,  particularly  agricultural  machinery ;  after  which 
he  refers,  in  the  following  touching  manner,  to  the  fate  and 
fortunes  of  the  inventors  of  these  wonderful  improvements: 


"But  almost  every  earthly  thing,  the  work  or  device  of  man, 
however  grand  and  beautiful,  has  some  qualification  casting  a 
shade  of  sorrow  over  our  joy.  Thus,  as  we  testify  our  gratitude 
to  the  invent  jrs  who  have  nursed  in  their  souls,  and  with  long 
travail,  as  in  pain,  breathed  forth  the  marvelous  conceptions 
embodied  in  these  artificial  workers  for  our  fields,  and  mines, 
and  factories,  we  cannot  forget  that  many  of  them  fainted  by 
the  way,  died  without  seeing  the  fruits  of  their  labors.  Even 
in  the  cases  of  some  of  those  who  are  known  and  remembered, 
what  delay,  what  discouragement,  what  despair,  as  they  sat  by 
the  wayside,  waiting  long  for  the  tardy  recognition  !" 

Having  dwelt  upon  our  material  wealth,  coal  mines  and 
minerals,  in  relation  to  our  national  greatness,  such  as  might 
satisfy  the  pride  of  any  people,  he  continues: 

"  But  our  highest  claim  to  respect,  as  a  nation,  rests  not  in  the 
gold,  nor  in  the  iron  and  the  coal,  nor  inventions  and  dis- 
coveries, nor  in  agricultural  productions,  nor  in  our  wealth, 
grown  so  great  that  a  war  debt  of  billions  fades  out  under  min- 
istrations of  the  revenue  collector,  without  fretting  the  people  ; 
nor,  indeed,  all  these  combined.  That  claim  finds  its  true  ele- 
ments in  our  systems  of  education  and  of  unconstrained  reli 
gious  worship;  in  our  wise  and  just  laws,  and  the  purity  of  their 
administration;  in  the  conservative  spirit  with  which  the 
minority  submit  to  defeat  in  a  hotly-contested  election ;  in  a  tree 
I^ress;  in  that  broad  humanity  which  builds  hospitals  and 
as}-lums  for  the  poor,  sick  and  insane  on  the  confines  of  every 
city;  in  the  robust,  manly,  buoyant  spirit  of  a  people  competent 
to  admonish  others  and  rule  themselves;  and  in  the  achieve- 
ments of  that  people  in  every  department  of  thought  and 
learning." 

On  the  proceedings  at  the  Acadamy  of  Music,  Brooklyn, 
Decoration  Day,  1877,  a  day  made  memorable  by  the  splemlid 
oration  of  Gen.  Eoger  A.  Prior,  Judge  Neilson  presided.  In  his 
introductory  remarks  he  referred  to  the  Soldiers'  Home,  then  a 
new  institution,  and  then,  as  if  three  years  had  passed,  thus 
pleasingly  assumes  the  work  completed,  he  says: 

"The  land  has  been  secured,  the  funds  largely  obtained,  and 
the  work  has  been  commenced.  As  the  vision  rises  before  me, 
I  choose,  in  anticipation,  to  regard  the  work  as  finished,  the  last 
stone  laid,  the  last  nail  driven,  this  30th  day  of  May,  18HU.  In 
the  morning  light  it  looks  as  beautiful  as  the  chosen  City  of  the 
King.  It  is  the  more  fit  for  its  sacred  use,  as  no  debt  rests  upon 
it  to  mar  or  corrode  its  bloom.  This  is  the  day  of  its  consecration. 
You  throw  open  the  gates  widely  and  take  the  soldier  by  the 
hand.  You  say,  'Sir,  this  is  your  land;  enter  as  the  heir  of  a 
generous  people.  These  shady  walks  are  yours,  this  house  is 
yours,  this  your  room.  Take  the  easy  chair  by  the  open  window 
and  look  out  upon  the  landscape.'  You  stand  by  him  and  note 
how  his  poor  tremulous  hands  move,  how  his  face  flushes,  how 
his  grim  visage  grows  almost  handsome,  the  tears  coursing  down 
his  cheeks.  You  hear  his  voice  and  bend  to  listen ;  he  is  utter- 
ing thanks  to  God  and  thanks  to  men.  He  repeats  the  word 
'  Home !  Home  !'  perhaps  contrasting  this  with  the  home  of  his 
childhood,  and  forgetting  the  troubled  time,  a  dreary  waste,  that 
lies  between.  But  he  puts  a  question  in  a  voice  so  surcharged 
with  emotion  that  you  do  not  catch  the  sense.  He  repeats  it, 
and  you  answer,  '  Y'es,  you  will  have  part  in  that  also.  When 
yon  leave  this  for  j'our  final  resting-place  upon  the  hill,  you  will 
be  remembered  on  Decoration  Day.'  He  seems  content,  and  you 
leave  him  to  his  meditations. 

"Ladies  and  gentlemen,  we  are  told,  and  I  think  truly,  that 
the  trees  upon  the  range  of  hills,  and  on  the  mountain  summits, 
entice  to  the  earth  the  else  forgetful  rain.  But  more  surely  shall 
such  service  and  charity  of  a  people,  exemplifying  so  nearly  the 
teachings  of  the  Master,  draw  down  from  Heaven  a  ble.ssing  bo 
large  that  there  shall  not  be  room  enough  to  receive  it." 

On  the  first  day  of  August,  1875,  Judge  Neilson  delivered  an 
address  before  the  Young  Men's  State  Christian  Association, 
which  was  highly  commended  by  the  press  for  its  opulence  of 
thought  and  felicity  of  diction.  In  impressing  upon  his  audience 
the  cause  they  have  for  gratitude  to  those  who  had  worked  for 
their  intellectual  benefit,  and  the  slow  growth  of  principle,  he 
uses  the  following  happy  illustration: 

"At  the  seashore  you  jjick  up  a  pebble  fashioned,  after  a  law 
of  nature,  in  the  form  that  best  resists  pressure,  and  worn  as 
smooth  as  glass.  _^  It  is  so  perfect  that  you  take  it  as  a  keepsake. 
But  could  you  know  its  history  from  the  time  when,  a  rough 
fragment  of  rock,  it  fell  from  the  overhanging  cliff  into  the  sea, 
to  be  taken  possession  of  by  under  currents,  and  dragged  from 
one  ocean  to  another,  perhaps  around  the  world,  for  a  hundred 


BENCH  AND  BAR   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1219 


years,  until,  in  reduced  and  perfect  form,  it  was  cast  upon  the 
beach,  as  you  tind  it,  you  would  have  a  fit  illustration  of  what 
many  principles  now  in  familiar  use  have  endured — thus  tried, 
tortured  and  fashioned  during  the  ages.  We  stand  by  the  river 
and  admire  the  great  body  of  water  Bowing  so  sweetly  on:  could 
you  trace  it  back  to  its  source  you  might  find  a  mere  rivulet,  but 
meandering  on,  joined  by  other  streams,  and  by  secret  springs, 
and  fed  by  the  rsvius  and  dews  of  Heaven,  it  gathers  volume  and 
force,  makes  its  way  through  the  gorges  of  the  mountains, 
plows,  widens  and  deepens  its  channel  through  the  provinces, 
and  attains  it  present  majesty.  Thus  it  is  that  our  truest  systems 
of  science  had  small  beginnings,  gradual  and  countless  contri- 
butions, and  finally  took  their  place  in  use,  as  each  of  you,  from 
helpless  childhood,  have  grown  to  your  present  strength  and 
maturity.  No  such  system  could  be  born  in  a  day.  It  was  not 
as  when  nature,  in  fiiful  pulsations  of  her  strength,  suddenly 
lifted  the  land  into  mountain  ranges;  but  rather  as,  with  small 
accretions,  gathered  in  during  countless  years,  she  builds  her 
islands  in  tlie  seas.  It  took  a  long  time  to  learn  the  true  nature 
and  office  of  governments;  to  discover  and  secure  the  principles 
commonly  indicated  by  such  terms  as  'magna  charta,'  the  'bill 
of  rights,'  'habeas  oorpus,'  and  the  'right  of  trial  by  jury;'  to 
found  the  family  home,  with  its  laws  of  social  order,  regulating 
the  rights  and  duties  of  each  member  of  it,  so  that  the  music  at 
the  domestic  hearth  might  flow  on  without  discord — the  house- 
hold gods  so  securely  planted  that  'though  the  wind  and  the  rain 
might  enter,  the  king  might  not;'  to  educate  noise  into  music, 
and  music  into  melody;  to  infuse  into  the  social  code  and  into 
the  law  a  spirit  of  Christian  charity,  something  of  the  benign 
temper  of  the  New  Testament,  so  that  no  man  could  be  perse- 
cuted for  conscience'  sake,  so  that  there  should  all  of  human 
sacrifice  for  mere  faith  or  opinion;  the  smouldering  fire  at  the 
foot  of  the  stake  put  out  now,  thank  God,  as  effectually  as  if  all 
the  waters  that  this  night  flood  the  rivers  had  been  poured  in 
upon  them.  It  took  a  long  time  to  learn  that  war  was  a  foolish 
and  cruel  method  of  settling  international  difi'erenees,  as  com- 
pared with  arbitration;  to  learn  that  jiiracy  was  less  profitable 
than  a  liberal  commerce;  that  unpaid  lalior  was  not  as  good  as 
well  regulated  toil  ;  that  a  splenetic  old  woman,  falling  into 
trances  and  shrieking  prophecies,  was  a  fit  subject  for  the 
asylum  rather  thau  to  be  burned  as  a  witch.  It  took  a  long,  long 
time  after  the  art  of  printing  had  been  perfected,  before  we 
learned  the  priceless  value,  the  sovereign  dignity  and  usefulnes< 
of  a  free  press." 

Chief  Justice  Neilson  has  a  profound  regard  for  Sydney 
Smith,  and  wishes  to  rescue  his  fame  from  the  trivial  estimate 
of  him  which  obtains  among  us.  His  pen  has  done  very  much 
to  effect  this  object;  and  in  a  lecture  delivered  before  the  Lay 
College,  Judge  Neilson  succeeded,  by  ingenious  and  unanswer- 
able arguments,  founded  on  facts,  in  placing  the  name  of  Sydney 
Smith  where  it  belongs— among  great  intellectual  lights.  This 
lecture  was  published  in  the  Brooklyn  Ecujle,  and  made  its  way 
from  the  columns  of  that  paper  info  the  leading  magazines  and 
journals,  eliciting  liberal  and  highly  favorable  reviews. 

Judge  Neilson  occupies  a  conspicuous  place  as  a  legal  writer, 
and  has  largely  enriched  the  legal  literature  of  the  nation.  The 
leading  legal  magazines  of  the  country  bear  ample  evidence  of 
this,  while  the  pages  of  our  law  reports  contain  many  of  his 
well-reasoned  opinions. 

Thus  far,  we  have  allowed  Judge  Neilson  to  speak  for  himself, 
in  his  own  style  and  manner,  on  a  variety  of  topics.  We  cannot, 
however,  take  leave  of  this  branch  of  our  subject  without  refer- 
ring to  another  fragment,  taken  from  a  series  of  articles  written 
by  him,  and  published  in  the  Hew  York  Imlependent. 
Treating  of  men  and  methods  of  the  olden  times,  he  refers  to 
Coke  and  Bacon,  and  contrasts  somewhat  their  peculiarities. 
Keferring  to  the  conferences  which  the  king  had  with  the 
judges,  often  seeking  to  secure  their  support  of  his  legal  plans, 
he  says  that  "  In  one  of  these  conferences  Coke  thought  to  teach 
James  I.  that  he  was  not  above  the  law,  could  not  add  to  or  alter 
it,  or  create  new  offenses.  At  another  interview.  Bacon,  the 
attorney-general,  present,  and  supporting  the  king  in  his  arro- 
gant pretensions,  the  question  was  put  whether  the  judges  would 
obey  the  royal  mandates.  All  the  other  judges,  infirm  of  purpose, 
answered  yes  ;  but,  with  the  moderation  and  dignity  which  be- 
came his  office.  Coke  said  :  'When  the  case  happens,  I  shall  do 
that  which  shall  be  fit  for  a  judge  to  do.' 

"  By  his  independence  Coke  paved  the  way  for  his  dismissal  from 
office,  a  disgrace  for  which  Bacon,  neither  the  greatest  nor  mean- 
est of  mankind,  had  toiled,  and  in  which  he  enjoyed  a  tempor- 


ary triumph.  But  though,  in  that  deprivation,  Coke  revealed 
what  Sheridan  might  have  called  '  the  flabby  part  of  his  charac- 
ter,' he  was  thus  left  free  to  act  as  a  statesman. 

"  We  call  up  in  review  before  us  the  life  of  Coke  with  alter- 
nate emotions  of  regret,  shame,  sorrow,  pride  and  consolation. 
Was  that  life  as  a  journey  of  a  day?  If  so,  it  was  by  pathways 
through  dreary  and  desolate  wastes,  over  Serbonian  bogs,  euch 
footstep  sinking  in  the  slime,  but  occasionally  leading  up  to  Al- 
pine hights,  glowing  with  celestial  light  and  beauty.  It  was  a 
life  often  marred  by  want  of  moral  tone ;  often  redeemed  by 
elevated  sentiments  ;  full- of  distortions  and  contradictions.  As 
the  Speaker  when  in  Parliament,  under  Elizabeth,  he  was  shame- 
fully subservient ;  as  a  crown  officer,  extorting  confessions  from 
prisoners  put  to  the  torture,  he  was  pitiless  ;  as  uttering  re- 
proaches and  accusations  against  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  on  trial  for 
his  life,  he  was  fierce  and  brutal  His  devotion  to  study  and  his 
mastery  of  the  law  were  unprecedented;  his  assertion  of  his  rights 
as  ajudge,  against  royal  intrusion,  was  admirable;  his  intrigue  to 
regain  the  royal  favor  by  the  marriage  of  his  daughter  to  the 
brother  of  Buckingham  was  intolerable ;  bis  independence, 
virtue,  courage,  devotion  in  Parliament,  under  James  I.  and 
Charles  I.  gave  special  grace  and  value  to  the  history  of  thetimes. 
But  our  sensibilities  are  touched  when  we  find  him  a  prisoner  in 
the  Tower  of  London.  The  room  in  which  he  is  confined,  long 
devoted  to  ignoble  uses,  becomes  sacred.  We  enter  with  rever- 
ence, as  upon  holy  ground.  He  is  absorbed  in  his  work  on  the 
Commentaries.  As  he  writes  the  hand  is  tremulous  ;  but  that 
hand  had  never  been  polluted  by  accepting  bribes. 

"  In  some  aspects  of  life  and  character  Coke  appears  to  greater 
advantage  than  Bacon.  Both  were  insatiate  in  their  ambition, 
implacable  in  their  resentments.  The  one  was  rough  in  man- 
ners, arrogant  in  speech,  ready  to  strike  terrible  blows  openly; 
but  poor  in  feigning  and  clumsy  in  changing  his  ground.  The 
other  was  courtly,  plausible,  serene,  had  a  gentle  touch,  even 
when  that  touch  boded  ruin,  was  an  athlete  in  fencing  with 
cunning  words,  had  the  facial  adroitness  of  a  trimmer,  was 
covetous,  to  his  own  disgrace  and  ruin.  Those  who  dislike  the 
one  may  well  despise  the  other.  For  neither  of  them  can 
we  feel  the  love  and  sj'mpathy  we  have  for  Sir  John  Fortescue 
and  Sir  Thomas  More.  In  scientific  speculation,  no  jurist  has 
commanded  as  much  respect  as  Bacon.  In  exact  and  profound 
knowledge  of  the  old  common  and  statute  law,  none  could 
rival  Coke.  But,  in  view  of  the  times  in  which  they  lived,  the 
work  allotted,  and  the  materials  in  which  they  wrought,  it 
would  be  unjust  to  weigh  and  estimate  their  labors  with  refer- 
ence to  the  more  enduring  and  fruitful  services  of  the  great 
English  jurists  and  statesmen  of  later  days.  In  the  freedom  of 
judicial  inquiry  and  direction,  in  the  temper  of  the  people,  the 
condition  of  trade  and  commerce,  and  in  the  character  of  legis- 
lation, there  had  been  a  great  advance  between  their  time  and 
that  of  Hardwick.  Coke  and  Bacon  could  not  for  any  practical 
purpose  have  adapted  their  work  to  the  coming  and  higher 
civilization.  As  in  the  natural  world  we  have  progress  and  rota- 
tion, each  season  performing  its  appropriate  office,  so  in  the  in- 
tellectual, social,  and  political  life  of  a  people  events  are  mar- 
shalled in  due  order  and  relation — a  gradual  development.  What 
was  easy  of  achievement  when  the  times  were  ripe  for  it  would 
have  been  impossible  if  attempted  prematurely  or  out  of  season. 
When  Mansfield  moulded  and  illustrated  our  commercial  law  the 
materials  were  at  hand,  plastic  and  ready  for  use." 

We  have  referred  to  Judge  Neilson's  review  of  Parker's 
reminiscences  of  Rufus  Choate.  In  the  Spring  of  1884,  Judge 
Neilson  published  a  work  on  Mr.  Choate,  written  with  his 
characteristic  vigor,  in  a  style  clear,  forcible  and  vivacious. 
Among  the  great  merits  of  the  work  is  the  intellectual  strength 
it  exhibits,  its  originality  and  the  easy  and  varied  narration  of 
the  events  in  the  life  of  that  great  lawyer.  Public  opinion  and 
the  judgment  of  the  best  and  fairest  critics  will  sustain  us  in 
saying  that  it  is  by  far  the  ablest  work  on  Rufus  Choate,  ever 
before  published.  We  regret  that  want  of  space  prevents  us 
from  giving  a  more  extended  description  of  this  admirable 
work;  but  perhaps  regret  in  this  direction  is  only  confined  to 
us,  for  the  book  is  before  the  public  and  needs  no  review,  how- 
ever ably  written,  to  render  it  a  favorite  with  a  reading  public. 
It  will,  on  its  own  merits,  be,  regarded  as  a  standard  con- 
tribution to  American  literature. 

We  shall  now  briefly  consider  the  judicial  career  of  Joseph 
Neilson,  though  the  extent  of  his  work  during  the  twelve  and 
one-half  years  he  was  on  the  Bench  cannot  be  mentioned  in  de- 
tail. The  causes  decided  by  him  involved  many  rare  and  diffi- 
cult legal  questions  ;  for  instance,  as  to  the  consideration,  im- 


1220 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS   COUNTY. 


moral,  which  destroys  a  contract ;  as  to  the  peculiar  contract 
which  in  its  nature  dies  with  the  j^erson,  and  cannot  be  revived  ; 
as  to  the  liability  of  a  landlord  to  a  sub-tenant,  injured  by  an  ex- 
plosion in  the  house  ;  as  to  the  effect  of  a  covenant  in  a  deed, 
granting  land,  restraining  the  erection  of  a  building  on  a  part  of 
it ;  as  to  the  reclamation  of  money  paid  on  an  unfounded  claim 
if  by  mistake;  as  to  a  father's  right  to  require  the  Children's  Aid 
Society  to  return  his  son  who  had  been  sent  West.  These,  and 
other  cases  of  importance,  have  been  reported  by  Mr.  Abbott. 

In  the  case  of  Iloman  v.  Earle,  breach  of  promise  of  marriage, 
in  which  a  verdict  of  $15,000  was  recovered,  a  novel  and  peculiar 
question  arose.  Both  the  plaintiffaud  defendant  were  examined, 
and  testified  that  no  request  to  marry  and  no  promise  to  marry 
was  expressed.  The  testimony  at  large  was  to  the  effect  that  the 
defendant  had  paid  great  attention  to  t'.ie  plaintiff.  Visits  and 
devotion  continued  through  several  months.  Thereupon,  Judge 
Emott,  counsel  for  the  defendant,  moved  to  dismiss  the  com- 
plaint, on  the  grounds  that,  as  appeared  from  the  undisputed 
testimony,  there  was  no  promise  of  marriage  ;  that  the  prac- 
tice which  had  prevailed  before  parties  could  be  witnesses,  of 
allowing  a  jury,  upon  proof  of  intentions,  circumstances,  to  infer 
a  promise  to  marry,  no  longer  jjrevailed.  The  question  was  im- 
portant. In  his  charge  to  the  jury,  Judge  Neilson,  after  stating 
that  there  must  bo  a  contract  and  a  proof  of  it,  or  the  plaintiff 
could  not  recover,  said:  "If  all  the  circumstances,  taken 
together— words,  attentions,  demonstrations,  more  or  less 
earnest,  assiduous  and  affectionate — amounted  to  a  declaration  of 
an  intent  to  marry  her,  to  an  assurance  that  that  was  what  he 
sought — was  his  conclusion — if  he  intentionally  led  her  to  so  un- 
derstand it,  and  she,  in  response,  accepted  that  declaration;  if 
there  was  a  meeting  of  minds  on  that  as  an  engagement  between 
them  to  marry,  the  implied  contract  necessary  to  sustain  the 
action  has  been  proved."  Thus,  and  in  other  ways,  the  judge 
taught  the  j  ury  that  the  contract  to  marry  could  be  made  witijOut 
words— a  doctrine  that  excited  much  criticism.  But  it  was 
affirmed  at  the  General  Term  and  by  the  Court  of  Appeals 
(12  Abb.  K.,  N.  S.,  402  ;  53  N.  Y.  E.,  267).  It  may  be  safely  said 
that  a  more  clear-cut  proposition  of  law  was  never  stated  than 
that  quoted  above,  yet  it  was  conceived  and  uttered  in  the  haste 
and  exitement  of  a  jury  trial. 

We  cannot  pursue  these  cases  further,  though  we  pass  by 
some  of  novel  interest,  including  that  in  which  the  judge  held 
that  a  married  woman  could  maintain  an  action  for  damages 
against  another  woman  who  had  enticed  away  her  husband — the 
first  case  of  this  kind  ever  tried  in  this  State. 

It  was  the  fortune  of  Chief  Justice  Neilson  to  preside  at  one  of 
the  most  remarkable  trials  recorded  in  the  legal  history  of  this 
country.     This  was 

77(6  TiUon-Beecher  Case. — Though  the  excitement,  the  pas- 
sions and  the  prejudices  which  this  great  case  engendered  have 
nearly  passed  away  (forgotten  with  the  allegations  on  which  it 
was  founded  and  on  which  it  was  defended),  it  is  still  invested, 
and  always  will  be,  with  an  historic  interest.  This  interest  is 
much  the  same  as  that  with  which  we  regard  the  history  of  some 
great  battle  of  the  past,  without  giving  much  attention  to  the 
causes  which  led  to  the  war  in  which  it  was  an  event,  becaus  e  of 
its  "magnificently  grand  array;"  its  splendid  generalship;  its 
brilliiint  manoeuvring;  its  dashing  charges;  its  attacks  and  its 
repulses. 

After  an  exciting  preliminary  contest,  brought  on  by  a  motion 
for  an  order  compelling  the  plaintift"s  lawyers  to  produce  a  bill 
of  particulars  of  the  allegations  in  their  complaint,  the  trial  in 
chief  commenced  on  the  11th  of  January,  1875,  occupying  112 
days. 

Samuel  D.  Morris,  Thomas  E.  Pearsall,  Roger  A.  Pryor, 
Austin  Abbott,  Wm.  Fullerton  and  Wm.  A.  Beach,  were  for  the 
plaintiff;  Thomas  G.  Shearman,  John  W.  Sterling,  John  K.  Por- 
ter, Benjamin  F.  Tracy,  John  L.  Hill  and  William  M.  Evarts, 
for  the  defendant.  A  more  imposing  array  of  counsel  never  ap- 
peared in  any  case — men  of  great  learning  and  experience,  of 
high  character  in  public  and  professional  reputation.  The  pleas 
of  counsel,  and  many  arguments  upon  questions  of  special  and 
novel  interest,  will  be  found  in  the  report  of  the  case,  in  three 
volumes.    Another  rei)ort,  with  legal  notes  by  Mr.   Abbott,  is 


given  in  two  volumes.  The  cause  was  opened  for  the  plaintiff  by 
Judge  Morris,  in  an  address  of  much  force  and  brilliancy  with 
dexterous  detail  of  facts  which  effectually  put  the  j  ury  in  posses- 
sion of  the  full  knowledge  of  the  plaintiff's  case.  The  defense 
was  opened  by  Mr.  Tracy,  since  a  distinguished  judge  of  the 
Court  of  Appeals.  If,  as  was  asserted  by  Lord  Eldon,  a  case 
that  is  well  opened  is  more  than  half  tried ;  the  opening  of  Judge 
Tracy  greatly  accelerated  the  progress  of  this  trial.  It  was  a  mas- 
terly legal  effort.  In  the  progress  of  the  trial,  all  the  counsel 
engaged  in  it,  like  Homer's  heroes  before  and  behind  the  walls 
of  Troy,  took  part  in  this  great  legal  contest.  Mr.  Pryor,  as  ap- 
pears from  the  report  of  the  Ciise,  as  occasions  arose,  was  lumi- 
nous in  his  presentation  of  the  law;  while  Mr.  Shearman, 
with  equal  force  and  incisive  eloquence,  often  discussed  difticult 
legal  questions,  and  each  of  the  lawyers  named  won  fresh  for- 
ensic honors  in  sustaining  the  parts  assigned  them  in  the  case. 
As  was  said  of  Chief  Justice  Marshall  in  the  trial  of  Aaron  Burr, 
Judge  Neilson,  "calm,  dignified  and  attentive  analyzed  the 
arguments  of  counsel,  noted  their  relevancy  with  the  nicety  of  a 
critic,  justifying  the  reputation  which  he  always  had  of  spotless 
purity  and  soundness  of  judgment,"  and  yet  perhaps  no  trial 
at  nisi  prJHS  ever  so  completely  tested  the  patience  and  endur- 
ance of  a  court;  no  judge  ever  more  fully  felt  the  responsibility 
of  his  trust  or  discharged  it  with  more  courteous  firmness,  with 
more  of  that  "close  investigating  faculty  which  ought  to  belong 
to  those  who  sit  on  the  Bench." 

While  the  Chief  Justice  often  sought  to  shorten  the  arguments 
to  lessen  delays,  and  hurry  forward  the  counsel,  he  was  not  in- 
sensible to  the  fact  that  something  was  due,  that  much  was  due  to 
the  judgement  of  counsel  seeking  to  discharge  their  professional 
duties.  His  patience  was  proverbial,  and  there  was  an  acquies- 
cence of  counsel  in  his  rulings  and  decisions  not  often  seen  in 
any  trial,  especially  in  trials  of  this  importance. 

'The  evidence  in  this  case  closed  on  Tuesday,  May  18,  1875, 
the  eighty-fifth  day  of  the  trial;  the  remainder  of  that  trial  was 
devoted  to  the  argument  of  the  respective  counsel,  which  ex- 
hausted twenty-three  days.  The  case  was  presented  to  the  jury 
by  distinguished  advocates  in  a  manner  worthy  of  its  import- 
ance, and  with  an  earnestness  evincing  a  strong  conviction  felt 
by  them  that  the  law  and  the  right  was  with  them.  A  degree  of 
eloquence  seldom  displayea  on  any  occasion  embellisned  a 
solidity  of  argument  which  must  greatly  have  aided  the  jury  in 
their  deliberations;  these  arguments  will  always  be  read  with 
the  deepest  interest.  The  aro-ument  in  support  of  the  defend- 
ant was  opened  by  John  K.  Porter,  on  the  morning  of  May  19. 
The  reputation  of  the  speaker  and  the  occasion  summoned  to 
the  court-room  an  immense  audience,  composed  of  the  most 
prominent  citizens;  never  was  there  an  audience  more  highly 
gratified;  "every  fact,  suggestion  or  implication  involved  in  the 
testimony — almost  incredible  power  of  clear  and  brilliant 
illustration  and  methodical  arrangement  -characterized  the 
address.  A  striking  feature  of  it  was  the  force  with  which  little 
points  of  evidence,  mere  momentary  flashes  of  light  cast  by  briet, 
and  almost  unnoticed  expressions  of  the  witnesses,  were  brought 
to  bear  by  the  skillful  orator." 

Mr.  Porter  closed  his  great  speech  in  the  following  beautiful 
peroration : 

"  I  am  reluctant  to  part  with  this  case,  for  there  are,  and  there 
always  will  be  to  all  of  us,  pleasant  memories  connected  with  it. 
Painful  some;  pleasant  many.  *  *  I  know  not,  your  Honor,  what 
to  say  in  acknowledgment  of  that  kindness  with  which  we  have 
all  been  treated  by  you.  Ordinarily,  it  would  be  merely  the  ex- 
pression of  sincere  feelings  of  gratitude  which  is  naturally  in- 
spired by  long-continued  kindness  and  consideration,  but  as  it 
happened  at  the  earlier  stages  of  this  case  that  oft-times,  in  the 
view  of  his  Honor,  deoisionswere  made  from  which  we  felt  we  suf- 
fered injustice,  I  desire  now  to  say,  at  the  close,  that  I  feel  he 
judged  wisely  and  well,  and  that  on  a  great  issue  like  this  it  was 
equally  due  to  the  plaintiff  and  to  the  defendant,  to  all  the  public 
interests  involved,  that  the  broad  door  should  be  opened  for  the 
admission  of  any  evidence  in  respect  to  the  advisability  of  which 
there  was  even  a  doubt.  His  Honor  felt,  and  showed  that  he  felt, 
that  it  was  due  to  justice  that  everything  that  could  be  submit- 
ted to  the  jury  that  would  aid  their  deliberations  should  be  be- 
fore you,  gentlemen;  and  feeling  thus,  it  is  a  matter  of  sincere 
gratification  to  me  that  I  have  the  opportunity  now,  that  all  may 
share  with  me  the  same  feelings,  of  expressing  our  sense  of 
respect  for  the  eminent  ability,  the  impartiality,  the  known  in- 
tegrity, the  purity  of  character  of  that  eminent  judge,  worthy,  if 
not  quite  of  the  honored  position  among  jurists  of  that  great 
and  eminent  kinsman  of  his  who  now  sleeps  by  the  waters  of 
Otsego  Lake — a  name  which  will  be  honored  through  all  time  ; 
and  yet  I  am  not  sure  that  the  name  of  the  jurist  who  jfresides 
on  this  memorable  trial  will  not  endure  quite  as  long,  for  it  his 
misfortune,  and  yours,  gentlemen,  that  through  circumstances 
which  you  could  not  have  foreseen,  his  name  and  yours  are  to  go 


BENCH  AND   BAR    OF  BROOKLYN. 


1321 


down  to  posterity  together,  always  associated  with  a  trial  which 
will  be  memorable  through  all  future  time." 

On  Thursday  morning,  May  27th,  1875,  Hon.  William  M. 
Evarts  began  his  argument  in  favor  of  Mr.  Beecher.  Mr. 
Evarts'  appearance  on  this  occasion  is  thus  described  : 

"His  voice  during  most  of  the  time  was  pitched  in  a  clear, 
ringing  tenor,  only  occasionally  dropping  into  a  deep  bass.  He 
speaks  very  deliberately,  with  (juiet  but  telling  gestures,  and  in- 
clinations of  the  head  ;  his  slender  figure  bears  some  resem- 
blance to  full-length  portraits  of  Henry  Clay.  His  face  is 
thin  and  pale,  his  features  clear-cut  and  classic  ;  his  bright  blue- 
gray  eyes  twinkle  with  merriment  when  he  tells  a  humorous 
story,  but  look  hard  and  earnest  when  ho  is  in  the  midst  of  a 
serious  argument.  His  sentences  are  usually  lounded  out  with 
rhetorical  precision  and  polish,  and  he  made  frequent  classical 
and  historical  references  and  quotations." 

"I  could  wish,"  he  said  in  his  exordium,  "  that  I  possessed 
the  moral  power  of  stripping  all  discordant  elements,  rejecting 
all  poisonous  oils,  all  corrosive  acids,  all  heavy  heat  of  passion 
and  of  prejiidice,  and  present  to  you  the  pure  and  invigorating 
wine  of  honest  sympathy  for  human  nature,  ot  honest  warmth 
for  human  justice.  And  then  I  could  wish  for  that  greatest  gift, 
eloquence— eloquence  which,  overleaping  iv<n  the  short  circuit 
between  the  voice  and  ear,  speaks  out  fiinu  heart  to  heart,  as  face 
answereth  to  face;  and  what  a  great  thinker  among  mankind, 
Lord  Bacon,  has  said  is  more  than  eloquence,  disci'etion  of 
speech,  that  no  excitements,  no  perversions,  no  enlistments,  no 
animosity  should  carry  him  beyond  the  duty  to  his  client,  to 
justice,  to  truth,  to  his  opponents,  and  to  you." 

He  closed  this  address  of  unparalleled  ability  in  the  following 
generous  and  finely-worded  allusion  to  the  Court  :  "And  now, 
if  your  Honor  please,  we  must  acknowledge  with  respectful  de- 
ference the  disposition  and  the  order  of  this  solemn  and  inter- 
esting trial — so  interesting  to  these  parties,  to  this  community, 
to  all  Christendom,  to  all  the  future  of  history,  and  to  acknow- 
ledge that  if  there  be  any  miscarriage  of  justice,  your  skirts  will 
be  free  of  it ;  and  also  to  admit  that  in  the  actual  experiences  of 
the  course  of  things  in  this  trial,  the  anxieties  and  solicitudes 
that  made  it  so  urgent  to  have  the  limits  secured  by  definite 
orders  of  the  Court,  under  the  assignment  of  particulars  of  the 
charge,  have  proved  to  be  necessary,  for  we  have  not  had  any 
evidence  at  all,  of  any  time  or  place,  by  any  witnesses,  going 
outside  the  charges  in  the  complaint." 

On  the  morning  of  the  9th  of  June,  Hon.  William  k.  Beach 
commenced  the  closing  argument  for  Mr.  Tilton,  in  some 
respects  the  most  remarkable  argument  made  on  the  trial.  He 
was  suffering  from  neuralgia,  and  occasionally  stopped  at  the 
end  of  a  sentence,  as  if  to  conquer  pain.  He  was  also  slightly 
hoarse,  but  his  utterance  was  distinct  and  his  manner  impres- 
sive ;  he  is  one  of  those  speakers  who,  without  any  apparent 
effort,  enchain  attention.  His  argument  was  full  of  stirring  pas- 
sages, which  seldom  failed  to  stir  enthusiastic  interest  among 
his  hearers,  which  was  often  exhibited  by  slight  applause.  He 
speaks  more  rapidly  than  either  Mr.  Porter  or  Mr.  Evarts,  but 
his  gestures  are  very  powerful  and  expressive  ;  his  features  and 
manners  are  stern,  while  his  piercing  gray  eyes  give  severity  to 
his  look,  especially  when  speaking  very  earnestly.  In  the 
course  of  his  argument,  Mr.  Beach  pleasingly  referred  to  one  of 
his  distinguished  opponents— Hon  John  K.  Porter— whose  ad- 
dress tothejvxry  he  said  "is  a  most  remarkable  and  powerful 
effort.  There  is  no  gentleman  in  or  out  of  the  profession  for 
whom  I  feel  a  more  unfeigned  esteem  and  respect ;  none  in  the 
profession  whose  qualities  as  a  lawyer  I  more  admire.  For  years 
I  have  been  accustomed  to  see  him  in  the  very  front  rank  of 
professional  controversy,  justly  receiving  the  loftiest  honors  of 
our  profession."  These  beautiful  remarks  were  elicited  in  allu- 
sion to  the  fact  that  Mr.  Porter,  as  might  be  thought  by  some, 
occupied  a  secondary  place  in  this  trial,  and  he  makes  this 
happy  reference :  "No  lawyer  of  our  profession,  eminent  even 
as  Mr.  Porter  is,  would  be  at  all  dwarfed  by  following  the  lead- 
ership of  a  gentleman  whose  place  is  so  elevated  at  the  Bar,  as  is 
Mr.  Evarts."  And  then  he  wittily  says:  "Mr.  Porter's  humi- 
liation, if  any,  consists  in  having  espoused  the  case  he  has."  In 
another  part  of  his  argument  Mr.  Beach  refers  to  his  associates 
as  follows  :  "I  mast  not  forget  my  obligations  to  my  learned, 
noble,  tried  associates.  If  any  merit  attends  my  efforts  it  is  due 
to  their  sagacity,  their  counsel  and  wise  promptings.  Posting 
me  in  the  front  of  this  battle,  they  have  yet  stood  its  true  leaders 
and  champions."  Referring  to  the  Court,  he  said:  "Mayitplease 
your  Honor,  it  needs  not  that  I  should  express  the  common  senti- 
ment of  my  associates  and  myself,  as  we  recall  the  intelligent 
dignity  and  fearless  learning  with  which  you  have  guided  us 
through  the  tangled  mazes  of  this  trial.  You  can  receive  no 
nobler  tribute  than  that  offered  by  our  adversaries.  Contesting 
every  position  with  animated  zeal,  and  sprinkling  this  record 
with  objections,  they  acknowledge  with  inimitable  candor  the 


entire  accuracy  of  your  Honor's  decisions.  Your  Honor,  there- 
fore, has  the  gratification  to  know  that  you  have  worked  no  in- 
justice to  this  defendant." 

In  closing  the  case,  Mr.  Beach  made  the  following  splendid 
allusion  to  Mr.  Beecher: 

"I  leave  this  case  without  the  slightest  asperity  of  feeling 
towards  any,  filled  with  unaffected  admiration  for  the  great 
abilities  of  the  defendant  in  this  case.  No  man  venerates  more 
profoundly  than  myself  his  magnificent  genius;  his  large  con- 
tributions to  the  literature  of  the  times  excite  the  sentiment  of 
which  Macanlay  speaks  in  his  essay  on  the  life  of  Lord  Bacon." 
To  the  jury  ho  said,  quoting  the  language  of  Webster:  "With 
consciences  satisfied  with  the  discbarge  of  duty,  no  conse- 
quences can  harm  you.  There  is  no  evil  that  we  cannot  either 
face  or  fly  from  but  the  consciousness  of  duty  disregarded.  A 
sense  of  duty  pursues  us  ever.  It  is  omnipresent,  like  the  Deity. 
If  we  take  to  ourselves  the  wings  of  the  morning  and  dwell  in 
the  uttermost  parts  of  the  earth,  duty  performed  or  duty  vio- 
lated is  still  with  us,  for  our  happiness  or  misery;  and  if  we  say 
darkness  shall  cover  us,  in  darkness,  as  in  light,  our  obligations 
are  with  us.  They  are  with  us  in  this  life— will  be  with  us  at  its 
close." 

Before  the  Chief  Justice  charged  the  jury,  Mr.  Abbott,  one  of 
defendant's  counsel,  submitted  to  him  a  series  of  requests  to 
charge.  The  judge  then  proceeded  to  give  his  instructions  to 
the  jury  in  a  charge  clear,  direct,  simple,  and  adajited  to  the  com- 
prehension of  the  jury.  He  proceeded  to  arrange  and  classify 
the  evidence  which  had  been  taken;  a  portion  of  it  going  to  the 
real  question  before  them,  another  portion  to  matters  of  refer- 
ence, and  yet  another  to  the  mere  question  of  damages;  the  jury 
were  taught  to  distinguish  direct  from  presumptive  and  circum- 
stantial evidence.  The  whole  performance  was  admirable  ;  so 
pronounced  to  be  by  eminent  judges  and  lawyers,  and  by  the 
press.  Having  closed  his  charge,  the  judge  took  up  the  fifty- 
three  requests  to  charge  which  had  been  presented  by  Mr.  Abbott, 
and  pronounced  an  opinion  as  to  each  of  them  with  great  clear- 
ness. Judge  Neilson's  quick  and  yet  profound  appreciation  of 
those  propositions,  the  firmness  with  which  he  considered  them, 
promptly  declining  some  and  as  promptly  accepting  others, 
stating  his  reasons  as  to  each,  was  among  the  most  difficult  duties 
that  devolved  upon  him  at  the  trial.  Having  closed,  he  ad- 
dressed himself  to  the  counsel,  who  had  been  eagerly  intent  ujwn 
every  word  he  had  uttered,  and  propounded  the  emphatic  and 
momentous  question: 

"Gentlemen,  are  you  content?" 

In  answer  Mr.  Beach  said,  "  We  are,  sir;"  Mr.  Evarts  said, 
"Yes,  sir." 

We  have  to  add  the  most  remarkable  fact:  there  was  not  an  ex- 
ception taken  to  any  part  of  the  charge,  by  either  counsel. 

It  would  be  interesting  to  know  that  such  concurrence  and 
commendation,  ever  before  or  since,  have  been  witnessed  in  a 
like  cas»— the  toil  and  excited  discussions  of  counsel  so  learned, 
critical  and  exacting,  brought  to  such  beautiful  unanimity.  We 
can  recall  no  such  instance. 

The  charge  of  the  learned  court  had  been  looked  for  with 
great  interest  and  expectation  by  j  udges  and  lawyers  everywhere. 
The  public  journals  in  other  States,  as  well  as  in  this,  were 
speculating  as  to  what  the  charge  would  be;  the  questions, 
"  What  can  the  judge  do  with  the  case  ?"  "What  will  the  charge 
be?"  It  was  published  in  the  newspapers  in  the  most  distant 
States,  and  read  with  avidity. 

But  perhaps  the  best  review  of  it  was  contained  in  the  Albany 
Law  Journal,  from  which  we  make  the  following  quotations  : 
"  The  brief  charge  to  the  jury  of  Judge  Neilson,  in  the  Tilton- 
Beecher  case,  is  a  marked  contrast  with  the  address  of  Lord 
Cockburn  in  the  Tichborne  case.  The  address  of  the  former 
occupied  only  one  hour  and  a  half,  while  that  of  the  latter  re- 
quired many  days,  and  fills  two  ponderous  volumes.'  The  vast 
variety  of  topics,  social,  moral,  religious,  political  and  legal, 
which  were  connected  with  the  Tilton-Beecher  case,  gave  the 
counsel  on  both  sides,  and  the  judge  presiding,  a  splendid  oppor- 
tunity to  air  their  learning,  their  fancy,  their  rhetoric  and  their 


1222 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


logic.  This  opportunity  the  counsed  accepted,  but  the  judge 
modestly,  and  we  think  commendably,  refrained  from  the  dis- 
play of  anything  hut  what  the  necessities  of  the  case  required. 
His  charge  is  a  model  of  clearness,  precision  and  force.  It  seems 
almost  incredible  that  the  case  could  have  been  presented  to  the 
jury  adequately  in  so  few  words.  But  a  careful  purusal  of  the 
charge  shows  that  nothing  was  left  out  which  was  necessary  to 
the  complete  jiresentation  of  the  case.  The  whole  address  bears 
marks  of  the  most  patient  and  careful  consideration  of  all  the 
material  evidence,  under  the  most  wonderful  condensation. 
The  spirit  which  breathes  through  the  address  is  one  of  the  ut- 
most fairness  and  impartiality.  The  counsel  on  both  sides 
expressed  themselves  satisfied,  and  this  of  itself  is  a  high  testi- 
monial to  the  freedom  from  bias  which  the  charge  evinces." 

The  result  of  the  trial  is  too  familiar  to  the  public  to  require 
any  description  here;  as  we  said,  it  stands  first  among  the  great 
trials  of  the  nation.  Perhaps,  in  some  respects,  the  trial  of 
Aaron  Burr  presented  more  comprehensive  and  enlarged  ques- 
tions of  law,  especially  the  law  touching  the  overt  acts  of  treason. 
The  trial  of  Warren  Hastings,  on  the  Begum  charge,  in  Engl.ind, 
conducted  by  the  greatest  British  lawyers,  created  but  little 
more  sensation  than  the  Tilton-Beecher  trial.  The  Guiteau 
trial  possessed  more  elements  that  aroused  passion  and  resent- 
ment, as  the  murder  of  an  illustrious  statesman,  the  President 
of  the  Republic,  was  its  origin.  But  all  these  trials  have  taken 
a  prominent  place  in  history. 

To  the  regret  of  the  profession  and  the  public,  the  judicial 
career  of  Chief  Justice  Neilson  terminated  on  the  last  day  of 
December,  1882,  he  having  arrived  at  the  age  of  70,  the  age  at 
which,  by  the  provisions  of  the  Constitution,  he  was  disqualified 
from  discharging  the  duties  of  a  judge.  There  were  in  the 
public  journals  of  all  parties,  and  by  the  profession,  and  by  the 
public  generally,  expressions  of  regret  on  the  occasion  of  his 
leaving  the  judicial  service.  He  retired  from  the  Bench  to 
private  life  with  that  dignity  and  under  circumstances  which 
shed  great  lustre  upon  his  character. 

We  relate  a  pleasing  incident,  expressive  of  the  high  esteem  in 
which  the  Bar  holds  the  ex-Chief  Justice,  which  occurred  six 
months  after  his  retirement.  Sometime  in  the  spring  of  1883, 
his  Brother  lawyers,  in  a  cautious  address,  requested  him  to  sit 
to  an  artist  of  their  selection  for  his  portrait.  Among  other 
things,  this  address  says: 

"The  members  of  the  Brooklyn  Bar  are  desirous  to  testify 
their  affectionate  esteem  for  you  by  placing  your  portrait  in  the 
City  Court  of  Brooklyn,  where  you  have  so  long  and  faithfully 
presided."  That  request  having  been  complied  with,  and  the 
portrait  by  Jensen,  a  celebrated  artist,having  been  finished,  it  was 
presented  to  the  court  with  an  address  signed  by  the  Bar,  which 
was  also  published,  and  from  which  we  make  the  following  ex- 
tract: 

"The  undersigned,  members  of  the  Brooklyn  Bar,  beg  leave 
to  present  to  the  court  a  portrait  of  the  Hon.  Joseph  Neilson, 
who  retired  from  the  jjosition  of  Chief  Judge,  on  the  1st  day  of 
January  last.  Judge  Neilson,  while  on  the  Bench,  by  his 
admirable  personal  characteristics,  strict  impartiality  and  legal 
attainments,  acquired  the  full  confidence,  respect  and  personal 
regard  of  not  only  the  legal  profession,  Ijut  of  the  community  at 
large.  As  an  enduring  testimony  of  this  feeling  on  the  part  of 
the  Bar,  and  a  well-deserved  tribute  to  his  public  services  and 
high  character  as  a  judge,  we  have  the  honor  to  present  this  por- 
trait, and  request  that  it  may  be  permitted  to  adorn  the  walls  of 
the  court-room  in  which  Judge  Neilson  presided  so  ably  and  so 
long." 

At  its  General  Term,  May  22,  1883,  present— Hon.  Alexander 
McCue,  Chief  Judge,  presiding;  Hon.  George  E.  Keynolds,  and 
Hon.  Nathaniel  H.  Clemens,  associate  judges,  the  court  made 
the  following  order: 

"On  reading  and  filing  the  communication  signed  by  the 
Hon.  James  Troy,  Hon.  .John  H.  Bergen,  and  other  members  of 
the  Bar  of  the  County  of  Kings,  j>resenting  the  portrait  of  the 
Honorable  Joseph  Neilson,  late  Chief  Judge  of  this  Court,  it  is 
ordered  that  the  gift  of  the  said  portrait  of  our  late  associate  and 


Chief  Judge  be  accepted  with  the  thanks  of  the  court,  and  that, 
in  compliance  with  the  request  of  the  donors,  the  said  portrait  be 
permanently  placed  in  the  court-room;  that  in  accepting  this 
gift  we  cordially  approve  of  all  that  is  contained  in  the  letter 
accompanying  said  gift.  It  is  further  ordered  that  the  com- 
munication, with  order,  be  entered  on  the  minutes  of  the  Gen- 
eral Term  of  this  court." 

This  portrait,  an  admirable  representation  of  Judge  Neilson, 
executed  by  the  hand  of  a  master,  was  hung  in  one  of  the 
principal  court-rooms,  where  the  portraits  of  Judge  Greenwood, 
Judge  Beynolds,  and  Judge  Thompson  were  placed  ten  years 
ago.  ,^..^, 

BENJAMIN  F.  TRACY 

is  distinguished  not  only  for  his  eminent  career  as  a  lawyer, 
but  as  a  learned,  imimrtial  and  laborious  judge  ;  an  acute,  in- 
dependent-minded legislator,  who  follows  the  leadership  of  his 
own  judgment,  subordinated  to  partisan  interest  only  so  far  as 
it  enhances  the  interests  of  all  his  constituency  ;  a  determined 
enemy  to  all  political  quackery.  He  is  also  distinguished  as  a 
soldier,  inspired  by  a  self-sacrificing  patriotism  ;  as  a  fearless, 
able  jjrosecuting  officer  of  government,  who  discharged  difficult 
and  responsible  duties  with  clean  hands  and  an  honest  heart, 
in  times  when  peculations  and  stupendous  fraud  were  nearly 
overwhelming  it;  when  strong  defiant  rings  and  unscrupulous 
juntas  were,  by  the  unstinted  use  of  money,  corrupting  the  very 
sources  of  justice. 

Benjamin  F.  Tracy  was  born  at  Owego,  N.  Y.,  April  2Cth, 
1830.  His  father,  Benjamin  Tracy,  is  one  of  the  oldest  and 
highly  respected  residents  not  only  of  Owego,  but  of  the  county 
of  Tioga;  a  pioneer  of  the  Southern  tier;  one  of  that  band,  most 
of  whom  are  now  banished  from  earth,  whose  virtue,  integrity, 
enterprise  and  industry  made  the  desert  bloom,  and  who  laid 
the  foundation  for  the  wealth  and  culture  of  that  beautiful 
region. 

With  the  first  development  of  young  Tracy's  nature  he  indi- 
cated a  love  of  books  and  of  study;  as  years  went  on  he  exhibited 
more  than  ordinary  intellectual  strength  and  activity.  He  began 
his  education  at  the  common  school  of  his  native  village,  where 
he  laid  the  foundation  of  a  jiractical,  thorough  and  useful  educa- 
tion. Ho  mastered  all  the  branches  taught  in  those  time-hon- 
ored primary  institutions,  where  Lindley  Murray's  "  English 
Header  "  was  the  principal  reading-book,  still  remembered  for 
the  purity,  elegance  and  taste  of  its  diction.  It  was,  perhaps,  the 
study  of  this  excellent  book  that  gave  Tracy  the  strong,  perspic- 
uous style  which  distinguish  his  written  and  oral  productions. 

Leaving  the  common  school,  he  entered  Owego  Academy, 
where  he  remained  several  years  an  ardent,  industrious, 
thorough  student,  acquiring  an  excellent  English  education.  It 
was  his  early  ambition  to  become  a  lawyer— an  ambition  which 
stimulated  him  in  the  prosecution  of  his  scientific  and  literary 
studies. 

Accordingly,  after  leaving  the  academy,  he  entered  the  office  of 
Nathaniel  W.  Davis,  Esq.,  a  respectable  lawyer  in  Owego,  as  a 
student  of  law. 

At  that  time  the  path  to  the  legal  profession  had  not  been 
smoothed  and  illuminated  by  ccmpends,  abridgments  and 
digests,  as  it  now  is.  Neither  were  lawyers  made  as  easily  and 
cheaply  as  at  the  present  time.  The  subtleties  of  Blackstone, 
couched  in  its  pure,  terse  and  elegant  style  ;  Coke  on  Littleton, 
Fearne,  Sugden,  Preston,  Chitty,  Archbold  and  Graham,  with 
their  intellectual  subtlety,  were  the  principal  sources  from 
whence  the  law-student  then  derived  his  legal  knowledge.    . 

But  young  Tracy  possessed  a  mind  peculiarly  constituted 
to  grasj)  intelligibly  the  metaphysical  and  critical  niceties 
of  these  quaint  but  venerated  authors.  He  found  in  the  pages 
of  our  own  illustrious  Kent  a  never-failing  source  of  intel- 
lectual delight  and  profit.  He  did  not  merely  "  read  law,"  but 
he  studied  it  as  a  science  which  is  the  "  embodiment  of  all 


^^ 


BENCa  AND   BAR   OF  BROOKLYN: 


1223 


linman  reason."  He  believeil  that  to  be  familiar  with  the 
sources  of  legal  knowleilgo,  to  know  the  appropriate  places  of 
the  most  dissimilar  princii)les,  ami  to  bo  able  from  close  study  to 
comprehend  their  limits,  i)earing  and  relations,  is  essentially  the 
foundation  of  a  legal  education.  The  eifect  of  these  convictions 
upon  his  studies,  and  on  his  future  professional  and  judicial 
career,  will  he  readily  seen  in  the  progress  of  this  memoir. 

After  a  few  months'  study,  ho  began  to  try  causes  in 
Justices'  Court — that  humble  arena  of  legal  strifes  in  which  so 
many  powerful  gladiators  of  the  Bar  first  learned  to  wield  their 
intellectual  weapons. 

Nothing  exceeds  the  interest  with  which  Judge  Tracy  in- 
vests his  description  of  his  early  practice  in  these  primary 
courts;  his  contests  with  the  old-fashioned  pettifogger  of 
that  day — a  race  of  beings  now  nearly  extinct — whoso  ambi- 
tion never  soared  higher  than  the  court  of  a  County  Justice, 
whose  conceit  and  ignorance  was  only  equaled  by  their  blatant 
impudence  and  bluster— legal  bulldogs,  with  no  other  training 
for  hunting  down  their  game  than  the  qualities  we  have 
named.  These  were  not  the  only  opponents  with  which  the 
joung  student  had  to  deal  in  these  courts.  At  that  time  many 
of  the  ablest  members  of  the  Bar  appoai-ed  in  them  ;  he  wa.s, 
therefore,  compelled  to  study  hard,  think  closely,  act  with 
energy  and  caution,  and  watch  every  point  with  the  closest  at- 
tention, in  order  to  sustain  himself  against  the  attacks  of  his 
more  experienced  opponents.  But  be  himself  soon  became 
formidable  in  the  attack  and  strong  in  the  defense,  and  his  suc- 
cess as  a  lawyer  in  these  courts  was  assured.  It  is  said  he  was 
seldom  defeated  in  a  case  which  ho  had  fully  and  maturely  pre- 
pared to  try.  With  such  a  course  of  study,  with  such  severe 
discipline  in  the  trial  of  causes,  Benjamin  F.  Tracy,  in  May, 
1851,  was  called  to  the  Bar  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  State. 
^Fortunate  in  the  possession  of  popular  endowments,  strong  in 
professional  knowledge  and  experience,  with  a  judicious  self- 
reliance,  he  entered  upon  his  practice  as  an  attorney  and  coun- 
selor-at-law,  in  his  native  village.  It  would,  iierhaps,  be  the 
work  of  supererogation,  iinder  these  circumstances,  to  say  his 
success  was  assured  from  the  beginning. 

Love  of  intellectual  labor,  perseverance  and  determination  in 
pursuing  it,  stand  next  to  genius  in  the  category  of  human 
excellence.  Indeed,  they  often  eclipse  it,  for  without  these 
qualities  genius  is  inert  and  brilliancy  useless. 

At  the  Tioga  Bar,  he  was  compelled  to  measure  himself  with 
the  ablest  representatives  of  that  and  other  Bars  of  the  Southern 
Tier— with  Daniel  S.  Dickinson,  possessing  a  mind  of  great 
activity ;  full  of  the  springs  of  an  effective  eloquence,  as  power- 
ful at  the  Bar  as  he  was  in  "listening  senates;"  John  A.  Collier, 
whose  intellect,  naturally  active  and  logical,  was  admirably  pre- 
cise, perspicuous  and  searching;  Alexander  S.  Divin,  dis- 
tinguished for  the  vigor  and  grasp  of  his  mind,  depth  of  his 
learning,  terse  logic,  and  genial  nature;  Hathaway,  a  man  of 
marked  intellectual  vigor,  cultivated  and  enlarged  by  learning, 
keen,  fervid,  witty,  whose  arguments  at  the  Bar  are  still  remem- 
bered as  beautiful  specimens  of  legal  oratory ;  John  J.  Taylor, 
(leorgo  Sidney  Camp,  John  M.  Parker,  Steven  Strong,  and 
other  eminent  members  of  the  Southern  Tier  Bar.  Such  was 
the  arena,  such  the  contestants,  against  whose  prowess  young 
Tracy  was  compelled  to  make  his  way  to  professional  distinc- 
tion. That  he  did  this,  is,  alone,  sufficient  evidence  of  his 
capacity  as  a  lawyer. 

It  was  natural  that  such  a  mind  as  Tracy's  should  find  irresist- 
ible attractions  in  the  political  field.  Very  early  in  his  profes- 
sional career  he  gave  his  allegiance  to  the  old,  and  now  historic 
Whig  party,  but  though  strong  and  ardent  in  his  political  con- 
victions, he  was  not  aggressive  in  maintaining  them.  In  Novem- 
ber, 1853,  he  became  the  Whig  nominee  for  the  office  of  District 
Attorney  for  Tioga  County— at  that  timo  a  Democratic  strong- 
hold. It  was  an  ordeal  to  the  young  lawyer;  but  with  his  usual 
confidence  and  courage,  he  came  out  of  the  apparently  hopeless 


contest  victorious,  being  elected  by  au  exceedingly  handsome 
majority. 

The  office  of  District  Attorney  at  such  a  Bar  was  calculated  to 
stimulate  all  his  powers,  awaken  all  his  energies,  and  put  in 
requisition  all  his  learning.  The  whole  system  of  our  criminal 
law  was  then  full  of  technicalities,  and  the  courts,  in  their  ad- 
ministration of  it,  were  scrupulously  strict  in  adhering  to  subtle 
forms  and  rigorous  rules.  Thus,  the  proseculing  attorney  was 
compelled  to  walk,  as  it  were,  over  mines  which  the  touch  of 
some  skillful  antagonist  might  suddenly  explode.  But  Mr. 
Tracy  was  equal  to  the  duties  of  his  office.  His  patient  in- 
vestigation, careful  preparation,  quick  insight  into  the  objec. 
tivo  point  of  a  case,  shielded  him  from  motions  to  quash  his  in- 
dictments, motions  in  arrest  of  judgment,  and  all  those  skill- 
ful attacks,  in  which  keen  and  learned  lawyers  assail  the  public 
prosecutor.  We  believe  he  never  had  an  indictment  quashed. 
It  was  in  the  dischai'ge  of  his  duty  as  District  Attorney  of  Tioga 
County,  as  we  shall  hereafter  see,  that  Benjamin  F.  Tracy  pre- 
pared himself  to  enter  upon  a  wider,  more  difficult  and  responsi- 
ble field  as  a  prosecuting  officer  of  the  United  States. 

At  the  expiration  of  his  term  as  District  Attornej',  he  was  again 
placed  in  nomination  for  that  office.  This  time  his  opponent 
was  Hon.  Gilbert  C.  Walker,  popular  not  only  with  his  own 
party,  but  with  the  people  generally.  The  prospects  of  Tracy's 
election  at  first  seemed  dubious,  but  after  a  close  and  heated 
contest  he  was  triumphantly  elected  by  a  majority  of  900.  At  a 
later  period  Walker  was  elected  Governor  of  Virginia,  and  subse- 
quently became  a  distinguished  representative  in  Congress 
from  the  3d  Congressional  District. 

Notwithstanding  Walker's  defeat,  he  became  an  intimate  and 
valued  friend  of  Tracy's,  and,  in  1857,  his  law  partner.  The 
firm  soon  became  one  of  the  most  influential  in  the  Southern 
Tier  counties,  controlling  an  extended  and  a  highly  remunera- 
tive business.  This  relation  continued  two  years,  when  it  was 
severed  by  Walker's  removal  to  Chicago. 

At  the  expiration  of  his  second  term,  Tracy  was  again  tendered 
the  nomination  for  District  Attorney,  but  his  rapidly  increasing 
civil  business  compelled  him  to  decline.  In  the  meantime  his 
reputation  continued  on  the  ascendant,  until  it  was  generally 
acknowledged  that  he  was  the  most  successful  lawyer  who  ap- 
peared at  the  Tioga  Bar.  This  is  evinced  by  the  fact  that  he 
often  tried  eleven  or  twelve  causes  of  his  own  at  its  circuit, 
being  successful  in  every  one.  Charles  O'Conor  once  remarked, 
"that  a  lawyer  who  succeeds  in  one-half  the  causes  tried  by 
him  is  eminently  successful." 

The  secret  of  this  success,  and  of  Tracy's  control  of  the  popular 
mind,  may  be  found  in  his  sincerity,  constancy,  and  direct- 
ness. There  is  no  deceit  in  his  nature;  men  are  never  left  in 
doubt  about  his  views;  and,  what  is  better,  he  is  never  in  doubt 
about  himself;  one  always  knows  exactly  where  to  find  him.  His 
sympathy  is  always  with  the  masses.  No  man  understands  the 
impulses  of  the  people  better  than  he,  and  he  has  an  intense 
sense  of  justice  between  man  and  man,  estimating  men  accord- 
ing to  their  true  worth.  He  never  stands  on  assumed  dignity, 
nor  by  word  or  manner  indicating  any  assumed  jjersonal  superi- 
ority. In  his  official  positions  his  policy  was  never  timid  or 
vacillating.  Whatever  the  responsibility,  he  never  hesitated  to 
assume  it,  but  always  moved  promptly  to  the  front.  Perhaps 
nowhere  in  his  whole  career  were  these  features  more  conspicu- 
ously exhibited  than  when  discharging  the  duties  of  United 
States  District  Attorney  for  the  Eastern  District  of  New  York. 

As  time  went  on,  the  cloud  of  Civil  War  began  to  gather  over 
the  land,  and  then  it  was  that  the  self-sacrificing  patriotism  of 
Tracy  developed  itself  in  private  life,  in  legislative  halls,  and 
amid  the  stern  events  of  war. 

Upon  the  dissolution  of  the  Whig  .party,  Mr.  Tracy  became  a 
Republican  from  principle.  In  the  autumn  of  1861  he  was  nomi- 
nated and  elected  a  Member  of  Assembly  by  the  Republicans 
and  War  Democrats  of  Tioga  County,  taking  his  seat  in  that  bodj 


1224 


BISTORT  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


January  7th;  1862.  After  a  close  and  somewhat  bitter  contest, 
Henry  J.  Raymond  was  chosen  Speaker  of  the  Assembly.  In  this 
contest  Tracy  exhibited  abilities  that  rendered  him  quite  as  con- 
spicuous and  successful  as  a  legislator  as  he  was  a  lawyer. 
He  was  a  friend  of  Raymond's,  warmly  supporting  his  claim  to 
the  Speaker's  chair.  Indeed,  he  was  the  leader  of  the  Raymond 
party  in  the  contest,  evincing  abilities  and  influence  that  added 
largely  to  Mr.  Raymond's  success.  Tracy's  leadership  was 
I>romptly  recognized  by  Mr.  Raymond,  who  immediately  upon 
his  nomination  moved  that  Tracy  be  appointed  chairman  of  the 
committee  to  call  future  caucuses  of  the  Republican  members  of 
the  Assembly.  Tracy's  legislative  career,  though  short,  was  ex- 
ceptionally creditable  for  the  work  performed  and  the  responsi- 
bility thrust  upon  him.  Mr.  Raymond,  whose  warm  friendship 
he  enjoyed  till  the  sudden  death  of  that  gifted  statesman,  recog- 
nized his  personal  ability  by  causing  his  appointment  on  the 
most  important  committees,  making  him  a  member  of  the  Judic- 
iary, and  Chairman  of  the  Railroad  Committee,  and  of  "Bills 
entitled  to  early  consideration  "—the  latter  position,  as  head  of 
the  "Grinding"  Committee,  giving  him  largely  the  control 
of  legislation.  He  soon  distinguished  himself  in  the  House  by 
his  readiness  in  debate,  and  the  terse  logic  of  his  speeches.  He 
evidently,  in  speaking  or  writing,  is  guided  by  the  maxim  of 
Quintilian,  Ciira  s'd  verborum ;  soUcitwle  verian.  "To  your  ex- 
pression be  attentive,  but  about  your  matter  be  solicitous." 

Early  in  the  session  Mr.  Hubbard,  Chairman  of  the  ""Ways 
and  Means,"  reported  from  that  committee  a  series  of  resolutions 
upon  the  subject  of  finance,  committing  the  Legislature  to  a 
national  policy  of  carrying  on  the  war  exclusively  on  specie  basis. 
Tracy,  having  moved  an  amendment  to  the  resolution,  in  sub- 
stance pledging  the  credit  of  the  nation  in  every  form  available 
for  the  prosecution  of  the  war,  made,  in  support  of  his  amend- 
ment, the  first  legislative  speech  ever  made  in  the  United  States 
in  favor  of  the  issue  of  paper  money  for  carrying  on  the  war. 
His  career  in  the  Legislature  was  not  only  honorable  to  himself, 
but  useful  to  his  constituents,  and  to  the  public.  He  was  a 
frequent,  though  not  obtrusive  speaker,  neither  courting  nor 
shunning  debate  ;  never  feeling  that  it  was  necessary  to  his 
reputation  to  speak  on  every  question  that  came  up  for  discus- 
sion. His  great  aim  was  to  forward  the  business  before  the 
House,  especially  the  business  in  his  charge. 

At  the  close  of  the  session  he  returned  to  Owego  and  resumed 
the  practice  of  his  profession. 

"In  the  spring  of  18C2,  still  remembered  as  a  period  of  alarm 
to  the  friends  of  the  Union  cause,  newlevies  were  imperative  for 
the  Federal  army,  and  Gov.  Morgan  at  once  appointed  a  com- 
mittee in  each  Senatorial  district  to  organize  a  general  recruiting 
effort.  Tracy  was  one  of  the  committee  for  Broome,  Tioga,  and 
Tompkins  counties.  He  accepted  the  charge,  and,  in  addition 
to  general  service  as  a  member,  he  received  a  commission  from 
the  Governor,  and  personally  recruited  two  regiments,  the  109th 
and  the  137th,  making  his  headquarters  at  Binghamton.  The 
active  work  was  completed  in  thirty  days,  and  Tracy  was  ap- 
pointed colonel  of  the  100th,  with  which  he  reported  to  Gen. 
■Wool,  at  Baltimore,  in  whose  department  it  remained  until 
transferred  to  that  of  Washington.  In  the  spring  of  186i  the 
regiment  was  ordered  to  join  the  Ninth  (Burnside)  Corps,  then 
a  part  of  Grant's  advance.  Colonel  Tracy  led  his  regiment  with 
great  gallantry  in  the  battle  of  the  Wilderness,  when  its  loss,  on 
Friday,  May  Gth,  was  upwards  of  eighty  killed  and  wounded. 
Near  the  close  of  the  fighting  on  that  day,  he  fell  exhausted,  and 
was  carried  from  the  field.  Urged  by  the  staff  of  his  command- 
ing ofiicer  to  go  to  hospital,  he  refused,  but  resumed  the  lead  of 
his  regiment,  and  held  it  through  three  days  of  the  fighting  at 
Spotsylvania,  where  he  completely  broke  down,  and  was  com- 
pelled to  surrender  the  command  to  the  lieutenant-colonel. 

As  soon  as  he  became  satisfied  that  months  must  elapse  before 
he  could  again  join  the  army,  and  not  liking  military  service  in 


a  hospital,  he  tendered  his  resignation,  and  came  North  to  re-  ' 
emit  his  health.  In  the  following  September,  without  solicita- 
tion on  his  part.  Secretary  Stanton  tendered  him  the  appoint- 
ment of  Colonel  of  the  127th  United  States  Colored  Troops, 
which  he  accepted.  Subsequently,  he  was  ordered  to  the  com- 
mand of  the  military  post  at  Elmira,  including  the  pri.son  camp 
and  the  draft  rendezvous  for  Western  New  York.  This  was  a 
large  and  important  command.  In  the  prison  camp  there  were 
at  one  time  as  many  as  10,000  prisoners. 

The  treatment  of  prisoners  of  war  has  been  a  subject  of  ex- 
tended and  bitter  controversy  between  the  North  and  the  South. 
That  there  was  much  suffering  and  great  mortality  at  Elmira  is 
not  denied,  because  these  are  inseparable  from  large  military 
prisons;  but  that  cither  can  be  attributed  to  cruelty  or  neglect  is 
positively  denied.  Nothing  that  could  be  reasonably  done  to 
alleviate  the  sufifering  of  the  prisoners  was  omitted.  The  very 
best  of  food  was  supplied  in  large  quantities,  while  the  barracks 
were  large  and  commodious— nearly  all  new  and  built  expressly 
for  the  prisoners;  the  accommodations  and  supplies  furnished 
them  being  in  all  respects  the  same  as  those  supplied  to  the 
Federal  troops  on  guard,  and  to  the  volunteers  received  at  the 
draft  rendezvous." 

There  are  a  class  of  men  who  achieve  distinction  that  seem  to 
resemble  the  mechanic  who  forms  his  calculations  and  fashions 
his  machinery  ujion  the  abstract  considerations  of  the  mechani- 
cal ijowers,  making  no  allowance  for  friction,  the  resistance  of 
the  air,  or  strength  of  his  materials.  This  was  not  the  case  with 
Judge  Tracy.  He  exerts  a  quick,  careful  examination  of  every 
circumstance  by  which  he  is  surrounded,  even  though  sprung 
upon  him  instantaneously.  Perhaps  nothing  in  his  life  more 
strongly  illustrates  his  ability  to  overcome  sudden  difiiculties 
than  the  triumphant  manner  in  which  he  repelled  the  dastardly 
attack  made  by  Hill,  of  Georgia,  in  the  House  of  Represent- 
atives, March,  1876,  upon  our  treatment  of  rebel  prisoners 
at  Elmira.  It  was  virtually  an  attack  upon  General  Tracy, 
and  took  place  in  the  celebrated  debate  between  Hill  and  Blaine, 
in  which  the  former,  incensed  by  the  representations  of  the 
latter  of  the  horrors  at  Andersonville,  referred  bitterly  to  the 
Elmira  camp,  charging  upon  its  management  cruelties  quite 
equal  to  those  recorded  of  the  Southern  prisons. 

General  Tracy  was  at  home  at  this  time,  and  it  was  by  mere 
accident  that  he  learned  the  nature  of  the  debate  in  progress  at 
Washington,  and  of  General  Hill's  charges.  This  occurred  at  a 
time  when  the  General  was  deeply  engaged  in  an  absorbing  and 
important  matter. 

One  morning,  while  rapidly  glancing  over  a  New  York  daily, 
his  attention  was  arrested  by  the  heading,  in  large  capitals,  of  a 
column,  as  follows:  "Hill,  of  Geoegia,  on  the  Elmira  Pkison  ; 
he  alleges  that  the  rehel  prisoners  confined  in  it  during  the  uw 
icere  treated  with  great  inhumanity,"  &c.,  &c.  After  reading  it 
carefully,  burning  with  indignation,  he  hastened  to  telegraph 
Mr.  riatt,  member  from  the  Twenty-eighth  District,  a  full,  well- 
worded  reply  to  Hill.  This  reached  Mr.  P.,  in  the  House,  while 
the  debate  on  the  subject  of  the  prison  at  Elmira  was  still  in 
progress.  Immediately  arising  to  a  question  of  privilege,  he 
sent  the  remarkable  telegram  to  the  "clerk,  by  whom  it  was  read 
to  the  House.  It  commanded  profound  silence,  falling  upon 
Hill  and  his  Southern  friends  like  a  sudden  clap  of  thunder. 
Hardly  was  the  reading  concluded  when  Hon.  C.  C.  Walker,  a 
member  from  the  Elmira  district,  an  intense  Democrat,  sprang 
to  his  feet,  and,  in  a  few  glowing  and  effectual  words,  fully  sus- 
tained General  Tracy's  telegram ;  alleging  that,  to  his  own 
knowledge,  every  word  of  it  was  true.  This  ended  the  debate, 
completely  refuting  the  charges  made  by  Hill. 

"Upon  the  conclusion  of  peace.  General  Tracy  went  to  New 
York,  entered  the  firm  of  Benedict,  Burr  &  Benedict  as  a  part- 
ner, and  resumed  the  practice  of  his  profession.  This  associa- 
tion continued  until  October,  1866,  when  Tracy  received  the 


BENCH  AND  BAR   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1235 


appointment  of  United  States  District  Attorney  for  tlie  Eastern 
District  of  New  York,  wlien  he  terminated  his  relations  with  the 
firm  mentioned." 

While  in  practice  in  New  York,  he  exhibited  all  the  qualities 
of  what  may  be  termed  a  great  lawyer. 

Space  will  not  permit  us  to  describe  at  length  the  causes  in 
which  he  achieved  signal  professional  triumphs.  We  may,  how- 
ever, refer  briefly  to  one  of  these  cases,  that  of  United  States,  vs. 
William  Chase  Barney,  el  al.,  indicted  in  the  fall  of  1865,  for  an 
attempt  to  defraud  the  government  by  making  and  executing 
fraudulent  bonds  for  the  exportation  of  goods;  a  case  of  great 
importance,  and  which  attracted  general  attention.  The  firm, 
of  which  Gen.  Tracy  was  a  member  was  retained  for  the  de- 
fense, which  was  assigned  to  Tracy.  Daniel  S.  Dickinson  was 
then  District  Attorney  for  the  Southern  District  of  New  York, 
and,  assisted  by  Samuel  Courtney,  Esq  ,  and  John  Sedgwick, 
Esq.,  appeared  for  the  prosecution.  This  was  a  formidable 
array,  but  Tracy,  with  characteristic  self-possession  and  self- 
reliance,  entered  upon  the  defense.  It  came  up  for  trial  in  New 
York,  before  Judge  Shipman,  of  Connecticut,  when  Tracy 
promptly  gave  notice  of  a  motion  to  quash  the  indictment,  on 
the  ground  that  there  was  no  statute  of  the  United  States  by 
which  a  crime  committed  in  the  Custom  House  of  the  City  of 
New  York,  could  be  punished.  When  the  day  appointed  for 
the  argument  arrived;  his  distinguished  opponents  treated  the 
motion  as  a  matter  of  small  importance,  void  of  merit,  and 
felicitated  themselves  on  an  easy  victory.  But  the  learned  and 
accomplished  judge— with  a  mind  at  once  comprehensive  and 
acute — from  the  beginning,  took  another  view  of  it,  and  listened 
with  the  most  profound  attention  to  Tracy's  argument,  in  which 
he  presented  his  points  in  nil  their  force— arranged  them  with 
artistic  skill,  so  as  mutually  to  sustain  and  strengthen  each  other, 
presenting  an  imposing  and  harmonious  whole.  It  was  only 
when  Tracy  had  concluded  his  argument  that  the  counsel  for  the 
government  comprehended  their  danger,  and  then  the  struggle 
commenced  in  earnest.  But  to  the  bold  theory  of  Tracy,  that 
there  was  no  law  for  the  punishment  of  the  crime  alleged  against 
his  client,  they  could  give  no  adequate  answer,  and  the  indict- 
ment was  quashed. 

In  the  autumn  of  186G,  Hon.  Benjamin  D.  Silliman,  who  had 
for  some  time  discharged  the  duties  of  United  States  District 
Attorney  for  the  Eastern  District  of  New  York,  resigned  the 
office  he  had  discharged  so  acceptably.  The  resignation  of 
Mr.  Sillimaa  was  generally  regretted  by  the  Bench,  the  Bar, 
and  the  public  generally.  The  appointment  of  Judge  Tracy  as 
his  successor  was  very  popular  and  the  manner  in  which  he  dis- 
charged the  duties  of  the  office,  entitles  him  to  the  highest  con- 
sideration and,  it  is  no  affectation  to  say,  to  the  gratitude  of  the 
National  government.  That  he  had  this,  in  its  fullest  sense, 
must  be  to  him  the  most  gratifying,  nay,  the  proudest  incident 
in  his  long  and  distinguished  career. 

"  Gen.  Tracy  was  placed  in  this  official  position  at  a  period 
requiring  the  maximum  of  courage,  legal  acumen  and  energy 
on  the  part  of  the  Federal  prosecutor.  His  district  contained 
a  large  proportion  of  the  whiskey  production  of  the  seaboard, 
more  than  five  hundred  distilleries  being  counted  within  its 
limits.  Very  many  of  these  were  small  illicit  affairs,  and  all 
■were  contriving  to  cheat  the  government  of  its  dues. 

For  two  years  Gen.  Tracy  gave  his  exclusive  attention  to 
this  class  of  revenue  defaulters,  fearlessly  exercising  all  the 
powers  of  his  official  authority  and  professional  talents  against 
its  members,  rich  or  poor.  The  struggle  was  a  severe  one, 
the  '  Whiskey  Ring '  using  its  immense  profits  to  bribe  revenue 
officers,  and  to  subsidize  the  best  legal  talent  ;  and,  had  its 
assailant  been  wanting  either  in  ability  or  moral  or  physi- 
cal bravery,  the  victory  might  have  been  on  its  side.  Tracy  was 
not  only  an  honest  servant  of  the  United  States,  but  a  relentless 
enemy  of  all  who  aimed  to  defraud  the  country.  Despite  threats 
and  proffered  temptations,  he  did  not  relax  his  pursuit.     In  the 


winter  of  1867,  at  the  request  of  the  Ways  and  M^-ans  Committee 
of  Congress,  indorsed  by  the  Internal  Kevenue  Commissioner, 
he  drafted  a  bill  regulating  the  collection  of  taxes  upon  distilled 
spirits,  which,  in  one  year  after  it  became  a  law,  resulted  in 
securing  S-50,000,000  for  the  United  States  Treasury,  instead  of 
the  $13,000,000  collected  the  previous  twelve  months.  Before 
the  multifarious  assaults  of  this  admirable  enactment,  the 
combination  of  distillers,  lawyers  and  traitors  in  office  was 
obliged  to  succumb.  Mr.  Rollins,  the  commissioner-in-chief, 
declared,  after  the  battle,  that  had  it  not  been  for  the  United 
States  District  Attorney  for  the  Eastern  District  of  New  York, 
and  two  other  United  States  District  Attorneys,  the  internal 
revenue  system  of  the  United  States  would  have  been  an  utter 
failure.  In  1873,  Mr.  Tracy  resigned  his  Federal  position  and 
resumed  the  practice  of  his  profession  in  Brooklyn,  where  he 
has  since  resided,  and  where  his  practice  is  very  extensive."  He 
has  been  engaged  in  most  of  the  important  trials  that  took  place 
at  the  Kings  County  Bar.  Among  these  trials  was  the  famous 
Tilton-Beecher  case,  by  far  the  most  important  legal  contest  that 
ever  took  place  in  the  State  of  New  Y'ork,  if  not  in  the  United 
States.  Gen.  Tracy  entered  into  it  not  only  as  one  of  the  coun- 
sel for  Mr.  Beecher,  but  as  his  warm  personal  friend.  In  the 
discharge  of  his  duty,  the  brilliancy  of  his  talents,  the  depth  of 
his  learning,  and  his  legal  oratory  were  liberally  acknowledged 
by  the  illustrious  lawyers  with  whom  he  was  associated,  and  by 
whom  he  was  opposed.  The  difficult  and  onerous  duty  of 
opening  the  case  of  the  defendant  was  assigned  to  him.  Under 
the  circumstances  that  surrounded  the  whole  case,  this  duty  was 
peculiarly  difficult  and  embarrassing.  The  manner  in  which  he 
discharged  that  duty  was  not  only  a  triumph  for  himself,  but  for 
his  client.  His  intellect  was  never  more  vigorous  and  active. 
The  subject  was  particularly  adapted  to  the  organization  of  his 
mind;  he  was  at  home  amid  all  its  intricacies,  and  successfully 
encountered  all  asperities  and  prejudices  with  a  facility  that 
exhibited  consummate  skill  and  extraordinary  reach  of  thought. 
As  has  well  been  said,  "  Perhaps  no  speech  ever  delivered  at  the 
Bar  was  so  widely  read ;  and  probably  no  protest ional  address 
ever  made  a  greater  imjiression  upon  the  public  mind  than  this. 
The  current  of  public  opinion  had  been  heavily  against  Mr. 
Beecher  for  some  weeks,  and  the  evidence  of  Mr;  Moulton, 
shrewdly  reserved  by  Mr.  Tilton's  counsel  for  the  close  of  the 
case,  had  produced  a  profound  sensation— so  strong,  indeed, 
that  Mr.  Beecher's  enemies,  and  many  of  his  friends,  believed 
that  its  effect  could  not  be  overcome. 

The  responsibility  of  opening  the  case  under  these  circum- 
stances was  a  momentous  one.  A  hundred  detailed  statements 
were  to  be  met  and  refuted;  a  multitude  of  new  facts  were  to  be 
foreshadowed  and  statad  in  their  proper  connection,  while  the 
least  failure  to  prove  what  was  promised  by  the  opening  address 
would  be  disastrous.  Mr.  Tracy,  therefore,  wrote  out  nearly  one- 
third  of  his  speech,  covering  most  of  the  details  concerning  which 
strict  accuarcy  was  needed;  although  the  part  orally  delivered 
also  contained  a  large  amount  of  details  respecting  matters  with 
which  the  speaker  was  so  familiar  that  he  relied  unhesitatingly 
upon  his  memory.  The  address  extended  over  four  days, 
and  its  effect  was  remarkable,  both  in  the  rapidity  and  ex- 
tent of  the  changa  made  in  public  sentiment.  The  boldness 
with  which  it  put  Mr.  Beecher's  assailants  on  the  defense  ex- 
cited surprise.  The  only  question  seemed  to  be,  "Can  these 
statements  be  proved  ?"  Mr.  Beecher's  friends  believed  they 
could.  His  enemies  were  not  sure  that  the  proof  would  fail, 
and  of  course  were  placed  in  much  doubt  and  fear.  The  proof 
was  substantially  given,  as  was  demonstrated  to  the  satisfaction 
of  all  who  followed  the  masterly  words  of  Judge  Porter,  and  the 
magnificent  eloquence  of  Mr.  Evarls,  in  the  summing  up.  The 
jury,  although  unable  to  agree,  stood  nine  to  three  in  favor  of 
Beecher,  upon  the  final  ballot.  The  action  was  never  tried 
again." 

Another   duty   in   the   conduct   of  that   great   (rial,  quite  aa 


1226 


HISTORY  OP  KINGS  COUNTY. 


responsible 'and  laborious  tis  the  opening  address,  quite  unex- 
pectedly devolved  upon  Tracy.  This  was  the  cross-examination 
of  F.  D.  Moulton,  a  leading  witness  for  the  plaintiff.  It  had 
been  assigned  to  that  distinguished  advocate,  Hon.  John  K. 
Porter,  who,  after  conducting  it  two  days  with  his  usual  ability, 
was  suddenly  taken  so  ill  that  it  was  impossible  for  him  to 
continue  it. 

Such  was  the  nature  of  Moulton's  direct  evidence,  that  it 
required,  in  the  person  cross-examining  him,  peculiar  ab- 
ility in  the  use  of  that  thumbscrew  of  the  law — a  cross-exami- 
nation. To  conduct  it  successfully  is  the  most  difficult  and 
important  duty  that  can  be  committed  tc  a  lawyer.  When  it  is 
not  founded  on  materials  of  contradiction,  or  directly,  to  obtain 
some  information  which  the  witness  will  be  willing  to  give,  it 
proceeds  on  the  assumption  that  the  iiarty  interrogated  has 
sworn  an  untruth,  which  he  may  be  indiiced  to  vary,  and  it 
always  brings  on  a  sharp  mental  contest  between  the  advocate 
conducting  it  and  the  witness.  After  a  brief  consultation  with 
his  associates,  and  with  the  other  frieds  of  Mr.  Beecher,  Tracy 
was  selected  to  continue  Moulton's  cross-examination  in  Judge 
Porter's  place.  He  began  on  the  morning  of  January  20th,  closing 
at  noon  on  the  2Gth,  exhibiting  a  singular  knowledge  of  human 
nature,  of  the  springs  of  human  action,  an  ingenious  and  nice 
discrimination  of  his  interrogatories  and  manner  of  propounding 
them. 

His  eiBforts  were  eminently  successful  in  strengthening  the 
defense,  and  in  weakening  the  prosecution. 

In  December,  1881,  General  Tracy  was  appointed  by  the 
Governor  an  Associate  Justice  of  the  Court  of  Appeals,  in  place 
of  Hon.  Charles  Andrews,  promoted  to  the  office  of  Chief  Judge 
of  the  Court  of  Appeals.  This  high  position  was  tendered  him 
in  recognition  of  his  accomplishments  as  a  lawyer,  and  of  his 
naturally  judicial  mind  and  method. 

His  appointment  was  exceedingly  satisfactory,  not  only  to  the 
Bar  of  the  State,  but  to  all  the  members  of  the  Court  of  Appeals. 
He  carried  to  the  Bench;  an  inflexible  honesty  and  imi^artiality, 
that  rose  above  every  influence;  adjusted  to  all  occasions. 
Immediately  after  his  appointment  he  entered  uiion  his  judicial 
labors— the  hearing  of  arguments,  studying  and  elaborating  his 
opinions,  writing  them,  and  in  consulting  with  his  brethren 
of  the  Bench ;  in  fact,  he  assumed  the  duties  and  the  labor  of 
an  old  and  experienced  judge.  The  facility  with  which  he 
acquired  the  habit  of  judicial  business,  and  the  promptness  with 
which  he  transacted  it,  was  remarkable.  His  duties,  however, 
were  onerous,  and  extremely  wearing  to  his  physical  strength; 
but  as  his  knowledge  of  law  was  deep  and  jiractical,  his  powers  of 
comprehension  and  analysis  strong  and  vigorous,  he  was  able 
to  perform  a  large  amount  of  judicial  labor  with  apjiarent  ease. 

Jiidge  Tracy's  written  opinions  are  the  best  history  of  bis 
judicial  career.  They  commend  themselves,  not  only  to  the 
professional,  but  to  the  lay  reader.  For  clearness  of  expression, 
research,  logical  compactness,  pointed  illustration,  and  the 
absence  of  all  pretension  and  show,  they  are  certainly  remark- 
able judicial  in-oductions,  destined  to  live  in  legal  history,  to 
guide  and  enlighten  the  judiciary  and  the  profession. 

Space  will  not  permit  us  to  enter  on  any  description  of  the 
numerous  opinions  written  by  Tracy  in  cases  adjudicated  in 
the  court  of  last  resort  of  the  State.  We  cannot,  however,  avoid 
referring  briefly  to  a  very  few  of  the  most  important  of  them. 

First  in  importance  among  these  is  Story,  applt.,  agt.  The  Kew 
York  Eki-aled  Railroad  Company,  90  N.  Y.,  122.  {See  Important 
Trials.)  This  case  derives  its  interest  and  importance  because 
it  decides  the  question,  "To  what  extent  can  private  property 
be  taken  for  public  use  within  the  meaning  of  the  Constitution, 
which  provides  that  private  projoerty  shall  not  be  taken  for  pub- 
lic use  without  just  compensation  ?  " 

Judge  Tracy's  opinion  in  this  case  is  one  of  the  ablest,  most 
learned  and  exhaustive  found  in  the  reports  of  this  State.  The 
lines  on  which  he  sustains  the  plaintiff  are  sharply  but  nicely 


defined.  The  action  was  brought  to  restrain  the  defendant,  the 
said  railroad  company,  from  constructing  its  road  in  that  por- 
tion of  Front  street.  New  York  City,  opposite  plaintiff's  premises, 
without  just  compensation.  Judge  Tracy's  decision  reverses 
that  of  the  Suj^reme  Court,  which  was  in  favor  of  the  railroad 
company.  We  commend  a  close  reading  of  the  case  to  the  stu- 
dent, the  practitioner,  and  to  business  men.  Those  able  and 
enlightened  jurists.  Justices  Danforth,  Eapallo  and  Andrews, 
concurred  with  Judge  Tracy  against  the  dissenting  opinions  of 
Justices  Earl  and  Finch.  The  following  are  among  the  cases  of 
great  importance  and  interest,  in  which  Judge  Tracy  wrote  the 
prevailing  opinion:  Smedis  v.  The  Brooklyn  and  liockaway  Rail- 
road Company.  This  was  a  very  important  case,  and  was  one  of 
the  first,  if  not  the  first,  in  which  Judge  Tracy  wrote  an  opinion . 
77(6  People  ex  rel.  Neil  Gilmore,  Superintendent  of  Puhlic  Instruction, 
etc.,  V.  Frederick  Hyde,  SON.  Y.  11.  John  A.  Stewart,  applt.,  v.  The 
Brooklyn  and  Gross-Town  Railroad  Company,  respt.,  90N.Y.,  588. 
This  case  is  of  vital  importance  to  the  vast  numberof  people  who 
travel  on  the  citj'  railroad  cars.  The  plaintiff,  while  a  jiassenger 
on  one  of  the  defendant's  street  cars,  was  unjustifiably  attacked 
and  beaten  by  the  driver,  who  also  acted  as  conductor.  The 
former  brought  an  action  against  the  company,  instead  of  the 
driver,  to  recover  damages.  The  plaintiff's  complaint  was  dis- 
missed at  the  Circuit  on  the  ground,  that  if  a  servant,  under  the 
guise  and  cover  of  executing  his  master's  orders,  and  exercising 
authority  upon  him,  willfully  and  designedly,  for  the  pur- 
i:)Ose  of  accompli -ihing  his  own  independent,  malicious  or  wicked 
purposes,  does  an  injury  to  another,  the  master  is  not  liable. 
The  plaintiff  appealed  to  the  General  Term  of  the  Supreme 
Court,  where  the  judgment  of  the  Circuit  was  duly  affirmed.  He 
then  appealed  to  the  Court  of  Appeals,  where  the  judgment  of 
the  Circuit  and  General  Term  was  in  all  things  reversed. 

Judge  Tracy,  in  pronouncing  the  opinion  of  the  Court,  said  : 
"The  defendant  had  intrusted  the  execution  of  the  contract,  to 
safely  carry  the  jilaintiff  to  his  destination,  to  the  driver  of  the 
car,  and  he  was  under  his  protection.  Any  breach  of  contract 
committed  by  the  driver  was  a  breach  committed  by  the  defend- 
ant, the  railroad  company.  The  plaintiff  was  injured  while  on 
the  defendant's  cars  by  the  act  of  the  driver,  the  agent  to  whom 
the  defendant  had  intrusted  the  extcution  of  the  contract.  It  is 
the  defendant's  failure  to  carry  safely  and  without  injury  that 
constitutes  the  breach,  rendering  the  railroad  company  liable 
for  damages;  and  it  is  no  defense  that  that  failure  was  the  result 
of  the  willful  or  malicious  act  of  the  servant,  the  driver  and 
conductor." 

The  following  are  among  the  cases  in  which  Judge  Tracy 
wrote  opinions— nearly  all  of  them  the  prevailing  opinion  :  — 
Farwell  et  al.  v.  The  Traders'  National  Bank,  applt.,  90th  N.  Y., 
483;  Manning  v.  Oould,  90th  N.  Y.,  476;  Ellis  v.  Ilorrman,  9th 
N.  Y.,  46G;  Holsman  v.  St.  John,  90th  N.  Y.,  4G1;  Everson  v. 
Powers,  80th,  N.  Y.,  527;  Conger  v.  Duryee,  90th  N.  Y.,  594. 

In  private  life  Judge  Tracy  is  social  and  hospitable.  No  man 
enjoys  the  society  of  his  friends  more  fully.  It  has  been  said 
that  "without  a  social  side,  or  social  nature,  there  is  wanting 
that  rounded  fullness  that  marks  the  perfectly  developed  man, 
judge,  lawyer  or  layman."  In  his  domestic  relations,  Judge 
Tracy  is  fortunate  and  happy,  and  is  not  wanting  a  social  side 
or  a  social  nature,  for  in  them  he  is  peculiarly  fortunate  and 
happy. 

In  1850  he  was  united  by  marriage  to  Miss  Delinda  E.  Catlin, 
a  sister  of  General  Isaac  S.  Catlin,  ex-District  Attorney  of  the 
j  County  of  Kings,  and  one  of  the  ablest  members  of  its  Bar. 
Judge  Tracy  has  three  children,  two  daughters  and  a  son. 

Like  many  men  distinguished  for  high  intellectual  qualities, 
Judge  Tracy  is  fond  of  agricultural  pursuits.  Few  men  are 
better  judges  of  the  blood,  breed  and  value  of  live  stock  than  he; 
and  he  is  an  acknowledged  authority  in  these  important  matters. 

In  the  interim  of  professional  and  judicial  labor,  he  has  spent 
much  time  in  the  superintendence  and  cultivation  of  a  fertile 


BENCH  AND   BAR   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1327 


and  delightful  farm  near  Owego,  New  York.  After  retiring  from 
the  Bench  in  1882,  as  he  could  not  resist  his  love  for  the  profes- 
sion, he  decided  to  resume  it  again ;  accordingly  he  formed  a 
copartnership  with  William  C.  De  Witt,  Esq.,  and  his  son, 
F.  B.  Tracy,  and  opened  an  office  in  Brooklyn.  This  was 
an  advantageous  and  fortunate  business  relation,  combining 
a  strength  and  variety  of  talent,  learning  and  influence  which 
gives  it  high  rank  in  the  profession,  and  is  justly  appreciated  at 
home  and  abroad. 

Unfortunately  for  Judge  Tracy,  his  devotion  to  his  judicial  la- 
bors and  duties  impaired  his  health  to  such  an  extent  that  ho  was 
incapacitated  for  business;  but  a  total  abnegation  from  all  busi- 
ness for  a  time,  judicious  medical  treatment,  and  a  tour  to 
Europe  nearly  restored  him  to  health;  and  he  is  once  more  in 
the  discharge  of  those  professional  duties  he  loves  so  well,  and 
by  which  he  has  gained  the  high  honors  he  so  enjoys. 


JOHN    WINS  LOW. 

The  professional  life  of  John  Winslow  covers  an  important 
period  in  the  history  of  Kings  County,  especially  its  legal  history, 
and  deserves  a  place  in  this  work.  Born  of  New  England 
parentage,  his  youth  and  early  manhood  were  passed  in  Massa- 
chusetts, in  Newton,  near  Boston.  After  attending  public 
schools,  he  entered  the  private  school  of  Mr.  M.  S.  Rice,  at 
Newton  Centre;  and,  afterwards  that  of  his  brother,  Gardner 
Kioe,  known  as  the  Holliston  Academy.  Upon  determining  to 
prepare  for  college,  he  entered  Phillip's  Academy  at  Andover, 
Mass.,  then,  as  now,  a  celebrated  classical  school,  and  remained 
there  two  years.  Mr.  Winslow  refers  to  his  life  at  Andover  with 
pleasure.  He  attended  the  recent  centennial  of  Phillip's  Academy, 
and  made  an  address,  which  is  to  be  published  by  the  corpora- 
tion, with  others  delivered  on  that  occasion.  Mr.  Winslow 
entered  Brown  University,  being  attracted  there  by  Dr.Waylaud, 
the  then  President,  for  whom  Mr.  Winslow  ever  entertained  the 
greatest  respect  and  regard.  In  September,  18.50,  Mr.  Winslow 
entered  Harvard  Law  School,  at  Cambridge,  Mass.,  where  he 
remained  two  years  and  graduated,  receiving  the  degree  of 
LL.B.  While  at  the  law  school  his  most  intimate  friend  and 
room-mate  was  the  Hon.  E.  L.  Pierce,  of  Milton,  Mass.,  the 
biographer  of  Charles  Sumner. 

When  in  the  law  school.  Pierce  and  Winslow  become  well 
known,  not  only  as  faithful  students,  but  as  pronounced  anti- 
slavery  men.  In  the  debates,  in  what  was  known  as  the  Parlia- 
ment, they  were  expected  to  maintain  the  Anti-slavery  Free  Soil 
side  of  all  questions  touching  that  issue. 

At  that  time  there  were  many  students  in  the  law  school 
from  the  South,  who  were  fiery  advocates  of  the  Southern  view. 
It  was  then  the  fashion  for  Northern  men  to  advocate  or  apolo- 
gize for  the  same  view.  The  result  was.  Pierce  and  Winslow 
became  rather  marked  men  among  the  multitude,  as  composing 
the  free  soil  minority.  When  the  time  came  for  writing  prize 
dissertations,  the  Southern  students,  who  were  generally 
ambitious,  entered  the  race  for  the  prizes.  Pierce  and  Winslow 
thought  the  minority  ought  to  be  heard  from,  and  so  agreed  to 
write;  Mr.  Pierce  taking  one  topic,  "The  consideration  of  a  Con- 
tract at  Law  and  Equity;"  and  Mr.  Winslow  the  other,  "The 
resiJonsibility  of  a  Principal  for  the  Acts  and  representations  of 
his  Agents."  The  minority,  that  had  been  so  often  pitched  into 
in  debates,  had  the  grim  satisfaction  of  winning  the  prizes.  In 
this  connection  Mr.  Winslow  had  the  pleasure  of  receiving  a 
letter  of  congratulation  from  the  late  Professor  Theophilus 
Parsons,  then  of  the  law  school,  and  author  of  "  Parsons  on 
Contracts  "  and  other  well  known  legal  works.  Professor  Parsons 
availed  himself  of  both  dissertations  in  writing  his  work  on 
Contracts. 

Upon  leaving  the  law  school,  Mr.  Winslow  was  admitted  to 
the  Bar  in  Brooklyn,  in  1852,   and  commenced  the   practice  of 


law  with  his  late  brother,  Hon.  D.  C.  Winslow.  In  the  follow- 
ing year  ho  was  appointed  Assistant  District  Attorney,  when 
Gen.  Harmanus  B.  Duryea  was  District  Attorney.  The  hitter's 
health  not  being  firm,  Mr.  Winslow  had  thrown  upon  him  large 
responsibilities,  which,  with  the  energy  of  young  manhood  to 
aid  him,  he  was  glad  to  assume.  In  18-5.5  Mr.  Winslow  was 
appointed  Corporation  Attorney,  at  the  request  of  Mayor  George 
Hall,  whose  legal  adviser  he  was  during  the  Mayor's  term. 
In  1859  Mr.  Winslow  was  elected,  on  the  Kepublican  ticket.  Dis- 
trict Attorney  of  Kings  County  for  a  term  of  three  years,  begin- 
ning January  1st,  18G0.  It  is  the  testimony  of  the  Bar,  and  of 
the  Press,  that  Kings  County  never  had  a  more  faithful  and  effi- 
cient District  Attorney. 

"We  have  had  repeatedly,"  says  the  Brooklyn  Eagle, 
February  11,  1861,  siJeaking  of  his  success  and  ability  in  the 
discharge  of  his  duties  in  his  first  term,  "the  satisfaction  of 
commending  the  vigor  with  which  public  justice  has  been 
administered  by  the  public  prosecutor  of  this  county,  and  the 
list  of  public  offenders  who  have  been  punished,  will  tend  to 
enforce  the  solemn  truth  that  the  way  of  the  transgressor  is 
hard,  especially  under  the  reijime  of  District  Attorney  Winslow 
and  Judge  Garrison.  The  whole  number  of  convictions  within 
the  year  was  315  ;  and,  among  the  criminals  who  have  been 
convicted,  were  several  notorious  ofifenders,  now  doing  the 
State  some  service  at  Sing  Sing.  The  number  of  persons 
acquitted  on  trial  was  but  fourteen  -a  fact  which  forcibly  shows 
two  things:  that  few  innocent  persons  have  been  subjected  to 
prosecution,  and  that  few  guilty  ones  have  escaped  their  deserts. 
It  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  of  the  whole  number  of  i)ersons  tried 
under  indictments  last  year  in  the  city  of  New  York,  one  in 
every  five  was  acquitted ;  while  in  Brooklyn  the  ratio  was  but 
one  in  Iwenty-three."  This  statement,  it  will  be  observed,  was 
for  one  year  only,  and  is  certainly  very  remarkable  ;  but  it  is 
still  more  remarkable,  that  the  record  of  the  convictions  in 
Kings  County,  for  every  year  that  Mr.  Winslow  held  the  oflice, 
compares  favorably  with  that. 

In  1866  he  formed  a  copartnership  with  Hon.  Joshua  M.  Van 
Cott.  This  firm,  their  office  being  at  hi  William  street.  New 
York,  became  one  of  the  most  distinguished  in  the  city ;  the 
versatility  of  talent  which  it  combined  admirably  fitted  it  for  its 
large  and  extended  clientage,  each  member  of  the  firm  bringing 
to  it  a  degree  of  learning,  patient  industry  and  legal  ability  of 
the  highest  order.  The  records  not  only  of  the  courts  of 
New  York  City,  but  of  Kings  County,  and  other  parts  of  the 
State,  show  the  large  amount  and  great  importance  of  their 
business.  This  firm  existed  through  the  unusually  long  period 
of  seventeen  years.  The  reports  of  cases  adjudicated  in  the 
Court  of  Appeals  and  in  the  Supreme  Court,  as  well  as  in  the 
City  and  County  Courts,  illustrate  their  success  in  conducting 
litigation. 

Among  these  cases  was  that  of  Hope  vs.  English,  a  libel  suit;  and 
the  case  of  Sage  vs.  The  City  of  Brooklyn  (see  "Important  Trials"). 
Both  of  these  cases  were  of  unusual  interest;  tne  latter  was 
very  important  to  the  owners  of  real  estate  in  the  city  of 
Brooklyn  under  tax  and  assessment  laws.  It  is  just  to  Mr. 
Winslow  to  say  that  the  management  of  these  oases  was,  in  a 
large  measure,  assigned  to  him  alone;  in  both  of  them  he  was 
eminently  successful. 

In  the  spring  of  187'!  a  vacancy  occurred  in  the  office  of 
District  Attorney,  by  the  resignation  of  Thomas  M.  Rodman, 
and  Mr.  Winslow  w.is  appointed  by  Governor  Dix  in  his  place; 
his  appointment  dates  May  9,  1874.  The  selection  of  Mr. 
Winslow  to  this  office  at  this  time,  when  several  important 
indictments  against  public  officers  were  pending,  was  highly 
complimentary  to  him  as  a  lawyer.  The  successful  manner  in 
which  Mr.  Winslow,  as  the  prosecuting  officer  of  the  county, 
conducted  the  trials  of  these  indictments,  proved  him  to  be  a 
faithful,  independent  and  valuable  public  servant.  These  trials, 
which  created  much  public   excitement,  as  they  involved  the 


1228 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


repntations  of  several  public  functionaries,  upheld  by  powerful 
friends,  wbo  wielded  much  influence  in  the  community, 
required  of  the  public  prosecutor  courage  and  perseverance. 
The  administration  of  this  responsible  office  is  necessarily 
aggressive  and  difficult;  it  is,  or  should  be,  regarded  as  quasi- 
judicial,  requiring  its  incumbent  to  temper  justice  with  mercy, 
and  a  clear,  prompt  and  decisive  application  of  legal  know- 
ledge to  the  questions  that  arise  before  him. 

Happily,  Mr.  Winslow  brought  to  this  office  all  these  endow- 
ments. 

His  high  reputation  as  a  lawyer,  his  acknowledged  abilities  as 
a  scholar,  and  the  purity  of  his  character  as  a  private  citizen, 
brought  him  so  prominently  before  the  public  that,  in  the  autumn 
of  1873,  he  was  nominated  by  the  Republicans  of  the  2d  Judicial 
District  for  the  office  of  Judge  of  the  Supreme  Coiirt. 

His  party  was  largely  in  the  minority,  and  though  not  elected, 
there  was  much  in  the  result  of  the  canvass,  especially  the  large 
vote  he  received,  that  was  gratifying  to  him — much  that  evinced 
his  popularity  as  a  man  and  as  a  lawj'er. 

In  politics,  Mr.  Winslow  is  a  Republican;  though  firm  and 
undeviating  in  his  principles,  he  is  not  aggressive.  He  very 
early  allied  himself  with  the  friends  of  free  soil  and  the  oppo- 
nents of  slaver}-;  on  the  breaking  out  of  the  Rebellion,  few  were 
more  earnest  and  influential  in  the  great  work  of  preserving  the 
Union  than  he.  Though  he  did  not  enter  the  army,  in  his 
office  of  District  Attorney,  which  he  held  when  the  war  began, 
and  as  a  public  speaker,  he  rendered  services  quite  as  important 
in  the  work  of  sustaining  the  government,  by  his  eloquence,  his 
vigorous  and  versatile  pen,  his  influence  and  his  means. 

Soon  after  the  dastardly  attack  of  Preston  S.  Brooks  upon 
Senator  Sumner,  an  immense  indignation  meeting  was  held  in 
the  City  Hall,  in  Brooklyn,  for  the  purpose  of  denouncing  the 
unprovoked  and  cruel  assault  on  the  illustrious  Senator  from 
Massachusetts.  It  was  one  of  the  largest  meetings  ever  as- 
sembled in  Brooklyn.  A  series  of  stirring  resolutions  were 
adopted,  and  Mr.  Winslow,  being  introduced  by  the  chairman — 
the  Mayor  of  the  city — advocated  their  adoption,  in  a  speech 
which  was  not  only  warmly  applauded,  but  produced  a  marked 
eff'ect. 

It  was  made  at  that  period  in  the  history  of  the  Republic 
when  patriotism  is  eloquent;  when  self-devotion  is  eloquent; 
when  opposition  to  high-handed  encroachment  upon  the  rights 
of  others  is  eloquent.  Mr.  Winslow's  speech  was  marked  by 
clear  conception,  by  sound  reason,  by  stirring,  impetuous  and 
irresistible  appeal,  and  by  the  fearless  instincts  of  a  patriot,  as 
pleasing  in  diction  as  it  was  strong  in  argument.  One  of  Mr. 
Winslow's  most  impressive  efforts  during  the  Civil  War,  was 
made  at  Fort  Hamilton  in  May,  18G1,  on  the  occasion  of  the 
renewal  of  the  oath  of  allegiance  of  the  officers  and  men  who 
had  recently  formed  the  garrison  at  Fort  Sumter,  in  obedience 
to  an  order  of  the  Secretary  of  War.  At  the  tap  of  the 
drum  the  battle-scarred  veterans  formed  in  line  and  marched 
towards  one  end  of  the  Fort,  where  they  were  drilled  by 
Capt.  Doubleday.  It  was  an  impressive  scene,  the  drilling 
of  those  men,  begrimed  by  the  smoke  of  Sumter  as  its  walls 
crumbled  around  them,  under  the  fire  of  rebel  batteries.  The 
drill  over,  the  troops  formed  in  line  and  came  to  a  halt,  when 
the  Rev.  Henry  Ward  Beecher  offered  a  prayer,  after  which  Mr. 
Winslow  delivered  abrief  but  impressive  address,  which  touched 
all  hearts.  The  occasion  was  well  calculated  to  arouse  every 
energy,  every  thought  and  feeling  of  an  orator.  At  the  conclu- 
sion of  his  speech,  as  District  Attorney  of  Kings  County  Mr. 
Winslow  administered  the  oath.  It  may  well  be  said  that  the 
occasion  was  one  of  surpassing  interest,  and  has  passed  into 
history. 

Mr.  Winslow  is  peculiarly  happy  as  a  speaker,  not  only  at 
the  Bar,  but  in  the  popular  assembly;  he  always  speaks  to  the 
point  with  animation,   fervor  and  emphasis ;  his  manner  is  uni- 


formly easy  and  natural,  his  diction  chaste  and  unpretending, 
his  gesticulation  appropriate  and  impressive;  never  indulging 
in  extravagant  flights  of  imagination,  giving  utterance  to  coarse 
invective  or  low  and  heartless  ridicule,  and  never  speaking 
merely  for  the  purpose  of  display.  At  the  Bar  he  always  com- 
mands the  respectful  attention  of  the  Court  and  jury.  Space 
will  not  permit  us  even  to  allude  to  the  large  number  of  popular 
addresses  of  Mr.  Winslow's  on  literary,  scientific  and  educa- 
tional matters;  these  addresses  alone,  fairly  reported,  would 
form  material  for  volumes.  A  few  years  ago  there  was  a  gather- 
ing of  the  old  free  soilers  at  Denners  Landing,  on  the  bay  near 
Boston,  Charles  Francis  Adams  presided ;  the  occasion  was  a 
memorable  one.  Mr.  Winslow's  address  on  the  attitude  of  John 
C.  Calhoun  towards  the  anti-slavery  cause  is  spoken  of  as  a 
masterly  production.  It  is  proper  to  add  that  he  has  been, 
and  still  is,  a  very  active  and  industrious  man;  he  wields  the 
pen  of  an  accomplished  writer;  and  it  is  not  extravagant  to 
say  that  the  productions  of  his  pen  have  largely  enriched  the 
literature  of  his  times.  One  of  his  latest  contributions  is  an 
article  on  Rufus  Choate  in  Judge  Neilson's  Memories  of  Choate. 
In  his  student  days,  as  we  have  seen,  he  achieved  a  triumph  as 
a  writer  which  would   have  been  enviable  to  any  law  student. 

Mr.  Winslow  has  been  largely  identified  with  the  organization 
of  important  public  institutions  in  Brooklyn.  He  was  one  of 
the  five  who  signed  the  first  call  for  a  public  meeting  to 
organize  the  Long  Island  Historical  Society.  The  meeting  met 
in  the  Hamilton  Building,  and  was  called  to  order  by  Mr. 
Winslow,  who  nominated  Prof.  C.  E.  West  for  chairman.  He  was 
for  several  years  a  Director  and  the  Corresj^onding  Secretary  of 
the  Society.  And  as  chairman  of  the  committee  having  charge 
of  the  matter  relative  to  the  motto  of  the  Society  for  its  seal,  and 
which  appears  on  the  easterly  wall  of  the  Society's  elegant 
building  on  Clinton  street,  adopted  the  following  from  Cicero, 
"  Historia  testis  temporum."  The  flourishing  New  England 
Society  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn,  of  which  Mr.  Winslow  is  a 
Director  and  first  Vice-President,  owes  its  existence  to  him  more 
than  to  any  other  one  man.  He  was  one  of  the  original  members 
of  the  Hamilton  Club,  of  which  he  is  a  Director  and  is  a  member 
of  its  Executive  Committee. 

Mr.  Winslow  has  just  cause  to  feel  some  pride  of  ancestry;  for, 
as  Lord  Bacon  has  said:  "It  is  a  reverend  thing  to  see  an 
ancient  castle,  or  building  not  in  decay,  or  to  see  a  fine  timber- 
tree  sound  and  perfect;  how  much  more  to  behold  an  ancient 
noble  family,  which  has  stood  against  the  waves  and  weathers  of 
time  !" 

He  can  unerringly  trace  his  genealogy  on  the  paternal  side  to 
a  very  remote  period  of  English  history ;  and,  as  has  well  been 
said,  "that  of  families  bearing  the  Pilgrim  name,  there  are  none 
more  identified  with  Pilgrim  history  than  those  of  the  honored 
name  of  Winslow;  that  the  descendant  Winslows  may  look  with 
pride  to  their  distinguished  ancestors,  who  bore  so  important  a 
part  in  planting  the  colony  of  New  Plymouth."  Edward 
Winslow,  one  of  these  ancestors,  was  one  of  the  Pilgrims 
who  landed  from  the  Mauflower  at  Plymouth,  Dec.  20,  1620 
(0.  S.)  His  marriage  with  Mrs.  White  was  the  first  that  took 
place  on  the  soil  of  New  England;  she  was  his  second  wife,  and 
the  widow  of  William  White,  one  of  the  chief  jiassengers  of  the 
Maiffloioer,  who  died  about  the    1st  of  March,  1621. 

Edward  Winslow,  of  Droitwich,  England,  wag  the  father  of 
the  four  brothers  who  came  to  Plymouth,  and  became  leading 
men,  one  of  whom  was  Governor  Winslow,  and  of  the  colony; 
from  whom  sprang  a  long  line  of  honored  descendants,  among 
whom  is  Hon.  John  Winslow,  whose  biography  we  have  thus 
imperfectly  sketched.  Mr.  Winslow  is  still  in  the  prime  and 
vigor  of  manhood,  possessing  qualities  that  attract  the  highest 
esteem,  and  in  the  jjossession  of  that  learning,  ability  and  ex- 
jierience,  which  point  to  a  fortunate,  happy  and  prominent 
career  in  the  future. 


C^^r^-. 


'^ 


^^^y^ 


'A^ 


( 


BENCH  AND  BAR   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1229 


BENJAMIN  D.  SILLIMAN. 

It  would  be  quite  impossible  to  pursue  the  plan  of  our  work 
without  referring  at  some  length  to  Mr.  Silliman,  at  least  to  his 
public  life;  for  that,  like  the  lives  of  all  public  men,  belongs  to 
his  fellow-citizens,  and  in  this  case  to  the  profession  of  which 
he  has  been  so  long  an  honored  member.  It  is,  therefore,  but 
an  act  of  justice  that  we  give  some  portions  of  his  public  life  in 
this  work,  candidly,  and  with  exact  obedience  to  unvarnished 
facts. 

His  private  life  needs  no  description  from  us ;  it  is  written  in  the 
hearts  and  mind.s  of  his  fellow-citizens  in  a  better  and  stronger 
manner  than  could  be  done  by  the  pen  of  the  ablest  writer. 
Besides,  we  lack  that  intimacy  which  would  enable  us  to  sketch  it 
as  it  should  be  portrayed;  yet  we  may  venture  the  assertion  that 
his  professional  and  private  life  are  in  harmony. 

Mr.  Silliman  was  bom  at  Newport,  K.  I.,  September  14,  1805. 
His  father  was  Gold  S.  Silliman,  of  that  place.  His  mother  was 
Miss  Hepsa  Ely,  daughter  of  Kev.  David  Ely,  and  a  grand- 
daughter of  Eev.  Jedediah  Mills.  After  due  preparation  he 
entered  Yale  College,  from  which  he  was  graduated  in  the  class 
of  1S24.  Mr.  Silliman 's  father  graduated  at  Yale  in  179G;  his 
grandfather,  Gen.  Gold  S.  Silliman,  in  1752;  his  great-grand- 
father. Gen.  Ebenezer  Silliman,  graduated  at  Yale  in  1727.  Mr. 
Silliman  is  also  a  nephew,  we  believe,  of  the  late  distinguished 
Professor  Silliman.  His  maternal  grandfather  graduated  at  Yale 
in  17*)9,  and  his  maternal  great-grandfather  in  1722.  No  name 
is  more  honored  in  the  history  of  Y'ale  College  than  that  of  Silli- 
man. 

"Mr.  Silliman,"  says  his  class  biographer,  "on  leaving  Yale 
College,  pursued  the  study  of  law  in  the  office  of  Chancellor 
Kent,  and  his  son  Wm.  Kent,  (afterwards  a  judge  of  the  Supreme 
Court, )  in  the  city  of  New  York.  He  was  admitted  to  the  Bar  in 
May,  182'.t,  and  with  the  exception  of  a  visit  to  Europe  in  184S, 
has  been  steadily  engaged  in  the  practice  of  his  profession  in 
New  York,  and  Brooklyn  from  that  time  to  the  present.  Though 
ahvays  taking  a  deep  interest  in  politics,  he  has  limited  his  par- 
ticipation therein  mainly  to  the  advocacy  of  principles  through 
the  press,  and  to  services  in  conventions.  State  and  National. 
He  has  generally  declined  public  office,  as  inconsistent  with  his 
professional  duties,  though  he  has  served  in  the  Legislature, 
and  as  Attorney  for  the  United  States  for  the  Eastern  District  of 
New  York,  which  office  he  resigned  in  18{i6;  he  was  also  ap- 
pointed, and  acted,  as  a  member  of  the  Commission  for  the  Re- 
vision of  the  Constitution  of  the  State  in  1873.  He  was  nomi- 
nated by  the  Republican  party  as  their  candidate  for  Attorney- 
General  in  1873,  but  the  ticket  {with  the  exception  of  two  of  the 
candidates,  who  had  also  been  nominated  by  another  party — 
the  "Liberal  Republican")  was  not  successful. 

The  honorary  degree  of  LL.D.  was  conferred  on  Mr.  Silliman 
by  Columbia  CoDege  in  1873,  and  the  like  honorary  degree  was 
also  conferred  upon  him  by  Yale  College  in  1874." 

His  characteristics  as  a  lawyer— candidly  presented — are  ex- 
tended knowledge  and  a  just  estimate  of  fundamental  prin- 
ciples; close  acquaintance  with  cases  and  decisions;  accuracy 
in  forms  and  in  the  rules  applicable  both  to  the  practice  and 
the  rights  of  the  parties;  indefatigable  industry  in  his  in- 
vestigations, which  he  conducts  with  clear  discrimination  and 
judgment.  He  states  his  points  with  singleness  and  perspicuity, 
sustaining  them  by  fair  and  cogent  argument,  seldom  failing  to 
exhibit  in  their  support  the  learning  of  the  cases  and  the  best 
reasoning  of  the  judges.  He  is  never  guilty  of  unworthy  finesse, 
of  misrepresentation  of  facts,  or  of  unjustifiable  betrayal  of  the 
understanding  into  the  power  of  misguided  feeling;  he  is  alike 
faithful  to  his  client,  the  jury  and  the  court,  though  by  no 
means  wanting  in  that  policy  and  tact  so  necessary  to  the  success- 
ful lawyer. 

As  a  speaker  at  the  Bar  or  in  the  public  assembly,  he  has  a 
full  share  of  advantages,  though  he  makes  no  pretension  what- 
ever to  oratory;  indeed,  he  is  unpretending  in  every  phase  of 
life,  public  or  private. 

A  description  of  the  important  cases  conducted  by  him  in  the 
various  courts,  State  and  Federal,  would  render  this  sketch  too 


voluminous;  suffice  it  to  say  that  the  records  of  these  courts, 
couched  in  plain,  official  language,  form  a  valuable  history  of 
his  career  at  the  Bar.  To  say  that  Mr.  Silliman  is  a  polished 
scholar,  with  the  instincts  and  tastes  of  a  scholar,  is  only  to 
reiterate  what  has  been  repeated  of  him  by  the  press,  by  his 
contemporaries,  and  by  the  many  public  demonstrations  of  his 
scholarly  attainments.  His  acquaintance  with  distinguished 
men,  men  of  illustrious  and  historic  name,  has  been,  and  still 
is,  exceedingly  large.  His  relation  with  Chancellor  Kent,  and 
his  distinguished  son,  Judge  William  Kent,  began  when  he  was 
a  student  in  their  office;  it  ended  only  when  death,  the  "great 
proprietor  of  life,"  removed  those  illustrious  men  from  the 
world.  These  relations  were  reciprocal,  and  perhaps  there  is 
nothing  that  brings  up  so  much  pleasure  from  the  past  to  Mr. 
Silliman  as  the  memory  of  this  friendship.  Surely  no  man 
understood  the  character  of  the  great  commentator  more 
thoroughly  than  he  did;  while  his  relations  with  Judge  William 
Kent  were  very  intimate,  and  their  friendship  mutually  warm. 
This  friendship  was  exhibited  on  the  part  of  Judge  Kent  in 
many  ways,  prominently  in  a  series  of  beautiful  letters  written 
by  him,  while  traveling  in  Europe,  to  Mr.  Silliman.  In  one 
of  those  letters  he  gave  an  admirable  description  of  some  of 
the  English  judges  whom  he  met. 

It  is  said  by  an  excellent  critic  and  litleralenr  that  Judge  Kent's 
letters  to  Mr.  Silliman  are  most  charming,  and  though  all 
unstudied,  and  written  in  a  sort  of  colloquial  style,  are  yet 
masterpieces  of  English  literature. 

Judge  Kent  died  at  his  country  residence  at  Fishkill,  January 
4, 18G1.  This  sad  event  was  the  source  of  much  grief  to  Mr. 
Silliman.  The  intelligence  of  his  death  reached  the  city  of  New 
York  the  next  day,  producing  the  most  profound  sorrow,  not 
only  with  the  members  of  the  legal  profession,  but  in  all  circles. 
A  meeting  of  the  Bar  called  to  express  the  feelings  of  the  pro- 
fession on  the  death  of  their  distinguished  brother  was  held 
January  12,  1861;  this  meeting  will  always  be  remembered  in 
legal  history. 

Hon.  Daniel  P.  Ingraham,  of  the  Supreme  Court,  presided;  the 
vice-presidents  were  Hon.  Samuel  R.  Betts,  of  the  United  States 
District  Court ;  Hon.  Murray  Hoffman,  of  the  Superior  Court ; 
Hon.  Greene  C.  Bkonson,  ex-Chief  Justice  of  the  Supreme 
Court;  Hon.  Lewis  B.  Woodruff,  of  the  Superior  Court;  Hon. 
Charles  P.  Daly,  of  the  Common  Pleas  ;  Hon.  John  R.  Brady, 
of  the  Common  Pleas  ;  Daniel  Lord,  Esq.  Secretaries:  Hon. 
William  Fullerlon,  Alexander  Hamilton,  Jr.,  J.  C.  Carter,  Esq., 
and  D.  B.  Eaton,  Esq.  After  a  series  of  resolutions  had  been 
presented  to  the  meeting  by  John  Van  Buren,  Mr.  Silliman  arose 
and  moved  their  adoption.  His  address  in  doing  this  was  an 
appropriate  and  feeling  tribute  to  the  memory  of  his  distin- 
guished friend.  He  delineated  the  judicial  and  private  character 
of  Judge  Kent  in  a  manner  so  truthful  that  it  was  a  perfect 
mental  portrait.  He  said  :  "It  might,  perhaps,  be  difficult  to 
say  whether  Judge  Kent  was  more  remarkable  for  his  intellectual 
and  professional  or  for  his  moral  superiority;  but  that  which, 
in  this  hour  of  bereavement,  touches  us  most  nearly,  is  the  sur- 
render which  we  must  make  to  the  remorseless  grave  of  one 
whose  gentle  and  generous  nature,  whose  genial  sympathy, 
whose  warm  affections  had  so  endeared  him  to  us  that  our  ad- 
miration of  the  lawyer,  the  jurist  and  the  scholar  was  even 
exceeded  by  our  attachment,  by  our  love,  for  the  man.  He  is  out 
off  from  us  in  the  very  glory  of  his  manhood,  with  his  faculties 
and  his  affections  in  the  fullness  of  their  strength  and  action — 
ere  age  had  dimmed  their  brilliancy,  or  impaired  their  jjower,  or 
chilled  their  ardor. 

Judge  Kent  was  born  at  Albany  in  1802  ;  he  had  the  best  ad- 
vantages for  an  education.  After  being  graduated  at  Union 
College,  he  pursued  his  studies  and  entered  the  profession  in 
which  his  father,  the  great  Chancellor,  stood  pre-eminent. 

He  commenced  his  career  as  a  lawyer,  in  one  respect,  under 
a  disadvantage — the  shadow  of  a  great  name.  The  world  is  apt 
to  measure  the  son  of  a  great  man  by  an  unfair  standard.  In- 
stead of  passing  on  his  merits  and  talents  by  comparison  with 
other  young  men,  his  contemporaries  and  peers,  it  withholds  its 
commendation  unless  he  displays  abilities  which  would  add  to 


12.30 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


his  father's  fame.  But  Mr.  Kent  quickly  showed  himself  equal 
even  to  such  a  task.  He  was  early  engaged  in  very  important 
causes,  in  which  he  manifested  powers  and  learning  that  placed 
him  at  once  in  the  foremost  rank  of  the  profession.    •  *  *  • 

He  possessed  remarkable  power  of  analysis,  and  saw  with  the 
quickness  of  intuition  the  right  and  morality  of  a  case,  and  the 
principle  of  law  involved,  and  was  ever  ready  with  the  learn- 
ing of  the  law  requisite  for  their  illustration.  The  force  of  his 
argument  was  aided  by  the  singular  felicity  and  purity  of  the 
language  in  which  it  was  always  clothed;  so  beautiful  and  at- 
tractive was  his  style,  so  happy  his  illustrations,  so  abounding 
in  wit  and  grace  and  learning  and  thought  that,  whether  he  was 
arguing  a  case  or  trying  a  cause,  not  only  the  court  or  jury 
which  he  was  addressing,  but  all  who  were  present  having  no 
concern  with  the  subject,  including  alike  the  members  of  the 
Bar  and  mere  spectators,  were  all  his  eager  and  delighted 
listeners." 

Mr.  Silliman's  description  of  Kent  as  a  judge  will  be  read 
with  interest: 

"  He  continued  in  the  active  practice  of  the  profession  until 
1841,  when  he  was  appointed  to  the  office  of  Circuit  Judge,  on 
the  retirement  of  Hon.  Ogden  F.  Edwards,  and  when  the 
ermine  rested  on  his  shoulders,  it  touched  nothing  less  spot- 
less than  itself.  Never  were  the  high  duties  of  a  judge  per- 
formed with  more  of  purity  or  fidelity.  Never  were  the  scales 
held  liy  a  more  even  hand.  Never  were  the  kindly  and  charit- 
al)le  impulses  of  a  gentle  nature  more  entirely  restrained  and 
subordinated  to  the  duty  of  an  inflexible  and  impartial  admin- 
istration of  the  law,  whether  in  criminal  or  in  civil  cases. 
In  1844,  his  health  having  been  impaired  by  too  close  applica- 
tion to  his  judicial  duties,  he  resigned  his  station  on  the  IJench, 
to  the  great— it  is  not  extravagant  to  say  the  universal — regret 
of  the  profession  and  of  the  community.  He  then  visited 
Europe,  and  while  there,  in  1846,  received  the  invitation,  which 
he  accepted,  from  Harvard  University,  to  succeed  Judge  Story 
in  the  Law  School  at  Cambridge.  The  same  industry,  and 
success,  and  usefulness  which  had  marked  his  previous  career 
attended  his  services  in  the  Law  School,  until  the  close  of  1847, 
when  he  resigned  his  professorship  that  he  might  be  with  his 
venerable  father,  whose  twilight  was  fast  fading  into  night." 

Mr.  Silliman  gives  a  brief  review  of  Judge  Kent  at  the  Bar, 
after  having  resumed  his  profession,  describing  some  of  the  very 
important  cases  which  he  conducted. 

"In  these  cases,  not  to  speak  of  many  others,"  he  says, 
"  Mr.  Kent  exhibited  abilities  of  the  highest  order  and  the 
rarest  learning,  and  earned  a  reputation  which  (in  the  language 
of  one  of  the  resolutions  before  us)  justly  placed  his  memory 
by  the  side  of  his  illustrioias  father.  The  great  men  of  the  Bar 
were  engaged  in  the  learned  discussion  of  these  cases.  I  may 
not  name  those  who  are  still  among  us,  and  most  of  whom  are 
now  present,  but  of  those  who  are  gone  were  Jones,  and  Jay, 
Ogden  and  Webster,  and  Griffin,  and  Sanford,  and  Spencer, 
and  Beardsley,  and  Hill,  and  Butler.  Such  were  the  allies  and 
the  adversaries  of  our  departed  brother— such  were  his  friends 
and  compeers — such  were  the  great  intellects  with  which  his 
own  found  congenial  intercourse.  *  *  •  Judge  Kent  possessed, 
as  did  his  father,  a  most  remarkable  memory.  He  forgot  noth- 
ing. Every  fact,  every  rule,  every  principle,  when  once  attained, 
remained  with  him  always. 

Judge  Kent  combined  what  are,  perhaps,  rarely  combined — 
large  general  knowledge  with  great  accuracy  of  knowledge.  As 
a  helles-lMres  scholar,  he  had  few  equals  in  this  country.  His 
reading  was  not  limited  by  the  ordinarily  wise  rule,  '  Non  midta 
se.d  miiltnm,'  but  it  waahoth  multft  et  muUnm.  Whatever  he  studied 
he  studied  thoroughly;  he  read  everything  and  he  remembered 
everything;  what  he  read  did  not  remain  with  him  a  mere 
accumulation  of  knowledge  and  ideas,  but  became  a  part  of  his 
mental  nature,  storing  and  strengthening  his  mind  without 
impairing  its  originality.  A  mind  thus  enriched,  and  with  such 
resources,  could  never  have  suffered  from  solitude.  It  would 
find  within  itself  abundant  and  choice  companionship.  Em- 
inently was  this  the  case  with  our  departed  friend  and  with  his 
venerable  father. 

Chancellor  Kent,  during  his  last  illness,  passed  many  silent 
watches  of  the  night  without  sleep.  When  asked  if  in  those 
long,  sleepless  hours  he  suffered  from  sad  and  depressed 
feelings,  he  replied  that  he  did  not,  but  that,  on  the  contrary, 
he  derived  great  satisfaction  in  reviewing  in  his  mind  some 
leading  principles  of  the  law— going  back  to  its  origin  —to  the 
reasons  from  which  it  sprang — and  then  recalling  in  their  order 
the  subsequent  cases,  in  England  and  this  country,  in  which 
it  had  been  considered,  shaped,  enlarged  or  qualified,  down  to 
the  final  settled  rule.  •  »  •  »  " 


Continuing  his  remarks  concerning  Judge  Wm.  Kent,  Mr. 
Silliman  says : 

"Honors  sought  him,  prosperity  attended  him,  friends  loved 
him,  and  now  deeply  lament  his  loss.  I  have  never  known  a 
man  whose  wit  and  humor  and  knowledge  were  so  abounding 
and  so  blended,  and  the  instructiveness,  and  beauty,  and  grace, 
and  the  simplicity  of  whose  conversation  was  so  attractive  and 
fascinating.  I  have  never  known  a  man  more  fearless  in  assert- 
ing the  right,  and  in  the  performance  of  what  he  deemed  his 
duty.  I  have  never  known  a  man  more  inflexible  in  principle, 
or  more  strictly  upright.  Though  to  a  stranger  what  I  have 
said  might  appear  the  strained  language  of  eulogy,  yet  this  meet- 
ing is  full  of  witnesses  of  its  truth.  •  •  *  •  1  will  not  trust 
myself  to  speak  of  the,  personal  relations  and  almost  life-long 
intimacy  that  make  his  death  to  me,  indeed,  a  calamity,  nor  of 
the  hopeless  sorrow  of  that  home  of  which  he  was  the  light,  the 
pride  and  the  joy;  but  with  the  same  beautiful  invocation  which 
he  lately  uttered  on  the  death  of  Mr.  Butler,  let  me  say:  '  Tread 
lightly  on  his  ashes,  ye  men  of  genius,  for  he  was  your  kins- 
man !  Weed  clean  his  grave,  ye  men  of  goodness,  for  he  was 
your  brother !'  " 

We  have  quoted  liberally  from  Mr.  Silliman's  address  because 
of  its  full  and  just  description  of  Judge  William  Kent,  and  be- 
cause of  its  hajipy  allusion  to  his  illustrious  father.  Such  a  de- 
scription is  eminently  appropriate  with  the  intended  plan  and 
scope  of  o>ir  work. 

It  is,  perhaps,  proper  to  add  that  Mr.  Silliman  was  followed  in 
his  remarks  by  those  great  lights  of  the  Bar,  William  Curtis 
Noyes,  James  T.  Brady,  Hon.  William  FuUerton,  and  others. 
Since  this  meeting  of  the  Bar,  Mr.  Brady  and  Mr.  Noyes  have 
followed  Judge  Kent  to  the  tomb. 

Mr.  Silliman's  address  at  the  meeting  of  the  New  York  City  Bar, 
November  2,  1872,  on  the  death  of  Marshall  S.  Bidwell,  Esii., 
and  his  memorial  address  before  the  Bar  Association  on  the 
death  of  Edgar  S.  Van  Winkle,  Esq.,  February  13,  1883,  have 
passed  into  legal  history. 

Perhaps  among  all  Mr.  Silliman's  productions  none  exhibit 
more  research  and  scholarly  attainments  than  his  Aildress 
hefwe  the  graduating  Law  Glass  of  Columbia  College,  delivered  on 
the  evening  of  Wednesday,  May  15,  1867,  and  his  Review  of  E.  C. 
Benedicts  Translation  of  the  Hymns  of  the  Middle  Ages  and  oilier 
Medio;val  Hymns,  published  in  1808. 

We  cannot,  in  forming  our  history  of  the  Bar,  avoid  the 
temptation  to  quote  portions  of  Mr.  Silliman's  address  to  the 
graduating  class  above  referred  to.     In  his  exordium  he  says  : 

"  In  welcoming  you,  gentlemen,  to  the  brotherhood  of  the 
Bar,  you  may  well  be  congratulated  on  the  peculiar  advantages 
you  enjoyed  in  preparing  for  its  duties.  You  have  not  been  left 
to  pick  up,  as  you  best  might,  here  and  there,  scattered  frag- 
ments of  legal  knowledge,  but  you  have  been  systematically  in- 
structed in  the  principles  and  philosophy  of  the  law.  You  have 
been  guided  and  trained  by  eminent  and  learned  teachers  in  a 
school  that  ranks  second  to  none  in  the  land  for  the  completeness 
of  its  system  and  the  thoroughness  of  its  instruction.  You 
come  not  as  undrilled  militia,  but  as  graduates  from  the  very 
West  Point  of  the  profession. 

Widely  different  have  been  (with  few  exceptions)  the  oppor- 
tunities of  legal  instruction  in  this  country  until  a  comparatively 
recent  period.  The  student  was  required  to  enter  the  office  of  a 
practicing  attorney,  and  there  to  pursue  his  studies.  He  was  at 
once  engaged  in  the  practice  of  that  of  which  he  had  not 
learned  the  principles.  He  became  familiar  by  daily  observa- 
tions, and  as  a  copyist,  with  the  forms  of  conveyancing  and 
phraseology  of  pleadings,  without  understanding  their  reason. 
*  *  *  As  a  general  rule,  it  was  impossible  for  the  attorney,  In 
whose  office  the  student  was  engaged,  to  give  any  material 
attention  to  his  studies,  and  his  jjrogress  and  attainments,  there- 
fore, lacked  system,  and  were  slow,  confused  and  uncertain.  A 
formal  and  superficial  examination  finally  passed  him  to  the 
Bar,  where  he  could  rarely  feel  at  home  until  he  had  acquired  by 
subsequent  laborious  and  anxious  practice  a  knowledge  of  very 
much  that  he  should  have  attained  at  the  outset.  *  *  In  Europe, 
on  the  other  hand,  full  and  careful  instruction  in  the  prin- 
ciples of  law  has  ever  been  a  prerequisite  to  admission  to  the 
Bar,  and  the  schools  in  which  such  instruction  has  been  given 
have  been  organized,  fostered ,  and  more  or  less  regulated  by 
public  authority.  Regular  schools  of  law  were  established  in 
Rome,  in  the  time  of  Augustus,  at  which  those  who  aspired  to 


BENCH  AND  BAR   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1331 


the  honors  of  the  forum  were  assiduous  students.  None  but  the 
thoroughly  learned  and  skilled  could  dream  of  such  honors 
where  Scaevola,  Sulpieius  and  Cicero  had  been  competitors,  and 
where  even  the  boys,  according  to  Cirero,  were  taiight  the 
'  twelve  tables  '  as  a  necessary  lesson  [discehamus  enim  pueri  XII 
iahlnlas  id  carmen,  nfcessnrmm*)  to  instrtict  them  in  so  miich  of  the 
laws  as  should  be  obtained  by  every  Koman  citizen.  In  France 
such  schools  existed  as  far  back  as  the  twelfth  century.  From 
an  early  peiiod  the  law  has  been,  and  still  is,  most  fully  and 
elaborately  taught  by  renowned  professors  in  the  ITniversities 
of  Germany  and  Holland.  In  England  the  schools  of  law  have 
been  less  regular  and  complete  than  on  the  Continent,  but  the 
qualifications  of  candidates  for  the  English  Bar  have,  neverthe- 
less, been  measured  by  a  very  high  standard." 

Speaking  of  the  perfect  system  of  instruction,  and  the  profic- 
iency of  students  in  the  Law  School  of  Culumhia  Colkijc,  Mr. 
Silliman  says  : 

"  We  regard  the  annual  reinforcement  of  the  Bar  by  a  class 
of  accomplished  and  educated  gentlemen  who  have  been 
thus  thoroughly  taught  in  the  principles  of  the  law,  and  whose 
minds  have  been  carefully  disciplined  and  trained  for  its  in- 
tellectual duties,  as  sure  to  elevate  the  standard  of  legal  at- 
tainment, and  to  promote  the  honor  and  usefulness  of  the 
profession.         **  *  »•»•«.. 

A  grand  future  beckons  you,  and  you  have  the  best  prepara- 
tion for  the  course.  But  we  must  bear  in  mind  that  other  stout 
knif,'hts,  who  have  had  no  such  advantages  as  you  have  had,  will 
enter  the  lists  with  strong  lances,  and  compete  with  yoti  for  the 
hit,'licr  jirizes.  The  great  lawyers  who  preceded  us— the  llamil- 
Ions,  the  Kents,  the  •fai/s,  the  Van  FecA/ens,  the  Spencers,  the  Hills, 
tlie  Wellses,  the  Oakleys,  the  Dners,  the  Woods,  the  TalcoUs,  the 
Oijdrns,  the  lloffmans,  the  Van  linrens,  the  Butlers — had  not  such 
training  as  you  have  enjoyed.  But  what  summits  did  they  not 
attain  ! 

I  have  spoken  of  this  school  as  the  '  West  Point '  of  the  pro- 
fession ;  but  we  have  seen  within  the  last  six  years  that  other 
soldiers  than  those  who  graduated  at  West  Point  won  victories 
and  reaped  laurels — marched  to  the  front  with  muskets  on  their 
shoulders  and  returned  with  stars  on  their  shoulders." 

Mr.  Silliman  then  proceeds  to  briefly  consider  the  rise  and 
progress  of  our  laws,  and  their  derivation  from  the  laws  of 
antiquity. 

"  Many  of  the  provisions  of  our  '  Revised  Statiites '  had  their 
origin  far  back  among  the  centuries,  and  our  professional  pre- 
decessors in  ancient  Home  and  Greece  enforced  and  adminis- 
tered many  of  the  rights  and  remedies  which  are  enforced  and 
administered  in  the  City  Hall  to-day.  Since  the  foundations  of 
much  of  the  law  with  wliich  you  are  to  deal  were  laid  in  those 
earlier  ages,  the  archaeology  of  law  is  an  important  part  of  legal 
study,  and  it  is  not  more  important  than  attractive. 

In  the  early  history  of  Rome,  we  find  the  Romnluses  and 
lie.muses  disposing  of  their  property  by  last  wills  and  testaments, 
making  every  variety  of  bequests,  devises  and  trusts,  which 
called  for  numerous  rules  of  interpretation.  Land  was  bought 
and  sold,  and  deeds  given;  and  in  her  subsequent  Codes  were 
various  laws  relative  to  sales,  highways,  easements,  bailment, 
marriage  and  divorce,  ante-nuptial  marriage  settlements,  parent 
and  child,  guardian  and  ward,  domicile,  subrogation,  partner- 
sliips,  joint  stock  associations,  corporations,  arrest  for  debt,  in- 
junctions, slander,  libel,  bail,  arbitration,  statutes  of  limitation, 
common  pastures,  riparian  ownership,  alluvion,  boundaries,  the 
rate  of  interest,  maritime  contracts  and  liens,  common  carriers, 
and  most  of  the  other  rights  and  instrumentalities  of  modern 
civilized  society.  The  law  as  to  trusts  and  trustees  was  well 
defined  long  before  the  Christian  era,  and  we  find  Cicero  remind- 
ing Atticns  that  adverse  possession  did  not  apply  in  cases  of 
trust  or  guardianship. 

Among  the  legal  antiquities  which  almost  verify  the  saying 
that  there  is  'nothing  new  under  the  sun,'  is  an  Egyptian 
deed,  executed  more  than  a  hundred  years  before  the  Christian 
era,  which  was  sonietime  since  found  in  a  tomb  in  Upper  Egypt, 
by  the  side  of  a  mummy,  supposed  to  be  that  of  the  grantee.  It 
was  written  in  the  Greek  language  (which  it  seems  was  com- 
monly employed  in  that  country  during  the  Greek  dynasty).  It 
has  all  the  parts  requisite  at  this  day  in  a  warranty  deed.  It 
contains  the  date,  the  names  of  the  parties,  the  consideration, 
the  grant,  the  description  of  the  premises,  and  the  warranty  of 
title,  and  is  under  seal. 

Still  earlier  deeds  (six  hundred  years  before  Christ)  are  re- 
cited in  the  book  of  Jeremiah,  indicating  the   date,  the  names  of 

•  De  Legibus  2,  See.  23. 


the  parties,  the  purchase  money,  a  description  of  the  purchase 
money,  witnesses,  seal,  and  the  book  of  records." 

He  makes  the  following  pleasing  allusion  to  the  laws  of  B/i/if- 
ahle  Estoppel : 

"This  law,"  he  says,  "existed  fifteen  centuries  before  Christ, 
when  Moses,  in  effect,*  ruled  that  Qid  tacel  cousenlire  videliir. 
The  same  great  lawgiver  and  judge,  who  was  also  the  earliest  re- 
porter (7  Gik-e's  R.,  12G),  established  principles  of  the  law  of 
bailments, t  which  continue  to  be  in  force  to  this  day.  Lord 
Coke,  in  his  reports,  dissented  from  the  doctrine  of  Moses,  as 
held  in  the  leading  case  of  Lahan  v.  Jacob  (reported  in  Genesis; 
x,rM.,  39),  but  Sir  William  Jones,  in  his  excellent  work  on  Bail- 
ments (p.  41),  differs  from  Coke,  and  concurs  in  the  early 
opinion  of  Moses." 

In  referring  to  lawyers  in  regard  to  hasty  legislation,  Ac,  Mr. 
Silliman  says: 

"With  all  their  respect  for  precedent  and  their  adherence  to 
principles,  lawyers  have  been  the  constant  pioneers  and  advo- 
cates of  judicious  reform  and  checks  on  hasty  legislation." 

After  commenting  upon  the  many  salutary  changes  that  have 
been  made  by  the  laws  in  practice,  and  the  doing  away  with  the 
mysteries  and  subtleties  of  special  pleading  and  the  disappear- 
ance of  technicalities,  and  the  simplifying  the  modes  of  pro- 
cedure and  the  enlargement  of  the  power  of  amendments,  he 
very  candidly  says  that — 

"All  change  is  not  improvement,  and  much  of  the  hasty 
legislation  at  Albany,  and  its  consequent  litigation — though 
profitable  to  lawyers — is  hurtful  to  the  people.  Much,  too,  is,  to 
say  the  least,  of  doubtful  wisdom." 

In  speaking  of  the  honor  that  should  govern  the  practicing 
lawyer,  he  said: 

"No  man  can,  consistently  with  personal  honor  or  professional 
repiitition,  misstate  a  fact  or  a  principle  to  the  court  or  jury. 
The  man  who  would  cheat  a  court  or  jury  would  cheat  anybody 
else.  Measured  by  the  lowest  standard,  that  of  expediency,  no 
lawyer  can,  in  any  case,  afford  to  act  meanly  or  speak  untruly. 
He  owes  no  such  duty  to  his  client;  an  honest  client  would  not 
be  safe  in  the  hands  of  a  lawyer  who  would  do  either." 

The  popular  mind,  in  considering,  as  it  delights  in  doing,  the 
duties  and  the  faults  of  the  legal  profession,  dwells  most  fre- 
quently and  most  severely  upon  the  problem  of  defending 
criminals  known  to  be  guilty.  The  fallacy  involved  inthejireva- 
lent  objection  is  in  the  notion  that  the  interest  of  morality 
demands,  always,  the  puni.shment  of  a  bad  man.  This  may  be 
true;  but  the  interests  of  morality  and  of  social  order  demand, 
above  all  things,  that  a  bad  man  shall  not  be  punished  unless  he 
has  violated  some  law,  and  even  that  a  known  violator  of  the 
law  shall  not  be  punished  except  by  the  forms  of  law;  for  those 
established  and  known  laws,  those  fixed  rules  of  procedure,  are 
all  that  distinguish  the  institutions  of  civilization  from  the  sav- 
age cruelty  of  an  Oriental  autocracy  or  the  blind  fury  of  a  West- 
ern lynching  mob.  Every  lawyer  who  interposes  against  an 
eager  prosecutor,  or  a  passionate  jury  the  shield  of  a  strictly 
legal  defense,  declaring,  "you  shall  not  hang  or  imprison  this 
man,  be  he  guilty  or  not  guilty,  until  by  the  established  course 
of  procedure,  by  competent  legal  evidence,  you  have  proved  that 
he  has  offended  against  a  definite  provision  of  law,  and  that  the 
precise  provision  which  j'ou  have  charged  him  with  violating," 
is  defending  not  so  much  the  trembling  wretch  at  the  bar,  as 
society  itself,  and  the  innocent  man  who  may  to-morrow  be 
driven  by  clamor  to  crucifixion. 

But  if,  in  the  excitement  of  controversy,  the  advocate  quibbles 
with  words,  or  perverts  evidence  to  save  his  client,  he  becomes 
himself  an  offender;  his  offense  being,  not  that  he  defends  a 
guilty  man,  but  that  he  does  that  which  would  not  be  honest  if 
done  in  behalf  of  an  innocent  man. 

In  several  important  criminal  cases  tried  at  the  Kings  County 


•  yumbers, 
i  Genesis,  x: 


,  7,  8.  12,  11,  15. 


1332 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Bar,  to  which  we  have  alluded  in  the  conrse  of  this  work,  the 
counsel  for  the  defense  hare  been  condemned,  more  or  less 
severely,  for  attempting  to  shield  guilty  criminals.  We  might 
cite  as  an  evidence  of  this  the  defense  interposed  on  behalf  of 
Gonzalez  and  Pellicier,  and  that  of  Fanny  Hyde,  and  other 
cases.  AVe  think  Mr.  Silliman  has  disposed  of  this  question  in 
a  manner  which  should  carry  conviction  to  all.     He  says: 

"  It  needs  but  little  thought  to  convince  even  the  vulgar,  that 
the  idea  that  the  vocation  of  lawyers  is  inconsistent  with  the 
strictest  truth,  is  but  vulgar  error.  In  support  of  the  charge,  it 
is  often  said,  that  counsel  will  not  refase  to  defend  a  jirisoner 
whom  he  supposes  to  be  guilty  of  the  offense  for  which  he  is  to 
be  tried.  The  answer  to  this  is  plain:  The  accused  person  is 
not  to  be  tried  by  the  impressions,  or  even  bj'  the  convictions, 
of  any  one  man"  whether  lawyer  or  layman.  The  law  of  the 
land  requires,  not  only  for  the  sake  of  the  accused,  but  for  the 
safetv  of  every  citizen,  that  no  man  shall  be  tried  and  convicted 
except  by  a  jury  of  twelve  men.  The  question  of  his  guilt  or 
innocence  calls  for  a  division  of  labor  in  the  process  by  which  it 
is  to  be  determined.  It  is  made  the  duty  of  the  counsel  for  the 
prosecution  to  conduct  one,  and  of  the  counsel  for  the  prisoner 
to  conduct  the  other  branch  of  the  investigation;  for  the  former 
to  collect  and  present  before  the  jury  the  evidence  against  the 
accused,  and  to  state  such  views  advers:^  to  the  pri.soner  as  re- 
sult from  the  whole  testimony;  and  for  the  latter  to  collect  and 
present  before  the  jury  the  evidence  in  favor  of  the  prisoner, 
and  to  state  all  such  views  in  his  favor  as  result  from  the  whole 
-testimony." 

"If  counsel  assumes  the  guilt  of  an  accused  person  before  that 
guilt  has  been  judicially  ascertained,  if  he  determines  at  the  out- 
set that  the  accused  is  guilty,  he  takes  upon  himself  most  un- 
justifiably the  combined  character  and  prerogative  of  accuser, 
witness,  jury  and  judge;  and  if,  because  of  such  conclusions  in 
his  own  mind,  he  refuses  to  conduct  the  defense  of  the  prisoner, 
he  throws  the  weight  of  his  own  character  and  convictions  into 
the  scale  against  him." 

It  was,  perhaps,  this  view  of  the  case  that  induced  Rufus 
Choate  to  undertake  the  defense  of  Albert  J.  Tirrell  for  the 
murder  of  Maria  Bickford,  one  of  the  most  important  criminal 
trials  ever  tried  in  Massachusetts,  and  strongly  analogous  to 
Ogden  Hoffman's  defense  of  Richard  P.  Robinson  for  the  murder 
of  Helen  Jewett.  Mr.  Choate  deliberated  a  long  time  before 
entering  on  that  defense,  so  desperate,  so  splendid,  and  so  suc- 
cessful. He  was  severely  criticised  by  the  press  for  saving  what 
the  popular  mind  believed  to  be  a  guilty  man  from  the  gallows. 
"He  threw  doubts,"  said  his  critics,  "upon  the  testimony  of 
the  Government,  by  subtly  dissecting  what  seemed  certain,  by 
artful  evidence  tending  to  show  that  the  death  of  the  woman  was 
produced  by  her  own  hand.  His  defense  was  so  singular  and 
audacious  that  it  seemed  almost  to  paralyze  the  Attorney- 
General,"  and  yet,  when  the  trial  was  over,  and  the  public 
reflected  candidly  upon  Mr.  Choate's  defense,  the  popular  verdict 
was  in  his  favor. 

Here  is  an  instance  where  Mr.  Silliman's  proposition,  that 
counsel  shall  not  throw  the  weight  of  his  influence  against  a 
prisoner,  by  deciding  in  his  own  mind  that  he  is  guilty,  and 
therefore  refuse  to  defend  him,  is  illustrated. 

In  reference  to  the  immense  business  transactions,  financial 
and  otherwise,  in  which  lawyers  participate  more  or  less,  and  the 
temptations  which  they  in  common  with  all  business  men  are 
subjected  to,  he  says  that  cases  of  fraud  are  only  exceptional  and 
rare. 

In  considering  this  subject,  Mr.  Silliman  makes  the  following 
happy  allusion  to  Wall  street: 

"Nothing  is  less  just  than  the  narrow  imputations  to  'Wall 
street'  of  merely  overreaching,  craft,  and  sordid  lust  for  money. 
It  would  be  difficult  to  overstate  the  extent  of  the  dealings,  or 
the  amounts  involved  in  them,  which  are  had  between  men 
hourly  at  that  great  financial  centre,  where  each  acts  exclusively  in 
reliance  on  the  honor  and  good  faith  of  the  other.  Bad  men,  of 
course,  are  to  be  found  there  as  everywhere,  yet  I  believe  that 
no  piece  of  earth  is  daily  trodden  by  more  of  honor,  enterprise, 
intelligence,  generosity,  faith,  integrity,  than  that  on  which  the 
setting  sun  daily  casts  the  shadow  of  the  spire  of  Trinity." 


We  have  referred  to  Mr.  Silliman's  Review  of  the  Hymns  of  the 
Middle  Ages.  Of  this  production  we  may  say  that  it  exhibits 
not  only  the  learning  of  the  Bar,  hut  the  erudition  of  the 
scholar. 

"  Lawyers  in  full  practice,"  he  says,  "are  like  omnibuses, 
which,  when  entirely  full,  can  always  make  room  for  one  more. 
Mr.  Benedict,  forever  busy  in  the  courts  and  at  his  chambers,  so 
engrossed  by  clients  and  their  causes  of  charter-parties,  insur- 
ance, collisions,  bottomry  and  respondentia,  trusts  and  all  other 
matters  of  admiralty,  common  law  and  equity,  that  further 
occupation  would  seem  impossible,  yet  contrives  to  steal  hours 
for  literary  labor  and  to  hold  learned  converse  with  St.  Hilde- 
bert.  Jacobus  de  Benedictis,  St.  Ambrose,  St.  Thomas  Aquinas, 
Pope  Innocent  the  Second,  Thomas  of  Celano,  Thomas  A  Kem- 
pis,  Peter  the  Venerable,  Prudentius,  Damiani  and  many  other 
mediteval  worthies.  It  is  well  for  the  brain-sick  profession  that, 
from  the  time  of  Cicero  down,  its  members  have  been  able  to 
find  rest  and  variety  in  literary  toil  and  research.  Many  of  the 
most  eminent  lawyers  in  this  country  and  In  England  have 
been  hardly  lessdisfinguished  for_their  classical  learning  than  for 
their  achievements  at  the  Bar." 

Mr.  Silliman  then  proceeds  to  give  a  long  list  of  eminent 
American  and  English  lawyers,  who  have  united  literary  labors 
with  professional  success.  He  speaks  of  the  growing  taste  in 
the  profession  for  Latin  poetry,  and  especially  for  the  Latin 
hymns  of  the  Christian  Church  during  the  mediteval  period. 

"Some  of  these'poems,"  he  says,  "are  among  the  finest  speci- 
mens of  the  wonderful  compactness  and  power  of  expression  of 
the  Latin  language,  and  no  mean  laurels  await  him  who  can 
most  nearly  render  them  in  English  word  for  word,  and  thought 
for  thought.  This  can  only  be  done,  or  rather  approximated  to, 
by  one  who  is  master  of  both  Languages,  and  is  inspired  by  the 
exquisite  beaut}',  the  pathos  and  the  sublimity  of  the  original. 
It  is  well  remarked  by  Dr.  Schaff  that  no  jjoem  has  so  often 
challenged  and  defied  the  skill  of  translators  and  imitators,  as 
the  Dies  IrcK. 

Of  this  matchless  hymn,  Mr.  Benedict  has  given  three  ver- 
sions, the  second  of  which,  more  literal  in  rythm  and  translation, 
we  regard  as  the  best,  and  as  among  the  best  which  have  been 
made.     All  his  versions  have  great  merit.     «**»*«« 

In  the  earlier  mines  there  is  rich  ore  which  should  not  be 
buried — gems  well  worthy  the  seirch  of  such  skilled  collectors  as 
Benedict,  Dr.  Schaff,  Slosson,  General  Dix,  Dr.  Coles,  and  the 
other  accomplished  scholars,  here  and  abroad,  who,  by  their 
translations  into  English,  have  excited  such  general  interest  in 
the  subject. 

The  field  for  such  explorations  is  indeed  a  broad  one,  ex- 
tending over  the  long  period  in  which  the  literature  of  the  world 
was  almost  monopolized  by  the  ecclesiastics,  all  whose  writings 
aimed  at  the  promotion  of  religion  and  the  advancement  of  the 
Church.  Besides  an  unlimited  number  of  legends  of  the  saints, 
sermons,  treatises,  and  commentaries,  they  produced  devotional 
poetry,  of  which,  though  much  has  perished  in  the  lapse  of  time, 
much  yet  remains.  The  literature  of  the  sixth,  seventh,  and 
eighth  centuries  especially,  seems  to  have  been  of  almost  ex- 
clusively religious  character.  Among  those  of  that  period  w.as 
St.  Avitus  (died  525),  who  wrote  six  poems  in  Latin  hexameter, 
three  of  which,  on  the  Creation^  Oriijinal  Sin,  and  the  Kcpid.sion 
from  Paradise,  not  only  possess  great  poetical  merit,  but  bear  a 
remarkable  resemblance  in  jilan  and  detail  to  Milton's  Paradise 
Lost."* 

Mr.  Silliman  then  proceeds  to  review  Mr.  Benedict's  work. 
We  could  wish  to  enter  into  a  detailed  examination  of  the 
great  excellencies  of  this  review,  but  our  limits  will  not  admit 
of  it,  or  of  more  extended  reference  to  the  thorough  scholar- 
ship by  which  it  is  characterized.  We  have,  however,  presented 
sufficient  evidence,  in  these  selections  from  Mr.  Silliman's 
speeches,  of  the  true  manly  spirit  of  loyalty  to  the  best  interests 
of  society  and  to  the  honor  of  his  profession  which  so  eminently 
marks  his  career. 

We  have  only  to  add,  that  Mr.  Silliman  is  the  President  of  the 
Brooklyn  Club,  an  active  member  of  the  Long  Island  Historical 
Society,  and  a  promoter  of  many  other  important  institutions 
and  interests  which  redound  to  the  stability  and  welfare  of  the 
community  of  which  he  is  so  worthy  a  member. 

*  Chambers'  Mediffival  History. 


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BENCH  AND  BAR   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1233 


HARMANUS   B.   DURYEA. 

Harmanus  B.  Dueyea. — The  history  of  the  Duryea  family 
iu  this  country  starts  with  Joost  Durie,  a  Huguenot,  who 
was  born  in  1650.  In  the  year  1675,  he  emigrated  from  Man- 
lieim,  in  the  Palatinate  of  the  Rhine,  and  was  accompanied  by 
his  mother  and  wife,  IMagdalena  La  Febre.  He  settled  first 
at  New  Utreclit,  afterwards  on  land  between  Bushwick  and 
Newtown,  taking  the  oath  of  allegiance  there  in  1687.  His 
death  occurred  in  1727.  Jacob,  the  second  son  of  Joost, 
signed  his  name  Durye.  He  was  married,  in  1708,  to  Katrina 
Polhemus,  and  resided  first  in  Bushwick,  afterward  in 
Brooklyn.     He  died  in  1758. 

Joost,  the  eldest  son  of  Jacob,  was  born  in  1700.  He  was 
a  farmer  and  millwright  at  Jamaica  South,  and  married 
Willemtje  Terhune.  His  brother  Abraham  was  an  influen- 
tial merchant  of  New  York,  and  a  member  of  the  Committee 
of  One  Hundred  during  the  Revolutionary  War.  He  wrote 
his  name  Duryee,  and  still  later  it  was  changed  to  Duryea. 
John,  the  eldest  son  of  Joost,  was  born  in  1743,  and  was  a 
flour  merchant  iu  New  York.  His  first  wife  was  Sarah  Bar- 
kuloo.  In  1771,  he  married  his  second  wife,  Jannetta  Rapel- 
yea,  daughter  of  Cornelius  Rapelyea,  of  Hellgate.  Rudol])h, 
tlie  second  son  of  Joost,  was  Colonel  in  the  Revolutionary 
Army. 

Cornelius  Rapelyea  Duryea,  the  second  son  of  John  and 
Jannetta  Rapelyea  Duryea,  was  born  July  12.  1779.  He  mar- 
ried, in  1805,  Ann  Barkuloo. 

Harmanus  B.  Duryea,  son  of  Cornelius  R.  Duryea,  was 
born  at  Newtown,  Queen's]  county,  N.  Y''.,  July  12,1815.  In 
1825,  the  family  removed  to  New  York  city,  and  later  to 
Brooklyn.  Ilai-nuinus  commenced  the  study  of  law  in  the 
office  of  Thomas  W.  Clerke,  afterwards  a  Judge  of  the  Su- 
preme Court  of  the  First  Judicial  District.  He  completed  his 
studies  with  those  eminent  jurists  of  Brooklyn,  Judges  John 
Greenwood  and  John  Dikeman.  At  the  age  of  21,  he  was 
admitted  to  the  Bar,  and  began  practice  as  the  partner  of 
Judge  Greenwood.  In  1842,  Mr.  Duryea  was  appointed  a 
Su]>reme  Court  Commissioner  for  Kings  County,  an  office  of 
high  judicial  importance,  charged  with  all  the  duties  of  a 
Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court  at  Chambers.  This  office  was 
abolished  by  the  constitution  of  1846.  Soon  after  assuming 
the  duties  of  this  office,  he  was  appointed  Corporation  Coun- 
sel for  the  city  of  Brooklyn. 

In  June,  1847,  he  was  elected  District  Attorney  of  Kings 
County,  serving,  by  re-election,  two  terms  of  three  years 
each.  In  the  fall  of  1857,  Mr.  Duryea  was  elected  member 
of  Assembly  from  Kings  County,  from  the  Third  Assembly 
District.  In  the  following  year  he  was  re-elected.  In  1858 
he  was  the  only  Republican  member  of  the  Assembly  south 
of  Albany. 

In  recognition  of  Mr.  Duryea's  zeal  and  ability  in  advanc- 
ing educational  interests,  he  was  appointed  a  member  of 
the  Board  of  Education  in  Brooklyn,  and  served  for  many 
years  in  that  capacity. 

In  1831,  Mr.  Duryea  became  a  member  of  the  Hamilton 
Literary  Association.  In  1842,  he  drew  and  secured  the 
passage  of  the  act  of  its  incorporation,  and  held  the  position 
of  its  President  for  a  number  of  terms.  Throughout  the 
half  century  and  more  of  its  existence,  this  association  has 
exercised  a  powerful  influence  upon  the  destinies  of  the  vil- 
lage and  city  of  Brooklyn.  It  has  now  been  merged  into  the 
Hamilton  Club,  which  proposes  to  hold  a  distinctly  literary 
and  artistic  ])lace  in  the  community. 

As  early  as  1836,  Mr.  Duryea  became  connected  with  the 
military  organizations  of  Kings  county,  serving  as  Lieuten- 
ant, Captain,  Colonel,  Brigadier-General,  and  finally,  as 
Major-General  of  the  Second  Division  of  the  National  Guard 


of  the  State  of  New  York.  This  position  he  held  for  many 
years,  and  at  the  time  of  his  resignation,  in  1869,  was  the 
senior  Major-General  of  the  State.  From  1845  he  was  ac- 
tively engaged  in  tlie  improvement  of  the  militia,  attending 
the  Legislative  sessions  in  this  interest,  serving  on  the  State 
Boards  for  Revision  of  Laws  and  Regulations,  and  for  three 
terms  acting  as  President  of  the  State  Military  Association. 

Among  other  marked  advances  inaugurated  by  General 
Duryea,  was  that  of  the  system  of  brigade  encampments. 
He  also  secured  the  passage,  in  the  New  York  Legislature, 
of  the  act  for  the  establishment  of  the  magnificent  parade 
ground  at  Prospect  Park.  When  the  Civil  War  opened  in 
1861,  the  Second  Division  was  strong  in  numbers,  and 
among  them  were  military  enthusiasts,  successful  organizers, 
skillful  instructors  and  accomplished  military  advocates,  so 
that  whenever  the  division  was  called  upon,  during  the 
war,  for  militia  or  volunteers,  it  was  ready  to  furnish  its 
quota  promptly  and  without  any  failure.  The  militia  regi- 
ments were  among  the  first  to  rally  to  the  defense  of 
Washington.  Among  them  the  13th,  14th  and  28th.  of 
Brooklyn.  They  furnished  officers  for  the  volunteers.  The 
14th  early  volunteered  for  the  war,  and  in  emergencies  all 
the  regiments  of  the  division,  except  one,  were  called  to 
the  seat  of  war.  Tliat  one  was  sufficient  to  preserve 
order  in  the  division  limits,  which  no  riot  ever  disturbed. 
General  Duryea's  talents  for  organization,  and  long  fa- 
miliarity with  the  militia  rendered  invaluable  his  services  in 
drilling  and  forwarding  the  volunteer  regiments,  and  in  re- 
plenishing the  constantly  wasting  force  of  the  militia. 
These  duties  he  discliarged  with  a  faitlifulness  and  efficiency 
characteristic  of  the  man;  and  HuoUKhout  the  dark  days  of 
the  Rebellion  was  energetic  in  serving  his  country. 

As  a  member  of  the  Bar  of  Kings  county,  he  always  prac- 
ticed those  professional  amenities  so  cliaracteristic  in  a  high- 
toned  lawyer;  therefore,  his  relations  with  the  Judiciary, 
and  with  liis  brethren  of  the  Bar,  have  always  been  pleasing 
and  instructive.  His  retirement  from  practice  was  a  subject 
of  regret,  not  only  to  them,  but  to  those  who  were  accus- 
tomed to  rely  upon  his  professional  learning,  sound  and 
thoughtful  advice,  and  his  acknowledged  ability. 


SAMUEL  BOWNE  DURYEA. 

Samuel  BowTra;  Dubyea,  son  of  Harmanus  B.  Duryea  and 
Elizabeth  A.  Bowne,  daughter  of  Samuel  Bowne,  was  born  in 
Brooklyn,  March  27,  1845.  He  was  a  student  at  the  Brooklyn 
Polytechnic  Institute,  from  which  he  entered  the  sophomore 
class  of  the  New  York  University,  and  graduated  with  honors  in 
1866.  For  a  time  he  was  a  student  in  the  Yale  Theological  Sem- 
inary, but  decided  not  to  pursue  the  course  intended,  on  account 
of  special  interests  demanding  his  attention. 

Mr.  Duryea  is  actively  connected  with  Brooklyn's  representa- 
tive literary  and  charitable  institutions,  such  as  the  Brooklyn 
Library,  the  Art  Association,  Children's  Aid  Society,  Young 
Men's  Christian  Association,  Kings  County  Temperance  Society, 
Franklin  Literary  Society,  Hamilton  Club,  and  Tree  Planting 
and  Fountain  Society. 

He  is  in  politics  an  independent  Republican,  and  has  given 
much  thought  and  time  to  the  best  interests  of  the  city,  as 
affected  by  legislative  action,  in  regard  to  education  and  taxa- 
tion; as  well  as  to  matters  of  importance  to  the  State,  such  as 
the  preservation  of  its  game  and  fish,  and  the  protection  of  its 
forests  and  streams. 

In  the  year  18G9,  Mr.  Duryea  was  married,  at  Milwaukee, 
Wisconsin,  to  Kate,  daughter  of  Walter  P.  Flanders,  Esq. 

Mr.  Dviryea's  varied  education,  public  spirit,  and  zeal  for  good 
government  in  the  city  of  his  birth,  render  him  one  of  Brookyn's 
valued  citizens.  His  wide  acquaintance  with  literature  gives 
force  to  his  written  and  spoken  productions,  among  which  we 
mention  a  paper  on  The  Bightness  of  Self-love  as  a  Ground  of 
Action,  read  before  the  Franklin  Literary  Society,  Nov.  18,  1878; 
and  an  Address  on  Education,  delivered  before  the  same  asso- 
ciation, Nov.  24,  1879.  These  essays  are  thoughtful  and  direct 
in  purpose,  and  exhibit  felicity  of  expression,  delicacy  of  taste 
and  a  pure  diction. 


1234: 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


ALEXANDER   McCUE.  i 

Judge  McCue  became  a  resident  of  the  city  of  Brooklyn  so 
early  in  his  life  that  he  may  almost  be  regarded  as  a  native  of 
the  city.  He  was  bom  at  Matamoras,  Mexico,  in  1827;  his 
parents  were  natives  of  Ireland,  and  before  the  birth  of  their 
son  became  residents  of  Matamoras.  His  father  was  a  merchant 
of  high  standing,  of  considerable  enterprise  and  talent.  These 
qualities  were  fully  recognized  by  his  fellow-citizens,  and  he 
became  one  of  the  most  influential  of  their  number.  At  the 
time  he  settled  there,  there  was  not  a  brick  house  in  the  city; 
it  was  not  long,  however,  before  Mr.  McCue  erected  a  tasteful 
brick  house,  and  his  example  was  soon  followed  by  very  many 
of  the  leading  citizens.  When  young  McCue  was  seven  years 
of  age  his  parents  sent  him  to  Brooklyn  to  be  educated.  He 
had  been  at  school  but  a  short  time  when  he  received  intelli- 
gence of  his  father's  death.  His  mother,  a  woman  of  uncommon 
mental  powers,  added  to  those  other  virtues  which  make  np  the 
exemplary  wife  and  mother,  prepared  to  become  a  resident  in 
the  city  where  her  son  was  being  educated.  Accordingly,  she 
disposed  of  the  real  property  left  her  by  her  husband  in  Mata- 
moras, and,  with  her  other  means,  became  a  resident  of 
Brooklyn.    . 

Young  McCue  early  exhibited  scholarly  traits;  to  him  the 
acquisition  of  learning  was  easy  and  natural.  Soon  after  his 
arrival  in  Brooklyn,  he  became  an  attendant,  and  we  believe  a 
member,  of  St.  James'  Catholic  Church,  in  Jay  street.  So  rapid- 
ly had  he  advanced  in  his  education  that,  while  yet  a  mere 
boy,  he  became  an  acceptable  Sabbath  school  teacher  in  the 
school  of  that  church.  Among  his  brother  teachers  at  that  time, 
were  many  of  the  bestknown  citizens  of  Brookyn. 

His  mother,  in  the  meantime,  whose  watchful  care  was  con- 
stantly over  him,  decided  to  send  him  to  Columbia  College; 
after  a  thorough  examination,  he  was  found  to  be  well  qualified 
to  enter  that  institution,  from  whence,  in  184G,  he  graduated 
with  high  honors. 

As  his  friends  did  not  consider  his  education  complete,  he 
was  sent  to  Europe  to  finish  it,  and  he  became  a  student  in  one 
of  the  German  universities  for  a  term  of  two  years.  After  a 
faithful  studentship  he  returned  to  this  country,  prepared  to 
enter  upon  his  chosen  profession,  the  law.  He  selected  for 
his  legal  preceptors  Hon.  John  Greenwood  and  Gen.  H.  B. 
Duryea,  then  partners  in  the  practice  of  law,  and  one  of  the 
most  eminent  legal  firms  in  the  county  of  Kings.  He  was  in 
due  time  prepared  for  his  examination;  this  successfully  took 
place,  and  he  was  called  to  the  Bar  of  the  State  of  New  York.  So 
closely  had  he  applied  himself  to  his  studies,  so  useful  had  he 
become  in  the  office  of  his  accomplished  preceptors,  that  imme- 
diately after  his  admission  they  off'ered  to  make  him  a  partner; 
although  the  offer  was  very  advantageous,  the  young  lawyer 
decided  to  begin  practice  alone,  and  this  he  did  with  satisfac- 
tory success. 

Mr.  McCue  had  early  attached  himself  to  the  Democratic 
party,  and  he  soon  became  conspicuous  among  the  politicians  of 
the  city  and  county.  In  1853  he  received  the  appointment  of 
Assistant  District  Attorney.  He  discharged  the  duties  of  this 
office  so  acceptably  that  in  the  autumn  of  185G  he  was  nominated 
by  the  Democrats  of  the  county  as  their  candidate  for  District 
Attorney.  At  that  time  the  "Know-Nothing"  agitation  was  at 
its  height,  and  Mr.  McCue  and  all  the  nominees  on  the  Demo- 
cratic ticket,  with  the  exceiJtion  of  James  Hutchins — who  was 
elected  State  Senator — were  defeated.  In  the  autumn  of  1857  he 
accepted  the  nomination  as  the  independent  candidate  for  Con- 
gress, against  George  Taylor,  the  regular  Democratic  nominee. 
He  was  defeated  and  Ta3dor  was  elected,  but  afterwards  the 
Democrats  of  the  district  strongly  regretted  that  they  had  not 
nominated  and  elected  McCue.  He  now  devoted  himself  closely 
to  his  profession,  and  so  rapidly  did  his  reputation  as  a  lawyer 
increase  that  in  1859  he  was  elected  by  the  Board  of  Aldermen 


Corporation  Counsel.  At  the  expiration  of  his  official  term  he 
was  re-elected,  and  when  his  second  term  expired  he  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Hon.  John  G.  Schumaker,  an  eminent  lawyer  of  the 
Brooklyn  Bar.  At  the  expiration  of  Mr.  Schumaker's  term,  Mr. 
McCue  was  again  appointed  Corporation  Counsel.  The  evidence 
of  the  distinguished  abilities  which  he  brought  to  this  office 
is  his  repeated  election  to  it,  and  those  records  in  which  his 
official  acts  are  recorded.  The  Brooklyn  Eagle  said  of  him  : 
"As  a  lawyer,  Mr.  McCue  bears  the  highest  reputation,  and 
his  judgment  on  intricate  knotty  points  of  law  is  second  to 
no  other  lawyer  in  the  State."  The  history  of  his  career  at  the 
Bar  abounds  in  important  cases  in  which  he  was  counsel  for  one 
or  the  other  of  the  parties  litigant.  In  consideration  of  his 
abilities  as  an  advocate,  he  was  assigned  as  one  of  the  counsel  in 
the  celebrated  ease  of  the  People  v.  Gonzales;  and  when  that  case 
reached  the  Court  of  Appeals  he  conducted  the  argument  of  the 
appeal  in  that  tribunal  with  marked  learning  and  ability. 

When,  by  the  amendment  of  the  Constitution,  it  became  cer- 
tain that  two  additional  judges  were  to  be  added  to  the  Bench  of 
the  City  Court,  Judge  McCue  was  very  early  solicited  to  become 
a  candidate;  but  he  thought  proper  to  decline,  and  with  his 
family  visited  Europe.  But  when  the  time  came  for  nominat- 
ing candidates  for  that  office,  he,  with  Hon.  Joseph  Neilson, 
was  nominated  by  the  Democrats  of  the  city,  and,  as  we  have 
seen,  he  and  Judge  Neilson  were  elected  for  the  term  of  fourteen 
years.  On  his  return  from  Europe,  he  entered  upon  the  duties 
of  his  office— how  ably  and  learnedly  let  the  profession  and  the 
public  answer.  We  venture  the  assertion,  however,  mak- 
ing it  a  matter  of  history,  that  the  answer  must  be  in  every  sense 
gratifying  to  Judge  McCue  and  to  his  friends. 

We  recall  an  instance  in  his  judicial  career  in  which  his  charge 
to  a  jury  became  a  matter  of  much  favorable  comment  by  the 
press,  the  profession  and  the  public.  It  was  his  charge  to  the 
jury  in  the  case  of  The  Peoples.  Peirj/,  a  physician,  or  a  pretend- 
ed physician,  who  had  been  indicted  for  producing  the  death  of 
a  woman  by  malpractice  in  an  attempt  at  abortion.  In  the 
course  of  his  charge  the  Judge  said  that  "  a  medical  practitioner, 
regular  or  otherwise,  must  be  held  as  bound  to  be  able  to  per- 
form the  functions  he  professes  to  discharge,  and  that  he  is  not 
only  responsible  for  the  commission  of  errors  in  his  practice, 
but  he  is  liable  for  any  avoidable  injurious  omis.sions  of 
duty.  Heretofore  in  practice,  if  not  in  law,  charlatans  and  irreg. 
ulars  have  been  employed  by  patients  at  their  own  risk,  and 
such  a  thing  as  malpractice  has  hardly  been  thought  of."  Judge 
McCue's  rulings,  said  the  Keio  Turk  Times,  commenting  upon 
his  charge,  "  whether  it  be  new,  or  an  anomalously  luminous 
putting  of  the  law,  as  it  is,  is  in  the  interest  of  sound  and  regular 
medicine  and  surgery  and  the  preservation  of  human  life." 

This  trial  took  place  before  the  present  law  regulating  practic- 
ing physicians  and  surgeons.  The  preliminary  contest  in  the 
famous  Beeeher-Tillon  trial,  brought  on  by  the  application  of  Mr. 
Beecher's  counsel,  Mr.  Thomas  G.  Shearman,  for  a  bill  of  particu- 
lars of  the  facts  upon  which  Mr.  Tilton  relied  to  establish  his 
cause  of  action,  is  and  ever  will  be  regarded  as  one  of  the  most 
important  incidents  in  legal  history.  The  motion  to  -compel  the 
plaintifFto  deliver  to  the  defendant's  attorneys  a  statement  in 
writing  of  the  particular  times  and  places  at  which  the  acts 
named  in  the  complaint  took  place,  was  elaborately  argued 
before  Judge  Neilson,  who  denied  the  motion  for  a  bill  of 
particulars,  whereupon  Messrs.  Shearman  &  Sterling  took  an 
appeal  to  the  General  Term  of  the  City  Court,  which  wasargu^ed 
before  Justices  Keynolds  and  McCue  early  in  November,  1874. 
Eachof  those  learned  jurists  delivered  an  opinion,  the  former 
in  favor  of  affirming  Judge  Neilson's  decision,  the  latter  in 
favor  of  reversing  it.  Both  of  these  opinions  are  characterized 
by  peculiar  learning  and  acuteness  of  reasoning.  The 
opinion  of  Judge  McCue,  with  which  we  have  to  deal  at 
present,  is  one  which  will  always  be  studed  by  the  legal  profes- 
sion with  interest  and  profit.     "  The  power  of  the  court,"  says 


BENCH  AND  BAR   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1235 


the  jvidge,  "under  section  168  of  the  Code,  is  without  limitation. 
The  court  may,  in  all  cases,  order  a  bill  of  particulars  of  the 
claim  of  either  party  to  be  furnished.  This  language  is  broad 
enough  to  cover  this  case,  and  the  reason  for  the  rule  which  has 
obtained  in  our  State  in  criminal  actionsandactionsfor  divorce, 
applies  with  equal  force  to  an  action  for  crim.  con.  We  are 
justified  in  saying  that  it  applies  with  greater  force  in  the  case 
at  bar,  for  the  effect  of  the  verdict  against  the  defendant  is 
practically  to  stamp  another  person,  not  a  party  to  the  action, 
with  his  crime,  and,  therefore,  unable  to  make  any  defense  in 
court." 

As  the  court  was  divided.  Judge  Neilson's  decision  was  sus- 
tained, and  the  case  went  by  appeal  to  the  Court  of  Appeals, 
which  reversed  Judge  Neilson's  decision  and  that  of  the  General 
Term,  sustaining  Judge  McCue's  opinion.  Whereupon  Judge 
McCue,  on  December  7,  1874,  upon  proper  affidavits  made  by 
Mr.  Beecher  and  Mr.  Shearman,  granted  an  order  requiring  Mr. 
Tilton's  attorney  to  show  cause  before  him,  at  a  Special  Term  of 
the  City  Court,  then  soon  to  be  held,  why  he  should  not  deliver 
to  the  defendant's  attorney,  at  some  reasonable  time  before  the 
trial  of  the  cause,  a  statement  in  writing,  verified  by  oath,  of  the 
particular  times  and  places  at  which  ho  intended  to  prove  that 
any  of  the  charges  in  the  plaiutitJ's  complaint-  against  the 
defendant  took  place.  The  granting  of  this  order  brought  on 
another  contest  before  Judge  McCue,  which  took  place  at  the 
time  when  the  plaintiif  was  required  to  show  cause  why  the  bill 
of  particulars  should  not  be  granted.  In  this  contest  Mr.  Evarts 
and  Mr.  Shearman  appeared  for  the  defendant,  and  Judge  Morris 
for  the  plaintiff.  After  long  and  elaborate  arguments.  Judge 
McCue  directed  the  entry  of  an  ofder  that  the  plaintiff  furnish 
■  to  the  defendant's  attorneys  the  bill  of  particulars  required,  and 
that  the  plaintiff  be  precluded  from  giving  any  evidence  at  the 
trial  of  the  action  to  prove  the  occurrence  of  any  specific  act  of 
wrong  committed  by  the  defendant  at  any  other  time  or  place 
than  is  set  forth  in  the  said  statement  of  particulars.  From  this 
order  the  plaintiff  appealed  to  the  General  Term  of  the  City 
Court,  and  after  another  lengthy  argument  by  the  respective 
counsel,  in  which  Mr.  Beach  and  General  Tracy  participated, 
for  and  against,  the  order  for  a  bill  of  particulars  granted  by 
Judge  McCue  was  set  aside  or  reversed.  Chief  Justice  Neilson 
and  Mr.  Justice  Reynolds  both  wrote  opinions  in  favor  of  revers- 
iw  it,  and  the  same  was  reversed.  Thus  ended  this  great  contest, 
in  which  the  most  important  legal  questions  were  discussed  and 
decided. 

In  the  long  judicial  career  of  Judge  McCue  there  are  found  a 
large  number  of  interesting  opinions,  which  have  added  largely 
to  the  legal  learning  of  his  day. 

The  term  for  which  he  was  elected  is  drawing  to  a  close;  there 
must  be  much  in  the  memory  of  it  which  is  gratifying  to  himself 
and  his  friends,  and  if  he  were  again  jjlaced  upon  the  Bench, 
the  long  experience  he  would  bring  to  it  would  be  of  the 
greatest  value  to  all. 


GEORGE  G.  REYNOLDS. 

Judge  Reynolds,  like  his  distinguished  associate  upon  the 
Bench,  Hon.  Alexander  McCue,  has  so  long  been  a  resident  of 
Brooklyn  that  he  has  come  to  be  regarded  as  one  of  its  native 
citizens. 

After  commencing  his  practice  in  Brooklyn,  he  began  to  lay 
the  solid  foundation  for  an  elevated  professional  reputation,  and 
he  rapidly  advanced  to  the  front  rank  of  the  Brooklyn  Bar,  a 
position  which  he  held  until  called  to  the  Bench.  On  leaving 
the  Bar,  he  left  an  extensive  and  honorable  practice.  It  was  his 
ability  and  learning  as  a  lawyer  that  placed  him  upon  the 
Bench. 

On  October  2l8t,  1872,  he  was  nominated  by  the  Democrats 
and  the  Liberal  Republicans  for  the  judicial  office  he  now  holds, 
havin",  we  believe,  once  before  held  the  office  of  City  Judge. 
Immediately  after  his  nomination,  the  Brooklyn  Ewjle,  comment- 


ing upon  the  event,  said:  "Judge  Reynolds  has  been  so  long 
and  favorably  known,  his  career  as  a  lawyer  has  been  so  con- 
spicuous and  successful,  and  his  reputation  as  a  man  so  pure 
and  unsullied,  that  no  commendation  of  ours  is  necessary  to  aid 
in  securing  his  election.  That  he  will  be  elected  is  a  certainty, 
and  that  he  will  honor  and  adorn  the  Bench  after  his  election  is 
also  certain," 

This  language  of  the  Eaijh  has  proven  in  every  sense  true. 
At  the  election,  which  took  place  in  November,  1872,  he  was 
elected  a  judge  of  the  city  of  Brooklyn  for  the  term  of  four- 
teen years.  He  entered  upon  the  discharge  of  his  duties  Jan- 
uary 1st,  1873.  These  duties  have  been  arduous,  the  business 
of  the  City  Court  having  continued  to  increase  from  the  time 
he  commenced  his  judicial  career  down  to  the  present.  Though 
it  is  in  its  nature  a  municij)al  tribunal,  it  ranks  in  dignity 
and  importance  with  the  Supreme  Court,  and  in  many  respects 
its  jurisdiction  is  equal  to  that  court. 

At  the  Nisi  pr'ms  or  Trial  Terms,  at  its  Special  and  General 
Terms,  Judge  Reynolds  has  for  twelve  years  labored  assidu- 
ously— and  we  make  no  mistake  in  saying — to  the  satisfaction 
of  the  Bar  and  public.  We  have  already  alluded  to  the  part 
he  took  as  a  judge  in  the  great  preliminary  contest  of  the 
TUton-Beecher  case,  in  the  motion  to  compel  the  plaintiff,  Mr. 
Tilton,  to  furnish  the  defendant  with  a  bill  of  the  particular 
circumstances  on  which  the  plaintiff  relied  to  make  out  his 
case  against  Mr.  Beecher. 

After  the  argument  of  the  appeal  in  the  General  Term  of  the 
City  Court,  taken  from  Judge  Neilson's  decision  denying  a 
bill  of  particulars.  Judge  Reynolds  wrote  an  opinion  sustain- 
ing Judge  Neilson,  in  which  he  carefully  reviews  the  oases  in 
which  bills  of  particulars  have  been  allowed  in  actions  for 
divorce  on  grounds  of  adultery,  and  he  says:  "Bills  of  par- 
ticulars may  be  ordered  in  certain  cases,  and  have  sometimes 
been  allowed  in  astions  of  iort  or  wrong,"  and  cites  two  cases 
in  which  such  have  been  allowed,  one  of  which  was  Humphry 
V.  Cottleyou  (4th  Cowan,  5-1),  which  was  an  action  of  trover 
for  the  conversion  of  a  quantity  of  timber.  The  Court  said 
that  "the  date  of  the  item  should  be  given  with  as  much 
particularity  as  possible;  if  the  day  could  not  be  stated,  then 
the  month  or  year  should  be;  that,  however,  was  a  case  where 
the  claim  was  susceptible  of  being  resolved  into  particulars, 
or  itemized,  with  approximate  dates,  as  much  so  as  an  ac- 
count for  goods  sold."  The  other  case  was  an  action  for 
dower,  Vischer  v.  Conant  (4th  Cowan,  396).  The  count  or 
charge  was  in  the  then  general  form,  without  stating  any  land 
in  which  the  widow  claimed  dower.  The  Court  said  that  "the 
proper  course  was  the  same'  as  in  ejectment,  where  the  de- 
claration was  equally  general,  that  is,  to  ascertain,  by  a  bill 
of  particulars,  for  what  particular  land  the  plaintiff  was  pro- 
ceeding." 

The  judge  refers  to  another  case.  Early  v.  Smith,  cited  from 
the  Appendix  to  r2th  Irish  Com.  Law  R.  This  was  an  action 
for  slander,  where  the  Court  said:  "We  do  not  compel  the 
plaintiff  to  state  the  specific  times  at  which  she  charges  the 
words  to  have  been  spoken,  and  binding  by  them,  or  the  names 
of  the  parties  to  whom  the  words  were  spoken,  but  the  occasions 
on  which  the  words  were  spoken.  But  the  Court  refused  to 
bind  the  plaintiff  to  specific  times.  There  is  a  vast  difference," 
continues  the  judge,  "between  the  nature  of  that  action  and  this. 
It  was  the  essence  of  slander  that  the  words  had  been  spoken  in 
the  presence  and  hearing  of  other  i^eople,  and  the  plaintift'  might 
well  be  presumed  to  have  the  means  easily  accessible  of  fixing 
the  occasion  and,  with  some  certainty,  the  time  of  the  wrong. 
No  such  presumption  naturally  arises  here;  indeed,  the  contrary 
to  some  extent  appears." 

After  referring  to  certain  confessions  made  by  a  jierson  promi- 
nent in  the  trial,  the  judge  says:  "If  we  should  make  the 
order  for  a  bill  of  particulars  now  asked  for,  the  defendant 
might,  in  the   first  place,  with  great   plausibility  object  to  all 


1336 


HISTORY  OF  IKING  S  COUNTY. 


proof  ■which  does  not  point  to  some  specific  time,  and,  in  the 
next,  demand  a  verdict  of  acquittal,  even  if  the  jurj'  should 
believe  the  evidence  against  him,  because  he  had  not  been 
shown  to  have  committed  the  offense  at  the  particular  times  to 
which  the  plaintiff  had  been  confined  \>y  the  order  and  the  bill 
of  particulars.  If  this  result  would  not  follow  upon  such  a 
state  of  facts,  I  see  no  object  in  asking  for  the  order;  and  if 
such  results  should  follow,  it  seems  to  me  it  -would  be  a  re- 
proach upon  the  administration  of  justice.  I  think  the  parties 
can  have  a  perfectly  fair  trial  of  the  issues  in  the  ordinary  way. 
I  am  therefore  in  fa%-or  of  affirming  the  order  denying  the  bill 
of  particulars  made  at  Special  Term,  but  without  costs." 

Thereby  Judge  Neilson's  order  denying  a  bill  of  particulars 
was  affirmed.  On  the  appeal  taken  from  this  decision  to  the 
Court  of  Appeals,  the  opinion  of  Neilson  and  Reynolds  was 
reversed.  Immediately  on  the  announcement  of  this  decision  in 
the  Court  of  Appeals,  the  indefatigable  counsel  for  Mr.  Beecher 
made  a  second  application  for  a  bill  of  particulars  before  Judge 
McCue,  who  granted  the  order  at  the  Special  Term,  from  which 
there  was  an  appeal  to  the  General  Term  of  the  City  Court, 
which  was  argued  before  Judges  Neilson  and  Reynolds.  After 
argument,  Judges  Neilson  and  Reynolds  delivered  opinions 
reversing  the  decision  made  by  Judge  McCue:  the  opinion  of 
Judge  Neilson  is  somewhat  lengthy,  that  of  Reynolds  brief, 
pointed  and  learned.  He  tersely  reiterates  the  grounds  he  took 
in  the  opinion  to  which  we  have  alluded.  "We  might  allude  to 
many  other  important  cases  in  which  Judge  Reynolds  has  ren- 
dered opinions,  with  interest  and  advantage  to  this  work,  but 
space  will  not  jiermit. 

As  a  lawyer  he  was  successful ;  the  result  of  his  extensive 
legal  knowledge  was  always  at  his  command;  making  no  preten- 
sions to  show  and  brilliancy,  he  relies  more  on  the  strength  and 
soundness  of  his  positions  and  arguments  than  on  attempts  at 
rapid  originality  and  sjjarkling  reasons.  If  these  qualities  are 
useful  in  a  lawyer  they  are  inestimable  in  a  judge. 

Suffice  it  to  say,  his  career  thus  far  has  been  highly  honor- 
able to  himself  and  valuable  to  the  profession  and  the  public. 


NATHANIEL   H.   CLEMENT. 

Judge  Clement  was  born  at  Tilton,  N.  H.,  in  March,  1844.  He 
graduated  at  Portsmouth  High  School  in  1859,  and  the  same  year 
entered  Dartmouth  College,  from  whence  he  was  graduated,  and 
entered  upon  the  study  of  law.  He  was  admitted  to  the  Bar  in 
18G6,  and  immediately  became  a  resident  of  Brooklyn,  where  he 
perfected  an  arrangement  with  the  law  iirm  of  Crooke,  Bergen  & 
Pratt,  by  which  he  became  its  managing  clerk.  He  occupied 
this  position  till  January  1st,  1870,  when  Pratt  was  elected  a 
Justice  of  the  Svipreme  Court,  and  of  course  dissolved  his  con- 
nection with  the  firm.  Mr.  Clement  became  a  member  of  a  new 
firm,  under  the  name  of  Crooke,  Bergen  &  Clement.  In  1873 
General  Crooke  was  elected  to  Congress,  and  the  firm  was  dis- 
solved. Mr.  Clement  immediately  opened  an  office  and  began 
practice  for  himself.  He  had  then  been  at  the  Bar  seven  years, 
during  which  time  he  had  had  large  experience  in  almost  every 
variety  of  practice  which  his  association  with  his  distinguished 
partners  brought  him.  So  that  he  commenced  business  for  him- 
self under  the  most  advantageous  circumstances,  and  he  entered 
at  once  on  a  lucrative  practice,  taking  a  high  professional,  po- 
litical and  social  position. 

He  gave  the  Democratic  party  his  allegiance,  and  became  a 
member  of  the  Young  Men's  Democratic  Club;  a  member  of  the 
Brooklyn  Club,  the  Carlton  Club,  and  Treasurer  of  the  Brooklyn 
Dispensary.  In  the  meantime  he  was  counsel  in  several  import- 
ant cases,  the  trials  of  which  he  conducted  with  distinguished 
success.  Among  the  cases  in  which  he  was  counsel,  was  that 
of  the  Property-owners  v.  The  East  River  Bridije  and  Coney  Island 
Transit  Company,  obtaining  a  decision  of  the  General  Term  of 
the  Supreme  Court  holding  that  no  railroad  can  be  constructed 


on  the  streets  of  Brooklyn  or  any  other  city  without  due  com- 
pensation to  the  owners  of  the  property  through  which  it 
passes. 

In  the  summer  of  1882,  Hon.  Joseph  Neilson  retired  from  the 
Bench  of  the  City  Court,  and  it  became  necessary  at  the  en- 
suing fall  election  to  elect  a  judge  in  his  place.  Although  Mr. 
Clement  was  then  but  thirty-eight  years  of  age,  his  accomplish- 
ments as  a  lawyer  and  his  high  position  as  a  citizen  placed 
him  prominently  before  the  public  as  the  successor  of  Chief 
Justice  Neilson.  In  the  autumn  of  that  year  he  received  the 
nomination,  which  he  accepted,  and  he  was  elected  in  the  fol- 
lowing November.  He  began  his  judicial  duties  on  the  first  of 
January,  1883.  Of  course,  he  has  his  judicial  reputation  to  make, 
but  he  has  now  occupied  the  Bench  considerably  over  a  year; 
judging  from  the  very  able  manner  in  which  he  has  discharged 
his  duties  during  this  time,  his  future  judicial  career  will  com- 
pare favorably  with  that  of  his  distinguished  associates  and 
predecessors  on  the  Bench.  It  was  once  said  by  Chief  Justice 
Bronson  that  experience  was  more  beneficial  to  a  judge  than 
to  any  other  public  official;  and  the  remark  was  true.  And  yet 
there  are  men  who  jiossess  natural  judicial  minds  and  methods, 
and  who  come  to  the  labors  and  responsibilities  of  the  Bench 
with  intuitive  case.  From  the  high  esteem  in  which  Judge 
Clement  is  held  by  the  Bar  and  the  jjublic,  we  risk  nothing  in 
saying  that  he  belongs  to  this  class.  He  has  now  twelve  years 
of  judicial  service  before  him;  how  much  each  pas.sing  year  will 
add  to  his  judicial  usefulness  and  accomplishments,  remains 
to  be  seen. 


SAMUEL   D.   MORRIS.* 

Sajtoel  D.  Mokkis  was  born  in  Monmouth  County,  New  Jer- 
sey. His  father,  Robert  P.  Morris,  was  a  farmer,  actively  en- 
gaged in  the  pursuit  of  agriculture  at  the  time  of  his  son's  birth. 
The  early  years  of  young  Morris  were  spent  ujjon  his  father's 
farm  in  tilling  the  soil.  Not  richly  endowed  with  wealth,  the 
father  and  his  sons  were  compelled  to  work  winter  and  summer, 
early  and  late.  Hence  it  was  that  young  Samuel  was  unable  to 
receive  instruction  in  anything  but  the  cultivation  of  the  ground. 
However,  arriving  at  the  age  of  twenty-one,  he  acted  upon  a  re- 
solve long  previously  formed.  He  entered  upon  a  regular 
course  of  schooling,  at  Leedsville,  in  his  native  State,  with  the 
same  intense  energy  which  has  marked  his  subsequent  career. 
After  a  few  months  spent  at  this  j^lace,  he  connected  himself 
with  the  academy  at  Homdel,  where  he  remained  for  six  months, 
when  the  principal  of  the  institution  removing  to  Johnstown, 
N.  Y.,  Morris  followed  him,  and  remained  under  his  charge  until 
thoroughly  prepared  for  a  collegiate  course.  Selecting  Rutgers 
College  as  the  institution  at  which  to  complete  his  educa- 
tion, he  was  admitted  to  the  sophomore  class.  Having  finished 
his  course  of  studies,  he  went  to  the  Law  School  at  Ballston  Sj^a, 
then  in  high  repute  as  a  training  school  for  young  lawyers,  and 
under  the  able  charge  of  Prof.  J.  W.  Fowler.  This  was  in  1849. 
His  prominence  in  the  debates,  which  were  a  feature  of  the 
training  at  this  school,  gave  him  the  highest  prize  within  the 
gift  of  the  school.  Among  his  associates  at  Rutgers  and  the 
Ballston  school,  were  Judge  Bedle,  now  Governor  of  New  Jersey, 
and  Judge  Larremore,  of  New  York.  A  year  later,  July  3,  18.50, 
Mr.  Morris  was  admitted  to  the  practice  of  the  law  at  Plattsburg, 
N.  Y. ;  and  in  the  spring  of  1851,  he  came  to  Brooklyn  to  enter 
upon  his  profession. 

About  the  time  of  his  settling  in  Brooklyn,  Pierce  had  been 
nominated  for  the  Presidency,  and  our  young  lawyer,  an  ardent 
Democrat,  entered  most  enthusiastically  into  the  campaign. 
Upon  the  hustings  nightly,  in  that  vigorous  canvass,  his  voice 
was  heard  urging  the  principles   of  the   Democratic    doctrine. 

*  The  author  is  indebted  to  a  frieud  of  Judge  Morris  for  this  admirable 
biographical  sketch. 


BENCH  AND  BAR   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1237 


His  abilities  and  rare  qualities  as  a  sjjeaker  were  thus  made 
known  to  liis  fellow-citizens.  His  siieeches,  and  the  pronounced 
(juality  of  his  political  doctrines,  brought  him  into  favorable 
notice. 

In  the  following  fall  of  1853,  he  received  the  Democratic 
nomination  for  Assembly,  and,  in  the  face  of  a  strong  and  bitter 
opposition,  -was  elected  by  an  overwhelming  majority.  Three 
members  then  represented  the  interests  of  Kings  County  in  the 
State  Assembly.  The  session  in  which  he  took  part  was  exciting. 
Horatio  Seymour  was  Governor.  The  "  Maine  Law"  excitement 
was  at  its  height,  and  the  temperance  interests  were  active  and 
aggressive.  In  the  discussions  which  ensued,  Mr.  Morris  took 
an  active  part,  and  was  appointed  to  the  committee  to  which 
was  referred  the  bill  which  had  been  introduced  favoring  the 
prohibitory  law.  That  committee  consisted  of  nine  members, 
eight  of  whom  reported  in  favor  of  the  passage  of  the  bill.  Mr. 
Morris,  however,  offered  a  minority  report  to  the  contrary.  The 
bill,  however,  was  passed;  but  Governor  Seymour  promptly  re- 
turned it  with  his  veto,  and  in  his  message  followed  very  closely 
the  line  of  argument  emploj'ed  by  Mr.  Morris  in  his  minority 
report. 

Alter  the  adjournment  of  the  Legislature,  Mr.  Morris  was  aj)- 
pointed  Corporation  Attorney  to  the  city  of  Brooklyn.  In  the 
spring  of  1855,  the  Legislature  having  re-passed  the  Maine  Law 
Bill,  which  was  promptly  signed  by  Governor  Myron  H.  Clark, 
who  had  been  elected  as  a  temperance  candidate,  Mr.  Morris 
was  called  \ipon,  in  the  discharge  of  his  duties,  to  enforce  it. 
Believing  it  to  be  an  unjust  and  despotic  law,  and  that  he  could 
not  remain  in  ofiSce  and  properly  perform  its  duties  without  en- 
forcing it,  he  resigned  his  office  in  May,  1855.  He  now  set 
about  the  work  of  testing  the  constitutionality  of  the  law,  and  he 
carried  the  celebrated  "  Toynhee  Case  "*  to  the  Court  of  Appeals, 
which  eminent  and  learned  body  declared  the  law  to  be  uncon- 
stitutional. Thus  was  Mr.  Morris'  course  and  judgment,  both 
in  the  Legislature  and  the  office  of  Attorney,  vindicated. 

The  gnat  personal  triumph  of  this  opinion  lifted  him  higher 
than  ever  in  public  esteem,  and  in  the  fall  of  1855  he  was  elected 
Judge  of  the  County  Court,  and  upon  this  bench  he  sat  for  the 
full  term  of  four  years.  It  was  within  his  power  to  have  ac- 
cepted a  renomination,  but  he  declined  it,  and  became  a  candi- 
date for  the  Disti-ict  Attorneyship,  a  position  much  more  to  the 
liking  of  his  active  and  energetic  disposition.  His  failure  to  re- 
ceive the  nomination  his  friends  attributed  to  political  trickery, 
and  ho  ran  upon  an  independent  ticket.  Disaster  overtook  the 
Democratic  party  in  this  campaign,  and  John  Winslow,  a  Re- 
publican, was  elected.  At  the  exjiiration  of  the  term  of  Mr. 
Winslow,  during  which  Mr.  Morris  had  sedulously  devoted 
himself  to  a  large  and  growing  practice,  our  subject  was  elected 
District  Attorney.  This  was  in  18C2;  he  was  re-elected  in  18()5, 
and  again  in  18G8,  having  served  in  this  most  important  office 
three  terms,  or  nine  years. 

The  fact  that  Judge  Morris  was  elected  three  times  is  sufficient 
to  show  the  confidence  reposed  in  him  by  the  voters  of  Brooklyn, 
and  we  might,  with  justice,  point  to  that  fact  alone  as  a  record 
of  honor.  But  Judge  Morris'  course  as  District  Attorney  was 
marked  by  the  greatest  energy,  the  most  rigid  enforcement  of 
the  laws,  and  the  most  relentless  pursuit  of  criminals. 

Before  his  assumption  of  the  duties  of  the  office,  the  "Diamond 
ifnrder"  had  occurred.  Sigismund  Fellner,  who  had  come  to 
this  country  in  1861,  because  of  domestic  difficulties  at  home  in 
Germany,  brought  with  him  a  large  amount  of  diamonds. 
Arriving  in  New  York,  he  made  the  acquaintance  of  a  country- 
luan  named  Eatzky.  A  strong  intimacy  growing  up  between 
them,  they  came  to  Brooklyn  to  reside  together.  Not  long  after 
this,  the  body  of  Fellner  was  found  floating  off  the  New  Jersey 
shore  near  Keyport.  Katzky  was  at  once  arrested  upon  sus- 
picion, but  had  not  been  brought  to  trial  when  Judge  Morris 

*  See  The  People  v.  Toynhee  (20  Barb.,  168 ;  S.  C  13  N.  Y.,  378). 


became  District  Attorney.  The  new  incumbent  at  once  took  up 
this  work.  A  month  was  spent  in  the  preparation  of  the  case. 
The  difficulty  of  this  task  will  be  appreciated  when  it  is  known 
that  two  years  had  elapsed  since  the  commission  of  the  crime, 
and  much  of  the  evidence  had  been  scattered.  Edwin  James, 
the  distinguished  English  advocate,  had  then  but  lately  come  to 
this  country,  and  was  in  the  full  bloom  of  his  deserved  reputa- 
tion as  an  able  lawyer;  ho,  with  the  late  ex-Judge  Stuart,  were 
engaged  for  the  defense.  But  notwithstanding  their  brilliant 
efforts  for  their  client,  so  complete  was  the  chain  of  evidence 
produced  by  the  prosecution,  that  Eatzky  was  convicted  of 
murder  in  the  first  degree.  So  searching  had  been  the  examina- 
tion into  the  case,  so  complete  and  minute,  that  even  the 
clothes  of  Fellner  were  found  after  an  expiration  of  two  years, 
and  brought  into  court. 

In  the  case  of  Yules,  who  had  been  arrested  for  the  murder  of 
Curran,  the  policeman,  this  quality  of  sleuth-hound  persistency 
and  tireless  energy  was  even  more  manifest.  This  case  was 
taken  to  the  Court  of  Appeals,  where  a  new  trial  was  ordered. 
Upon  the  second  trial,  Yates  was  convicted  of  murder  in  the 
second  degree. 

Probably  no  case  in  which  Judge  Morris  acted  as  prosecutor, 
up  to  the  time  of  the  Tilton-Beecher  case,  ever  excited  greater 
attention  than  the  "  Oiero  Murder  Case."  And  this  because  of 
the  mystery  which  at  first  surrounded  the  deed.  Otero  was  a 
wealthy  Cuban,  who  had  come  to  this  country  ujjon  business. 
During  his  stay  in  New  York,  he  was  enticed  by  two  Spaniards, 
Gonzales  and  Salvador,  whose  acquaintance  he  had  made,  to 
Brooklyn,  and  was  murdered  by  them  in  the  City  Park.  The 
two  men  were  convicted.  The  General  Term  of  the  Supreme 
Court  reversed  the  decision  of  the  Court  of  Oyer  and  Terminer, 
but  Judge  Morris,  carrying  the  case  to  the  Court  of  Appeals, 
obtained  a  reversal  of  the  decision  of  the  Supreme  Court,  and 
the  murderers  were  executed.     (See  "Important  Trials.") 

Of  other  cases  which  will  be  well  remembered,  was  the  Skid- 
vrore  Murder,  or  "Air-Gun  Murder,"  as  it  was  better  known. 
Skidmore,  pending  the  trial,  cheated  the  gallows  by  committing 
suicide  in  his  cell. 

On  the  31st  day  of  December,  1872,  Mr.  Morris  yielded  up  the 
District  Attorneyship,  which  he  had  held  for  nearly  nine  yeai's, 
and  has  since  devoted  himself  exclusively  to  his  large  practice, 
both  criminal  and  civil.  Among  the  more  recent  cases  in  which 
Judge  Morris  has  won  much  credit  may  be  mentioned  the 
defense  of  Fanny  Hyde,  and  the  prosecution  of  a  large  number  of 
the  claims  of  those  who  suffered  from  the  disaster  to  the  Staten 
Island  ferry-boat  Wesifield. 

There  is  something  remarkable  in  his  fidelity  to  his  clients; 
no  circumstance  that  tends  to  their  advantage  is  ever  over- 
looked, and  he  perfectly  understands  when  and  how  to  seize 
the  vantage  ground  of  the  contest.  Few  lawyers  go  to  the  bar 
with  their  cases  better  prepared  for  trial  than  Judge  Morris; 
and  he  seldom  speaks  in  court  without  being  listened  to  with 
profound  attention.  Some  of  his  arguments  and  addresses  to 
courts  and  juries  which  have  been  published,  will  always  be  read 
by  the  legal  student  and  by  lay  readers  with  pleasure  and  profit. 

Socially,  Judge  Morris  is  one  who  surrounds  himself  with 
friends.  Somewhat  reserved  and  reticent  in  his  intercourse  with 
strangers,  his  friendships  are  of  slow  growth,  but  when  grown, 
strong,  healthy  and  wholesome,  lasting  with  life,  and  not  over- 
thrown by  every  summer  breeze  that  blows  from  the  west.  His 
friendship  once  gained,  his  confidence  once  won,  and  there  is 
revealed  a  warm  heart,  beating  with  generous  impulses,  and  a 
spirit  accommodating,  agreeable,  and  sacrificing. 

Twice  married,  he  has  made  for  himself  a  happy  home,  and  it 
is  at  his  own  fireside,  perhaps,  after  all,  that  he  is  seen  at  the 
best  advantage.  The  further  fame  and  reputation  he  has  won 
by  his  participation  in  the  great  Ti'ton-Beeoher  case  will  be  best 
determined  when  the  passions  and  prejudices  it  has  engendered 
have  had  time  to  cool. 


1238 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


JOHN  C.   PERRY. 

No  circumstance  in  the  history  of  the  Bench  and  Bar  of  Brook- 
lyn, or  of  Kings  County,  is  fraught  with  more  mournful  interest 
than  the  sudden  termination  of  the  life  of  this  eminent  and 
widely  esteemed  lawyer. 

He  came  to  Brooklyn  in  18.54,  a  young  and  ardent  lawyer,  and 
entered  ux^on  the  duties  of  his  profession,  having  thoroughly 
studied  the  principles  of  law  in  the  writings  and  productions  of 
the  great  masters  of  jurisprudence  with  a  strong,  though  quiet, 
determination  to  succeed  in  his  profession.  Without  display, 
with  unpretending  ability,  and  undoubted  legal  accomplish- 
ments, he  succeeded  to  an  extent  that  would  be  gratifying  to 
many  more  ambitious  men.  One  of  his  strong  endowments  was 
his  intuitive  faculty  of  making  friends,  and  of  inspiring  all  who 
knew  him  with  the  highest  confidence  in  his  integrity  and 
honor. 

It  would,  however,  be  the  work  of  supererogation  for  us  to  enter 
upon  any  extended  eulogy  of  Mr.  Perry,  after  the  beautiful 
tribute  of  respect  paid  to  his  memory  by  the  Brooklyn  Bench 
and  Bar  soon  after  his  death. 

John  C.  Perry  was  born  at  Forrestburg,  Sullivan  County, 
New  York,  on  April  21,  1832.  Having  passed  through  an  ele- 
mentary course  at  the  common  school,  he  entered  Monticello 
Academy,  where  he  acquired  an  excellent  practical  education, 
and  while  very  young  he  entered  on  the  studyof  the  legal  pro- 
fession. He  pursued  his  studies  with  such  industry  and  success 
that  he  was  admitted  to  the  Bar  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the 
State  as  soon  as  he  attained  the  age  of  21  years,  as  by  the  Con- 
stitution he  could  not  have  been  admitted  before  that  time. 
After  practicing  three  years,  he  was  appointed  Assistant  District 
Attorney  of  Ulster  County,  having  removed  to  that  county  from 
Sullivan  County  after  bis  admission. 

In  the  autumn  of  18.57  he  removed  to  Brooklyn,  and  began  the 
practice  of  his  profession  in  the  city  of  New  York;  but,  like 
many  other  lawyers  whose  residence  is  in  Brooklyn,  he  practiced 
in  both  cities. 

Mr.  Perry  soon  took  a  prominent  position  at  both  Bars,  and 
in  the  city  of  Brooklyn  he  secured  the  confidence  and  esteem  of 
his  fellow-citizens  in  a  marked  degree.  Whatever  tended  to 
the  interests  of  Brooklyn  he  always  warmly  advocated. 

He  early  became  a  political  partisan  and  a  member  of  the 
Kepublican  party,  conscientiously  and  firmly  upholding  or 
maintaining  the  principles  of  his  party  ;  he  felt  it  to  be  as 
much  a  man's  duty  to  take  an  interest  in  politics  as  was  the 
advancement  of  his  own  individual  affairs  ;  that  the  good 
order  and  welfare  of  society  is  subserved  by  the  interest  which 
respectable  and  responsible  men  take  in  politics.  Thus  Mr. 
Perry  came  to  a  position  so  jirominent  in  the  Republican  party 
in  Kings  County  that,  in  the  autumn  of  18153,  he  was  nominated 
and  elected  member  of  Assembly  by  his  party,  taking  his  seat 
in  the  Legislature  .January  .5,  1864.  In  the  fall  of  that  year  he 
was  returned  to  the  Legislature,  serving  in  that  body  from 
January  3rd  to  April  28th,  1865.  The  late  Gen.  Philip  S. 
Crooke  was  one  of  his  colleagues  in  his  first  legislative  ses- 
sion. 

In  the  spring  of  1865,  Mr.  Perry  was  appointed  Assistant 
United  States  District  Attorney  for  the  Eastern  District  of  New 
York  by  Hon.  Benjamin  D.  Silliman,  a  name  conspicuous  in 
the  history  of  the  State,  who  was  at  that  time  United  States 
District  Attorney  for  the  Eastern  District.  This  was  an  ex- 
ceedingly high  compliment  to  Mr.  Perry  as  a  man  and  as  a 
lawyer.  The  manner  in  which  he  discharged  the  duties  of  his 
office  g  eatly  enchanced  his  professional  reputation. 

Mr.    Silliman  resigned   the  office   in  the   fall  of  1866,  and  was 

succeeded   by  Hon.   Benjamin  F.    Tracy.     Although  it  was  the 

wish   of  Judge   Tracy   that  Mr.    Perry  should  continue  as  his 

assistant,  such  were  his  professional  duties  that  he  declined. 

In  1871  Mr.  Perry  was  elected  State  Senator  in  the  Second 


District;  his  Democratic  opponent  was  James  F.  Pierce,  who 
entered  the  canvass  backed  by  a  Democratic  majority  of  over 
one  thousand.  Nothing  in  the  life  of  Mr.  Perry  so  thoroughly 
illustrates  his  popularity  as  a  man,  and  the  strong  hold  he  had 
upon  the  confidence  and  esteem  of  the  people,  than  the  result  of 
this  election :  he  was  elected— to  use  the  expression  of  politicians, 
he  ran  more  than  one  thousand  votes  ahead  of  his  ticket.  At 
the  close  of  his  Senatorial  term,  he  declined  a  tendered  re- 
nomination,  determined  to  devote  himself  entirely  to  the  duties 
of  his  profession.  In  1880  he  was  appointed  Counsel  to  the 
Brooklyn  Police  and  Excise  Department,  a  position  which  he  held 
until  he  resigned  it,  a  short  time  previous  to  his  death. 

About  the  last  of  March,  1884,  he  was  tendered,  by  President 
Arthur,  the  position  of  Chief  Justice  of  Wyoming  Territory,  on 
the  recommendation  of  nearly  all  the  judges  and  ex-judges  of 
his  district.  He  accepted  it,  and  there  are  very  few  who  would 
not;  and  at  the  time  of  his  death,  which  occurred  on  the  14th  of 
April,  had  completed  his  arrangements  for  his  departure  to  enter 
upon  the  duties  of  his  office.  One  of  the  pleasant  incidents 
connected  with  his  anticipated  departure  was  a  reception  ten- 
dered him  by  the  Brooklyn  Club.  Many  other  agreeable  cir- 
cumstances exhibited  the  anxiety  of  his  numerous  friends  to 
testify  of  their  esteem  for  him,  and  give  him  a  heartfelt  farewell. 
"The  congratulations  showered  upon  him,"  said  the  Brooklyn 
Eagle,  "had  the  value  of  perfect  sincerity.  A  life  of  hard  labor 
lay  behind  him;  before  him,  according  to  all  human  foresight, 
were  honor,  distinction,  comparative  ease  and  comfort.  He,  with 
his  family,  were  looking  forward  to  the  enjoyment  of  his  reward; 
was  engaged  in  preparation  for  his  journey  to  the  scenes  of  his 
new  activities.  The  very  day  before  his  departure,  apparently 
in  full  and  vigorous  health,  while  on  the  street  with  his 
daughter  making  his  final  arrangements,  he  suddenly  and  with- 
out any  warning  fell  senseless,  and,  without  speaking  a  farewell 
word  to  his  family,  a  few  hours  after  died.  An  hour  had 
worked  an  awful  change  in  his  household,  and  all  his  friends 
were  benumbed  with  the  suddenness  of  the  stroke." 

The  sudden  death  of  one  so  conspicuous  in  Brooklyn,  under 
such  circumstances,  produced  a  profound  sensation,  which  was 
attested  by  many  public  and  private  demonstrations;  the  most 
prominent  of  which  was  a  large  meeting  of  the  Brooklyn  Bench 
and  Bar,  which  convened  on  the  16th  of  April,  to  give  expres- 
sion to  the  high  esteem  in  which  they  held  his  memory,  of  their 
past  appreciation  of  his  character,  and  of  their  sorrow  for  his 
death.  We  have  already  referred  to  this  meeting;  it  was  one  of 
unusual  interest  and  solemnity,  attended  by  the  ablest  members 
of  the  Brooklyn  Bench  and  Bar.  The  following  is  a  description 
of  the  proceedings  of  the  meeting,  which  we  give  as  an  incident 
worthy  to  enter  the  legal  history  of  Kings  County  and  of  Brook- 
lyn: 

Members  of  the  Bench  and  Bar  met  in  the  General  Term 
room  of  the  Supreme  Court,  to  take  action  on  the  death 
of  the  Hon.  John  C.  Perry,  Chief  Justice  of  Wyoming  Ter- 
ritory. In  attendance  were  Justices  Pratt,  Cullen  and  Bartlett, 
ofthe  Supreme  Court;  Chief  Judge  McCue,  and  Judges  Rey- 
nolds and  Clement,  of  the  City  Court;  Judge  Moore,  of  the 
County  Court;  Surrogate  Bergen,  ex-Chief  Judge  Neilson,  ex- 
Justice  Gilbert,  ex-Judge  Tracy,  ex-Judge  Morris,  ex-Judge 
Troy,  ex-Judge  Towns,  ex-Judge  Dailey,  Corporation  Counsel 
Taylor,  ex-Judge  Jesse  C.  Smith,  ex-Judge  Lynch,  Hon. 
W.  C.  De  Witt,  Hon.  Theodore  F.  Jackson,  Hon.  Isaac  S.  Catlin, 
ex-Judge  Livingston,  Hon.  John  Winslow,  District  Attorney 
Eidgway  and  Assistant  District  Attorneys  Shorter  and  Jenks, 
Charles  J.  Patterson,  F.  E.  Dana,  William  B.  Davenport, 
Robert  Johnstone,  Henderson  Benedict,  Charles  Ridgway,  H.  B. 
Hubbard,  Henry  A.  Heirs,  James  Glendenning,  Joseph  M.  Green- 
wood, F.  L.  Backus,  J.  J.  Rogers,  A.  E.  Lamb,  A.  Simis, 
W.  e'.  S.  Fales,  A.  H.  Gelting,  A.  P.  Hermann,  W.  L.  Whiting, 
George  W.  Mead,   Hugo  Hirsch,   J.   J.  Leary,   Edgar  Bergen, 


BENCH  AND  BAR   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1339 


William  Shields,  John  C.  McGnire,  John  E.  Kuhn,  William 
Hemstreet,  H.  B.  Hubbard,  Benjamin  Baker,  Robert  Connolly, 
George  T.  Walker,  Edward  Eeilly,  F.  A.  Ward,  Abraham  Lott, 
William  H.  Green,  Robert  Pinckney,  J.  Z.  Lott,  Mark  D.Wilbur, 
James  D.  Bell,  J.  B.  Hurd,  George  W.  Roederick,  Alex.  T.  Car- 
penter, Hassan  H.  Wheeler,  P.  J.  O'Hanlon,  Patrick  Keady, 
Judah  B.  Voorhees,  John  TJ.  Shorter,  Jesse  Johnson,  Thomas 
E.  Pearsall,  David  Barnett,  F.  W.  Catlin,  E.  C.  Lowe,  F.  N. 
O'Brien,  W.  C.  L.  Thornton,  N.  W.  Hewlett,  H.  R.  Cruikshank, 
Arthur  C.  Salmon,  John  Hess,  Edward  B.  Lansing,  W.  G.  Cook, 
A.  P.  Carlin,  Charles  E.  Lowery,  John  B.  Meyenborg,  Henry  S. 
Bellows,  George  Elliott,  Charles  Wills,  John  D.  Pray,  Richard 
C.  Curren,  H.  M.  Birkett,  R.  0.  Catlin,  H.  D.  Birdsall,  William 
Sweetzer,  Assistant  District  Attorney  Clark,  and  Michael  Furst. 

THE   PBOCEEDINGS. 

The  meeting  was  called  to  order  by  W.  C.  De  Witt,  who  pro- 
posed Judge  Reynolds  as  chairman,  with  Mr.  Justice  Cullen, 
Mr.  Justice  Bartlett,  County  Judge  Moore,  Chief  Judge  McCue, 
Judge  Reynolds,  Judge  Clements  and  Surrogate  Bergen 
associated.  Charles  J.  Patterson  and  F.  A.  Ward  were  nomi- 
nated as  secretaries. 

Mr.  F.  E.  Dana,  by  request,  offered  for  adoption  the  follow- 
ing: 

"  The  members  of  the  Kings  County  Bar,  represented  in  a  gene- 
ral meeting  convened  for  that  purpose,  at  the  Court  House  in 
the  City  of  Brooklyn,  on  the  16th  day  of  April,  1884,  hereby 
publicly  express  their  respect  and  esteem  for  the  character  of 
tlio  late  John  C.  Perry.  In  his  professional,  official  and  private 
life  he  was  alike  faithful,  upright  and  modest,  and  in  the  dis- 
charge of  his  public  duties  he  was  able,  diligent  and  singularly 
courteous.  The  judicial  career  which  was  he  about  to  begin,  as 
Chief  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Wyoming,  would  have 
made  those  merits  more  widely  known,  but  the  promotion  was 
not  needed  to  secure  their  recognition  here.  This  expression  of 
regard  from  his  associates  in  the  legal  profession,  attested  by 
the  signatures  of  the  judges  who  have  presided  at  the  meeting, 
will  be  transmitted  to  his  family  to  signify  the  sympathy  which 
the  Bar  extends  to  them  in  their  deep  affliction." 

Mr.  Robert  Johnstone  seconded  the  resolution,  and  Judge 
Reynolds  called  for  remarks,  and  named  Judge  Tracy. 

Judge  Tracy  said  that  the  unexpected  death  of  their  friend 
reminded  them  all  how  vain  and  uncertain  was  life.  In  the 
prime  of  manhood  John  C.  Perry  was  stricken  down  while  in 
the  pursuit  of  ordinary  business,  and  while  making  arrange- 
ments to  depart  to  assume  an  honorable  and  exalt3d  judicial 
position.  Of  the  esteem  and  respect  which  he  possessed  in  this 
city,  and  especially  among  his  professional  brethren,  the  meet- 
ing was  sufficient  proof.  It  was  the  speaker's  good  fortune  to 
know  Judge  Perry  long  and  intimately.  He  was  a  noble  man, 
a  true  and  generous  friend,  fulfilling  faithfully  every  duty  of 
life,  pursuing  his  profession  in  an  honorable  way  and  in  a  high- 
ly successful  degree.  Living  among  them  as  he  had  for  thirty 
years,  he  thought  he  might  say  that  John  C.  Perry  was  without 
an  enemy,  which  could  be  said  of  very  few  men,  and  that  was 
certainly  a  proof  that  he  had  not  lived  in  vain.  He  was  honored 
not  only  by  his  professional  brethren,  hut  by  the  City  of  Brook- 
lyn, which  he  had  represented  in  both  branches  of  the  Legisla- 
ture. He  had  filled  public  positions  which  few  filled  without 
escaping  criticism,  but  against  him  not  a  word  had  ever  been 
uttered.  He  had  filled  those  positions  and  discharged  all 
the  duties  they  imposed  without  a  breath  of  suspicion  against 
his  name.  It  was  fitting  that  the  members  of  the  Bench  and 
Bar  should  in  such  a  manner  commend  such  a  life. 

Corporation  Counsel  John  A.  Taylor  thought  that  it  was 
highly  creditable  to  the  Bar,  as  a  profession,  that  when  a  mem- 
ber fell  out  of  the  ranks  by  death,  they  should  meet  and,  leav- 
ing their  business  for  a  time,  consider  the  character  of  the  man 
who  had  passed  from  among  them.     Judge  Perry   carried   with 


him  at  all  times  the  manner  of  a  gentleman.  His  chief 
characteristic  was  his  true  manhood.  His  memory  would  dwell 
in  the  affection  of  all  who  knew  him,  and  it  was  proper  that  by 
common  impulse  they  should  thus  meet  and  testify  to  the  solid 
worth  of  their  dead  friend. 

Mr.  Charles  J.  Patterson  said  that  the  genius  of  John  C.  Perry 
was  of  the  quiet  kind.  For  the  last  two  years  he  had  been  in  close 
contact  with  him,  and  could  testify,  though  with  a  sad  heart  he 
did  it,  to  his  worth  and  nobility  as  a  man.  Under  a  modest  ex- 
terior was  hidden  a  large  knowledge  of  his  profession  in  all  its 
branches.  He  was  most  careful  and  conscientious  in  the  daily 
business  of  life,  painstaking  and  faithful  in  the  most  minute 
matters  as  well  as  in  the  greater.  On  all  he  did  was  shed  a  si^irit 
of  kindness,  of  courtesy,  of  self-denial,  and  he  would  always 
rather  confer  a  benefit  than  seek  to  receive  one.  He  felt  that  he 
was  a  better  man  for  having  known  Judge  Perry. 

Mr.  H.  Benedict  indorsed  the  sentiments  of  the  speakers,  and 
was  followed  by  Mr.  M.  L.  Towns,  who  eulogized  the  dead  man, 
and  spoke  feelingly  of  the  pleasant  relations  existing  between 
them. 

Hon.  M.  D.  Wilber  .said  that  he  had  been  a  friend  of  John  0. 
Perry  ever  since  he  was  admitted  to  the  Bar.  He  served  with 
him  at  Albany,  and  on  the  same  committee,  and  his  influence 
there  was  the  same  as  it  was  in  social  life.  His  life  was  pure 
and  free  from  any  taint  of  wrong  doing.  It  reflected  honor  on 
his  constituency  there,  as  it  reflected  honor  on  the  Bar  here, 
when  the  President  named  John  C.  Perry  as  Chief  Justice  of 
Wyoming  Territory. 

Judge  Reynolds  said  that  it  seemed  to  him  appropriate  that 
they  should  pause  a  moment  in  the  midst  of  the  excitement  and 
pressure  of  business,  and  take  notice  of  the  admonition  which 
had  come  so  suddenly.  Judge  Perry  told  the  speaker  that  he 
intended  to  open  court  on  Monday  next,  the  52d  anniversary  of 
his  birth.  He  had  not  only  been  held  in  high  esteem  by  the 
Bar,  but  had  been  repeatedly  indorsed  by  his  fellow-citizens, 
and  when  he  was  named  for  the  high  jjosition  to  which  he  was 
appointed,  every  judge  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn  signed  a  letter 
indorsing  him. 

On  motion,  it  was  ordered  that  the  resolutions  be  signed  by 
the  judges  presiding,  and  that  a  copy  be  sent  to  the  family. 


THOMA.S   G.   SHEARMAN. 

Thomas  G.  Shearman,  though  not  native  born,  is  by  nature  as 
well  as  by  the  education  of  a  long  residence  in  this  country 
thoroughly  American  in  political  creed  and  in  loyal  devotion  to 
her  general  interests.  He  was  born  in  Birmingham,  England, 
in  November,  1834,  and  at  the  age  of  nine  years  came  to  New 
York,  with  his  parents.  His  father  was  a  practicing  physician; 
his  mother  a  lady  of  superior  talent  and  character,  under  whose 
supervision  his  education  was  completed  at  home. 

Early  in  1857,  he  took  up  his  residence  in  Brooklyn,  which  has 
ever  since  been  his  home,  and  where  he  is  now,  as  he  has  been 
for  some  years  past,  well  known  throughout  the  community  for 
his  abilities  as  a  leading  lawyer  and  his  public  services  as  a 
citizen. 

Mr.  Shearman  was  admitted  to  the  Kings  County  Bar  in  1859, 
but  before  completing  his  studies  preparatory  to  his  admis- 
sion to  practice,  his  literary  tastes  led  him  to  engage,  in 
connection  with  the  late  John  L.  Tillinghast,  in  the  prepa- 
ration of  a  treatise  on  practice,  the  first  volume  of  which  was 
published  early  in  1861,  under  the  general  title  of  "  Tillinghast 
and  Shearman's  Practice."  The  second  volume  was  written  by 
Mr.  Shearman  alone;  and  the  treatise  thus  completed  was  at 
once  recognized  by  the  profession  as  in  every  way  an  admirable 
piece  of  work.  It  is  understood  that  the  book  is  now  out  of 
print. 


1340 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Pursuing  his  taste  in  tliis  direction  still  further,  Mr.  Shearman 
devoted  some  years,  after  his  admission  to  the  Bar,  to  the  prepar- 
ation of  hriefs,  the  codification  of  certain  branches  of  the  law, 
and  other  work  of  a  studious  and  somewhat  retired  character. 

Subsequently,  in  the  year  1869,  Mr.  Shearman,  in  association 
with  A.  A.  Redfield,  Esq.,  published  a  treatise  on  the  Law  of 
Negligence,  of  which  four  editions  have  been  published  to  this 
time.  This  was  a  pioneer  work  on  this  subject,  in  this  country 
as  well  as  in  England;  and,  in  the  estimation  of  the  Bench  and 
Bar,  has  held  its  own  with  several  works  on  the  same  subject 
since  published  by  distinguished  and  able  writers. 

After  the  publicaion  of  this  book,  Mr.  Shearman  seems  to 
have  abandoned  any  literary  ambition  he  may  have  had,  and 
entered  actively  into  the  practice  of  his  profession.  His  great 
knowledge  of  cases,  English  and  American,  his  comprehensive 
grasp  of  legal  principles,  and  the  clearness  of  his  style,  gave  him 
repeated  successes  in  the  General  Term  and  Court  of  Appeals, 
in  cases  which  were  considered  desperately  hopeless  even  by 
the  lawyers  who  retained  him,  who  had  been  beaten  in  the  court 
below. 

The  Civil  War  gave  rise  to  many  important  and  difficult  ques- 
tions of  law,  not  the  least  of  which  was  whether  the  Kebelliou 
constituted  a  "war  "  within  the  strict  legal  meaning  of  that  term, 
and  therefore  whether  insurance  companies  were  exempt,  under 
the  old-fashioned  war-risk  clause  in  their  policies,  from  liability 
for  the  destruction  of  Northern  vessel.^  by  Southern  cruisers. 

The  case  of  Swinerton  v.  Columbian  Ins.  Co.,  in  the  Superior 
Court  of  New  York  City,  was  one  involving  this  novel  question. 
It  appeared  tliat  a  vessel  was  captured  by  an  armed  band  of 
Virginians,  two  days  after  Virginia  had  passed  an  ordinance  of 
secession,  but  before  the  fact  was  officially  published.  No  evi- 
dence could  be  procured  by  the  company  that  the  capture  was 
made  under  any  regular  official  authority;  and  the  General 
Term  of  the  Superior  Court  unanimously  held  that  the  capture 
was  not  such  an  act  of  war  as  exempted  the  insurance  comjiany 
from  liability  under  the  war  risk  clause  of  its  policy.  The  in- 
surance company's  counsel,  as  a  forlorn  hope,  engaged  Mr. 
Shearman  to  argue  an  appeal  to  the  Court  of  Appeals  from 
this  decision,  which  he  did  in  September,  1867.  and  with  com- 
plete success,  as  appears  by  a  report  of  the  case,  reversing  the 
judgment  below,  reported  in  the  37th  volume  of  the  New 
York  Reports. 

In  1868,  Mr.  Shearman  went  into  partnership  with  the  dis- 
tinguished advocate,  David  Dudley  Field,  and  his  son  Dudley 
Field,  under  the  firm  name  of  Field  it  Shearman,  into  which 
firm,  later  in  the  same  year,  Mr.  John  W.  Sterling  was  admitted 
a  partner.  During  the  whole  existence  of  this  copartnership, 
its  business  was  one  of  the  largest  of  any  firm  of  practition- 
ers in  New  Y'ork. 

The  new  firm  was  almost  immediately  called  upon  to  take 
charge  of  the  legal  business  of  the  Erie  Railway  Company,  Mr. 
Shearman  being  appointed  to  the  responsible  jjosition  of  office 
counsel.  As  such,  he  had  personal  sui^ervision  of  the  company's 
law  business  throughout  the  State,  and  for  several  years  devoted 
hia  entire  time  to  their  service.  The  gi-eat  law-suits  growing  out 
of  the  contest  for  the  control  of  the  Erie  Railway  Company, 
the  Atlantic  and  Great  Western,  and  the  Albany  and  Susque- 
hanna Railway  Companies,  attracted  universal  public  attention, 
and  greatly  extended  Mr.  Shearman's  rejiutation  as  not  only  a 
skillful  advocate,  but  as  an  inventor,  or,  rather,  a  re-disooverer 
of  some  lost  and  forgotten  remedies  api^licable  to  the  cases  in 
hand,  and  which  proved  to  work  with  admirable  success  for  his 
clients.  Chief  among  these  was  the  use  of  a  writ  of  assistance, 
as  a  means  of  putting  a  Receiver,  appointed  pendente  lite,  into 
possession  of  the  property^  and  also  the  service  of  an  in- 
junction in  a  distant  part  of  the  State  by  telegraphic  copies. 
This  last  procedure  called  forth  loud  comi)laints  on  the  part  of 
some  of  the  leading  newspapers  of  the  day,  and  even  of  some 
lawyers.  But  the  same  practice,  in  both  respects,  was  quickly 
adopted  by  his  opponents  in  the  same  cases.     Since  that  time 


the  English  Courts  of  Equity  have  -unanimously  decided  that  it 
is  not  merely  proper  to  telegraph  an  injunction  or  similar  writ, 
but  also  that  a  copy  of  such  a  writ  sent  directly  over  the  tel- 
egraph to  the  adverse  party  or  his  attorney  is  a  perfectly  good 
service,  and  that  disobedience  of  an  injunction  thus  served  is  a 
contempt  of  court;  and  this  decision  being  appealed  from,  has 
been  unanimously  affirmed. 

In  the  fall  of  1873  Mr.  Shearman  and  Mr.  Sterling  formed  a 
new  firm  by  themselves.  In  the  now  famous  trial  of  Theodore 
Tilton  against  Rev.  Henry  Ward  Beecher,  which  lasted  six 
months  continuously  in  open  court,  and  involved  the  labor  of 
several  months  in  preliminary  and  collateral  proceedings,  Mr. 
Shearman,  as  a  warm  jiersonal  friend  of  Mr.  Beecher  of  many 
years'  standing,  was  actively  engaged  as  counsel  for  the  defense, 
his  firm  of  Shearman  &  Sterling  being  the  attorneys  of  record 
for  the  defendant.  His  application  in  that  case  for  a  bill  of  par- 
ticulars had  no  precedent  in  this  country,  and  was  generally 
considered  by  the  Bar  as  hopeless;  and  a  majority  of  the  court 
before  which  the  motion  was  first  argued  would  seem  to  have 
been  of  the  same  opinion;  but  McCue,  J.,  dissented;  and,  on 
appeal,  the  Court  of  Appeals  created  a  genuine  sensation  by  re- 
versing the  decision  below,  in  an  elaboi-ate  oi^inion  by  Rap.allo,  J., 
which  has  been  followed  in  all  American  courts,  and  has  settled 
the  law  on  this  point. 

Mr.  Shearman's  new  firm  were,  from  1874  to  1876,  attorneys 
and  counsel  for  Mr.  Jay  Gould  in  about  100  actions  for  damages 
brought  against  him  and  others,  who  were  believed  to  be  inter- 
ested in  creating  the  gold  panic  of  1869.  The  trial  of  these 
actions  attracted  a  large  share  of  public  attention,  and  popular 
feeling  ran  strongly  against  Mr.  Gould  and  the  other  defend- 
ants. The  cases  were  tried  before  several  different  judges;  but 
in  every  instance  the  defendants  were  successful. 

The  case  of  Black  c.  The  Continental  Bank  arose  out  of  exten- 
sive forgeries  committed  by  one  Ross,  who  lied  to  Brazil  with 
SIOO.OOO  in  gold,  and  was  never  captured.  He  obtained  $60,000 
from  Mr.  Black  on  a  certified  check,  which  the  bank  declared  to 
be  a  forgery.  On  the  first  trial,  ten  of  the  jury  favored  a  verdict 
for  the  plaintifl",  believing  the  certification  to  be  genuine.  After 
this.  Shearman  &  Sterling  were  substituted  as  attorneys  and 
counsel  for  the  defendant.  The  second  trial  (before  Van  Brunt, 
J. )  was  hotly  contested,  and  many  new  scientific  tests  were  in- 
troduced on  behalf  of  the  defendant,  which  won  the  verdict. 

Mr.  Shearman  still  continues  in  the  active  practice  of  his 
profession,  being  j'et  a  comparatively  young  man.  There  are 
other  lawyers  in  Brooklj'n  who  have  doubtless  tried  more  eases 
in  the  courts  than  he  has  ;  but  it  is  well  understood  that  his 
business  out  of  court,  or  "chamber  business,"  as  it  is  called, 
has  largely  increased  in  recent  yeai-s,  and  that  in  substantial 
v.alue  it  exceeds  that  of  any  other  lawyer  residing  in  Brooklyn. 
His  connection  with  cases  which  have  atti-acted  so  large  a  share 
of  public  attention  and  newspaper  controversy  has  made  his 
name  more  widely  known  than  that  of  almost  any  othe.'  Brook- 
lyn lawyer. 

In  politics,  Mr.  Shearman  has  always  been  a  Republican,  hav- 
ing been  one  of  the  j'oung  men  who  came  of  age  when  that 
party  was  formed,  and  so  cast  their  first  votes  for  its  first  can- 
didate, Fremont,  and  having  voted  for  every  Republican  Presi- 
dent since.  Originally,  he  was  a  decided  protectionist ;  but  he 
changed  his  views  upon  this  point  about  twenty  years  ago,  as 
the  result  of  more  careful  study,  and  has  ever  since  been  a 
believer  in  free  trade.  It  is  safe  to  say  that  no  one  has  done 
more  to  forward  its  interests,  and  to  diffuse  a  better  under- 
standing of  it  among  the  community,  than  Mr.  Shearman. 
With  an  ardor  and  force  peculiarly  his  own,  and  with  a  most 
earnest  conviction  of  the  advantages  which  would  accrue  to  the 
country  from  a  free  trade  system,  he  has  unflinchingly  advo- 
cated its  adoption.  Being  of  opinion  that  the  questions  grow- 
ing out  of  slavery,  the  war  and  the  currency  were,  however, 
more  important  than  the  issue  of  free  trade,  he  took  no  part  in 


-J^Y, 


ICCi  ^MiCCt  \^ 


BENCH  AND  BAR  OF  BROOKLYN. 


1241 


nuDonty 
a- 

tVr 


bringing  it  into  polittt-s,  un:;  eoriom  of 

ISSO.     Since  that  period  he        ■  ::xa  and 

energy,  outside  of  his  profes>: ~-  —    ---  onjani- 

zation  of  the   fre«  tnide  moTement.     He  »as  the  ori^rtnator  of 
the  Brooklyn  Kevenae  Befomi  Club,  which  has  Veo^^:?  5-.~ r-? 
throughout  the  country jj5  the  lirst  organ- 
a  platform  for  the  fretj  discussion  of  the  _  -      , 

of  the  day,  instead  of  confining  it  to  the  ^  .   , .  .  __   - 

or  the  other  exclusively.  As  chairman  of  its  Executive  Com- 
mittee, he  has  superinteadevi  all  its  »ork.  He  has  also  had  a 
lar^r  share  than  any  other  Eastern  man  in  on^anizing  the  fp?e 
trade  movement  in  Iowa,  where  it  has  made  a  prvigress  so  re- 
markable as  to  have  attracted  general  intenest,  the  revenue  re- 
formers having  gained  four  or  five  members  of  Congress  in  that 
State. 

Mr.  Shearman  represents  the  most  advanced  views  oa  this  snb^ 
ject,  being  an  advocate  of  absolute,  immediate  and  uncoadi- 
tional  free  trade,  with  the  repeal  of  all  taridis  and  all  methods  of 
indirect  taxation.  Of  course,  these  extreme  views  are  accepted 
by  only  a  small  minority  of  th?  reo*-'.?  %t  rr^se-t:  V-t  is  Mr. 
Shearman  always  declined   - "  rlty,  he 

is  probably  not  concT?nied  to  itheis 

also  a  thoroughly  practical  tu  ,..  .^.^ 

sions  he  can  secure.     He  hj.^ 

siderable  inliueuce  upon  the  ,       -  .      , , 

he  was  selected  by  the  principle  t'r-r-c  ■.riir  scc^iUiS  .-;:-:;  ■  —  •  -■■- 
as  the  leading  representative  of  the  cause  before  Congress  on  the 
hearings  lately  given  upon  the  proposed  redacti:-   ■-'--.■  -■—->■ 
He  has  made  numerous  speeches  oa  this  subjeo : 
Broooklyn,  but  also  in  the  principal  cities  of  th;*  ^ 
Michigan  and  Iowa. 

In  two  respects,  Mr.  Shearman  has  succ^sdr  ". 
marked  change  in  the   discussion  of  these  qnes;..  _>.     ^r   .  .-.> 
the  first  speaker  who   analyzed  the  effects  of  the  tariC  so  as  to 
show  the  relative  burdens  of  the  rich  and  the  pO'.r  --ier  it. 
The  broad  general  statement,  that  tariflSs  pressed  • 
upon  the  poor  than  upon  the  rich,  had  of  cours  e 
thousand  times ;  but  the  exact  manner    .-  '    ■  - 
never,  we  believe,  been  stated  prior  toMr    - 
before  the  Revenue  Reform  Club  ia  1S.>. 
substance  as  follows  : 


<rf  peisoos  whoso  incomies  are  less  ■ 

CTsfieja  ^t  indirect  taxati-t^n  beiis^  so 
the   iin-j.:  <y.vi-:-<  ,:  ::^,    u.>V,:.  > 


.it    tlSjII    piV. 

".iTesT  the  «^' 


fre«  trade,  aad  toag  caeir  nasoriu  leatiency  (u>  ris>»  >s  iv<ai\ie<il 
by  all  protective  tarilS^  SsreasoQia;ai.^ip«»irsinthi$extiactfkv>ia 
hisaddrt-i  " "  "' —  ;;••-   '    ~ ■_■;.  yi^raary,  ISSi; 

' "  .\ssr.  ■  : .     •.  T¥is'  piwfit  in 

l!SSt>  w^                                                                           :        •.   ■:.-;  .-rUi"* 

shows  t^:                              ii    i  :i,;r    --:  ' 
elements  .                     .  :  x'st  of  eftch  ?  -  ' 
i-  :?*."; 

,x^sr  r^SDO:  PB!w:*Esx''rtcN. 

~   S6S  21 

-      IT  I6S 

H;-:s,r:         -         -                     ;;r«it.AiB 10  00 

Profit.  1                                         9U 


$100  00 


ia  the  prie*  of  finislteid  articles 
;  home  by  at  least  35  p<?r  c«nt..  as 
;ie  neach  of  a  asiccJi  largi^r  piiv>- 
is  weM-known  !aw  of  trade,  that 
■  ';.,'  .■..C-.  iii'-T'.  ;-■  ';'.iT  aa  anide 


"  All  indirect  taxes  impos«  a  baidea  which  fe  beavr    : 
exactly  as  personal  or  family  expenses  are  heavy  cr  !:V;: 
man  whose  income  is $10t),0OO  a  year,  and  speni>  .  i.  ;.  J'.      ■  i 
will  not   pay   one  peaay  more  under  indirect  Eix-.::i.  :... v. :: 
man  whose  income  is  $10,000,  but  who  sper^-!  ••  '  -    . 

ticmimposed  forthe Federal  Govemmeat -.s 
part  of  local  taxation  is  really  indirect.  ,       ■ 

posed  not  to  b<e.  The  annual  taxaticr  ..  .__>  ,,.._.-  .? 
$700,000,000  -.  while  the  extra  cost  of  gocls  caased  i  y  sie  pro^ 
tective  features  of  the  tariff  and  by  the  necessary  profits  paid 
to  dealers  on  the  amount  adv-vn.v. .;  '.  v  then..  :,-7  .■.•.:;»  or  hi^h 
prices   causevl   by   duties,  n  \  -  -  -  ■     OO^OOO 

more.     The  entire  income  o:  ■■"  •  ii\OOQ^ 

makiiK:  the  annual  burden  r.y  -      -  .-      .eaee  of 

taxation,  about  "30  per  cent. 

But  taxation  cannot  b«  j^d  ont  of  anything  except  savings ; 
and  the  savings  of  the  great  mass  of  men  whose  incomes  ai9  snudl, 
are  necessarily  much  smaller,  even  ia  proportion  to  their  ia- 
ciimes,  thaa  the  possible  savings  of  the  wealthiest  classes. 
Thus  a  man  with  an  income  of  $l(.X\OtX)  ^r  annnm  can  live  ia 
luxury  and  yet  save  nine-tenths  of  his  iacoim«.  Bat  the  maa 
who  earns  only  $3A''  per  annum  finds  it  almost  impossihle,  evea 
apart  from  taxation,  to  save  as  much  as  oae-fifth  <rf  h^  iaeome. 
A  tax  of  JO  per  ceat.  on  the  expenditores  of  the  former  woold 
therefore  amount  to  only  two  i»er  ceat.  of  his  saviass,  while 
a  like  tax  on  the  expenditures  of  the  latter  voald  exbaost  SO 
per  cent    of  his  savings. 

Estimating  the  number  of  persons  engiged  ia  daily  busiaees 
at  Io,00>.>.000,  and  the  anniul  income  oa  l-I.OOt^OOO  as  less  thaa 
$400  vvrhtch  the  census  shows  it  to  be\  aad  assamiag  that  all 
classes  would  save  the  money  now  paid  by  them  ia  taxes,  if 
none  weru  levied,  the  figures  show  that  the  anntial  saviags  of 
our  people  would  be  over  JiAWAXXWO,  aad  that  more  thaa 
Sl.-lOtXOOO^OOO  of  this  amooat  would  be  saved  by  the  vast  mass 


: :  -ver  goods  ar*  soM,  even  at  a  ' 
Thei*:ore,  aa  increase  of  S5  pt  t 
c>>->is  maatil&etQied,  evea  thoEiih  the  i 
:  laie&w  mt^ctMupel  the  employmeat  c: 
i—?-.  3aad  tbas  iais«  wages  :i5  v^r  ^^^t. 
'  •   ■  .:*    free  trade,   iher:  :' 
r  ceat.  in  the  c>c»st   . 


for  wo^- 


-  per 
rest, 
*Md. 
;  anr 

r;STllt 


cost  rsmx  iseb  xsidbl 

<      $17  41 

\v..^e5 aj  OS 

Bent,  repairs,  Jte S  50 

Profit  n,10  per  cent) «  SO 

1W»1 5SS  T7 

Tlio  ccneetness  of  ttis  theory  is  proved  by  the  hi5tt>iTr  of 
fhes«  foitevl  States.  A  high  tariff  was  impoise\l  in  ISiliv  a 
higher  one  in  1S*1,  aad  a  stUl  h^er  oae  ia  1S2S-  So  speech 
in  Congress  has  been  looad  by  nss  and  ao  protectionist  book  or 
pamphlet,  dating  prior  to  ISli  ia  which  it  was  evea  claimevl 
that  wages  advanced  nnder  any  of  these  tariffs.  On  the  con- 
trary, a  tract  issued  by  the  Itv\n  aad  Ste*l  Asstviation  states  that 
in  1;SS>  the  wages  of  £irm  IsKm^ts  were  $~  to  SIO  a  month  with 
beard,  and  thos*  of  mechanics  50  cents  to  $1  a  dav  witbont 
board.  The  same  trac:  qaotes.  the  late  Vice-President  wiV*  n  to 
prove  that,  in  1*33  and  ISSS,  ondex  the  highest  tariff  ever  knowa 
in  this  conntry.  he  wv-wrked  &om  dayli^t  until  dssrk,  at  the 
hardest  kind  of  work,  for  $6  a  month:  that  the  highest  wages 
paid,  even  in  hames*  time,  wer*  50  to  <W  oents  a  day,  and  that 
Uie  t'est  wages  p^ud  to  bright  women  for  honsewvirk  and  weaving 
wer*  50  to  ^  cents  a  week. 

On  October  2,  ISli*,  a  pr;>«iectiv\nist  meetiag  ia  Philadelphia 
issTied  a  i>>port  npon  iuaan£>cint>es  and  wages,  in  which  the 
average  wages  paid  to  mechanics  weI^?  given  at  one  dollar  a  day. 
Yet,  after  nine  years  of  the  highest  protection,  me«han>es' 
wages  wei«,  as  already  shown,  less  than  one  dollar  a  day. 


1242 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


In  1842,  a  strongly  protectionist  committee  of  Congress 
examined  witnesses  on  tliis  subject;  and  tlieir  report  showed 
that  in  the  iron  manufacture  tlure  had  been  no  advance  in 
wages  since  1828;  and  the  average  rate  for  unskilled  labor 
generally  was  stated  at  75  cents  a  day.  In  1845,  an  opportunity 
was  given  to  manufacturers  all  over  the  country  to  report  upon 
wages  under  'the  beneficent  tariff  of  '42.'  Many  reports  were 
sent  into  the  Treasury  Department.  Not  one  of  them  claimed 
to  have  increased  the  rate  of  wages  under  that  tariff;  while 
several  admitted  that  they  had  cut  down  wages.  The  usual 
rate  of  wages  for  labor  in  iron  furnaces  and  foundries  was 
stated  at  87  cents;  and  no  ordinary  workman,  even  in  that 
exhausting  business,  was  rej)orted  at  over  SI  a  day. 

The  tariff  of  1846  was  passed,  reducing  duties  about  one-third. 
Wages  began  to  rise  everywhere,  and  in  all  departments  of 
business.  Farming  wages,  which  had  fallen  to  between  S5  and 
SlOa  month,  under  the  tariff  of  1842,  rose  to  $12  and  $16.  Manu- 
facturing wages  advanced  even  before  the  census  of  1850;  and 
the  advance  from  1850  to  1860  is  a  matter  of  record,  amounting 
to  17  per  cent.  The  average  increase  in  the  iron  trade  was  even 
greater  than  this. 

Thus  we  find  that,  down  to  1860,  the  only  advances  in  wages 
occurred  under  the  reduction  of  the  tariff,  and  that  under  high 
tariff's  wages  had  remained  stationary  or  declined. 

During  the  late  war,  however,  wages  were  largely  advanced  in 
nominal  value;  and  this  is  the  period  to  which  protectionists  now 
triumphantly  refer.  But,  stated  in  gold,  the  average  wages  were, 
in  18.50,  $247;  in  1860,  S281);  in  1870,  $302;  in  1880,  $346.  In 
purchasing  power,  the  wages  of  1870  were  worth  only  S242,  com- 
pared with  $289  in  1860.  But  let  us  come  down  to  the  present 
time.  It  is  universally  admitted  that  wages  have  been  cut  down 
20  to  30  per  cent,  since  1880.  Take  the  aver.age  reduction  at  25 
per  cent,  as  a  medium  rate,  and  wages  are  only  $259,  being  less 
to-day  than  twenty  years  ago,  under  the  lowest  tariff  known 
since  1812.  Can  any  further  demonstration  be  needed  that  every 
step  towards  protection  depresses  wages,  while  every  step  towards 
free  trade  raises  them  ?  ' 

We  do  not  undertake  to  decide  whether  the  reasoning  upon 
either  of  these  points  is  correct;  our  purpose  being  simply  to 
show  Mr.  Shearman's  views  and  the  effect  produced  by  his  ex- 
pression of  them.  II  is  certain  that  the  analysis  which  he  made 
of  the  relative  ett'ect  of  the  tariff'  upon  the  savings  of  the  few 
wealthy  men  and  the  vast  mass  of  persons  with  small  incomes, 
has  taken  hold  of  the  public  mind,  and  that  the  idea  is  now 
found  in  many  Congressional  speeches  and  in  most  of  the 
popular  arguments  upon  this  question.  So  the  whole  tone  of 
the  advocates  of  free  trade,  upon  the  wages  question,  has 
changed.  They  have  assumed  an  aggressive  position  on  this 
point,  and  their  argument  is  very  different  now  from  what  it  was 
only  four  or  five  years  ago — no  longer  admitting  that  wages  are 
in  any  sense  raised  by  protection,  but  insisting  that  they  are 
cut  down  by  it. 

Mr.  Shearman's  interest  in  these  and  similar  questions  has  no 
element  of  personal  ambition  in  it.  He  knows  very  well  that 
his  views  are  not  in  harmony  with  the  aims  of  any  existing 
political  party;  he  does  not  seek  to  make  them  so;  and  he  takes 
pains  to  emphasize  the  points  of  difference  between  his  ideas 
and  those  of  professional  politicians.  He  knows  how  little  can 
be  accomplished  by  any  one  man  in  actual  legislation,  and  pre. 
fers  to  influence  it  from  without,  rather  than  to  conceal  the  least 
principle  for  the  sake  of  trying  to  shape  it  from  within. 

The  old-fashioned  house  on  Columbia  Heights  in  which  Mr. 
Shearman  lives,  is  one  of  peculiar  historic  interest  to  a  lawyer, 
having  been  the  residence  of  Judge  Eadcliff  until  his  death, 
nearly  forty  years  ago.  It  was  the  injury  done  to  these  premises 
by  the  opening  of  Furman  street,  in  1838,  which  gave  rise  to  the 
cases,  famous  among  lawyers,  Re  Farman  St.  (17  Wend.,  649), 
and  BadcUffy.  Srooklyn  (4  N.  Y.,  195),  in  which  the  rule  that  no 
compensation  can  be  recovered  for  damage  incidental  to  a  pub- 
lic work  was  first  authoritatively  decided  in  this  State.  The 
latter  is  the  leading  case  on  this  point,  and  has  been  followed 
by  the  courts  all  over  the  Union.     (See  Important  Trials.) 

The  case  of  Furman  St.,  w'uich  was  fiercely  but  unsuccess- 
fully contested  by  Judge  Kadcliff  in  his  lifetime,  shows  more 
jdainly  than  the  other  the  great  injury  which  he  suffered  from 
the  premature  opening  of  the  street,  under  the  influence  of  the. 


speculative  mania  of  1836,  when  real  estate  in  Brooklyn  was  in- 
flated to  jirices  which  in  some  instances  have  never  since  been 
reached.  All  the  natural  beauty  of  Brooklyn  Heights  was 
sacrificed  to  the  absurd  expectation  of  an  immediate  rush  of 
commerce  to  Furman  street,  making  lots  on  the  land  side  very 
valuable;  an  expectation  which  even  yet  has  not  been  realized, 
and  probably  never  will  be. 


BENJAMIN  VAUGHAN  ABBOTT. 

Benjamin  Vattghan  Abbott  was  born  at  Boston,  Mass.,  June  4, 
1830.  His  father  was  Jacob  Abbott,  distinguished  as  a  writer  of 
the  "Young  Rollo"  books,  "Young  Christian,"  and  other  well- 
known  valuable  works.  The  talents  of  this  estimable  man  seem 
to  have  descended  as  an  inheritance  to  his  son.  He  married 
Harriet  Vaughan,  daughter  of  Charles  Vaughan,  an  eminent  citi- 
zen of  Hallowell,  Me.  Both  the  Vaughans  and  Abbotts  are  old, 
prominent  and  highly  respected  New  England  families. 

Young  Abbott's  boyhood  was  passed  in  Farmington,  Maine; 
he  attended  the  schools  at  that  place,  and  gave  evidence  of  the 
scholarly  traits  which  have  distinguished  him  in  his  maturer 
years. 

Early  in  1844,  he  lost  his  admirable  and  greatly  beloved 
mother,  and  soon  after  that  event  his  father  removed  to  the  city 
of  New  York,  and  young  Abbott  at  an  early  period  in  his  life  be- 
came a  resident  of  the  metropolis.  He  became  a  student  in  the 
Grammar  School  of  the  New  York  University,  where  he  com- 
pleted the  undergraduate  course.  Thus  prepared,  he  entered 
the  New  York  University,  from  whence  he  was  graduated  in  1850. 

As  his  views  were  early  turned  toward  the  legal  profession, 
immediately  after  graduating,  he  entered  Cambridge  Law  School, 
spending  one  year  in  that  celebrated  seminary  in  the  diligent 
study  of  law.  Leaving  Cambridge,  he  became  a  student  in  the 
office  of  Richard  M.  Blatchford  and  John  P.  Crosby,  where  he 
completed  his  legal  studies,  and  in  November,  1852,  took  his 
degree  as  an  attorney  and  counsellor-at-law,  beginning  his  prac- 
tice in  the  city  of  New  York. 

In  1853,  Mr.  Abbott  was  united  by  marriage  to  Miss  Elizabeth 
Titcomb,  daughter  of  Hon.  John  Titcomb,  of  Farmington,  Me., 
distinguished  as  a  pioneer  in  the  early  Anti-Slavery  and  Republi- 
can parties  of  that  State.  Miss  Titcomb,  now  Mrs.  Abbott,  is  a 
grand-daughter  of  Stephen  Titcomb,  the  first  settler  of  the  town 
of  Farmington. 

Mr.  Abbott's  practice  in  the  city  of  New  Y'ork  was  eminently 
successful,  and  he  pursued  it  actively  for  fifteen  years,  as  the 
senior  member  of  the  distinguished  firm  of  .\bbott  &  Brothers. 

He  early  evinced  marked  abilities  as  a  writer,  and  his  pen  has 
been  directed  to  works  connected  with  his  profession,  and  he 
has  attained  the  reputation  of  being  one  of  the  ablest,  most 
successful  and  useful  of  American  legal  writers.  Perhajjs  the 
legal  profession,  and  we  may  say  the  judiciary,  are  quite  as 
much  indebted  to  him  for  works  that  tend  to  the  advancement 
of  legal  learning  as  to  any  other  living  author. 

One  of  his  characteristics  is  unwearied  industry;  while  at  the 
head  of  a  prominent  legal  firm,  his  time  largely  occupied  with 
an  extensive  practice,  he  found  leisure  to  devote  to  the  congenial 
labors  of  an  author. 

He  had  been  in  practice  but  a  short  time  when  he  published 
his  work  on  the  Admiralty  Decisions  of  Judge  Belts,  then  United 
States  District  Judge  of  the  Southern  District  of  N.  Y.,  includ- 
ing what  is  now  the  Eastern  District.  This  work  was  soon 
followed  by  a  New  York  Digest,  in  which  he  devised  several 
features,  then  new  in  such  works,  but  widely  approved  and 
republished  since.  In  the  writing  of  this  extensive  and  valuable 
work,  his  brother  was  as.sociated  with  him.  Abbott's  Digest  is 
one  of  the  most  elaborate  and  valuable  works  of  that  kind  now 
extant.  After  the  appearance  of  this  work  Mr.  Abbott's  talents 
and  learning  were  directed  almost  solely  to  the  pursuits  of  legal 
authorship. 


BENCH  AND  BAR   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1243 


In  recognition  of  his  fibilities,  he  was  appointed  secretary  of 
the  New  York  Code  Commissioners,  and  personally  drafted, 
under  general  directions  of  the  board,  the  report  of  a  Penal  Code 
submitted  to  the  Legislature  in  1865,  and  which  afterwards  be- 
came the  basis  of  the  present  Penal  Code. 

Continuing  his  labors,  he  published  several  other  works  in 
succession,  most  prominent  of  which  were  a  Digest  of  the  Laws 
of  Corporations,  and  a  Treatise  on  the  United  States  Courts  and 
their  Practice.  These  works  received  a  warm  welcome  from  the 
profession  throughout  the  republic,  and  gave  their  author  a  na- 
tional reputation.  Such  was  the  prominence  tliey  gave  him  that, 
in  1870,  he  was  appointed  by  President  Grant  one  of  the  com- 
missioners to  revise  the  statutes  of  the  United  States.  There  is 
a  circumstance  connected  with  this  appointment  that  happily 
illustrates  the  practical  ability  of  Mr.  Abbott.  A  commission 
had  been  previously  appointed,  composed  of  distinguished  law- 
yers, but  who  had  accomplished  very  little  in  the  work  commit- 
ted to  them.  Mr.  Abbott  entered  )ipon  the  discharge  of  his  duties 
with  such  energy,  learning  and  success,  that  he  soon  became  the 
chief  dependence  of  the  friends  of  the  revision  for  the  rapid 
prosecution  of  large,  laborious  and  complex  compilations, 
committed  to  the  new  commission.  Their  expectations  were  not 
disappointed.  His  great  industry  seemed  to  rejoice  in  the  accu- 
mulation of  toil,  and  he  applied  himself  with  unremitting  per- 
severance to  every  minute  portion  of  his  duty  with  great  energy 
and  success.  The  entire  body  of  the  statute  laws  of  the  United 
States  was  examined,  clause  by  clause;  its  unimportant  parts  re- 
written and  embodied  in  one  volume,  witliin  the  three  years 
allowed  the  commissioners  for  the  completion  of  the  work. 

These  statutes  had  been  jirinted  without  regard  to  order,  about 
as  they  were  passed,  chronologically,  with  very  little  system  of  ar- 
rangement. There  was  a  great  variety  of  subjects,  and  enactments 
on  the  same  subject  dispersed  over  an  immense  extent.  Many 
of  these  statutes  were  temporary  in  their  nature;  many  of  them 
were  partially  or  wholly  repealed,  some  by  express  enactment, 
others  only  inferentially;  so  that  it  was  a  work  of  great  difficulty 
to  discover  what  provisions  were  in  force  and  what  had  been 
modified  or  repealed. 

Like  Justinian,  the  commissioners  undertook  the  great  work 
of  methodizing  voluminous  laws  scattered  through  so  many 
volumes,  that  they  might  well  be  compared  to  the  "  load  of 
many  camels." 

It  will  thus  be  seen  how  immense  was  the  labor  performed.  It 
facilitated  many  of  the  operations  of  law,  and  reduced  the 
li'ederal  statutes  to  a  practical  system. 

Soon  after  the  completion  of  this  work,  Mr.  Abbott  was  en- 
gaged by  Little,  Brown  &  Co.  to  revise  and  edit  a  consolidated 
edition  of  the  United  States  Digest,  which  task,  together  with 
annual  volumes  for  the  current  years— twenty-three  in  all — was 
completed  during  the  four  or  five  years  following  the  revision  of 
the  United  States  statutes.  The  great  labor  and  responsibility 
which  this  work  demanded,  and  its  vast  importance,  will  be 
more  fully  understood  when  it  is  remembered  that  the  last 
fifty  years  have  added  more  reports  of  decided  cases  in  the 
United  States  than  can  be  found  in  several  preceding  genera- 
rations.  The  difficulty  in  discovering  what  was  good  law  in 
this  vast  agglomeration  was  felt  by  the  experienced  lawyer 
and  the  judge,  weighing  with  tenfold  force  upon  the  student. 
No  power  of  assimilation  could  keep  pace  with  such  rapid 
production  of  precedent.  The  area  of  the  law  was  a  tangled 
thicket,  requiring  the  application  of  unceasing  energy  and 
industry  to  collect  cases  in  point,  and  to  bring  anything  like 
order   out  of  the   confusion. 

f  Whatever  tends  to  simplify  the  law,  whatever  renders  it 
cognizable  and  easy  of  access,  tends  also  to  diminish  the  heavy 
fees,  the  vexatious  delays  and  repeated  miscarriages  which  are 
so  often  complained  of.  Mr.  Abbott's  United  States  Digest,  and 
we  may  say  his  Digest  of  our  State  Reports,  with  their  admir- 
able   analysis,  methodical  arrangement,  and  their  plenary  syl- 


labus, have  done  much  to  simplify  both  the  Federal  and  State 
laws.  That  which  is  settled  and  proclaimed  as  authority,  and 
which  had  to  be  worked  out  by  turning  the  pages  of  hundreds 
of  volumes,  has,  by  these  Digests,  been  worked  out  and  system- 
atized so  that  each  authority  is  easy  of  access  and  ready  for  use. 

A  Law  Dictionary,  in  two  volumes,  on  a  new  plan,  followed 
this  last  digest ;  Vol.  1  of  a  National  Digest,  to  be  completed  in 
four  or  five  volumes,  is  (at  the  date  of  this  writing)  on  the  eve 
of  publication  ;  it  gives  in  one  view  the  statutory  and  judicial 
law  of  the  Federal  Government.  Mr.  Abbott  has  also  written 
a  popular  volume  of  explanations  of  legal  subjects,  entitled 
"  Judge  and  Jury,"  and  a  school  book  or  volume  for  youth, 
entitled  "  Traveling  Law  School,"  explaining  the  theory  of 
American  government  and  law  to  the  young.  He  has  also 
written  a  great  number  of  contributions,  mostly  on  legal  sub- 
jects, for  periodicals. 

From  what  we  have  seen,  the  question  may  well  be  asked:  Can 
a  more  active,  energetic,  able  and  useful  pen  be  found  than  that 
of  Mr.  Abbott's  ? 

No  class  of  men  more  fully  appreciates  this  language  of 
the  elegant  Koman  scholar,  "  ilira  ipunlam  in  coijnosceiKlo 
simvitns  et  deledatio,"  than  lawyers;  no  lawyer  has  reason  to 
understand  this  more  fully  than  Mr.  Abbott ;  and  no  writer  has 
rendered  the  task  of  acquiring  legal  knowledge,  and  of  adapting 
it  to  practice,  more  easy  and  pleasant  than  he.  He  is  plain, 
easy,  compact,  and  at  the  same  time  sufficiently  luminous.  "The 
action  of  his  mind  is  always  to  discover  how  much  ho  can 
prune,  and  brush  away  of  that  which  is  extrinsic,  and  to  reduce 
adverse  matter  to  its  least  practical  dimensions."  Not  an  idea 
is  excluded  which  can  promote  his  object ;  everything  is  there, 
but  in  the  narrowest  compass.  As  w.as  said  of  another:  "He 
has  given  us  the  best  specimens  in  our  language  of  that  rich 
economy  of  expression  which  was  so  much  studied  by  the  writers 
of  antiquity."  His  books  are  found  in  nearly  every  law  library 
in  the  nation. 

At  the  time  of  his  marriage  he  became  a  resident  of  Brooklyn, 
and  he  has  lived  there  most  of  the  years  of  his  married  life. 
Absorbed  in  the  duties  of  his  profession,  with  the  subjects  of 
his  pen,  in  the  retiracy  of  his  study,  he  has  taken  little  part  in 
the  local  affairs  of  the  city.  Much  of  his  time  has  been  spent  in 
other  cities,  to  which  his  engagements  as  an  author  have  drawn 
him. 

His  family  consists  of  a  wife,  a  son— Arthur  Vaughan  Abbott,  a 
civil  engineer,  who  is  professionally  employed  in  the  construc- 
tion of  the  Brooklyn  Bridge— and  a  daughter. 

As  we  have  seen,  Mr.  Abbott  is  still  actively  engaged  in 
preparing  works  which  are  anxiously  looked  for  by  the  profes- 
sion and  public,  and  which  will  add  new  honors  to  the  many 
that  he  so  deservedly  enjoys. 


DANIEL   P.   BARNARD. 

Daniel  P.  Baknakd  was  born  at  Hudson,  N.  Y.,  December 
23d,  1812.  His  parents  were  Timothy  and  Mary  Barnard.  His 
ancestors  on  the  paternal  side  were  the  first  settlers  of  Nan- 
tucket, Mass.  His  maternal  grandfather,  Daniel  Paddock,  was 
one  of  the  first  settlers  of  Hudson,  N.  Y. 

Mr.  Barnard  was  educated  partly  at  Hudson  and  partly  at 
Baltimore,  under  private  tutors.  He  studied  his  profession  in 
Baltimore,  Md.,  with  Judge  William  L.  Marshall;  was  admitted 
to  the  Bar  in  July,  1836,  at  Baltimore,  and  in  1839  removed  to 
Brooklyn  and  entered  upon  the  practice  of  his  profession,  where 
he  has  continued  ever  since. 

Mr.  Barnard  is  regarded  as  one  of  the  ablest  real  estate  law- 
yers at  the  Kings  County  Bar.  His  knowledge  of  titles  to  the 
real  estate  of  the  county  is  very  great,  and  has  been  gained  by 
the  most  intimate  and  thorough  examination  through  the  course 
of  forty  years.     He  has  devoted  himself  entirely  to  his  profes- 


1244 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


sion,  never  holding  nny  office  except  by  election  to  the  City 
Council  of  Baltimore  in  1838,  and  to  the  Common  Council  of 
Brooklyn  in  1854-53.  In  the  latter  year  he  -n-as  President  of  the 
Common  Council.  He  represented  the  County  of  Kings  in  the 
Constitutional  Convention  of  this  State  in  18G7,  proving  to  be  an 
able,  effective  and  influential  member  of  that  body. 


ABR.\HAI\I    H.   DAILEY. 

Abraham  H.  Datley  was  born  in  Sheffield,  Berkshire  County, 
Mass.,  October  31st,  1831.  His  father  was  born  in  the  town  of 
Fishkill,  N.  Y.  He  is  of  English,  Irish,  Scotch  and  German  ex- 
traction. 

He  thoroughly  prepared  to  enter  college,  but  a  severe  and 
protracted  illness  prevented  this.  After  his  recovery  he  decided 
to  commence  the  study  of  law.  Accordingly  he  entered  the 
office  of  ex-Gov.  George  N.  Briggs,  of  Massachusetts,  where  he 
studied  law.  He  was  admitted  to  practice  in  1835  at  Lenox, 
Berkshire  County,  Mass.  After  jaracticing  for  awhile  in  Great 
Barrington,  Mass.,  he  removed,  in  1858,  to  New  Tork,  where  he 
has  continued  the  practice  of  his  profession  with  great  success 
down  to  the  present  time. 

In  18G3  he  was  elected  Justice  of  the  Fourth  District  Court, 
Brooklyn,  for  the  term  of  four  years;  but  the  duties  of  a  large 
practice  compelled  him  to  resign. 

In  1871  he  was  nominated  by  the  Kepublicans  for  District 
Attorney  of  Kings  County,  but  was  declared  defeated  by  Mr. 
Winchester  Britton.  Four  years  later,  in  the  fall  of  1875,  he 
was  nominated  for  the  office  of  Surrogate  of  Kings  County  by 
the  Democrats,  but  his  ojjponent,  Mr.  Walter  L.  Livingston,  was 
declared  elected.  Mr.  Dailey  brought  an  action  to  oust  him,  an 
obtained  a  judgment  of  ouster  May  12th,  1877,  and  took  imme 
diate  possession  of  the  office,  holding  it  for  about  three  years 
On  appeal  to  the  General  Term,  this  judgment  was  rever.sed  ani 
a  new  trial  ordered.  The  judgment  granting  a  new  trial  gave 
Mr.  Livingston  the  office  while  it  was  pending.  This  brough 
the  contestants  to  a  mutual  agreement,  by  the  terms  of  which 
the  action  was  discontinued,  without  costs.  Mr.  Dailey  surren^ 
dered  all  claim  to  the  office.  He  is  an  advocate  of  brilliancy  and 
distinction,  controlling  a  large  and  highly  respectable  lega 
business. 


WILLIAM    C.   DE  WITT. 

Me.  De  Witt  occupies  a  very  prominent  position  as  a  lawyer; 
eminent  for  his  legal  learning,  for  his  endowments  as  an  advo- 
cate, and  for  his  accomplishments  as  a  writer.  His  taste  has 
been  formed  by  a  diligent  study  of  the  classics  and  by  perusing 
the  best  English  writers. 

It  is  now  understood  that  the  education  of  a  lawyer  demands 
something  more  than  a  mere  nominal  knowledge  of  law,  unac- 
companied by  any  other  knowledge;  that  the  cultivation  of  the 
sciences  and  an  enlarged  and  refined  literary  taste  produces  the 
same  efiect  upon  the  mental  structure  as  does  that  architecture 
which  at  once  strengthens  and  embellishes  an  edifice;  that 
administrative  abilities  and  dialectic  skill  may  meet  in  one 
mind. 

Mr.  De  Witt  belongs  to  that  large  class  of  lawyers  whose  lives 
and  practice  render  the  legal  really  a  learned  profession,  instead 
of  a  system  of  empiricism. 

In  the  midst  of  his  engrossing  legal  career  he  has  found 
time  to  indulge  his  literary  tastes,  and  by  submitting  to  laborious 
and  persevering  study,  he  has  not  only  enlarged  his  legal  learn- 
ing, but  has  enriched  his  mind  with  many  other  useful  acquire- 
ments; so  that  at  the  Bar,  on  the  platform,  as  a  political  or 
literary  speaker,  he  always  commands  the  most  respectful  atten- 
tion, leaving  in  the  minds  of  his  hearers  something  to  remember 
and  to  reflect  upon  long  after  his  address  is  ended. 


We  have  spoken  of  Mr.  De  Witt  as  a  writer;  perhaps  this  is 
unnecessary,  for  his  written  productions  speak  for  themselves, 
and  are  the  best  evidence  of  the  ability  with  which  he  wields 
the  pen,  and  because  he  has  no  aspirations  as  a  professional 
writer,  and  never  resorts  to  the  pen  except  in  those  interims  of 
legal  labor  which  sometimes  permit  him  to  do  so. 

In  1881  he  published  a  charming  little  volume,  containing 
some  of  his  speeches  and  writings,  which  he  modestly  but  ap- 
propriately entitles  "  Dnflwood  from  out  the  Current  of  a  Busy 
Life." 

There  is  much  in  this  work  which  blends  instruction  with 
delight:  the  style  is  succinct  and  animated;  there  is  a  glow  and 
force  in  all  he  says,  and  a  reach  of  thought  and  reflection  which 
renders  it  a  valuable  and  instructive  companion.  The  book 
opens  with  an  oration  delivered  by  him  in  the  Brooklyn  Insiilide,^ 
February  22d,  1874,  in  which  he  selected  "Madison  and  Burr" 
as  his  subject.  This  production  was  justly  and  highly  com- 
mended for  its  literary  beauty  and  for  its  philosophic  analysis 
of  the  character  of  the  two  great  men  whose  lives  and  careers  he 
considered.  If  we  should  venture  a  criticism  it  would  be,  that 
Mr.  De  Witt,  with  all  his  originality,  adopts  the  custom  of  all 
speakers  and  writers,  that  of  exalting  Hamilton  above  a  fault 
and  lowering  Burr  below  the  virtues  which  were  really  his  due. 
But  his  conception  of  the  character  and  career  of  Madison  has 
the  undoubted  merit  of  truth  to  history,  and  of  being  a  faithful 
mental  portrait  of  that  great  statesman. 

Speaking  of  Mr.  Madison  and  his  efforts  in  establishing  the 
Constitution,  Mr.  De  Witt  says:  "No  man  equaled  him  in  in- 
dustry and  attention  to  his  duties.  He  bore  his  part  in  every 
clause  of  the  Constitution,  and  so  minute  and  careful  were  his 
minutes  of  the  proceedings,  that,  after  his  death.  Congress  pur- 
chased his  records,  as  essential  to  history.  He  was  one  of  the 
master-builders  of  the  Constitution;  and  if  his  speeches  and 
reports  in  the  Convention  where  it  was  adopted  stood  alone,  he 
would  still  be  entitled  to  the  lasting  gratitude  of  his  country- 
men." 

In  contrasting  Burr  with  Madison,  he  says:  "The  contrast 
between  the  leading  features  of  these  two  characters,  that  of 
Burr  and  that  of  Madison,  is  too  bold  and  striking  to  require 
express  delineation.  Burr  took  his  inspirations  from  the  phan- 
toms of  chivalry;  Madison  drew  his  from  the  fountains  of  truth. 
Burr  followed  the  instincts  of  his  ambition  and  yielded  to  the 
seductions  of  his  passions;  Madison  never  betrayed  the  teach- 
ings of  his  conscience,  or  forsook  his  loyalty  to  his  soul.  Burr 
loved  the  arts  of  war;  Madison  cultivated  the  arts  of  peace. 
Burr  was  an  adroit  politician;  Madison  a  profound  statesman. 
Burr  practiced  law  by  the  exercise  of  his  wits;  Madison  studied 
it  from  a  love  of  science." 

Perhaps  one  of  the  most  attractive  departments  of  the  volume 
to  which  we  have  alluded,  is  Mr.  De  Witt's  address  on  John 
ILarard  Payne,  delivered  at  the  unveiling  of  the  bust  of  that 
illustrious  poet,  in  Prospect  Park,  Brooklyn,  September  27, 
1873. 

A  distinguished  jurist  of  Brooklyn  has  said,  that  -some  por- 
tions of  this  address  rival  anything  found  in  the  English 
language."  And  his  remarks  are  just;  no  man  is  more  capable 
of  weighing  in  the  balance  the  productions  of  genius  than 
■loseph  Neilson;  for  it  was  he  who  made  the  remark  we  have 
quoted. 

Speaking  of  Mr.  Pavne's  "  Home,  Sweet  Home,"  the  speaker 
said:  "It  is  remarkable  neither  for  elegance  of  diction  nor 
harmony  of  numbers.  But  it  has  crowded  into  a  few  lines 
every  thought  and  sentiment  and  scene  of  its  blessed  subject. 

"  '  The  lowly  thatched  cottage,'  the  '  singing  birds,'  the  'hal- 
lowing charms  from  above,'  and  the  ■  peace  of  mind  better  than 
all.'  It  is  full  of  the  fruit  and  essence  of  its  theme,  \etmusttliis 
poem  have  slept  the  sleep  of  the  forgotten  and  the  lost,  had  it  got 
no  better  succor  than  the  printer's  ink  and  the  inquinng  eye  of 
the  scholar.  It  wanted  the  tune  which  was  to  hum  it  wherever 
the   English  language  was  or  should  be  spoken.     Music  was 


BENCH  AND  BAR   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1245 


needeil,  and  music  came.  As  when  some  parent  bird  on  lofty 
j)inions  circling  above  his  eyrie,  seeing  his  young  prepared  to 
tly,  yet  fearful  of  the  elements,  descends,  and,  bearing  theiledg- 
ling  forth  to  mid  heaven,  puts  him  on  his  experimental  voyage 
through  the  air  ;  so  music  came  to  this  rich  germ  of  poetic  senti- 
ment, and,  up-bearing  it  upon  the  cloud  of  melody,  in  which  it 
has  ever  since  lived  and  moved  and  had  its  being,  sent  it  chant- 
ing and  singing  forever  and  forever  through  the  world." 

"  Robert  Bums  "  was  the  subject  of  an  address  by  Mr.  De  Witt, 
delivered  at  Eckfovd  Hall,  Brooklyn,  January  ilih,  1870.  The 
occasion  was  a  banquet  given  in  celebration  of  the  120th  anni- 
versary of  the  birth  of  Burns,  in  response  to  the  toast  "  The 
Genius  of  Burns.'  That  Mr.  De  Witt  has  a  lively  appreciation 
of  the  inner  life  of  this  great  poet  of  nature  in  seen  from  the 
whole  of  the  address  to  which  we  have  alluded.  The  following 
extract  from  it  will  always  find  a  ready  response  not  only  in  the 
hearts  of  his  own  countrymen,  but  in  the  hearts  of  the  thousands 
in  all  countries,  who  love  Robert  Burns  for  what  he  has  written. 

"Scotchmen  !  His  genius  is  your  living  voice  in  the  world. 
It  has  transformed  your  ancient  dialect  into  music;  it  has  given 
utterance  to  every  sentiment  of  your  heart;  it  has  painted  the 
peculiar  scenery  of  your  native  land.  Robert  Burns  comes  to 
you  not  from  out  castle  walls,  or  through  long  lines  of  lordly 
ancestry.  He  is  your  peasant  poet;  the  bright  consummate 
flower  of  the  democracy  of  Scotland ;  he  belongs  only  to  the 
aristocracy  of  individual  merits,  and  although  the  choicest 
marble  wrought  by  living  hands  surmounts  his  last  resting 
place,  his  only  throne  is  in  the  hearts  of  his  fellow-men.  His 
songs  are  sung  wherever  the  English  language  is  spoken. 
TJiey  are  sung  by  sailors  on  ships'  decks,  in  the  starlight,  on 
every  sea.  They  resound  with  the  violin  of  the  pioneer  in  tlie 
distant  woods  of  the  Redman,  as  they  mingle  with  the  nurse's 
lullaby  in  the  homes  of  the  forests  of  our  own  romantic  North." 

The  contents  of  his  book  are  divided  into  four  departments  : 
Literury,  Foreiisic,  Political  and  Otfidal,  in  which  are  found  most 
appropriate  and  ably  written  productions. 

William  C.  De  Witt  was  born  at  Paterson,  New  Jersey,  Janu- 
ary 25th,  1840.  He  was  educated  at  Fort  Plain  and  Claverack 
seminaries  ;  having  comjileted  his  classical  course,  he  took  up 
the  study  of  law  with  James  R.  Whiting,  and  finished  it  in  the 
office  of  that  illustrious  jurist,  Ambrose  L.  Jordan.  He  received 
his  license  to  practice  law  at  a  General  Term  of  the  Supreme 
Court  held  at  Poughkeepsie,  June,  18G1.  Very  soon  thereafter, 
he  opened  an  office  in  Brooklyn,  and  entered  on  a  professional 
career  which,  as  we  have  seen,  led  him  to  distinction,  while  be- 
fore him  lie  fresh  and  new  professional  honors. 

He  is  especially  accomplished  in  the  laws  of  corporations, 
though  it  is  not  altogether  a  specialty  with  him.  He  has  occasion- 
ally been  engaged  as  counsel  in  criminal  cases.  His  defense  of 
Gonzalez,  tried  for  the  murder  of  Ortero  at  Brooklyn,  in  January, 
1806,  is  remembered  as  a  masterly  forensic  effort.  A  long  list  of 
civil  cases  in  which  he  has  been  engaged  as  counsel  exhibit  at 
once  the  extent  of  his  professional  duties  and  his  ability  in  dis- 
charging them. 

Mr.  De  Witt  is,  and  always  has  been,  a  Democrat.  His  abili- 
ties have  been  so  widely  and  justly  acknowledged  by  the  leaders 
of  his  party,  that  with  their  assent  he  occupies  a  place  at  the 
head  of  his  party.  His  speeches,  delivered  in  various  State  Con- 
ventions and  other  political  gatherings,  show  how  capable  he  is 
of  appealing  successfully  to  the  masses,  as  well  as  to  the  more 
select  of  the  party. 

Mr.  De  Witt  was  Corporation  Counsel  for  Brooklyn  for  thirteen 
years— six  successive  terms.  This  is,  we  believe,  all  the  office  he 
has  ever  held.  The  administration  of  this  office  by  Mr.  De 
Witt  covers  a  long  and  interesting  period  in  the  legal  and 
municipal  history  of  Brooklyn.  The  number,  importance  and 
variety  of  the  cases  he  was  called  upon  to  try,  as  the  law  officer 
of  a  great  corporation,  and  the  manner  in  which  he  conducted 
these  trials,  conspicuously  exhibit  his  high  qualifications  as  a 
lawyer. 

Soon  after  the  retirement  of  Judge  Tracy  from  the  Bench  of 
the   Court    of  Appeals,    Mr.    De   Witt  formed  a  copartnership 


with  that  distinguished  jurist  and  one  of  his  sons,  under 
the  firm  name  of  Tracy  &  De  Witt.  It  is  needless,  perhaps,  to 
add  that  this  firm  occupies  a  commanding  position  in  the  legal 
profession. 

Mr.  De  Witt,  to  his  immediate  friends,  is  courteous  and  oblig- 
ing; an  entertaining  and  profitable  companion.  With  strangers 
and  casual  acquaintances  he  is  reticent,  distant  and  somewhat 
cold  in  his  bearing;  but  on  the  whole  wo  may  say,  without  fear 
of  contradiction,  that  ho  is  an  ornament  to  the  Brooklyn  Bar. 


ROGER   A.   PRYOR. 

Genekal  Phyok  has  been  a  resident  of  Kings  County  about 
twenty  years,  and  in  that  time  he  has  won  the  highest  dis- 
tinction at  the  Bar,  in  literary  and  political  circles.  His 
career  has  been  so  eminent,  and  so  highly  appreciated,  that 
he  has  been  the  subject  of  a  very  ably  written,  just  and  com- 
prehensive biographical  sketch,  from  which  we  are  permitted  to 
insert  the  following  extract: 

"Roger  A.  Pryor    was  born  in  Dinwiddie  County,  Virginia, 
July   19,    1828.     He  is  descended   from   the   ancient   family   of 
Bland,    famous   in   the   annals   of  Virginia.      Col.    Theodorick 
Bland   was  an  officer  in  the  army  of  the  Revolution,  a  member 
of  Congress,  and  of  the  Convention  that  framed  the  Constitution. 
He  was   the  friend  and  counselor  of  Gen.   Washington,  of  the 
Marquis  de  Lafayette,  Thomas  Jefferson,  and  other  distinguished 
men  in  the  early   history   of  our   country.     From   the   Elands 
spring  many  of  the  famous  men  of  Virginia— John  Randolph,  of 
Roanoke,  Henry  St.  George  Tucker,   Gen.  Robert  E.  Lee,  and 
others.    Young  Pryor  graduated  from  Hampden  Sidney  College, 
in  1845,  and  afterwards  from   the   University   of  Virginia.     He 
entered  upon  the  practice  of  law  at  Charlottesville,  Va.,  but  an 
affection  of  the  throat  obliged  him  to  abandon  it,  and  he  became 
a  journalist.     His  management  of  a   small   country   paper   at- 
tracted the  attention   of  the   editor   of   The    Washinrjton    Union, 
then  the   organ   of  the   Democratic   party   under   Gen.   Pierce. 
Mr.  Pryor  was  offered  an  editorial  position  on  The   Union,  which 
he  accepted  in  1854.     During  his  association  with  this  journal, 
he  wrote  an  article  on  the   relations  between   the   United   States 
and  Great  Britain  and  Russia,  as  affected  by  the  then  pending 
English   and  Russian  war.     The  tone  of  the  article  was  anti- 
English.     Appearing  in  the  journal  supposed  to  have  the  sanc- 
tion of  our  Government,  it  made  a  profound  impression,  especial- 
ly as  it  appeared  to  indicate  a  sympathy  with  Russia  on  the  part 
of  President  Pierce's  .Administration.    While  editor  of  The  Union, 
Mr.    Pryor   sustained  friendly  and  confidential    relations  with 
President  Pierce,  who  in  1855  appointed  him  on  a  special  mis- 
sion to  Greece,  to  adjust  certain  difficulties  with  that  country. 
He  was  absent  for  a  year  in  prosecution  of  this  work,  which  he 
1    conducted  with  very  great  success,  receiving  the  thanks   of  the 
Government  for  his  efforts.     Mr.  Pryor  returned  from  Europe  in 
j    1856.     The   country    was    then    passing    through    the    famous 
'  Know-Nothing'  anti-Catholic  political  excitement  which  pre- 
ceded our  Civil  War.    Henry  A.  Wise,  of  Virginia,  was  candidate 
!    for  Governor  in  opposition  to  the  '  Know-Nothing'  movement. 
Mr.  Pryor  purchased  a  share  in  77<«  Richmond  Enquirer,  the  lead- 
I    ing  newspaper  of  the  South,  and  took  an  active  and  prominent 
part  in  the  campaign,  opposing  the  mad  theories  of  the   'Know- 
Nothing'  Native  American  party.     The  triumph  of  Gen.  Wise, 
as  Governor,  was  the  conclusive  defeat  of  the  Native  American 
movement,  which  then  passed  out  of  the  politics  of  this  country, 
and  was  succeeded  by  the    anti -slavery    agitation,   that    im- 
mediately assumed  the  alarming  proportions  which  culminated 
in  civil  war.     Mr.  Pryor's  connection  with  this  campaign  gave 
him  a  national  reputation,  and  in  1857  he  was  elected  to  Congress 
from  the  district  formerly  represented  by    John  Randolph,  of 
Roanoke. 


1246 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


"Coming  into  Congnssional  lil'u  with  President  Buchanan's 
Administration,  Gen.  Pryor  took  an  active  jjart  in  affairs.  Until 
the  secession  of  tUo  Soutliern  States,  he  opposed,  in  the  discns- 
sions  of  the  time,  all  measures  tending  to  the  disruption  of  the 
I'nion,  resisting  the  unwise  counsels  of  extremists,  pleading 
against  violence  and  war.  In  the  last  speech  he  uttered  in  the 
House,  he  used  these  words,  which  may  be  quoted  as  an  illustra- 
tion of  his  political  opinions  at  a  time  when  the  animosities  pre- 
vailed: 'Imagine  the  complete  subjugation  of  the  South,  after 
every  spark  of  vitality  is  extinguished,  and  her  inanimate  form 
lies  prostrate  before  you;  tell  me  what  recomjjense  do  you  gain 
for  the  sacrifice,  what  consolation  for  your  fratricidal  deed? 
From  the  resjiect  due  the  memory  of  our  common  ancestry,  for 
the  sake  of  a  land  to  be  rent  by  the  cruel  lacerations  of  the 
sword,  and  in  reverence  of  the  virtues  of  a  benign  religion,  we 
deprecate  a  conflict  of  arms  !  By  the  persuasions  of  these  jjious 
and  pathetic  importunities,  we  would  soothe  in  every  breast  the 
spirit  of  strife,  and  invoke  the  jiacific  intervention  of  reason  for 
the  adjustment  of  our  disputes.'  But  the  disputes  between 
North  and  South  had  gone  beyond  the  'pacific  intervention  of 
reason;'  and  when  war  became  inevitable,  and  Mr.  Lincoln 
called  on  Virginia  for  her  quota  of  troops,  Mr.  Pryor  urged  her 
to  stand  in  front  of  her  Southern  brethren,  and  drew  his  own 
sword  gallantly  in  her  defense.  He  remained  in  Washington 
until  the  inauguration  of  Mr.  Lincoln,  having  been  re-elected  to 
his  seat  in  Congress,  and  to  the  last  enjoyed  the  frienaship  of 
some  of  the  purest  men  of  the  hostile  section — of  Mr.  Buchanan, 
Gen.  Lewis  Cass,  Jno.  P.  Kennedy,  Gen.  Winfield  Scott,  and 
others.  Like  every  true  Southerner,  he  ardently  took  sides  with 
his  State.  Ho  was  twice  elected  member  of  the  Confederate 
Congress,  was  made  colonel  of  a  regiment,  and  promoted  to  briga- 
dier-general, after  the  battle  of  Williamsburg.  He  served  in  the 
memorable  battles  around  Richmond,  and  in  the  battle  of  Sharjis- 
burg.  In  consequence  of  a  misunderstanding  with  Jefferson 
Davis,  Gen.  Piyor  resigned  his  commission  and  volunteered  as 
a  private  soldier.  For  two  years  he  served  in  the  ranks,  and 
fought  in  the  battles  around  Petersburg,  until  he  was  captured 
and  imprisoned  in  Fort  Lafayette.  A  few  weeks  before  the  end 
of  the  war  he  was  released  from  his  imprisonment  by  order  of 
President  Lincoln,  and  remained  in  Petersburg  on  parole,  until 
the  surrender  of  Gen.  Lee.  The  war  at  an  end,  the  South  subju- 
gated, the  old  political  system  destroyed,  Gen.  Pryor  came  to 
New  York." 

We  here  close  our  quotation  from  the  very  able  production 
touching  the  character  and  career  of  Gen.  Pryor  to  which  we  have 
alluded. 

Gen.  Pryor  had  always  been  a  close  student,  and  at  the  Uni- 
versify  of  A^irginia  studied  law  one  year,  but,  as  he  gave  his 
attention  to  other  matters,  he  never  practiced  but  a  short  time,  as 
we  have  seen. 

He  removed  to  New  York  with  the  intention  of  making  the 
legal  profession  his  future  avocation  in  life;  but  as  he  had  so 
long  neglected  it,  he  was  obliged  to  commence  his  studies  anew 
after  becoming  a  resident  of  New  York,  although  he  was  at  that 
time  35  years  of  age,  without  fortune,  with  a  large  family,  and 
in  a  strange  community.  He  began  his  studies  with  deter- 
mination, supporting  himself  and  family  by  writing  for  the 
press.  In  due  time  he  was  admitted  to  the  Bar  of  the  State  of 
New  York,  after  creditably  undergoing  an  examination.  He 
immediately  opened  an  office  in  the  city  of  New  York,  and  en- 
tered at  once  upon  a  large  and  lucrative  practice.  Heavy  and  re- 
sponsible retainers  followed  each  other  in  quick  succe.ssion,  and 
in  a  very  short  period  of  time  he  was  regarded  as  a  leading 
lawyer.  Among  the  important  cases  in  which  he  appeared 
as  counsel  was  that  of  the  Beecher  trial  ;  the  Elevated  Rail- 
road case  ;  the  case  of  Kennedy  v.  Kennedy  ;  Kelly  v.  The 
Common  Council  of  Brooklyn  ;  Ullman  v.  Megar ;  he  was 
counsel  for  Gov.  Sprague  of  Rhode  Island  in  his  divorce  suit, 
and   of  counsel   with   Gen.    Butler   in   all  the  Sprague  estate 


litigation;  as  counsel  with  Gov.  Butler  in  the  United  States 
Circuit  Court  in  the  suit  to  recover  the  3'cw  Yurk  and  New 
England  Bailroad  for  its  original  stockholders  ;  defended  Gov. 
Ames  on  his  impeachment  by  the  Legislature  of  Mississippi. 
He  was  the  first  to  attack  the  elevated  railroads  in  Patten  v. 
E.  R.  Company.  He  got  a  decision  in  Ullman  v.  Megar,  that  a 
promise  to  marry  is  within  the  Statute  of  Frauds  as  to  agree- 
ments not  to  be  performed  within  the  year.  In  Kennedy  i'. 
Kennedy,  which  was  a  suit  by  the  wife  for  a  limited  divorce  for 
cruel  and  inhuman  treatment,  he  obtained  an  adjudication  that 
the  malicious  and  groundless  imputation  of  adultery  to  a  wife 
is  cruel  and  inhuman  treatment.  In  Kelly  v.  Common  Council 
of  Brooklyn,  the  Court  of  Appeals  sustained  his  point  that  mem- 
bers of  Congress  are  officers. 

When  the  controversy  between  Mr.  Tilton  and  Mr.  Beecher 
assumed  a  legal  aspect,  Mr.  Pryor  was  retained  by  Mr.  Tilton. 
Although  prevented  by  circumstances  from  attending  the  whole 
of  the  trial,  he  took  a  prominent  part  in  the  case.  He  made 
the  argument  before  the  General  Term  of  the  City  Court,  and 
before  the  Court  of  Appeals,  resisting  the  granting  to  the  de- 
fendant of  a  bill  of  particulars,  as  well  as  the  argument 
before  Judge  Neilson  in  favor  of  the  competency  of  Mr.  Tilton  as 
a  witness.  Upon  these  two  questions  the  case  of  Mr.  Tilton  de- 
pended largely.  In  both  these  contests  Gen.  Pryor  was  opposed 
by  Mr.  Evarts,  and  his  arguments  gave  him  great  celebrity  as  a 
profound  and  accomplished  lawyer.  It  is  understood  that  his 
duty  in  the  case  was,  in  a  large  degree,  the  preparation  of  law 
points,  the  study  of  authorities,  and  general  consultation. 

Mr.  Beach,  in  his  splendid  argument  to  the  jury  in  this  case, 
referred  to  his  associate,  Mr.  Pryor,  as  follows  ;  "  It  has  been  a 
regret  and  a  loss  that  unavoidable  circumstances  have  withdrawn 
my  learned  and  accomplished  friend,  Mr.  Pryor,  so  much  from 
our  side.  If  he  has  not  struck  so  many  blows  in  the  field,  he 
has,  nevertheless,  been  the  wisdom  of  our  cabinets.  Deeply  are 
we  all  indebted,  and  especially  myself,  to  his  ready  and  large 
learning  and  judicious  counsel." 

Gen.  Pryor  at  once  entered  into  politics,  and  became  a  re- 
cognized leader  of  the  Democratic  party,  eloquently  sustaining 
it  with  his  pen  and  on  the  platform. 

Fewer  rank  higher  as  a  public  speaker  than  Gen.  Pryor.  He 
was  a  delegate  to  the  Democratic  National  Convention  to  St. 
Louis,  and  has  often  been  a  delegate  to  State  Conventions. 

In  1877,  he  delivered  an  address  at  Hampden  Sidney  College, 
Virginia,  on  the  "Relation  of  Science  to  Religion,''  and  on  Deco- 
ration Day,  in  May,  1877,  he  delivered  an  address  before  the 
Grand  Army  of  the  Republic  in  Brooklyn.  Both  of  these  pro- 
ductions were  published,  and  were  justly  commended  for  their 
scholarly  finish,  logical  force,  and  the  eloquent  and  im])ressive 
manner  in  which  they  were  delivered.  The  latter  address,  deliv- 
ered on  Decoration  Day,  at  Brooklyn,  has  especial  claims  for 
public  commendation.  The  speaker  had  been  a  Confederate 
soldier,  an  officer  of  high  grade,  distinguished  for  his  intrepidity 
and  zeal  for  the  Confederate  cause,  and  he  was  now  speaking 
over  the  dead  soldiers  of  the  Federal  army.  Such  were  his  large 
and  statesmanlike  views  of  what  the  status  of  the  North  and 
South  really  should  be,  that  his  speech  has  gone  very  far 
towards  healing  the  dissensions  between  the  two  sections  of  the 
country. 

"Be  assured,"  he  said,  "Southern  statesmanship  is  not  so 
blinded  in  its  proverbial  sagacity  as  not  to  see  that  henceforth 
the  strength  and  security  of  the  South  are  to  be  found  only  under 
the  shield  of  the  Union.  Against  the  perils  of  foreign  invasions 
it  gains  in  the  Union  the  bulwark  of  a  mighty  prestige  and  an 
invincible  army;  as  a  guarantee  of  peace  between  its  discordant 
peoples,  the  ever  imminent  intervention  of  the  Federal  arm  will 
operate  to  deter  the  unruly  and  to  tranquilize  the  timid." 

Speaking  of  the  Confederate  soldier's  emotions  in  regard  to  the 
"Lost  Cause,"  Gen.  Pryor  says  :  '  I  do  not  pretend— it  is  not 
essential  to  my  argument  to  pretend— that  the  Southern  soldier 


BUNCH  AND  BAR   OF  BBOOELTN. 


124? 


contemplated  the  fall  of  the  Confederacy  with  indifference. 
Born  of  an  enthusiasm  for  liberty,  erratic,  if  you  please,  hut  not 
the  less  genuine  and  exalted  ;  endeared  by  the  memory  of  so 
many  sacrifices  and  so  many  sorrows  heroically  borne  in  its  be- 
half ;  gilded  by  so  much  glory  and  hallowed  by  the  blood  of  the 
brave  and  the  tears  of  the  fair,  its  disastrous  overthrow  smote 
upon  the  heart  of  the  Southern  soldier  with  an  anguish  he  may 
not  utter,  but  which  he  disdains  to  dissemble.  Nor  will  you,  its 
exultant  but  not  ungenerous  foe,  grudge  him  who  followed  its 
flag  through  the  few  years  of  its  battle-crowned  career,  this 
mournful  recollection  of  its  tragic  story." 

It  is  hardly  possible  to  conceive  of  sentiments  more  true — 
more  beaiitifully,  more  conscientiously  expressed — than  these. 

Speaking  of  the  fall  of  slavery,  he  says  :  "Impartial  history 
will  record  that  slavery  fell  not  by  any  effort  of  man's  will,  but 
by  the  immediate  intervention  and  act  of  the  Almighty  Him- 
self; and,  in  the  anthem  of  praise  ascending  to  Heaven  for  the 
emancipation  of  four  million  human  beings,  the  voice  of  the 
Confederate  soldier  mingles  its  note  of  devout  gratulatiou." 

This  address  is  among  the  many  happy  productions  of  Gen. 
Pryor  prepared  for  the  rostrum  ;  his  addresses  to  juries  are 
equally  attractive,  and  effective.  When  called  upon  to  address 
the  court  in  banc,  and  to  deal  with  the  cold  logic  of  the  law,  he 
is  alwaj's  listened  to  with  profound  respect  by  the  judges.  As  a 
distinguished  jurist  remarks:  "Mr.  Pryor's  arguments,  if  they 
do  not  always  convince,  always  enlighten  the  mind  and  con- 
science of  the  court."  His  contributions  to  the  literature  of 
the  day  have  largely  enriched  it,  and  we  may  well  say  of  him 
that  now,  in  the  midst  of  a  large  and  increasing  practice,  with 
an  iron  energy,  with  all  the  in.stincts  and  ambition  of  the 
student  and  the  scholar,  he  has  still  a  brilliant  future  before 
him. 


JOHN  A.   TAYLOR. 

John  A.  Tatlor,  a  prominent  lawyer  of  Brooklyn,  was  born 
at  Providence,  R.  I,  in  the  year  1844.  His  father  was  a  highly 
respected  clergyman  of  the  Qinsiian  denomination. 

When  very  young,  Mr.  Taylor  removed  with  his  father's  family 
to  Westerly,  E.  I.  He  early  exhibited  acute  and  ready  intel- 
lectual powers,  and  when  old  enough  he  entered  the  high  school 
at  Westerly,  where  his  advancement  in  his  studies  was  rapid, 
practical  and  thorough.  At  this  institution  he  was  prepared  to 
enter  college,  but  as  his  father's  means  were  inadequate  to  meet 
the  expenses  of  a  collegiate  course,  he  abandoned  his  intention 
of  entering  college,  although  he  did  not  relinquish  his  studies, 
and  his  books  continued  to  be  his  companions.  It  was  his  early 
and  ardent  desire  to  become  a  lawyer.  This  desire  settled  into 
a  determination  which,  though  thwarted  by  circumstances  for  a 
time,  terminated  in  the  realiz.ation  of  his  wishes.  At  the  age  of 
sixteen  ho  received  an  offer  so  advantageous  to  enter  the  oflice 
of  the  Christian  Messeni/er,  with  a  view  of  learning  the  art  and 
mystery  of  a  practical  printer,  that  he  accepted  it,  relinquishing, 
as  he  then  thought,  his  intention  of  entering  the  legal  profession. 
He  continued  his  education  in  that  school  of  practical  knowl- 
edge and  vigorous  intellectual  development— the  printing  office 
— where  so  many  great  men  of  the  nation  prepare  to  enter  places 
of  high  responsibility  and  honor.  His  good  sense,  his  industry 
and  attainments  were  very  soon  recognized  by  the  editor  of  the 
Messenger,  who  committed  to  him  the  literary  department  of  the 
paper.  But  for  the  partial  failure  of  his  health,  Mr.  Taylor 
would,  in  all  probability,  have  been  as  successful  and  useful  a 
member  of  the  journalistic  profession  as  he  now  is  of  the  legal. 

He  continued  these  duties  until  admonished  that  they  would 
be  fatal  to  him,  when  he  resigned  them  and  adopted  a  profession 
which  gave  him  more  exercise  in  the  open  air.  To  his  experi- 
ence as  a  journalist,  Mr.  Taylor  is  largely  indebted  for  the  fa- 
cility with  which  he  uses  language,  both  as  a  wiiter  and  speaker. 
Certainly  his  written  productions  have  that  practical  ease,  that 


unaffected  energy  and  grasp  of  thought,  which  is  the  outcome  of 
constant  practice  as  a  writer,  the  every-day  use  of  his  thoughtc 
and  pen  as  a  composer. 

By  judicious  medical  treatment  and  constant  exercise  in  tho 
open  air,  he  regained  his  health  sufllciently  to  become  the  in- 
structor of  a  class  in  geometry  in  the  Westerly  high  school. 
He  successful'y  pursued  this  occupation  for  some  time,  during 
which  the  paramount  wish  of  his  life— a  desire  to  become  a 
lawyer — returned,  and  he  finally  entered  upon  his  legal  studies 
with  Congressman  Dixon,  an  able  and  experienced  lawyer. 
He  never  relinquished  the  s-tudy  of  his  profession  until  called 
to  the  Bar,  although  he  divided  his  time  somewhat  between 
his  studies  and  the  duties  of  teaching,  always  an  exceedingly 
pleasing  occupation  to  him. 

In  18C4  he  removed  to  New  York,  and  there  continued  his 
legal  studies.  Here  he  found  for  a  portion  of  his  time,  mornings 
and  evenings,  profitable  and  congenial  occupation  in  a  printing 
office,  and  in  that  way  defraying  his  expenses  while  preparing 
for  the  Bar.  At  length  his  student  days  ended,  and  in  18G5  he 
passed  a  successful  examination,  and  was  admitted  to  practice. 
He  immediately  opened  an  office  in  the  metropolis.  He  set  out 
on  his  professional  career  in  the  midst  of  the  vast  competition 
around  him  with  energy  and  activity,  determined  on  success, 
which  came  sufficiently  for  his  encouragement  for  the  present 
and  the  future.  While  thus  practicing  he  became  a  resident  of 
the  city  of  Brooklyn.  In  1870  he  was  united  by  marriage  to 
Miss  Dean,  daughter  of  John  Dean.  Esq.,  ex-Corporation  Counsel 
for  the  city  of  Williamsburgh.  Mr.  Taylor  was  soon  identified 
with  the  interests  and  growth  of  Brooklyn.  Politics  had  attrac- 
tions for  him,  as  it  has  with  most  young  men,  and  he  united  his 
fortunes  with  the  Republican  party. 

In  1871  he  was  elected  Alderman  of  the  Thirteenth  Ward  of 
Brooklyn  for  the  term  of  two  years.  In  1879  he  was  appointed  a 
member  of  the  Bo.ard  of  Elections,  and  when,  in  1880,  that  Bo.ard 
was  reorganized  and  made  a  strictly  non-partisan  body,  Mr. 
Taylor  was  elected  its  president.  During  all  this  time  his  pro- 
fessional business  was  increasing,  and  he  was  regarded  as  a  very 
successful  and  prosperous  member  of  the  junior  Bar;  in  fact, 
he  had  attained  a  reputation  as  a  lawyer  which  attracted  the  at- 
tention of  the  most  distinguished  and  leading  citizens  of  Brook- 
lyn, among  whom  was  Hon.  Seth  Low.  We  may  say  without 
affectation,  when  that  favorite  citizen  of  Brooklyn  was  by  such 
a  decisive  voice  of  the  people  elected  Mayor  of  the  city,  on  as- 
suming the  duties  of  his  office,  he  appointed  Mr.  Taylor  Corpor- 
ation Counselor,  the  duties  of  which  office  for  many  years  had 
been  discharged  with  singular  abilitj'  by  William  C.  De  Witt, 
Esq. 

Mr.  Taylor  brought  to  his  office  those  professional  .abilities 
and  that  practical  legal  learning  which  eminently  qualified  him 
to  discharge  the  responsible  and  difficult  duties  of  his  office. 
As  the  law  officer  of  the  city  of  Brooklyn,  he  h.as  been  brought 
very  prominently  before  its  citizens,  before  the  courts  of  the 
city  and  county  and  the  State  courts,  and  as  a  legal  adviser;  and 
as  the  conductor  of  the  city  litigation,  he  has  gained  the  respect 
and  confidence  of  the  courts  and  the  public.  A  historj'  of  much 
of  the  city  litigation  conducted  by  Mr.  Taylor  as  Corporation 
Counsel  appears  in  another  part  of  this  work. 

Mr.  Taylor's  practice  has  been  of  a  general  character;  he  has 
no  specialty.  Two  criminal  defenses  conducted  by  him  brought 
him  prominently  and  favorably  before  the  people.  We  allude 
to  the  Burroughs  ease  and  the  Fuchs  case.  Both  were  cases 
which  attracted  universal  interest;  both  of  the  defendants  were 
indicted  and  brought  to  trial  for  murder  — one  of  them,  Fuchs, 
fi  r  a  homicide  of  startling  atrocity.  In  both  cases  Mr.  Taylor 
interposed  the  plea  of  insanity.  *  In  the  Burroughs  case,  Mr. 
Taylor  was  associated  with  that  eminent  member  of  the  Kings 
County  Bar,  Hon.  Abram  H.  Dailey.  The  prosecution  was  con- 
ducted by  Mr.  Winchester  Britton,  then  District  Attorney.  The 
*  See  "  luiportaut  Trials." 


1248 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


prosecution  having  rested,  Mr.  Taylor  addressed  the  jury  in  a 
speech,  which  has  since  made  part  of  a  volume  entitled  "  £coh- 
erntive  Insanity."  The  singular  incident  of  this  case  is,  that  after 
one  day  spent  in  the  defense  of  Burroughs,  the  District  Attor- 
ney becoming  satisfied  of  the  great  merit  of  the  defense,  with  a 
candor  that  was  highly  commended,  requested  the  Court  to  find 
a  verdict  in  favor  of  the  accused,  on  tlie  ground  of  insanity;  to 
which  Mr.  Justice  Pratt,  who  presided  at  the  lime,  acceded,  and 
Burroughs  was  sent  to  the  State  Lunatic  Asylum  at  Utica. 

The  case  of  Fuchs  brought  on  a  protracted  legal  contest,  full 
of  interest.  As  we  have  said,  Mr.  Taylor  interposed  the  plea  of 
insanity  for  his  client;  though  it  was  strong,  and  we  may  well 
say  powerful,  Fuchs  was  convicted  of  murder  in  the  first  degree, 
and  he  was  sentenced  to  be  hanged;  but  the  Governor  commuted 
the  sentence  to  imprisonment  for  life  at  Sing  Sing. 

Fuchs,  after  a  comparatively  short  imprisonment,  died  in 
prison.  An  autopsy  announced  the  fact  that  his  brain  was,  and 
must  have  been  for  some  time  previous  to  the  homicide,  dis- 
eased to  an  extent  producing  insanity.  Few  criminal  trials  are 
more  important,  interesting  and  instructive  than  those  of  Bur- 
roughs and  Fuchs.  We  have  only  briefly  alluded  to  them  here, 
as  they  are  fully  reported  in  another  part  of  this  chapter. 

On  the  second  election  of  Mr.  Low  as  Mayor,  in  the  fall  of 
1883,  in  recognition  of  the  able  and  faithful  manner  in  which 
Mr.  Taylor  had  discharged  the  duties  of  Corporation  Counsel  for 
two  years,  he  reajjpointed  him  to  that  office,  the  duties  of  which 
he  is,  at  the  time  of  this  writing,  discharging. 

Such  is  the  life  and  career  of  Mr.  Taylor — a  career  which  com- 
pares favorably  with  that  of  any  of  the  members  of  the  profession 
of  his  age.  As  it  may  be  said  that  he  has  hardly  entered  middle 
age,  the  prospect  of  a  very  successful  and  brilliant  future  is 
before  him.  Mr.  Taylor  possesses  many  of  those  social  elements 
of  character  that  so  admirably  set  off  the  life  of  a  lawyer. 


JOHN    H.   BERGEN. 

John  H.  Bergen  is  a  lawyer  of  highly  respectable  standing, 
socially  and  professionally.  With  his  professional  accomplish- 
ments he  unites  the  advantages  of  a  finished  education,  large 
and  liberal  reading.  He  has  distinguished  himself  as  a  success- 
ful contestant  at  the  Bar.  The  history  of  the  important  cases 
he  has  tried  at  nisi  prius,  the  arguments  he  has  conducted  before 
the  court,  are  interesting  and  instructive. 

He  is  a  native  of  Western  New  York,  born  at  Batavia,  October 
27th,  1838.  After  receiving  a  rudimentary  education,  he  was 
placed  under  the  tuition  of  a  private  tutor,  Mr.  John  Fowler, 
then  a  resident  of  Batavia,  now  one  of  the  professors  in  Hobert 
College.  Under  this  able  scholar  and  successful  instructor. 
Young  Bergen  made  rapid  progress  in  the  study  of  the  classics. 
He  remained  a  pupil  of  Mr.  Fowler  until  he  became  a  finished 
scholar.  He  commenced  the  study  of  law  at  an  earlj'  age,  having 
decided  to  adopt  the  legal  profession  as  his  calling  in  life. 

Mr.  Bergen  was  fortunate  in  choosing  his  legal  preceptors. 
He  first  became  a  student  in  the  office  of  Harry  Wilbur,  a  jjrom- 
inent  member  of  the  Genesee  County  Bar,  highly  respected  in  and 
out  of  his  profession. 

After  some  time  he  entered  the  office  of  the  late  Hon.  Moses 
Taggart,  of  Batavia,  an  eminent  member  of  the  Western  New 
York  Bar,  for  many  years  First  Judge  of  the  Court  of  Common 
Pleas  of  Genesee  County,  and  subsequently  one  of  the  Justices 
of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  State. 

Mr.  Bergen  was  a  student  in  the  State  and  National  Law 
School  at  Poughkeepsie,  during  one  term.  At  a  General  Term 
of  the  Supreme  Court,  held  at  Buffalo,  in  May,  1860,  he  was 
admitted  to  the  Bar.  He  was  twenty-one  j'ears  of  age  the  day 
before  his  call  to  the  Bar. 

Immediately  thereafter  he  came  to  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  and 
entered  ujion  the  practice  of  his  profession,  a  mere  boy.     But 


his  thorough  legal  education,  courteous  bearing,  diligent  at- 
tention to  business,  and  native  endowments,  brought  their  re- 
ward. His  first  advent  into  business  was  in  the  office  of 
Ingraham,  Midihill  &  Reynolds.  The  next  year  he  became  a 
partner  of  the  late  General  PhOip  S.  Crooke,  under  the  firm 
name  of  Crooke  .t  Bergen.  This  relation  could  not  fail  to  be 
advantageous  to  both  parties;  the  learning,  industry  and  ac- 
complishments of  the  j'oung  lawyer,  united  to  the  acknowledged 
abilities,  large  experience  and  influence  of  General  Crooke,  gave 
the  firm  a  large  and  valuable  clientage. 

In  the  year  18G7,  when  Bergen  had  been  at  the  Bar  seven 
years,  the  firm  was  changed  by  adding  to  it  Calvin  E.  Pratt. 
This  was  styled  Crooke,  Bergen  it  Pratt.  The  legal  accomplish- 
ments of  Mr.  Pratt  added  largely  to  the  strength  of  the  firm. 
Nothing  strengthens  a  law  firm  like  diversity  of  talents  and 
characteristics.  Tlio  different  members  of  this  firm,  differing  in 
capacit}'  and  in  intellectual  structure,  gave  it  that  versatility  so 
necessary  to  success. 

So  thoroughly  were  the  talents  and  high  standing  of  Mr.  Pratt 
appreciated  that,  in  the  autumn  of  18.59,  he  was  nominated  and 
elected  a  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  State  for  the 
Second  Judicial  District.  This  brought  another  change  to  the 
firm.  This  was  effected  by  adding  to  it  N.  H.  Clement,  Esq.,  and 
thereafter  the  firm  was  known  as  Cooke,  Bergen  &  Clement. 
This  relation  continued  until  1873,  when  another  of  its  members 
was  summoned  to  a  high  official  position  by  the  people.  In  the 
autumn  of  that  year,  the  senior  member,  General  Crooke,  was 
elected  a  representative  in  Congress,  and  the  firm  was  dissolved. 

Since  that  event,  Mr.  Bergen  has  continued  his  practice 
alone.  He  had  been  in  practice  thirteen  years  when  he  entered 
upon  this  sphere  of  his  jarofessional  life.  The  experience  which 
those  years  of  ardent  practice  gave  him  were  valuable  acquisi- 
tions, combining  into  a  capital  of  great  value,  which  has  had  a 
healthy  and  continuous  growth  down  to  the  present  time. 

The  structure  of  Mr.  Bergen's  mind  peculiarly  qualifies  him 
for  the  contests  of  the  forum.  In  its  devious,  exciting  contests, 
resulting  at  times  in  exultation  and  at  times  in  depression, 
Mr.  Bergen  has  been  and  is  a  distinguished  and  successful  con- 
testant. With  his  legal  acquirements,  he  has  made  himself 
very  familiar  with  corporation  law,  especially  that  branch  of  it 
which  relates  to  railroads,  and  which  opens  an  immense  field  of 
litigation,  where  legal  subtleties,  deep  and  intricate  questions, 
often  outside  of  precedent,  confront  the  practitioner. 

To  this  large  and  difficult  field  of  practice  Mr.  Bergen  brought 
rare  and  peculiarly  appropriate  qualifications,  which,  as  we  have 
already  said,  distinguished  him. 

One  of  the  contests  in  which  he  was  engaged  extended  through 
the  long  period  of  seven  years.  So  obstinately  was  this  case  con- 
tested that  it  went  on  appeal  three  times  to  the  Court  of  Appeals. 
This  case  involved  the  right  of  way  over  Grove  avenue  of  The 
Fark  and  Coney  Island  Railroad  Comjxmy.  Mr.  Bergen  has 
been  the  counsel  for  that  corjjoration  ever  since  its  organization. 
He  conducted  this  great  case  for  the  comimny  single-handed, 
and  against  some  of  the  ablest  lawyers  in  the  State.  An  exami- 
nation of  the  reported  case  in  all  its  different  phases  shows  con- 
clusively that  it  has  settled  more  important  questions  of  rail- 
road law  than  all  the  other  railroad  litigation   in  the  State. 

Mr.  Bergen  was  one  of  the  counsel  in  the  case  of  Ilarrold  agst. 
The  Keic  York  Elevated  Railroad  Company,  which  is  still  un- 
settled. Time  and  space  will  not  permit  us  to  give  in  detail  all 
the  important  cases  which  Mr.  Bergen  has  conducted.  Indeed, 
there  is  no  necessity  of  referring  at  anj-  length  to  those  cases, 
since  the  cases,  as  reported  in  the  records  of  the  various  courts  in 
which  he  has  appeared,  give  a  far  better  and  far  more  practical 
description  of  them  than  we  could  possibly  present  to  the 
reader. 

Mr.  Bergen  is  a  cogent,  polished  speaker,  a  master  of  pointed 
and  vigorous  logic.    He  is  one  of  those  lawyers  whose  versatility 


BENCH  AND  BAR   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1249 


renders  them  strong  and  effective  before  the  jury,  and  success- 
ful in  conducting  arguments  of  a  purely  legal  nature. 

His  father  was  Hon.  John  T.  Bergen,  who  was  appointed 
Sheriff  of  Kings  County  in  February,  1821,  again  in  November, 
1822,  and  in  November,  1828.  He  represented  the  22d  Congres- 
sional District  —that  com^iosed  of  Kings,  Queens,  Putnam, 
Orange  and  Westchester  Counties— from  1831  to  1833.  This  was 
in  the  stormy  days  of  Jackson's  memorable  Administration,  of 
which  Mr.  Bergen  was  one  of  the  pillars.  He  enjoyed  the  con- 
fidence and  esteem  of  "  Old  Hickory"  in  a  very  large  degree. 

The  mother  of  the  able  lawyer  under  consideration  was 
Maria  F.  McLeod,  a  lady  of  Scotch  descent,  the  daughter  of 
Major  Donald  McLeod,  who  was  a  Major  in  Tarleton's  Legion 
of  the  British  Army;  during  the  revolutionary  war  he  was 
captured  at  York  Town  with  the  whole  of  Coruwallis'  army. 

As  Mr.  Bergen  is  in  the  prime  of  manhood,  ardent,  active  ; 
with  a  knowledge  of  the  springs  of  human  nature,  and  abilities 
rendered  effective  and  practical  by  much  experience  at  the 
Bar,  a  bright  and  a  still  more  promising  professional  career  is 
before  him. 

RODMAN    B.   DAWSON. 

RoDMAS  B.  Dawsok  was  born  in  New  York  City,  February  14th, 
1825.     His  parents  were  John  L  and  Rachel  (Bowne)  Dawson. 

He  was  educated  at  the  Mechanics'  Society  School,  New  York 
City.  He  studied  his  profession  with  Morse  and  Rolf,  of  Brook- 
lyn. He  underwent  his  examination  for  the  legal  profession  at 
Brooklyn,  July,  1848.  Having  passed  his  examination,  he  was 
called  to  the  Bar,  and  entered  upon  his  practice  at  Brooklyn, 
where  he  continues  a  successful  business.  In  the  autumn  of 
1854  he  was  elected  Surrogate  of  Kings  Connty,  and  entered 
upon  the  duties  of  his  office  January  1st,  1855,  serving  with  ac- 
knowledged ability  until  December  31st,  1858,  wlien  his  term  of 
office  expired.  Since  then  he  has  continued  his  practice  unin- 
terrupted by  politics  or  office. 

Mr.  Dawson  is  not  only  a  respectable  lawyer,  but  a  citizen  of 
high  repute;  one  who  has  taken  an  active  part  in  the  affairs  of 
Brooklyn. 

GEORGE    H.  FISHER. 

Geokge  H.  Fisher  is  an  active,  energetic  and  successful  lawyer 
of  the  Brooklyn  Bar.  He  was  born  at  Oswego,  May  2d,  1832. 
His  father  was  George  Fisher,  a  native  of  Massachusetts.  His 
mother  was  Elizabeth  P.  Huntington,  of  Connecticut. 

Mr.  Fisher  is  a  graduate  of  Harvard  University.  He  studied 
his  profession  with  John  Sessions,  Esq.,  of  Syracuse;  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  Bar  in  January,  1854.  He  came  to  Brooklyn, 
opened  an  office,  and  soon  attained  a  very  reputable  position  at 
the  Bar,  which  he  has  always  maintained,  as  the  acknowledged 
reward  of  his  learning  and  ability  as  a  lawyer,  and  his  high 
standing  as  a  citizen. 

W.  W.  GOODRICH. 

W.  W.  Goodrich,  known  and  distinguished  as  an  admiralty 
and  commercial  lawyer,  was  born  August  3d,  1833.  He  was  ed- 
ucated at  Amherst  College,  where  he  was  graduated. 

He  studied  his  profession  at  the  Albany  Law  School,  and  in 
the  office  of  that  celebrated  law  firm  of  Albany,  Hill,  ('agger  &, 
Porter,  and  was  admitted  at  a  General  Term  of  the  Supreme 
Court,  held  at  Albany,  September  15th,  1854. 


ments  and  suavity  of  manners,  and  his  close  attention  to  business, 
have  given  him  a  very  excellent  start  in  his  profession,  and  it 
is  no  affectation  to  say  that  a  bright  and  prosperous  professional 
career  is  before  him,  and  that  whoever  turns  these  pages  in  fu- 
ture years  will  see  the  truth  of  these  remarks  fully  demonstrated. 

He  was  born  in  New  York  City,  June  19th,  1858.  He  removed 
with  his  parents  to  Brooklyn  in  18(53.  When  old  enough,  ho 
attended  the  public  schools,  in  which  he  continued  a  student 
from  18C4  to  1871.  During  these  years  he  devoted  much  time 
to  the  study  of  the  German  language,  in  which  he  became  a 
proficient. 

On  leaving  school,  he  became  a  student  in  the  law  office  of  C. 
L.  Burnett,  Esq.,  with  whom  he  completed  his  legal  education. 
He  was  admitted  to  the  Bar  in  1879,  and  with  commendable  de- 
termination to  succeed,  entered  upon  the  practice  of  his  profes- 
sion in  Brooklyn. 


ISAAC   LUBLIN. 

Among  the  junior  members  of  the  Brooklyn  Bar,  few  are 
more  promising  or  have  a  better  record  than  Mr.  Lublin. 
Although  he  has  been  in  practice  but  a  very  few  years,  his 
intelligence,  his  good    education,    his  superior    legal   acquire- 


HENRY   A.  MEYENBORG. 

Henet  a.  Meyenborg  was  born  at  Wremen  (Hanover),  Ger- 
many, August  8th,  1838.  He  received  a  liberal  education  in 
Germany,  and  when  completed  he  came  to  tlie  United  States, 
making  his  home  in  Brooklyn.  In  accordance  with  a  decision 
to  become  a  lawyer,  made  while  pursuing  his  classical  studies 
in  Germany,  he  entered  the  law  office  of  N.  P.  Waring,  a 
counselor-at-law  of  Brooklyn,  as  a  legal  student. 

At  a  General  Term  of  the  Supreme  Court,  held  at  Poughkeep- 
sie,  in  May,  18GG,  he  received  the  credentials  as  an  attorney  and 
counselor-at-law.  He  immediately  ojiened  an  office  in  Brooklyn, 
where  he  soon  controlled  a  highly  respectable  general  law  busi- 
ness. Reliability,  industry,  and  adaptation  to  his  profession 
brought  their  sure  rewards,  placing  Mr.  Meyenborg  in  an  ex- 
ceedingly respectable  position,  not  only  as  a  lawj'er,  but  as  a 
citizen.  He  has  never  had  any  desire  for  office,  and  has  never 
held  any  official  position,  although  he  has  held  offices  of  high 
military  grade,  and  is  said  to  be  an  admirable  tactician. 


SAMUEL   M.   MEEKER. 

Samuel  M.  Meeker  occujiies  a  highly  reinitable  position  at  the 
Kings  County  Bar,  and  is  a  valued  citizen  of  Brooklyn;  active  in 
promoting  its  growth  and  j^rosperity,  and  in  founding  several  of 
its  fiscal  institutions. 

He  was  born  at  New  Brunswick,  N.  J.,  August  26th,  1820.  His 
parents  were  David  and  Elizabetli  Meeker. 

He  was  educated  at  the  Mechanics'  School  in  Crosby  street, 
in  the  city  of  New  York,  in  which  institution  he  was  known  as 
an  ardent,  ambitious  and  successful  student. 

Deciding  upon  the  legal  profession  for  his  future  calling,  he 
entered  the  law  office  of  Samuel  Campbell,  Esq.,  of  the  city  of 
New  York.  Having  completed  his  legal  education,  he  took  his 
degree  as  an  attorney-at-law  in  the  year  1841,  in  that  city. 

As  the  laws  of  real  property,  and  the  duties  of  executors  and 
administrators,  seemed  singularly  adapted  to  his  mind,  he  has 
given  those  branches  of  jurisprudence  particular  attention;  with 
Mr.  Meeker  real  property  law  is  a  specialty.  He  began  his  prac- 
tice in  the  city  of  New  York,  but  in  1847  he  removed  to  the  village 
of  Williamsburgh.  He  was  soon  elected  Trustee  of  that  village. 
Counsel  for  the  Board  of  Trustees  and,  subsequently,  a  member 
of  its  Board  of  Education.  In  the  year  1851  he  organized  the 
Williamsburgh  Savings  Bank,  procuring  its  incorporation.  He 
afterwards  organized  the  Williamsburgh  City  Bank,  now  the 
First  National  Bank  of  Brooklyn.  He  also  organized  the  Wil- 
liamsburgh Fire  Insurance  Company. 

Mr.  Meeker  has  been  connected  with  these  several  incorpora- 
tions since  their  organization,  and  is  now  President  of  the  Wil- 
liamsburgh Savings  Bank,  one  of  the  most  reliable  and  prosper- 
ous institutions  in  the  County  of  Kings. 


1-250 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


CHARLES  J.   PATTERSON. 

Mr.  rATTERsox,  though  one  of  the  youngest  members  of  the 
Brooklyn  Bar,  has  already  attained  a  high  position  as  an  advocate 
in  the  active  conduct  of  trials  at  the  Bar,  particularly  actions 
brought  for  the  recovery  of  damages  arising  from  torts  or  wrongs. 

He  was  born  in  the  city  of  New  York,  May  19th,  1853,  received 
a  good  education  at  the  schools  in  the  city,  and  entered  the  law 
otBee  of  General  Charles  W.  Sanford,  of  New  York,  under  whose 
instruction  he  prepared  for  admission  to  the  Bar.  He  was  ad- 
mitted to  practice  at  Poughkeepsie  in  May,  1876.  Soon  after 
that  event  he  removed  to  Brooklyn,  opened  an  oiiice,  com- 
menced his  practice,  the  success  of  which  has  already  been 
described. 

JAMES   TROY. 

Judge  Tkot  has  not  only  attained  distinction  at  the  Bar,  but 
has  gained  judicial  honors.  He  has  been  particularly  success- 
ful in  the  defense  of  criminals.  He  is  a  man  of  impressive  and 
effective  eloquence,  always  riveting  attention  in  whatever  place, 
or  before  whatever  audience,  he  makes  an  address.  He  was  born 
at  Asbourne,  near  Dublin,  Ireland,  in  the  year  183.J.  He  was 
educated  principally  at  Simonton  Institute,  Dublin.  He  is  of 
the  same  family  as  the  Rev.  Dr.  Troy,  a  contemporary  of  O'Con- 
nell  and  Archbishop  of  Dublin. 

At  the  ago  of  twelve  he  went  to  sea,  entering  the  service  of  the 
Peninsular  and  Oriental  Company  as  a  cadet.  Leaving  the 
service  of  that  company,  he  came  to  New  Y'ork  in  1851.  Having 
ilecided  to  enter  the  legal  profession,  he  immediately  began 
the  study  of  law  with  the  late  Judge  James  W.  White,  and 
afterwards  with  S.  D.  Lewis,  in  Brooklyn.  He  was  admitted  to 
the  Bar  in  185G.  In  1862,  he  was  appointed  Assistant  District 
Attorney  of  Kings  County,  serving  until  1807.  It  was  while 
discharging  the  duties  of  this  office  that  he  exhibited  his  un- 
usual powers  as  a  criminal  lawyer.  In  the  autumn  of  1867,  he 
was  elected  County  Judge  of  Kings  County,  for  the  term  of 
three  years. 

After  the  expiration  of  his  oiBcial  term,  he  discharged  the 
duties  of  counsel  for  the  Sheriff  of  Kings  County  for  about  six 
ye.ars.  In  the  fall  of  1880,  Judge  Troy  was  nominated  for 
District  Attorney  of  Kings  County,  by  the  Democrats;  but 
Gen.  Isaac  L.  Catlin,  the  late  incumbent  of  that  oiEce  was 
his  successful  opponent. 

Judge  Troy's  practice  is  by  no  means  confined  to  criminal 
law;  he  has  a  large  civil  law  practice. 


HUGO    HIRSH. 

Hugo  IIir-sb  is  a  rising  and  one  of  the  most  promising  lawj'ers 
of  the  city  of  Brooklyn.  He  was  born  in  Germany  on  the  22d 
day  of  December,  1848,  and  came  to  the  United  States  with  his 
parents  in  the  year  IS.'i?.  Hugo  attended  the  public  schools  in 
New  Y'ork  City.  Soon  after  he  became  thirteen  years  old  he  was 
taken  from  school  and  became  engaged  in  mercantile  pursuits. 
After  continuing  in  mercantile  business  for  some  time,  he  con- 
cluded that  he  was  not  fitted  for  the  business,  and  thereupon 
left  it  and  entered  the  office  of  Anthony  Barrett,  Esq.,  and  com- 
menced the  study  of  law. 

He  was  an  earnest  student,  careful  and  attentive,  and  was 
admitted  to  the  Bar  in  December,  1873.  He  immediately 
"struck  out"  for  himself,  and  by  patience,  perseverance  and 
close  attention  to  the  interests  of  his  clients  he  soon  established 
a  lucrative  practice,  and  became  known  as  one  of  the  most  active 
practitioners  at  the  Bar. 

In  the  year  1876,  he  began  to  write  a  book  on  the  subject  of 
juries,  he  believing  that  a  practical  work  on  that  subject  would 
enure  to  the  benefit  of  the  Bar  and  the  public.  He  continued 
his  labors  on  this  work  for  nearly  three  years,  frequently  work- 
ing night  and  day,  and  in  the  fall  of  the  j-ear  1870   the  book  was 


published  by  Diossy  k  Co.,  of  New  York,  under  the  title  of 
irimh  on  Juries.  It  was  a  success  from  the  start,  and  received 
the  eulogiums  of  the  Bench,  the  Bar  and  the  Press. 

In  politics  Mr.  Hirsh  is  a  Republican,  and  has  been  active  in 
the  councils  of  his  party.  The  only  public  position  he  has  filled 
was  that  of  counsel  to  the  Board  of  Police  and  Excise  of  the  city 
of  Brooklyn. 

Mr.  Hirsh  is  of  good  presence,  gentlemanly  and  pleasing  in 
his  manner,  courteous  and  fair  in  his  intercourse  with  his 
brother  members  of  the  Bar,  strictly  honest  in  his  dealings  with 
his  clients,  and  bears  an  unsullied  reputation. 


JOHN    P.  ROLFE. 

Mk.  Rolfe  is  one  of  the  oldest  lawyers  in  Brooklyn.  He  has 
witnessed  its  growth  from  a  village  of  1,200  people  to  a  position 
as  third  city  in  the  Union.  When  the  city  was  chartered  in 
1834,  the  father  of  Mr.  Rolfe,  who  was  a  civil  engineer,  took 
great  interest  in  forming  a  plan  for  mappi:;g  it  and  laying  out 
its  streets.  At  this  time  young  Rolfe  was  engaged  in  the  study 
of  law  in  the  city  of  New  York,  but  owing  to  the  great  activity 
in  real  estate  operations  he  was  inclined  to  follow  his  father's 
profession,  but  finally  decided  to  continue  his  legal  studies. 
He  pursued  the  last  year  of  his  studies  in  the  office  of  that  dis- 
tinguished lawyer  and  much  esteemed  citizen,  Cyrus  P.  Smith, 
then  Corporation  Counsel.  Mr.  Rolfe  was  admitted  to  practice 
as  an  attorney  at  law  and  a  solicitor  in  chancery  at  Albany,  in 
1837.  The  following  year  he  entered  into  partnership  with  Hon. 
N.  B.  Morse,  then  First  Judge  of  Kings  County,  Master  in  Chan- 
cery. This  relation  continued  until  Judge  Morse  was  elected  a 
Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court,  under  the  Constitution  of  1846, 
when  it  was  dissolved. 

Mr.  Rolfe  early  devoted  himself  to  the  study  of  the  law  relat- 
ing to  real  estate,  and  to  him  that  important  branch  of  practice 
had  greater  attractions  than  the  trial  of  causes;  to  this  he  has 
confined  his  practice,  and  he  stands  deservedly  high  as  a  real 
estate  lawyer. 

Jacob  I.  Bergen,  the  present  Surrogate  of  Kings  County,  and 
Wm.  D.  Snediker,  were  students  in  his  office,  and  subsequently 
became  his  law  partners. 

Mr.  Rolfe  has  been  attorney  for  the  Brooklyn  Savings  Bank 
for  upwards  of  forty  years,  and  during  that  time  he  has  ap- 
proved the  title  to  many  millions'  worth  of  real  estate  upon 
which  that  institution  has  held  bonds  and  mortgages. 

Mr.  Rolfe  continues  in  the  practice  of  his  profession,  because 
he  is  attached  to  it  by  many  years'  practice. 


JACOB   I.   BERGEN. 

Me.  Bekgen  is  a  native  of  Kings  County,  born  at  Bay  Ridge. 
He  was  educated  at  the  Dutchess  County  Academy,  N.  Y'.,  after 
which  he  entered  the  office  of  John  P.  Rolfe,  Esq.,  of  Brooklyn, 
where  he  was  duly  entered  as  a  student  at  law.  Wm.  D.  Snedi- 
ker was  a  student  in  the  same  office. 

Mr.  Bergen  was  admitted  to  the  Bar  of  the  Supreme  Court  of 
the  State  in  the  spring  of  1858,  and  when  Mr.  Snediker  took  his 
degree  as  an  attorney  at  law,  the  two  former  students  of  Mr. 
Rolfe  became  his  law  partners,  under  the  firm  name  of  liotfe, 
Berrjen  ifc  Sneiliker. 

The  firm  at  once  took  a  high  position,  and  entered  into  an  ex- 
tensive practice  as  real  estate  lawyers,  and  it  may  safely  be  said 
that  no  legal  firm  in  this  part  of  the  State  enjoyed  the  confidence 
of  the  people  in  a  higher  degree  than  did  this. 

In  1807,  Mr.  Bergen  was  elected  one  of  the  aldermen  of  Brook- 
lyn, from  the  Tenth  Ward.  He  continued  to  hold  that  office 
down  to  1875,  with  the  exception  of  the  year  1873.  Ho  was 
President  of  the  Board  of  Aldermen  from  1868  to  1875,  with  the 
exception  of  1873. 


BENCH  AND  BAR    OF  BROOKLYN. 


1351 


Under  the  charter  of  1873,  he  was  Supervisor  of  lUo  Tintli 
Ward  and  of  the  county  for  the  years  187'l-'75. 

Whatever  attention  Mr.  Bergen  has  given  to  polities,  he  never 
forgot  his  business,  his  friends  or  social  relations  in  the  political 
strife;  he  entered  into  it  more  as  a  matter  of  duty  than  any- 
thing else.  In  the  fall  of  1882,  he  was  nominated  and  elected 
Surrogate  of  the  County  of  Kings.  The  judicial  mind  and 
method  of  Mr.  Bergen  prepared  him  to  enter  upon  the  duties  of 
this  office,  and  to  continue  it  with  much  acceptability  to  tlie 
people.  In  a  county  like  Kings  its  duties  are  laborious,  requir- 
ing a  peculiarly  constituted  mind  to  discharge  them.  We  be- 
lieve it  is  generally  conceded  that  Mr.  Bergen  has  this  kind  of  a 
mind.  Officially,  professionally  and  socially,  he  enjoys  the 
confidence  and  esteem  of  his  fellow-citizens  and  the  public 
generally  to  a  very  high  degree. 


JESSE   JOHNSON. 

Mn.  Johnson  was  born  at  Bradford,  Vt.,  February  20,  181'2. 
His  parents  were  Elliot  Payson  Johnson  and  Sarah  Taylor  John- 
son. 

After  an  excellent  preparatory  course,  he  entered  Dartmouth 
College,  from  whence,  in  18C3,  he  graduated,  and  immediately 
afterward  became  a  student  in  the  Albany  Law  University, 
where  he  remained  until  18G4,  when  he  was  called  to  the  Bar. 
lie  siibsecpiently  decided  upon  Brooklyn  as  the  field  for  his  pro- 
fessional career.  He  has  continued  a  member  of  the  Kings 
County  Bar  from  the  lime  when  his  name  first  appeared  upon 
its  rolls  :  how  honorably  and  conscientiously  he  has  discharged 
the  constantly  increasing  duties  of  his  profession,  is  so  well 
known  to  a  Large  and  intluential  clientage  that  no  mention  of  it 
is  needed  on  these  pages.  Suffice  it  to  say,  that  Mr.  Johnson  is 
an  advocate  of  acknowledged  ability,  distinguished  for  'he 
learning,  energy  and  success  with  which  he  conducts  the  trial  of 
causes  at  the  Bar,  and  for  the  ability,  candor  and  fairness  with 
which  he  discharges  all  the  duties  of  a  counselor-at-law. 

lie  has  given  much  attention  to  railroad  law,  and  hence  much 
of  his  business  has  been  confined  to  railroad  causes — perhaps 
the  most  difficult  that  engages  the  attention  of  gentlemen  of  the 
Bar. 

lie  was  the  attorney  and  counsel  for  the  Commissioners  ap- 
pointed to  organize  a  system  of  rapid  transit  railroads  for 
Brooklyn,  under  authority  of  Chap.  COG  of  Laws  of  1875,  com- 
monly called  the  "Rapid  Transit  .\ct."  The  two  companies 
organized  under  this  act  were  the  "  Kings  Countj'  Elevated 
Itailroad  Comj^any,"  and  the  "  East  Kiver  Bridge  and  Coney 
Island  Transit  Company  ;  "  the  history  of  these  organizations 
bears  indubitable  evidence  of  the  executive  abilities  of  Mr. 
Johnson. 

He  was  Assistant  Corporation  Counsel  for  Brooklyn  from  Jan- 
uary 1,  1860,  to  January,  1877.  Though  he  was  then  one  of 
the  younger  members  of  the  Brooklyn  Bar,  he  discharged  the 
duties  of  his  office  with  much  acceptability  to  the  public. 

Mr.  Johnson  devotes  all  his  time  and  attention  to  his  pro- 
fession; indeed,  so  extensive  has  his  practice  become  that  it  de- 
m.ands  every  moment  of  his  time. 

Mr.  Johnson's  legal  business  is  conducted  in  partnership  with 
Albert  E.  Lamb,  and  with  his  brother,  A.  II.  Lamb,  Esq.,  \inder 
llio  firm  name  of  Lamb  it  Johnson.  This  relation,  at  this  writ- 
ing, has  existed  some  time,  and  we  believe  is  fortunate  for  all 
parties,  combining  a  versatility  and  strength  of  talent  which 
renders  success  certain.  This  firm  has  an  extended  reputation, 
ranking  first  among  the  legal  firms  in  Kings  and  the  adjoining 
counties. 

In  the  autumn  of  1883,  Mr.  Johnson  was  nominated  by 
the  Kepublicans  of  the  2d  Judicial  District  for  the  office  of 
Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  State.  This  nomination  was 
tendered  him  largely  by  his  professional  brethren,  solely  in  re- 
cognition of  his   acknowledged  fitness  to  discharge  its  duties. 


Political  considerations  did  not,  we  believe,  in  any  sense,  lead  to 
his  nomination.  Though  the  Republican  party  was  largely  in  the 
minority  in  his  district,  such  was  his  popularity  that  he  greatly 
reduced  the  usual  Democratic  mnjority;  indeed,  for  a  time  dur- 
ing the  canvass  his  election  was  believed  to  be  certain,  but  the 
result  proved  otherwise. 

Mr.  Johnson  is  still  young  and  energetic;  inspired  by  a 
laudable  ambition,  ho  has  a  right  to  look  forward  to  the  increas- 
ing honors  which  a  successful  professional  career  is  sure  to 
brin". 


N.\THAN  B.   MORSE. 

In  the  year  1827 — fifty-seven  years  ago— there  was  a  law  firm 
in  the  village  of  Brooklyn,  known  under  the  name  and  style  of 
Morse  &  Rockwell.  The  senior  member  of  that  firm  was 
Hon.  Nathan  B.  Morse.  The  junior  member  was  William 
Rockwell,  afterwards  a  distinguished  judge  of  the  Supreme 
Court  of  the  State,  whose  biography  appears  ia  the  Bench  and 
Bar  of  Kings  County.  The  Kings  County  Bar,  at  the  time  this 
firm  was  doing  business,  consisted  of  only  fourteen  members, 
and  we  believe  Judge  Morse  is  the  only  one  of  them  now  living. 
Morse,  like  Rockwell,  rose  to  high  distinction  in  his  profession, 
and,  like  him,  received  high  judicial  honors.  He  was  appointed 
District  Attorney  of  the  county,  April  20,  1830. 

Nathan  B.  Morse  was  born  at  Canterbury,  Conn.,  Nov.  11, 
1799;  his  father  was  Peter  Morse,  and  his  mother's  maiden 
name  was  Ducenor  Brewster.  After  receiving  a  good  prepara- 
tory education,  he  began  the  study  of  law  with  Hon.  Ebenezer 
Young,  of  Killingly,  Conn.  He  was  admitted  to  the  Connecticut 
Bar,  and  went  into  partnership  with  Jlr.  Young  for  a  time. 
Early  in  October,  1825,  he  moved  to  Brooklyn,  and  was  immedi- 
ately admitted  a  counselor  of  the  Supreme  C  lurt  of  the  State  of 
New  York,  and  commenced  the  practice  of  his  profession  under 
favorable  circumstances.  After  practicing  two  years  alone,  he 
became,  as  we  have  seen,  the  law  partner  of  Judge  Rockwell,  the 
successor  of  District  Attorney 

JAMES  B.  CLARK. 

Mk.  Clakk  was  appointed  District  Attomey.March  2, 1819,  under 
the  old  act  of  1801,  dividing  the  county  into  seven  districts,  there 
being  one  District  Attorney  for  each  district.  Mr.  Clark  served 
under  that  appointment  until  the  Constitution  of  1821  aboli.shed 
these  seven  districts,  making  each  county  a  district,  and  provid- 
ing for  the  appointment  of  a  District  Attorney  in  each  county, 
by  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas  of  the  county.  Immediately 
after  the  adoption  of  the  Constitution  of  1821,  Mr.  Clark  was 
appointed  District  Attorney  for  Kings  County,  holding  the  office 
until  March  2G,  1830,  when,  as  we  have  said,  he  was  succeeded 
by  Judge  Morse.  Mr.  Clark  is  represented  as  one  of  the  ablest 
lawyers  of  his  time,  peculiarly  qualified  for  a  public  prose- 
cutor. He  had  cultivated  and  practiced  the  eloquence  of  the 
Bar  with  practical  success;  was  keen  and  penetrating  in  read- 
inr-  men,  and  this  made  him  close  and  searching  in  the  exami- 
nation of  witnesses.  It  is  said  that  on  the  cross-examination  of 
witnesses,  if  the  occasion  required,  he  could  be  terrible;  there 
seemed  to  be  a  subtle  influence  darting  from  his  eyes  that 
enabled  him  to  draw  forth  the  secrets  of  the  most  unwilling  and 
adroit  witness.  For  the  long  period  of  eleven  years  in  which 
he  served  as  public  prosecutor  of  the  county,  he  continued  to 
increase  in  the  confidence  of  the  people;  searching,  severe  and 
successful  as  he  was  in  bringing  criminals  to  justice,  he  jjos- 
sessed  the  rare  quality  of  knowing  just  when  the  cause  of  the 
people  and  of  justice  would  be  subserved  by  forbearance  and 
leniency;  he  did  not  deem  it  necessary  for  his  reputation  that 
every  criminal  brought  to  the  Bar  should  be  convicted. 

He  was  equally  able  as  a  general  practitioner  in  civil  cases, 
being  able  to  adapt  himself  without  apparent  effort  to  all  kinds 
of  legal  business,  and  ho  maintained  his  ascendency  at  the  Bar 


1252 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


for  many  years.  Such  was  James  B.  Clark,  the  first  District 
.attorney  of  Kings  County,  under  the  Constitution  of  1821. 

Mr.  Morse,  tbough  he  took  the  place  of  a  jjrosecuting  officer, 
like  Clark,  w.aa  eminently  successful  in  the  discharge  of  his 
duties;  he  served  till  May,  1833,  when  he  was  succeeded  by  his 
law  partner,  AVilliam  Eockwell,  who  served  till  June  3,  1839 — 
six  years  -when  Judge  Morse  was  again  appointed,  and  be- 
came his  successor.  Under  this  appointment,  Judge  Morse 
served  until  June,  1847,  when  he  was  succeeded  by  General  H. 
B.  Duryea.  It  will  be  seen  that  Judge  Morse's  first  term  as 
District  Attorney  expired  early  in  April,  1830. 

On  Ajiril  30,  1833,  he  was  appointed  First  Judge  of  Kings 
County,  in  place  of  Judge  John  Dikeman,  serving  until  April, 
1838,  when  John  A.  Lott  was  appointed  his  successor.  Upon 
leaving  the  Bench,  Judge  Morse  returned  to  the  practice  of  his 
profession. 

At  the  judicial  election  hehi  June  11,  1847,  Judge  Morse  was 
elected  a  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  State  for  the  term 
of  six  years.  He  began  his  judicial  duties  on  the  following 
January;  his  judicial  term  expired  December  31,  1853,  when  he 
retired  to  private  life.  He  had  been  most  of  the  time  for 
twenty-three  years  in  public  life. 

Judge  Morse  brought  to  the  Bench  great  ujirightness,  fairness 
and  impartiality  and  ample  legal  attainments.  The  style  in 
which  his  charges  were  given,  and  his  opinions  written,  was 
creditable  to  him;  the  reasonings  embodied  in  them  corres- 
ponded fully  with  the  language  in  which  they  were  presented. 
His  manner  on  the  Bench  was  amiable,  with  sufficient  force  of 
character  and  dignity  to  command  respect.  In  private  life,  as 
well  as  in  official  life,  he  is  greatly  esteemed;  even  now,  in  his 
advanced  age,  he  retains  his  mental  and  physical  powers  to  such 
a  degree  that  he  is  still  comparatively  active  in  business;  and  as 
President  of  the  Fulton  Ferry  Company,  is  in  the  daily  habit  of 
transacting  correctly  and  exi)editiouslj'  the  affiiirs  of  his  office. 


N.   F.  W.\RING. 

Amonx.  the  many  honored  associates  of  Judge  Morse  at  the 
Brooklyn  Bar  fifty  years  ago,  was  N.  F.  Waring,  who  stood  for 
many  years  at  the  head  of  the  profession  in  Kings,  and  ia  the 
adjoining  counties.  Perhaps  no  name  appears  more  frequent- 
ly in  the  books  which  record  the  litigated  cases  of  his  day  than 
Mr.  Waring's.  In  examining  the  old  court  calendars  of  the 
j)ast,  we  find  a  large  number  of  the  cases  in  them  represented 
by  him.  We  are  informed  by  those  who  knew  Mr.  Waring 
that  he  possessed  many  of  the  best  qualities  which  render  a 
lawyer  successful,  and  a  man  estimable.  His  perceptions  were 
quick;  his  judgment  strong;  his  capacity  for  drawing  nice 
distinctions  good,  and  he  always  expressed  himself  in  language 
best  suited  for  the  communication  of  his  ideas.  He  was 
extremely  well  read,  and  his  knowledge  of  legal  principles 
precise,  accurate  and  alwaj-s  at  his  command;  and  his  sti-ong, 
retentive  memory  never  relaxed  its  grasp  upon  any  useful 
information  with  which  it  had  once  been  stored. 

At  the  time  of  which  we  are  writing — fifty  years  ago — 
there  were  others  of  the  few  associates  of  Morse  and  Waring 
at  the  Bar  whose  names  are  invested  with  historic  interest,  and 
a  record  of  whose  careers  appears  in  the  first  volume  of  this 
work,  in  the  department  of  the  Bench  and  Bar  of  Kings 
County.  These  were  John  Dikeman,  Henry  C.  MurjAy,  Alpheus 
P.  Ralph,  Cyrus  P.  Smith  and  Gabriel  Furman.  Since  that 
time  the  county  Bar  has  increased  from  twenty  to  over  twelve 
hundred  members.  There  is  a  moral  and  a  lesson  in  this  change 
which  another  pen  than  ours  may  seize  uj^on  with  abundant 
success,  profit  and  interest. 


HENRY   A.  MOORE. 

The  contest  between  William  Rockwell,  afterwards  a  judge  of 
the  Supreme  Court  of  the  State,  and  Samuel  E.  Johnson,  over 


the  office  of  County  Judge  of  Kings  County,  in  the  fall  of  1848, 
was  an  important  event  in  legal  history.  Both  of  these  gentle- 
men stood  high  at  the  Bar,  and  were  opposing  candidates  for  the 
office  of  County  Judge  at  the  general  election  which  took  place 
in  the  fall  of  18 — ;  the  contest  between  them  was  so  close  that 
both  claimed  the  certificate  of  election;  it  was,  however,  awarded 
to  Judge  Eockwell,  but  the  question  was  contested  by  Mr.  John- 
son in  the  Supreme  Court,  and,  on  October28th,  1848,  thattribu- 
nal  decided  infavorof  Judge  Johnson,  and  he  took  his  seat  upon 
the  Bench,  serving  out  his  judicial  term,  which  was  then  three 
years.  It  expired  December  31st,  1851.  In  the  autumn  of  that 
year,  Henry  A.  Moore  became  a  prominent  candidate  for  the 
office  of  County  Judge,  was  nominated  and  elected,  and  entered 
ujion  his  judicial  duties  January  1st,  1852.  Judge  Moore  has 
long  been  identified  with  Brooklyn. 

After  the  usual  preparatory  education,  he  entered  the  law 
office  of  Lott,  Murjihy  &  Vanderbilt  as  a  student  at  law.  Un- 
der the  tuition  of  these  accomplished  and  distinguished  lawyers, 
young  Moore  received  his  legal  education.  The  office  of  this 
firm  presented  peculiar  facilities  for  ac(piiring  a  correct  practical 
knowledge  of  law;  that  young  Moore  fully  availed  himself  of 
these  facilities  is  fully  illustrated  in  his  subsequent  life.  After 
passing  a  creditable  examination  he  was  called  to  the  Bar,  and 
entered  upon  his  practice  in  Brooklyn.  At  the  first  election  \in- 
der  the  Constitution  of  ISiO,  which  took  place  in  June,  1847, 
General  Harmanus  B.  Duryea  was  elected  District  Attorney  of 
Kings  County.  Judge  Moore,  who  had  then  been  at  the  Bar  but 
a  brief  period,  received  the  appointment  of  Assistant  District 
Attornej'.  He  brought  to  the  duties  of  this  office  qualifications 
which  enabled  him  to  discharge  its  duties  in  a  manner  credit- 
able to  himself  and  advantageously  to  the  public.  Judge  Moore 
continued  his  practice  until  he  was  elected  County  Judge,  as  we 
have  seen,  in  the  fall  of  1851.  His  official  term  expired  Decem- 
ber 31st,  1855,  when  he  was  succeeded  by  Hon.  Samuel  D.  Morris, 
who  was  elected  at  the  November  election  of  that  year.  Judge 
Morris  was  succeeded  by  Samuel  Garrison,  whose  term  of  office 
expired  December  31st,  1863.  Judge  Garrison  was  succeeded  by 
Hon.  John  Dikeman,  whose  term  of  office  expired  December 
31st,  18(57.  Judge  Dikeman's  successor  was  Hon.  James  Troy, 
who  retired  from  the  Bench  December  31st,  1871.  During  the 
term  these  gentlemen  had  occupied  the  Bench,  Judge  Moore  de- 
voted himself  to  the  duties  of  his  profession  with  distinguished 
success. 

As  a  public  prosecutor,  he  had  become  familiar  with  criminal 
law  practice,  which  requires  a  critical  knowledge  of  the  statutes, 
the  common  law,  the  rules  of  evidence  and  of  precedent;  as  it 
had  strong  attractions  for  him,  he  united  considerable  criminal 
practice  with  his  rapidly  increasing  civil  business. 

Among  the  criminal  cases  celehre  in  which  Judge  Moore  ap- 
peared as  counsel  for  the  defence,  was  the  case  of  the  People  vs. 
Thomas  Murphy,  indicted  for  the  murder  of  Andrew  Murphy, 
at  Williamsburg;  and  the  People  vs.  Owen  Hand,  indicted  for  the 
murder  of  James  Donnell,  August  14,  1869.  The  trial  of  Hand 
took  place  in  1870,  and  was  protracted  and  interesting.  That  of 
Murphy  began  October  13th,  1870,  continuing  several  days.  Mr. 
Britton,  then  District  Attorney,  appeared  for  the  people  in  both 
these  cases.  These  trials  created  great  interest,  and  are  remem- 
bered for  the  very  able  and  exhaustive  efforts  in  which  the  dis- 
tinguished opposing  counsel  conducted  their  respective  sides  of 
the  case.  But  Judge  Moore's  career  at  the  Bar  was  terminated 
by  his  second  election  to  the  Bench  of  the  County  Court  in  the 
autumn  of  1871. 

He  began  his  judicial  duties  January  1st,  1872.  By  re-election 
he  has  occupied  the  Bench  of  the  County  Court  from  that  time 
down  to  the  present  time.  In  the  fall  of  1883  he  was  re-elected 
for  another  judicial  term  of  six  years;  this  term  commenced 
January  1st,  1884.  It  will  thus  be  seen  that  he  has  presided  on 
the  Bench  over  fourteen  years;  that  when  his  present  term  ex- 
pires he  will  have  served  for  the  unexampled  long  time  of  twenty 


BENCH  AND  BAR   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1353 


years.     These  repeated  elections  are  the  most  eloquent  endorse- 
ment of  Judge  Moore's  official  career. 

It  is  evident  that  he  finds  a  laudable  pleasure  in  performing 
the  duties  of  the  high  office  to  which  he  has  so  many  times 
been  elected  by  the  suffrages  of  the  people,  and  to  the  gratifica- 
tion of  the  Bar.  His  great  experience  renders  business  easy 
and  familiar  to  him,  and  ho  gives  it  despatch,  without  precipi- 
tancy or  undue  haste.  He  comes  to  his  opinions,  decisions 
and  rulings  with  characteristic  promptness,  directness  and 
clearness,  plainly,  concisely  and  briefly,  without  the  least 
amplification.  Partiality  or  prejudice,  fear  or  favor,  or  the 
apprehension  of  any  consequences  personal  to  himself,  have 
never  exercised  the  slightest  influence  over  his  deliberations, 
or  for  one  moment  clouded  his  views  or  warped  his  judg- 
ment. This  we  believe  to  bo  the  opinion,  not  only  of  the 
Bar,  hut  of  the  public,  concerning  Judge  Moore.  We  might 
say  more  of  him  within  the  bounds  of  propriety  and  fairness; 
we  certainly  could  not  say  less,  and  do  justice  to  one  whose 
legal  and  judicial  career  covers  so  long  a  period  in  the  history 
of  Kings  County,  and  which  has  been  so  acceptably  discharged. 


EDGAR  RI.  CULLEN. 

Judge  Cotxen,  one  of  the  younger  members  of  the  judiciary 
of  the  State,  was  born  at  Brooklyn,  in  the  year  ISi;!.  His 
father  was  Dr.  Henry  J.  CuUen,  a  distinguished  and  highly 
esteemed  physician  and  surgeon  of  the  city,  who  died  greatly 
lamented  several  years  anterior  to  this  writing. 

At  an  early  age,  young  Cullen  entered  Kinderhook  Academy, 
where  he  prepared  for  college.  Choosing  Columbia  College  for 
his  Alma  Mater,  he  was  graduated  from  that  institution  in  I860, 
with  those  high  classic  endowments  which  have  been  so  useful 
to  him.  He  was  then  but  seventeen  years  of  age.  At  that  time 
it  was  his  own  desire,  as  it  was  of  his  friends,  to  adopt  the  pro- 
fession of  a  civil  engineer;  accordingly,  immediately  after 
leaving  college,  he  entered  the  Troy  Polytechnic  Institute,  where 
he  pursued  his  studies  with  great  diligence  until  the  beginning  of 
18G3,  when  the  stirring  events  of  the  great  Civil  War  called  him 
from  his  studies  to  the  field.  Early  in  18G'2,  he  was  commissioned 
by  President  Lincoln  second  lieutenant  in  the  First  United  States 
Infantry.  At  this  time  his  regiment  was  in  active  service,  and 
yovmg  Cullen  entered  at  once  into  the  bloody  drama  of  war. 
As  his  corps  was  connected  with  the  Western  Department,  or 
the  Department  of  the  Mississippi,  Cullen — then  a  mere  boy — 
participated  in  the  memorable  battles  of  Corinth  and  Farm- 
ington,  and  passing  with  General  Grant  through  the  siege  of 
Vicksburg. 

Late  in  1862,  Governor  Morgan  commissioned  him  colonel  of 
the  96th  N.  Y.  S.  Vs. 

Colonel  Cullen  was  at  that  time  but  nineteen  years  of  age, 
one  of  the  youngest  officers  of  that  grade  in  the  army.  His 
valor  and  accomplishments  as  a  soldier  need  no  other  descrip- 
tion than  the  record  of  his  rapid  promotion. 

He  immediately  assumed  his  new  command.  His  regiment 
was  attached  to  the  18th  Army  Corps,  and  did  valiant  service  in 
the  campaign  which  resulted  in  the  fall  of  Petersburg,  and  the 
bloody  contests  which  led  to  the  capture  of  Eichmond.  Just 
before  the  close  of  this  glorious  campaign,  Col.  Cullen  received 
a  wound  so  serious  that  he  was  compelled  to  retire  to  his  home, 
and  he  resigned  his  commission.  Recovering  from  his  wound, 
he  spent  a  year  in  civil  engineering,  engaged,  we  believe,  on 
the  South  Side  L.  I.  Railroad,  that  line  of  transit  then  being  in 
course  of  construction.  At  the  conclusion  of  this  engagement 
he  decided  to  enter  the  legal  profession. 

He  is  a  nephew  of  Hon.  Alex.  McCue,  and  entered  his 
uncle's  office  as  a  student  at  law,  under  whose  instruction  he 
prepared  for  the  Bar.  In  1867  he  took  his  degree  as  an 
attorney  and  counselor  at  law,  entering  at  once  upon  an  honor- 
able and   successful  practice.     Few,   if  any,  members   of  the 


junior  Bar  of  the  city  ever  attained  a  higher  position  in  the 
profession  in  so  short  a  time  as  did  Mr.  Cullen.  During 
Governor  Tilden's  administration,  he  received  the  appointment 
of  Engineering  Officer  on  his  staff,  with  the  rank  of  Brigadier- 
General. 

Judge  Cullen  early  became  a  member  of  the  Democratic  party, 
adhering  firmly  to  its  tenets,  and  was  ardent  and  influential  in 
his  advocacy  of  them.  He  continued  his  professional  advance- 
ment, gaining  the  confidence  and  esteem  of  his  brethren  of  the 
Bar  to  such  an  extent  that,  on  the  5th  of  October,  1880,  he 
received  the  nomination  for  a  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of 
the  Second  Judicial  District,  and  was  electetl.  His  judicial 
term  began  January  1,  1881. 

His  accession  to  the  Bench  was  gratifying  to  the  Bar  and  to 
the  judiciary;  the  diligence,  conscientiousness,  fairness  and 
learning  which  has  thus  far  characterized  his  official  career 
give  abundant  promise  of  future  usefulness  and  juridical 
honors.  Judge  Cullen 's  social  relations  are  of  the  most  agree- 
able character;  he  is,  as  we  have  said,  not  only  popular  with  the 
profession,  but  with  his  fellow-citizens. 


THOMAS   E.   PEARSALL. 

Mk.  Peaksall  was  born  in  the  city  of  Brookl5'n  in  the  year 
18-1'2.  His  ancestors  for  several  generations  have  been  Brooklyn- 
ites,  and  his  grandfather  was  the  owner  of  that  densely  popu- 
lated portion  of  the  city,  geographically  and  traditionally 
known  as  "Pearsall's  Farm."  Had  the  property  been  devised 
from  fiither  to  son,  instead  of  sold,  as  it  was  long  before  Brook- 
lyn's magnitude  was  foreseen,  the  possession  of  it  by  one  family 
would  rate  them  among  the  most  affluent  persons  in  any 
country.  It  was  not  to  be  so,  however,  and  now  thousands  of 
people  divide  among  them  what  was  once  the  estate  of  a  single 
gentleman,  "situated  some  miles  out  of  the  town  of  Brooklyn." 

Mr.  Pearsall  attended  the  public  schools  of  Brooklyn,  and 
acquired  a  solid,  practical  education,  up  to  the  time  when  he 
resolved  to  choose  his  course  in  life.  He  was  led  towards  the 
law;  while  only  fifteen  years  old  he  entered  the  office  of  Ex- 
Judge  Samuel  Garrison,  of  Brooklyn.  In  that  office  he  re- 
mained as  helper  and  student  in  one,  till  he  had  just  attained 
his  twenty-first  year.  He  was  then  admitted  to  the  Bar,  by 
examination  at  Poughkeepsie.  For  the  first  year  he  maintained 
professional  relations  with  Mr.  Garrison ;  but  throughout  the 
three  years  thereafter  he  conducted  the  legal  business  on  his 
own  account,  with  most  flattering  and  increasing  success,  and 
during  that  period  he  was  retained  as  attorney  and  counsel  for 
one  of  the  heirs  under  the  will  of  Peter  O'Hara,  deceased; 
there  was  a  large  amount  of  property  involved,  the  distribution 
of  a  large  portion  of  which  depended  upon  the  construction  of 
the  will  of  the  deceased.  Opposed  to  Mr.  Pearsall  in  this  case 
was  Hon.  Henry  C.  Murphy.  The  case  was  carried  by  appeal 
to  the  Court  of  Appeals,  and  resulted  in  a  decision  in  favor  of 
Mr.  Pearsall's  client  (O'Hara  v.  Dever,  3  Abb.  Ct.  App.  Dec,  407). 

On  December  23,  1867,  he  was  tendered  a  partnership  relation 
by  ex-Judge  Samuel  D.  Morris,  then  District  Attorney  of  Kings 
County.  The  offer  was  accepted,  and  the  relation  has  continued 
with  pleasure  and  distinction  to  both  gentlemen  until  the 
present  time.  From  1868  to  1872,  Mr.  Pearsall  was  the  Assistant 
District  Attorney  of  Kings  County,  and  he  discharged  with 
intelligence  and  fidelity,  and  great  expedition,  the  duties  of 
that  office,  in  addition  to  his  share  in  the  private  business  of  the 
firm  of  Morris  &  Pearsall.  During  the  period  last  indicated, 
Mr.  Pearsall  appeared  in  the  Fanny  Hyde- Watson  and  the 
Irish-Anderson  murder  cases,  and  in  other  almost  as  celebrated 
civil  and  criminal  issues. 

In  the  cases  enumerated,  the  sides  represented  by  Mr.  Pearsall 
have  been  successful  in  the  final  result  attained  by  the  trial 
of  the  causes.  In  the  case  of  Tdion  vs.  Beecher,  Mr.  Pearsall, 
for  the  plaintiff,  was  intrusted  with  much  of  the  preparation 


1254 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


of  the  evidence,  and  with  part  of  the  preparation  and  ar- 
rangement of  the  authorities  relied  on  by  the  plaintiff's 
counsel  in  the  many  mighty  law  questions  affecting  the 
litigation.  That  he  discharged  this  onerous  and  not  pub- 
licly apparent  duty  with  great  research  and  with  exhaustive 
skill,  his  professional  associates  and  opponents  abundantly 
attested  by  their  labors  upon  the  subject,  and  their  elaborate 
and  prolonged  development  in  the  public  trial  of  the  case. 
Though  the  junior  of  any  of  the  other  legal  gentlemen  in  this 
controversy,  Mr.  Pearsall  had  at  the  time  been  in  active  practice 
at  the  Bar  for  twelve  years,  and  had  become  identified  with 
many  leading  cases  in  the  Second  Judicial  District. 

On  April  20,  1865,  Mr.  Pearsall  was  united  in  marriage  to 
Miss  Henrietta,  daughter  of  Archibald  Hardie,  Esq.,  of  Brooklyn. 
Mr.  Pearsall  takes  much  interest  in  politics,  exercising  con- 
siderable influence  in  the  political  arena,  and  maintaining  the 
principles  of  his  party  on  the  stump,  and  is  regarded  as  a 
successful  political  orator. 

He  has  been  a  prominent  member  of  the  regular  Democratic 
General  Committee  for  many  years;  he  has  never  yet  held  any 
office,  and  we  are  not  aware  that  he  was  ever  a  candidate  for 
office. 

Mr.  Pearsall's  social  relations  are  very  pleasing;  among  the 
organizations,  social  and  otherwise,  to  which  he  belongs,  are 
the  Oxford  and  Carlton  Club,  Peconic  Council,  Eoyal  Arcanum, 
and  Legion  of  Honor. 

ISAAC  S.  CATLIN. 

IS.4JS.C  S.  Catlin  was  born  at  Owego,  New  York,  in  1832.  He 
was  very  early  fitted  for  a  collegiate  course,  and  entered  Hobert 
College,  at  Geneva,  from  which  he  was  graduated  at  an  age  when 
most  boys  enter  college,  and  immediately  began  his  legal 
studies  in  the  city  of  New  York,  and  was  called  to  the  Bar  soon 
after  attaining  his  majority;  when  but  twenty-three  years  of  age 
he  returned  to  Owego.  At  this  time,  Hon.  Benjamin  F.  Tracy 
and  Hon.  Gilbert  Walker  were  practicing  law  as  partners  at 
Owego,  forming  one  of  the  most  brilliant  and  successful  law  firms 
in  Southern  New  York.  Soon  after  his  return  to  Owego,  CatUu 
became  the  junior  member  of  this  firm,  entering  actively  and 
ardently  into  the  practice  of  his  profession.  He  continued  a 
member  of  the  firm  until  the  breaking  out  of  the  Rebellion,  when 
the  lawyer  was  lost  in  the  soldier.  Catlin  was  one  of  the  first 
to  enlist  in  the  service  of  his  country.  He  entered  the  service  in 
the  3d  N.  Y.  S.  Volunteers,  and  was  soon  at  the  seat  of  war. 
Under  drill  and  discipline,  he  soon  acquired  that  knowledge  of 
the  i^rofession  of  arms  which,  with  native  valor,  inspired  by  pa- 
triotism, prepared  him  for  the  rapid  promotion  that  awaited  him. 
He  was  soon — for  gallant  and  meritorious  services — advanced  to 
the  rank  of  colonel  of  the  fighting  109th  N.  Y.  S.  Vs.  He  par- 
ticipated in  many  of  the  most  important  battles  of  the  war,  in- 
cluding the  battle  of  Big  Bethel,  and  the  long  series  of  sangui- 
nary contests  in  the  Wilderness. 

While  gallantly  leading  his  command  to  the  assault  of  Peters- 
burg, he  was  so  terribly  wounded  by  the  explosion  of  a  mine 
that  the  amputation  of  his  right  leg  was  necessary. 

Upon  the  cessation  of  hostilities,  Catlin,  who  had  been  bre- 
vetted  a  brigadier-general,  returned  to  Owego  and  resumed  the 
practice  of  his  profession. 

In  November  186-5,  he  received  the  nomination  for  District 
Attorney  of  Tioga  County,  and  was  elected  by  a  very  large 
majority. 

When  it  is  remembered  that  his  predecessors  were  such  men 
as  Ezra  S.  Sweet,  Benjamin  P.  Tracy  and  Delos  O.  Hancock,  it 
will  be  seen  how  responsible  was  the  position  which  he  assumed. 
That  the  administration  of  his  office  was  successful,  is  sufficient 
evidence  of  the  learning  and  ability  he  brought  to  it.  But  he 
could  not  overcome  his  love  for  the  life  of  a  soldier;  civic  honors 
were  not  sufficient  to  attract  him  from  it,  and  at  the  conclusion 


of  his  official  term  he  entered  the  regular  army,  and  was  soon 
after  appointed  to  the  command  of  the  Freedman's  Bureau,  at 
Louisville,  Ky.  At  the  end  of  seventeen  months  he  resigned 
his  commission,  and  became  a  resident  of  Brooklyn,  and  as 
the  law  partner  of  Gen.  B.  F.  Tracy,  who  had  also  become  a 
resident  of  the  city,  resumed  the  practice  of  his  profession. 
He  soon  took  an  active  and  influential  part  in  politics  as 
a  member  of  the  Kepublican  party.  In  the  fall  of  1874,  he 
was  nominated  for  District  Attorney  by  his  party,  but  declined 
in  favor  of  Gen.  Philip  S.  Crooke,  who  accepted  the  nomination, 
but  was  defeated  in  the  canvass.  In  1876,  Gen.  Catlin  was 
nominated  for  Congress  for  the  3d  Congressional  District,  but 
was  defeated  in  the  election. 

In  the  meantime  he  continued  in  the  active  duties  of  his  pro- 
fession, having  reached  a  commanding  position  at  the  Bar. 
He  has  often  been  called  upon  to  contend  with  the  best  and 
strongest  legal  minds  in  the  State,  while  many  of  the  causes  in 
which  he  has  been  engaged  were  of  that  superior  prominence 
which  renders  them  established  precedents. 

Space  will  not  permit  us  to  give  any  description  of  the  large 
number  of  important  trials  in  which  he  was  engaged;  we  can- 
not, however,  refrain  from  briefly  alluding  to  the  prominent 
part  he  took  as  one  of  the  counsel  in  the  celebrated  case  of  TAe 
I>ec,ph  V.  Fanny  Jlyde.  tried  at  Brooklyn,  April  15,  1872  (see 
Important  Trials).  There  was  a  brilliant  array  of  associates 
with  Gen.  Catlin  in  this  defense,  but  the  duty  of  opening  the 
case  to  the  jury  fell  to  him.  Whoever  reads  his  opening  address 
to  the  jury  will  be  profoundly  interested  and  instructed  by  it, 
and  we  feel  sure  all  who  heard  it,  and  all  who  have  read  it,  will 
agree  with  us  in  saying,  if  this  was  the  only  effort  Gen.  Catlin 
ever  made  at  the  Bar,  it  would  alone  have  estabhshed  his 
reputation  as  an  advocate  of  high  standing. 

The  opening  of  a  case  to  a  jury,  though  not  always  so  under- 
stood, is  one  of  the  most  difficult  and  responsible  duties  which 
can  be  assigned  to  a  lawyer.  It  is  the  first  presentation  of  the 
case  after  the  affirmative  has  been  in  communication  with  the 
jury.  It  breaks  in  upon  the  theory  and  the  relation  of  the  prose- 
cutor, and  for  the  first  time  convinces  the  jurors,  if  rightly 
done,  that  there  are,  indeed,  two  sides  to  the  case;  and  it  estab- 
lishes  the  theory  designed  to  overthrow  the  hypothesis  on 
which  rests  the  prosecution.  Hence  an  eloquent,  careful 
and  ingenious  narration  of  the  defense,  in  analytic  order,  m  a 
measure  neutralizes  the  effect  of  the  affirmative  evidence  in  the 
minds  of  the  jurors,  paving  the  way  for  successful  defensive 
evidence. 

The  manner  in  which  Gen.  Catlin  opened  the  defense  for 
Fanny  Hyde  is  sufficient  evidence  of  his  accomplishments  in 
this  branch  of  practice.  His  appeal  to  the  intelligence  of  the 
jury  was  of  high  tone,  broad  in  scope,  deep  in  power,  proving 
him  an  accomplished  verbalist. 

In  1877,  Gen.  Catlin  received  the  nomination  for  District 
Attorney,  and  was  elected  by  a  large  majority;  his  term  expired 
December,  1880,  and  on  October  22  of  that  year  he  was  renomi- 
nated, and  at  the  ensuing  election  was  elected.  His  second 
term  of  office  expired  December  31.  1883;  he  was  succeeded 
by  James  W.  Ridgway. 

The  history  of  his  official  duties  are  so  freshly  and  so  promi- 
nently before  the  people,  that  it  needs  no  repetition  by  us.  He 
has  returned  to  the  practice  of  his  profession  with  an  experience 
in  all  its  branches  that  cannot  fail  to  render  his  future  career  at 
the  Bar  eminently  successful. 


JA]\IES  W.  RIDGWAY. 
Mk.  Ridgway  has  been  at  the  Bar  about  thirteen  years,  in 
which  time  he  has  attained  the  reputation  of  a  very  vigilant, 
well-learned  and  successful  lawyer.  He  tries  a  cause  with^  great 
dexterity,  presents  his  case  to  the  jury  attractively,  and  if  elo- 
quence consists  in  the  art  of  convincing,  then  we   may   say 


BENCH yAND  BAR   OF  BROOELtN. 


1255 


eloquently.  He  always  succeeds  in  putting  the  jury  in  posses- 
sion, in  a  well-reasoned  manner,  of  all  the  facts  and  circumstances 
on  which  he  relies  to  gain  their  verdict;  if  he  does  not  always 
convince  them,  he  most  certainly  gains  their  most  respectful 
attention;  he  is  equally  successful  with  the  court  in  making  a 
legal  argument.  He  has  given  much  attention  to  criminal  law, 
and  has  been  very  successful  in  that  branch  of  practice;  his 
ability  in  this  department  has  been  so  generally  recognized 
that  he  now  occupies  the  position  of  public  prosecutor  of  the 
County  of  Kings. 

Mr.  Eidgway  is  a  native  of  North  Branch,  N.  J.,  and  is  a  son 
of  JosejA  S.  and  Margaret  Ridgway .  When  a  boy  he  was  pl.aced 
at  school  in  Brooklyn,  where  he  prepared  to  enter  Moravian 
College,  at  Nazareth,  Pa.  Having  completed  his  classical  educa- 
tion, he  went  to  New  York,  and  was  regularly  entered  as  a  law 
student  in  the  office  of  J.  S.  Eidgway,  Esq.,  under  whose  in- 
struction he  prepared  for  the  Bar.  He  took  his  degree  as  an 
attorney  and  counselor-atlaw  at  a  General  Term  of  the  Supreme 
Court  held  at  Brooklyn,  September,  1871,  and  soon  after  began 
his  practice  in  this  city,  under  circumstances  we  have  already 
described. 

We  have  spoken  of  his  position  as  public  prosecutor,  the  suc- 
cessor of  Gen.  Isaac  S.  Catlin.  In  the  fall  of  1883,  he  was  nomi- 
nated by  the  Democratic  party  for  the  office  of  District  Attorney. 
His  opponent  w-as  Robert  PAY^'E,  Esq.,  a  lawyer  of  vigorous  and 
cultivated  understanding,  of  much  deliberation  and  candor, 
well  versed  in  the  learning  of  his  profession,  and  is  conceded  a 
very  high  position  at  the  Bar.  Mr.  Payne  received  the  Republi- 
can nomination  for  District  Attorney  of  Kings  County,  in 
recognition  of  his  standing  as  a  lawyer,  a  citizen,  and  his  well- 
known  qualifications  for  the  office  to  which  he  was  nominated. 
But  his  party  was  in  the  minority  and  he  was  defeated,  but 
under  circumstances  which  exhibited  how  highly  he  was  ap- 
preciated by  the  electors  of  the  county. 

Mr.  Ridgway  entered  upon  the  duties  of  his  office  January  1, 
1884,  and  at  this  writing  has  discharged  them  for  over  four 
months.  The  duties  of  District  Attorney  in  Kings  County  are 
peculiarly  arduous  and  of  great  responsibility;  thus  far  Mr. 
Eidgway's  great  industry  and  happy  faculty  of  dispatching 
business,  and  untiring  adherence  to  all  his  duties,  have  been 
manifested. 

It  is  said  that  a  public  man  never  exhibits  his  strength  of 
mind  more  substantially  than  in  selecting  proper  assistants — 
men  whose  abilities  blend  with  his  in  the  discharge  of  his  duties. 
In  this  respect  Mr.  Ridgway  has  shown  peculiar  sagacity.  His 
assistants  are  John  U.  Shorter,  John  F.  Clarke,  and  Albert  F. 
Jenks,  three  accomplished  members  of  the  junior  Bar  of  Brook- 
lyn, who  bring  to  their  office  those  abilities  and  that  learning 
■which  must  largely  subserve  the  interests  of  the  people. 


SEYMOUR  S.  PELOUBET, 
Though  Mr.  Peloubet  is  not  strictly  a  member  of  the  Brooklyn 
Bar,  he  is  intimately  connected  with  it  as  an  extensive  law  book 
publisher,  who  furnishes  for  lawyers  and  judges  the  libraries  in 
which  they  prepare,  and  keep  themselves  prepared,  for  the 
duties  of  the  Bench  and  the  Bar.  Perhaps  his  general  knowl- 
edge of  law  and  law  books  is  equal  to  any  Lawyer  in  practice, 
and  perhaps  no  man  knows  bow  to  select  a  library  better  than  he. 
In  speaking  of  the  great  increase  of  law  books,  Mr.  Peloubet 
says:  "The  multiplication  of  law  books  has  been  so  rapid  of 
late  years,  that  few  lawyers  can  procure,  by  their  own  private 
resources,  all  they  need  for  the  work  of  their  profession.  This 
multiplication  has  correspondingly  increased  the  number  of 
volumes  it  is  necessary  for  every  lawyer  who  would  be  thorough 
and  accurate  in  the  discharge  of  his  professional  duties  to  con- 
sult. For  this  reason,  public  law  libraries  have  become  indis- 
pensable to  the  legal  profession.     The  expenditure  simply  for 


the  purchase  of  the  annual  law  reports  of  England  and  America 
is  so  great  that  but  few  members  of  the  profession,  and  only  the 
stronger  public  libraries,  are  able  to  procure  them.  The  number 
of  pages  of  reported  cases  of  the  English  and  American  Courts 
published  yearly  is  not  less  than  00,000;  add  to  this  the  yearly 
volumes  of  statute  law,  works  on  elementary  law,  and  different 
law  treatises,  and  it  is  obviously  only  a  problem  of  arithmetic  to 
ascertain  the  time  when  the  walls  of  our  great  public  libraries 
will  not  longer  afford  space  for  the  load." 

A  report  of  the  Bar  Association  of  the  City  of  New  York  shows 
that,  from  the  year  1704  to  1873 — a  period  of  seventy-nine  years 
— there  were  published  in  the  State  of  New  York  alone  500 
volumes  of  reported  cases,  more  than  one-third  of  the  reports  of 
Great  Britain  for  565  years.  Mr.  Peloubet  prepared  a  statement 
showing  the  age  and  number  of  volumes  of  some  of  the  libraries 
of  the  world,  from  which  we  take  the  following: 

The  Law  Library  of  Lincoln's  Inn,  of  London,  is  one  of  the 
oldest,  dating  its  beginning  from  1497;  that  of  the  Middle 
Temple,  from  1041;  and  the  Library  of  the  Faculty  of  Advocates, 
in  Edinburgh,  from  1680. 

Our  American  law  libraries  are  products  of  the  present  cen- 
tury; very  few  have  had  an  existence  of  over  fifty  years.  The 
following  is  a  list  of  the  law  libraries  in  the  State  of  New  York, 
the  date  of  their  origin,  and  number  of  volumes: 

Attorney-General's,  at  Albany,  founded  in  1850,  containing 
2,000  vols.;   Court  of  Appeals  Library,  at  Albany,  founded  in 

1849,  2,000  vols. ;  Law  Library,  at  Belmont,  Allegany  County, 
founded  in  1860,  2,500  vols.;  Brooklyn  Law  Library,  founded  in 

1850,  5,325  vols. ;  Supreme  Court  Library,  Eighth  Judicial  Dis- 
trict, Buffalo,  founded  in  18C3,  5,250  vols.;  Hamilton  Law 
School  Library,  Clinton,  N.  Y.,  founded  1864,  5,000  vols.;  Mon- 
ticello,  Sullivan  County,  Law  Library,  1869,  2,156  vols.;  New 
York  Bar  Association  Law  Library,  founded  in  1870,  9,077  vols.; 
Columbia  College  Law  School  Library,  New  York  City,  founded 
in  I860,  4,500  vols.;  Law  Institute  Law  Library,  New  York  City, 
founded  in  1828,  20,000  vols.;  The  Supreme  Court,  First  Depart- 
ment, First  Judicial  District,  Law  Library,  New  York  City, 
founded  in  1852,  2,000  vols.;  Court  of  Appeals  Library,  Roches- 
ter, N.  Y.,  founded  in  1849, 10,000  vols.;  Fourth  Judicial  District 
Law  Library,  Schenectady,  N.  Y.,  founded  1866,  2,500  vols.; 
Court  of  Appeals  Law  Library,  Syracuse,  N.Y.,  founded  in  1849, 
8,500  vols. 

The  State  of  New  York  has  more  than  double  the  number  of 
law  libraries  than  any  other  State  in  the  Union;  the  aggre- 
gate number  of  volumes  in  the  law  libraries  being  about  81,408; 
the  oldest  library  being  founded  only  a  little  over  fifty  years 
ago.  The  enterprise  which  has  characterized  the  growth  of  our 
State  has  been,  in  no  department,  more  manifest  than  in  that 
of  our  public  law  libraries. 

Mr.  Peloubet,  and  the  firms  with  which  he  has  been  con- 
nected, have  furnished  a  large  number  of  the  books  found  in 
these  libraries. 

Mr.  Peloubet  was  bom  in  Bloomfield,  N.  J.,  in  1844,  and  is  a 
son  of  Chabrier  Peloubet,  the  extensive  and  well-known  manu- 
facturer of  reed  organs.  Inheriting  in  a  large  degree  his 
father's  energy,  integrity  and  fixedness  of  purpose,  his  success 
is  due  largely  to  these  charactei-istios. 

Mrs.  Peloubet,  his  wife,  formerly  Miss  Mary  E.  Johnson,  is 
a  grand-daughter  of  Gen.  Jeremiah  Johnson,  and  is  said  to  be  a 
direct  descendant  of  the  first  white  child  born  on  Long  Island. 

After  receiving  a  liberal  education  in  1860,  he  became  clerk 
for  George  Diossy,  an  extensive  law  book  merchant  of  New 
York  City;  in  1868,  he  became  a  partner  with  Mr.  Diossy,  under 
the  name  of  Diossy  &  Co.  In  1876  Mr.  Diossy  retired,  and  Mr. 
Peloubet  associated  with  himself  Mr.  E.  G.  Ward,  who  con- 
tinued a  member  of  the  firm  for  three  years,  when  he  retired  in 
favor  of  Mr.  Diossy.  In  1867,  Mr.  Peloubet  became  a  resident 
of  Brooklyn,  where  he  has  resided  ever  since.     He  has  been 


1256 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


favorably  connected  with,  and  largely  published,  the  works  of 
several  legal  authors;  among  these  works  are  Ahholl's  National 
Di'^c.sV,  in  eight  volumes,  by  Benjamin  Vamjhn  and  Austin  Atjhott ; 
Abbott's  United  States  Practice,  2  volumes,  by  Benjamin  V. 
Abbott ;  Coimneniaries  on  American  Law,  2  volumes,  by  Francis 
Hilliard  ;  J?epor(s  of  Cases  under  the  New  York  Ciril  Procedure, 
5  volumes,  and  continued  monthly,  by  Henry  H.  Browne; 
Lives  of  Eminent  Lawyers  of  New  York,  in  2  volumes;    Laicyer 


and  Client,  or  Trials  and  TViumphs  ofihe  Bar,  by  L.  B.  Proctor; 
Reports  of  Cases  in  the  Supreme  Court  of  New  York,  in  2  volumes, 
by  Hon.  John  W.  Edmonds. 

Mr.  Peloubet  has  compiled  two  books  which  have  been 
generously  received — Students'  Law  Dictionary  of  Words  and 
Phrases,  and  Common  Law  Definitions;  A  Collection  of  Legal 
Maxims  in  Law  and  Equity,  loilh  English  Translations. 


Important   Trials, 


TRIAL  OF  GONZALEZ  AND  PELLICIER  FOR  THE 
MURDER  OF  JOSE  GARCIE  ORTERO. 

Is  the  course  of  this  work  we  have  occasionally  referred, 
briefly,  to  this  celebrated  case,  the  history  of  which  reveals  one 
of  the  most  startling  and  barbarous  murders  in  the  record  of 
crime.  We  shall  now  give  a  condensed  history  of  the  whole 
case,  as  the  legal  historj'  of  Kings  County  and  Brooklyn  would 
be  incomplete  without  it. 

J.  Garcie  Ortero  was  a  native  of  Havana,  in  the  island  of 
Cuba,  belonging  to  a  highly  respectable  family  of  that  city,  and 
was  himself  held  in  high  esteem  for  his  many  estimable  qual- 
ities. He  had  been  well  educated,  and  had  given  some  attention 
to  the  fine  arts  and  the  drama.  As  he  was  possessed  of  consid- 
erable wealth,  he  had  the  means  for  indulging  his  tastes.  He 
was  at  the  time  of  his  death  about  thirty-six  years  of  age. 

During  the  year  1865,  he  erected  and  tastefully  adorned  a 
theatre  in  Havana.  Early  in  November  of  that  j'ear,  he  visited 
New  York  City  for  the  purpose  of  purchasing  materials  for  the 
completion  of  his  theatre,  taking  with  him  a  considerable  sum 
of  money,  with  letters  of  credit  and  drafts. 

Among  the  passengers  on  the  steamer  which  brought  Ortero 
to  New  York,  was  Gonzalez,  a  Spaniard,  who  left  Havana  for 
New  York  without  baggage,  and  without  any  apparent  object. 
As  there  were  but  two  or  three  of  Ortero's  countrymen  on  board, 
he  soon  made  the  acquaintance  of  Gonzalez,  and,  notwithstand- 
ing his  rough  and  rather  forbidding  appearance,  Ortero  seemed 
to  take  an  interest  in  him.  His  sympathy  was  aroused  by  the 
pitiful  story  which  Gonzalez  gave  him  of  his  misfortunes  and 
sorrows,  and  the  high-bred  and  wealthy  gentleman  admitted  his 
impecunious  countryman  to  his  friendship. 

They  reached  New  York  on  the  15th  of  November,  and  went 
immediately  to  the  Barcelona  Hotel,  in  Great  Jones  street,  where 
Ortero  took  rooms.  Such  was  the  forbidding  appearance  of 
Gonzalez,  and  as  he  was  without  baggage,  the  clerk  of  the  hotel 
refused  to  give  him  a  room.  Ortero,  however,  informed  the  clerk 
that  Gonzalez  was  a  poor  unfortunate,  but  he  believed  honest 
man,  who  had  come  to  New  Y'ork  to  find  employment;  and,  at  his 
solicitation,  a  room  was  given  the  man.  At  this  time  Salvadore, 
or  Pellicier,  a  Cuban,  occupied  a  room  at  the  Hotel  de  Cuba, 
with  one  Frank  Yiela,  both  of  whom  had  recently  come  from 
Havana;  the  former  was  very  poor,  serving  sometimes  as  a 
waiter  at  the  Barcelona,  and  sometimes  as  an  itinerant  glazier. 
Soon  after  Ortero  became  a  guest  at  his  hotel,  Pellicier  made 
his  acquaintance  and  that  of  Gonzalez,  and  these  three  Cubans 
became  quite  intimate.  It  was  noticed  that  Gonzalez  and 
Pellicier  had  many  interviews  by  themselves.  It  was  well  known 
that  both  these  men  were  entirely  without  means. 

On  the  18th  of  November,  Ortero  went  to  Philadelphia,  leav- 
ing Gonzalez  at  the  hotel  an  occupant  of  his  rooms;  this  was  on 
Saturday.  During  his  absence  Gonzalez  exhibited  a  degree  of 
restlessness  and  anxiety  for  the  return  of  Ortero  that  attracted 


the  attention  of  the  clerk  and  others  about  the  hotel.  He  would 
walk  about  by  himself,  and  frequently  inquire  of  the  clerk  if 
Ortero  was  really  coming  back. 

On  Monday,  the  20th,  Ortero  returned,  and  Gonzalez  received 
him  with  apparent  marks  of  joy,  but  to  the  people  about  the  hotel 
Gonzalez  was  a  person  of  such  doubtful  character  that,  during 
Ortero's  absence,  the  clerk  presented  his  bill,  although  he  had 
been  at  the  hotel  but  a  few  days.  He  declared  his  inability  to 
pay,  but  said  he  would  pay  on  the  return  of  Ortero.  As  Ortero 
and  Gonzalez  were  going  to  dinner,  on  the  day  of  the  former's 
return,  the  clerk  stopped  Gonzalez  and  again  requested  the 
payment  of  his  bill.  Ortero  replied,  "  I  will  pay  mine  too,"  and 
at  the  same  time  took  from  his  pocket  a  handful  of  gold  coins, 
from  which  he  paid  his  bill.  Although  Gonzalez  did  not  pay, 
he  was  permitted  to  pass  into  the  dining-i-oom,  probably  on  the 
assurance  of  Ortero  that  his  bill  would  be  all  right.  The 
manner  in  which  Gonzalez  watched  Ortero,  while  paying  his 
bill,  attracted  the  attention  of  the  clerk. 

When  Ortero  was  making  his  purchases  about  the  city  Gon- 
zalez, and  sometimes  Pellicier,  accompanied  him,  and  the  great 
contrast  in  the  appearance  of  the  three  men  occasioned  much 
comment.  Ortero  was  a  large  and  elegantly  formed  man,  with 
the  dress  and  manners  of  a  gentleman,  and  according  to  appear- 
ances a  man  of  means  and  cultiire.  His  companions  were 
quite  the  reverse;  their  appearance  indicating  a  degree  of  stand- 
ihg  much  beneath  that  of  their  companion;  there  was  a  sinister, 
almost  brutal  expression  in  their  countenances,  and  their  cloth- 
ing indicated  their  impecunious  circumstances.  It  is  strange, 
indeed,  that  a  gentlemanlike  Ortero  should  become  thus  inti- 
mate with  men  like  Gonzalez  and  Pellicier,  but  he  was  young, 
ardent  and  generous;  the  sorrowful  story  which  Gonzalez  had 
related  to  him  quite  disarmed  all  suspicious  thoughts,  and  it  is 
very  probable  that  he  was  determined  to  assist  him  in  some  way 
into  business.  So  unsuspecting  was  he  of  his  companions  that 
he  often,  in  making  his  purchases,  showed  large  sums  of  money, 
which  always  attracted  their  attention,  and  their  secret  consul- 
tations were  often  remarked.  Ortero  was  frequently  cautioned 
against  the  careless  manner  in  which  he  exhibited  his  money, 
but  he  paid  no  heed  to  the  caution. 

On  November  21st,  Ortero  and  Pellicier  dined  together  at 
about  6  p.  M.,  after  which  they  went  to  the  Hotel  de  Cuba, 
where  Gonzalez  soon  joined  them.  On  his  way  there  he  pro- 
cured two  razors  of  Viela;  he  had  previously  procured  a 
poniard  of  Pellicier.  After  remaining  awhile  at  the  hotel, 
Ortero,  Gonzalez  and  Pellicier  went  out,  and  by  the  way  of 
Fulton  Ferry  proceeded  to  Brooklyn,  going  directly  to  Evans' 
Hotel,  at  the  corner  of  Clinton  and  Myrtle  avenues,  where  they 
remained  until  about  half-past  nine  in  the  evening.  At  the  hotel 
both  men  drank  quite  heavily,  endeavoring  to  intoxicate 
Ortero,  who,  though  somewhat  excited,  was  in  no  way  over- 
come by  the  liquor.  Finally,  it  was  proposed  by  Gonzalez  or 
Pellicier  to  visit  the  City  Park,  which  is  no  great  distance  from 


BENCH  AND  BAR  OF  BROOKLYN. 


1257 


that  place.  The  night  was  very  dark,  and  it  will  never  be 
known  by  what  inducements  Ortero  was  led  to  accompany  these 
men  at  that  hour  to  this  deserted  place.  He  had  never  before 
been  in  Brooklyn,  and  was  of  course  a  stranger  to  every  bodj'. 
They  entered  the  jjark  at  the  Canton  street  corner,  and  took  a 
path  which  crosses  it  diagonally,  and  proceeded  to  the  centre  or 
most  sequestered  part  of  it.  Perhaps  a  more  fitting  place  for 
"dark  and  midnight  murder"  could  not  have  been  found  in 
Brooklyn,  and  surely  a  more  gloomy  night  could  not  have  been 
selected.  The  wail  of  the  November  wind  which  swept  through 
the  trees  and  over  the  park  prevented  all  outcry  from  being 
heard,  and  in  this  spot  the  party  halted.  With  the  spring  of 
tigers,  the  two  ruffians  grappled  their  unarmed  victim,  and  with 
their  razors  attempted  to  cut  his  throat;  but,  as  we  have  .said,  he 
was  a  man  of  powerful  physical  strength,  young  and  active,  and 
a  desperate  and  mortal  strife  began.  There  was  something  appal- 
ling in  this  terrible  struggle — the  tug,  the  grip,  the  blow— the 
swift  stroke  of  the  deadly  weapons—and,  no  doubt  sensible 
of  the  unequal  contest,  Ortero's  cries  of  murder  went  up 
from  the  scene;  but  at  that  hour,  and  stifled  by  the  wind, 
there  was  none  to  hear  it,  and  the  contest  went  on.  From 
all  appearances,  Ortero  succeeded  in  wrenching  a  razor  from 
the  hand  of  one  of  the  assassins,  and  with  it  he  inflicted  a 
deep  wound  on  the  hand  of  Pellicier.'  Failing  in  their  efforts 
with  the  razor,  though  inflicting  terrible  wounds  upon  their 
victim,  they  resorted  to  the  poniard ;  with  this  they  succeeded 
in  giving  him  several  wounds,  either  of  which  would  have 
proved  mortal.  One  thrust  of  the  poniard  entered  his  back  and 
pierced  the  spinal  column,  and  soon  Ortero  lay  at  their  feet  a 
ghastly  corpse,  gashed  with  Iwmbj-ehjlit  wounds.  The  deed  was 
done.  Early  the  next  morning  a  citizen,  in  passing  through  the 
park,  discovered  the  body  of  Ortero,  still  warm  and  bleeding. 
The  alarm  was  instantly  given  and  the  police  notified.  The 
victim  was  of  course  unknown,  but  he  had  the  appearance  of  a 
gentleman,  and  in  one  of  the  pockets  of  his  pantaloons  was  a 
large  sum  of  money,  in  gold;  the  other  was  turned  inside  out, 
showing  that  the  victim  had  been  robbed,  and  that  the  robber 
had  been  frightened  away  before  securing  the  contents  of  this 
pocket.  In  one  of  his  pockets  his  receipted  hotel  bill  was 
found,  which  soon  led  to  his  identification. 

At  the  Evans  House,  which  is  not  far  from  the  City  Park,  the 
three  men  attracted  much  attention  on  the  night  of  the  murder  ; 
Ortero  by  his  refined  and  gentlemanly  bearing  and  noble  form, 
his  companions  by  their  rough  appearance.  Persons  at  the 
Evans  House  readily  recognized  the  body  of  Ortero  as  that 
of  the  interesting  stranger  whose  appearance  had  attracted  their 
attention  the  night  before,  and  his  companions  with  whom  he 
left  the  house  were  equally  well  remembered.  This  answered 
the  first  inquiry — with  whom  was  he  last  seen  ?  On  the  ground, 
not  far  from  the  body  of  Ortero,  there  was  found  a  pair  of  gloves, 
one  of  them  cut  and  bloody,  two  razors,  one  of  them  badly 
bent,  and  a  dagger.  The  police  went  to  work,  and  they  soon 
ascertained,  by  means  of  the  receipted  hotel  bill,  that  the 
"Barcelona"    was    the    stopping    place    of   Ortero,    and    that 

*  Pellicier,  the  day  before  lie  was  executed,  made  a  full  coufeesion  of 
the  commission  of  the  crime.  In  which  he  disagreed  in  some  respects  with 
the  evidence  given  for  the  people  on  the  trial.  He  denied  that  the  party 
were  at  the  Evans  House  at  all,  insisting  that  they  went  directly  from  the 
ferry  to  the  park;  that  Gonzalez  began  the  attack  upon  Ortero,  and  did  the 
principal  part  of  the  murder;  that  he,  Pellicier,  inflicted  no  injury  upon 
their  victim  until  after  ho  had  fallen  upon  the  ground,  and  then,  fearing 
that  Gonzalez  would  kill  him  for  having  taken  no  part  in  the  murder,  he 
made  several  cuts  on  Ortero  with  a  razor;  that  while  doing  so,  Gonzalez, 
in  attempting  to  make  another  cut  at  Ortero,  inflicted  the  wound  on 
Pellicier's  left  hand,  by  which  ho  had  hold  of  the  victim.  The  struggle 
was,  he  said,  entirely  between  Ortero  and  Gonzalez,  and  Ortero  was 
brought  to  the  ground  by  the  plunge  of  the  dagger,  which  pierced  the  spinal 
column.  They  had,  previous  to  this  time,  laid  a  plan  to  murder  him  at 
his  hotel  in  New  York,  intending  to  take  up  the  floor  and  secrete  his  body 
beneath  it,  and  with  his  money  escape  to  Spain  in  a  steamer  about  to  sail, 
but  ditliculty  in  taking  up  the  tioor  prevented. 


Gonzalez  and  Pellicier,  whq  answered  the  descriptions  of  the 
men  who  were  with  Ortero  at  the  Evans  House,  were  with  him 
at  the  Barcelona  and  at  the  Hotel  de  Cuba,  and  that  he  left  the 
latter  hotel  in  their  companj'.  Two  steamers  were  to  sail  for 
Havana  on  the  day  on  which  the  murder  was  discovered;  the 
police  officers  were  detailed  to  watch  these  steamers.  About 
three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  Pellicier,  wearing  a  pair  of  heavy 
woolen  mittens,  went  on  board  one  of  the  vessels  and  was  im- 
mediately arrested.  At  first  he  refused  to  take  off  his  mittens, 
but  at  length  reluctantly  did  so,  and  a  deojj  wound  on  his  hand 
was  revealed.  He  was  taken  to  Brooklyn  and  confronted  with 
the  bloody  glove,  which  he  had  worn  when  committing  the 
murder,  and  the  cut  in  the  glove  exactly  fitted  the  cut  in  his 
hand.  Gonzalez  was  arrested  at  a  boarding-house  in  Center 
street  the  next  day  after  the  murder.  He  went  directly  from  the 
bloody  scene  to  this  boarding-house,  reaching  there  quite  late  in 
the  night;  the  next  morning  he  purchased  a  new  suit  of  clothes, 
shaved  his  mustache,  and  otherwise  attempted  to  change  his 
appearance.  Pellicier  had  also  changed  his  clothes  in  many 
respects.  Gonzalez'  vest,  pants,  drawers  and  shirt,  that  he  had 
cast  off,  were  found  with  spots  of  blood  on  them.  The  next  day 
after  the  murder  Gonzalez  had  plenty  of  money,  and  treated  the 
persons  about  the  hotel  to  whiskey,  and  upon  one  occasion  he 
took  a  handful  of  gold  coin  from  his  pocket  and,  showing  it, 
said,  "  That's  the  kind  of  money  they  have  in  Spain."  After  his 
arrest,  $40  or  S50  in  gold  and  other  money  was  found  In  his 
pockets,  and  two  certified  drafts,  payable  to  Ortero,  were  found 
sewed  in  Gonzalez'  coat  collar;  the  drafts  wero  for  a  large 
amount.  Pellicier  and  Gonzalez  were  indicted  by  a  Grand  Jury 
of  Kings  County,  in  December,  18G5,  and  in  January,  1866,  they 
were  brought  to  trial  at  a  Court  of  Oyer  and  Terminer,  held  at 
the  Court  House  in  Brooklyn,  Mr.  Justioo  Gilbert  presiding. 
Hon.  S.  D.  Morris,  then  District  Attorney  of  Kings  County, 
appeared  for  the  people,  and  Hon.  William  C.  De  Witt 
appeared  for  the  defense.  Gonzalez  and  Pellicier  were 
indicted  jointly,  but  they  were  tried  separately,  Gonzalez 
being  first  biought  to  trial.  A  long,  interesting  and 
exciting  legal  contest  took  place;  the  trial  was  conducted  with 
great  legal  skill  and  learning  on  both  sides.  The  evidence  for 
the  people  consisted  mainly  of  the  facts  already  related,  as 
sworn  to  by  different  witnesses.  The  circumstances  proved 
against  Gonzalez  were,  as  we  have  seen,  very  strong,  but  the 
defense  grappled  with  them  with  an  energy  and  subtlety 
which  seemed  to  render  a  conviction  doubtful.  Anthon,  one 
of  the  policemen  who  arrested  Gonzalez,  in  answer  to  the 
question  as  to  the  identity  of  a  pair  of  drawers  produced  on  the 
trial,  said  he  thought  those  were  the  prisoner's  drawers;  that 
he  noticed  a  mark  of  blood  on  them  when  he  found  them.  The 
counsel  for  the  defense  objected  to  the  expression  "a  mark  of 
blood,"  and  excepted  to  the  refusal  of  the  Court  to  strike  it 
out.  In  reply  to  a  question  on  his  cross-examination,  the 
witness  said   "I  noticed  a  spot  of  blood  on  the  drawers." 

Waddy,  another  of  the  officers  who  made  the  arrest,  testified 
to  the  identity  of  the  coat,  vest,  pants,  shirt  and  drawers  found 
in  the  prisoner's  room,  and  was  asked:  "  Did  you  notice  any 
spots  on  these  clothes?" 

Objected  to  ;  objection  overruled. 

Ans.  "  Yes,  sir  :  stains  on  the  coat,  vest,  pants,  drawers  and 
shirt.  There  is  one  of  the  stains  on  the  pants,  and  there  is  one 
on  the  waist.  The  spots  on  this  light  coat  are  nearly  off.  The 
spots  that  were  on  the  right  sleeve  I  don't  see.  The  spots  which 
were  on  the  coat  are  rubbed  off." 

Ques.  "  Examine  the  drawers." 

Ans.  "  I  examined  them  the  morning  I  brought  them  down  to 
the  station,  and  the  spots  that  were  on  them  are  all  rubbed  off.'' 

Ques.  "  Look  at  the  shirt." 

Ans.  "  There  on  the  waist  of  the  shirt  is  a  spot." 

Objected  to  on  the  ground  that  there  is  no  evidence  that  the 
shirt  belonged  to  the  prisoner  ;  objection  overruled;  exception. 


1258 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Mr.  De  Witt :  "  The  court  nnderstands,  I  suppose,  that  all  this 
testimony  as  to  the  character  of  these  stains  is  taken  subject  to 
an  exception?" 

Judge  Gilbert :  "  No,  sir." 

Mr.  De  Witt :  "  We  excepted  in  the  case  of  the  witness  Ashton, 
and  have  excepted  here.  The  character  of  the  blood  stains  can 
only  be  determined  by  scientific  analysis." 

Ju<J(je  Gilbert :  "  AVe  do  not  understand  that  there  is  an  excep- 
tion to  the  testimony  of  the  witness  on  that  subject,  and  if 
counsel  desires  to  save  this  point  they  must  move  to  strike  out 
that  portion  of  the  testimony." 

Accordingly  the  counsel  for  the  prisoner  did  move  to  strike 
out  all  the  testimony  as  to  the  stains  on  the  clothing.  As  the 
District  Attorney  did  not  object,  that  evidence  was  stricken  out. 
The  opposition  then  offered  to  exhibit  to  the  jury  the  clothes 
and  the  stains  thereon.  This  was  objected  to  by  the  defense, 
but  the  objection  was  overruled,  and  there  was  an  exception. 
It  was  proved  these  clothes  had  been  found  in  the  room  of  Gon- 
zalez at  the  time  of  the  arrest,  and  had  been  pointed  out  by  the 
landlady.  It  was  proved  that  the  shirt  belonged  to  Pellicier, 
who  returned  from  Brooklyn  with  Gonzalez,  and  slept  with  him 
the  night  after  the  murder;  that  he  wore  a  new  shirt  soon  after. 
The  defense  on  the  trial  proved  that  several  days  before  the 
murder  a  fight  took  place  between  the  parties,  in  which  Pellicier's 
hand  was  cut,  which  accounted  for  the  wound  on  his  hand. 
There  was  some  other  explanatory  evidence  on  the  part  of  the  de- 
fense, but  the  foregoing  is  substantially  the  evidence  in  the  case. 
The  evidence  was  very  ably  summed  up  by  the  respective 
counsel,  in  a  manner  that  negatives  the  assertion  that  the 
eloquence  of  the  Bar  has  passed  away.  After  a  very  learned  and 
impartial  charge  from  Mr.  Justice  Gilbert,  the  case  was  given  to 
the  jury,  who,  in  due  time,  returned  a  verdict  of  "murder  in 
the  first  degree."  The  trial  of  Pellicier  resulted  in  a  like  ver- 
dict, and  both  prisoners  were  sentenced  to  be  hanged,  but  the 
indefatigable  counsel  for  the  defense  carried  the  case  to  the 
General  Term  of  the  Supreme  Court,  alleging,  among  other 
grounds  of  error,  that  Judge  Gilbert  erred  in  admitting  proof 
that  the  clothing  worn  by  the  prisoners  on  the  night  of  the 
murder  was  found,  at  the  time  of  their  arrest,  to  be  marked 
with  spots  which  had  the  appearance  of  stains  of  blood;  and  in 
permitting  the  clothes  thus  stained  to  be  inspected  by  the  jury. 
The  court  sustained  these  grounds  of  error  and  set  aside  the  con- 
viction of  the  prisoners,  and  ordered  a  new  trial.  From  this 
judgment  of  the  Supreme  Court  the  District  Attorney  appealed 
to  the  Court  of  Appeals.  In  February,  1866,  the  cases  came  on 
for  argument  in  that  high  court.  Hon.  Samuel  D.  Morris  and 
John  H.  Eeynolds  appeared  for  the  peoj^le;  Hon.  Alexander 
McCue  and  William  C.  De  Witt  for  the  defense.  After  argu- 
ments of  unusual  ability  and  learning,  the  court  handed  down 
an  opinion  reversing  the  judgment  of  the  Supreme  Court,  sus- 
taining the  ruling  of  Judge  Gilbert,  and  directing  that  sentence 
of  death  against  the  prisoners  be  carried  into  execution. 

As  a  matter  of  instruction  and  interest,  we  add  that  the  follow- 
ing is  among  the  rulings  of  the  Court  of  Appeals  in  the  case  : 
"  It  is  not  erroneous,  on  the  trial  of  one  who  was  last  seen  with  a 
murdered  man  a  few  moments  before  the  homicide,  to  admit 
proof,  by  those  who  arrested  him,  that  they  found  his  clothing 
stained  with  blood. 

Such  stains  upon  the  person  and  clothing  of  the  accused 
are  among  the  ordinary  indicia  of  homicide;  and  the  practice  of 
identifying  them  by  substantial  evidence,  and  by  the  inspection 
of  witnesses  and  jurj',  has  the  sanction  of  immemorial  usage  in 
all  criminal  tribunals. 

Matters  of  common  observation  may  ordinarily  be  proved  by 
those  who  witness  them,  without  resorting  to  scientific  or 
mechanical  tests,  to  verify  them  with  definite  precision. 

The  testimony  of  the  chemist  who  has  analyzed  blood,  and 
that  of  the  observer  who  has  merely  recognized  it,  belong  to 


the  same  grade  of  original  and  primary  evidence  ;  and  though 
one  may  be  entitled  to  greater  weight  than  the  other  with  the 
jur}',  the  exclusion  of  either  would  be  illegal. 

The  clothes,  identified  as  those  worn  by  the  prisoners  on  the 
evening  of  the  murder,  were  properly  submitted  to  the  inspec- 
tion of  the  jury  by  the  judge. 

Nothing  legitimately  connected  with  the  res  geslrr  of  the 
crime  should  be  excluded  from  the  consideration  of  the  jury." 

Gonzalez  and  Pellicier  were  both  executed. 


JOHN  H.  MILLS  AND  ISAAC  M.  DEAN  vs.  THE 
CITY   OF   BROOKLYN. 

The  interest  and  importance  attached  to  this  case  is  derived 
from  the  fact  that  it  is  a  precedent  showing  that  a  municipal 
corporation,  village  or  city  is  not  liable  to  private  actions  for 
damages  accruing  for  not  providing  sufficient  sewerage  for  the 
drainage  of  lots  or  land  belonging  to  citizens,  etc. 

The  establishment  of  this  precedent,  with  others  equally  im- 
portant, was  the  result  of  the  adjudication  in  the  Circuit  Court, 
the  General  Term,  and  the  Court  of  Apppeals,  of  the  following 
case,  which  we  take  from  the  evidence  given  on  the  trial: 

John  H.  Mills  and  Isaac  M.  Dean,  the  plaintiffs  in  the  case, 
were  the  joint  owners  of  a  lot,  with  a  valuable  brick  dwelling- 
house  thereon,  situated  at  the  northwest  corner  of  Franklin  and 
Putnam  avenues,  Brooklyn.  The  defendants,  the  City  Corpora- 
tion, had,  by  law,  the  care  of  its  streets  and  avenues,  and  the 
control  of  widening  the  sewerage  and  drainage  of  the  said  streets 
and  avenues.  The  grievances  of  which  the  plaintiffs  comj^lain, 
and  which  constituted  their  cause  of  action,  were  as  follows: 

"  That  the  said  corporation  negligently  and  unskillfuUy  built, 
provided  and  established  sewers  at  the  corner  of  Franklin  and 
Putnam  avenues.  That  the  said  sewers  were  insufficient  to 
properly  conduct  the  water  brought  to  said  corner  by  the  grade 
of  said  avenues,  and  the  streets  and  avenues  thereto  adjacent. 
That  the  sewers  were  so  negligently  and  unskillfully  built  that 
they  failed  to  perform  the  office  for  which  they  were  constructed. 
That  by  reason  of  this  imperfect  construction,  the  plaintiffs' 
house  and  lot  was  repeatedly  flooded  with  water  during  certain 
periods  of  time  in  the  months  of  March  and  August,  1861  and 
1862,  causing  the  walls  to  settle  and  crack,  and  the  building  to 
be  otherwise  injured,  resulting  in  damages  to  the  plaintiffs  of 
the  sum  of  $2,500." 

The  proofs  in  the  case,  on  the  part  of  the  plaintiffs,  show  that 
there  was  a  sewer  or  outlet  for  water  under  the  sidewalk  of  the 
street  prior  to  the  first  storm,  and  after  the  storm  in  March  and 
in  the  month  of  May  following,  the  Water  Commissioners  caused 
a  pipe  drain,  earthen  sewer,  about  twelve  inches  in  diameter,  to 
be  constructed  in  the  street,  but  it  proved  insuflioient  to  carry 
off  the  water  as  it  came  down.  The  sewer  was  built  in  obedience 
to  a  resolution  of  the  Common  Council,  adojjted  April  16,  1861. 

The  [proof,  on  the  part  of  the  defendants,  as  given  by  an 
assistant  engineer  of  the  Water  and  Sewerage  Commissioners, 
who  constructed  the  sewer,  established  the  fact  that  it  was  a 
stoneware  pipe,  eighteen  inches  in  diameter,  above  the  plaintiffs' 
premises.  That  below  that  point  a  large  sewer  could  not  be  laid 
on  that  course,  in  consequence  of  the  grade  and  different  dimen- 
sions of  the  sewers  with  which  they  were  obliged  to  connect; 
that  if  made  larger,  it  would  have  to  be  so  near  the  surface  of 
the  street  that  it  could  not  have  a  sufficiently  thick  covering. 
That,  after  the  August  storms,  an  additional  sewer  was  con- 
structed. The  cori^oration  further  proved  that  the  walls  of  the 
house  had  been  very  much  damaged  prior  to  the  laying  down  of 
the  temporary  sewer,  and  that  the  basement  walls  of  the  house 
were  laid  in  unsuitable  mortar.  A  large  amount  of  evidence 
was  given  on  both  sides.  At  the  close  of  the  plaintiffs'  case,  J. 
G.  Schumaker,  counsel  for  the  corporation,  moved  for  a  non- 
suit, on  the  ground  that  the  plaintiffs  had  failed  to  establish 


BENCH  AND  BAR   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1359 


sufficient  facts  to  constitute  a  cause  of  action.  The  motion  was 
denied,  with  proper  exceptions. 

Both  parties  having  rested,  the  judge,  in  his  charge  to  the 
jury,  instructed  them,  among  other  matters,  that  the  plaintiffs 
were  not  entitled  to  damages  sustained  by  them  prior  to  the 
building  of  the  sewer  in  May,  1861.  The  counsel  for  the  corpo- 
ration took  proper  exception  to  the  charge  of  the  judge,  and  re- 
quested him  to  charge,  as  a  matter  of  law,  that  the  plaintiffs 
could  not  recover  damages  in  any  point  of  view,  founding  his 
request  by  several,  as  he  believed,  well-established  precedents, 
which  we  shall  give  hereafter. 

The  judge  declined  to  thus  instruct  the  jury,  to  which  there 
was  an  excei^tion,  and  the  jjlaintiffs  recovered  a  verdict  of  $900. 
On  an  appeal  to  the  General  Term,  this  verdict  was  aflSrmed, 
whereupon  the  corporation  took  an  appeal  to  the  Court  of  Ap- 
jieals,  where,  after  elaborate  arguments,  the  verdict  at  the  Circuit, 
and  the  judgment  affirming  it  at  the  General  Term,  were  in  all 
things  reversed.  In  the  Court  of  Appeals  Mr.  Schumaker*  ap- 
peared for  the  corporation,  and  David  J.  Dean  for  the  plaintiffs. 
The  ability  with  which  these  able  lawyers  conducted  the  argu- 
ment before  that  court,  although  what  might  be  expected  from 
lawyers  of  their  high  standing,  was  considered  something  more 
than  ordinary.  The  brief  of  Mr.  Schumaker  was  marked  by 
logical  strength  and  acumen,  united  with  extended  legal  learn- 
ing. As  an  evidence  of  this,  it  was  largely  engrafted  in  the 
opinion  of  the  court.  The  following  is  a  condensed  extract 
from  it.  The  first  point  in  it  we  have  substantially  given  hereto- 
fore: "A  municipal  corijoration  is  not  liable  to  private  actions 
for  not  providing  sufficient  sewerage  for  draining  the  premises 
of  citizens  owning  the  same.  Second,  the  duty  of  draining  the 
streets  and  sewerages  of  a  city  or  village,  although  not  a  judicial 
one,  is  of  a  judicial  nature,  requiring  the  exercise  of  qualities 
of  deliberation  and  judgment.  Third,  where  duties  of  a  purely 
ministerial  character  are  cast  upon  an  officer,  although  his  chief 
duties  are  judicial,  and  he  violates  his  ministerial  duties,  he  is 
civilly  responsible,  but  in  respect  to  his  judicial  duties  other- 
wise." As  these  points  enter  largely  into  the  opinion  of  the  Court 
of  Ai^peals  delivered  in  this  case,  they  constitue  the  law  of  the 
land  touching  the  liability  of  corporations  for  damages  in  cases 
like  the  one  we  have  described. 


THE   PEOPLE  vs.  YATES. 

No  case  on  record  more  graphically  exhibits  the  danger  of 
imbridled  political  hatred,  the  terror  of  a  mob,  or  the  sudden 
and  overwhelming  misfortunes  which  often  overtake  men  in  the 
midst  of  their  business  and  social  career,  than  this. 

Early  in  the  evening  of  October,  1861,  Yates  was  assisting  a 
lady  to  remove  her  furniture  from  one  house  to  another,  in 
Brooklyn.  About  nine  o'clock,  as  he  was  passing  the  corner  of 
Hudson  avenue  and  Plymouth  street,  where  a  large  out-door 
Democratic  meeting  was  convened,  he  stopped  and  listened  a 
moment  to  the  speaker.  While  standing  there,  some  person 
remarked  that  he  would  "bet  that  McClellan  would  be 
elected,"  to  which  Yates  replied,  "I'll  bet  ten  dollars  Lincoln 
will  be  elected."     This  reply  was  followed  by  the  exclamation, 

"Let  us  give  it  to  the   ,"  and  immediately  a  dozen  men 

attacked  him,  knocking  him  down,  kicking  and  pounding 
him;  they  tore  his  clothes  nearly  off  him,  and  his  face  was 
covered  with  blood.  While  struggling  with  the  crowd  he  dis- 
charged a  revolver  at  his  assailants,  slightly  wounding  a  by- 
stander; he  succeeded  in  breaking  away  from  the  crowd  and 
ran,  pursued  by  a  multitude  of  persons,  crying,  "Stop  the 
murderer;  kill  him;  hang  him!''  etc.,  etc.     Among  the  crowd  was 

*  Mr.  Schumaker  was,  during  this  litigation  and  for  some  time  prior 
and  subsequent  thereto.  Corporation  Counsel  for  the  City  of  Brooklyn.  A 
record  of  his  official  record  more  fully  appears  in  the  Municipal  History 
of  Brooklyn,  in  another  part  of  this  work. 


a  police  officer  by  the  name  of  Curran;  he  was  two  or  three 
yards  in  advance  of  the  others,  and  when  at  a  distance  of  five 
blocks  from  where  the  affray  began,  he  siezed  Yates,  who  ex- 
claimed, "Let  go,  or  I'll  shoot  you!"  At  this  time,  Curran  had 
his  hand  pressed  against  Yates' breast,  and  called  for  some  one 
to  catch  the  pistol.  At  this  time,  Curran  raised  his  hand, 
when  Yates  fired  and  the  officer  fell,  mortally  wounded;  he 
was  then  in  the  uniform  of  the  police  force,  having  upon  his 
person  the  cap  and  shield  of  the  Metropolitan  police  force. 
Y'ates  fled,  followed  by  the  shouting  crowd;  several  other  pistol 
shots  were  fired,  but  by  whom  does  not  distinctly  appear. 

He  continued  his  flight,  and  finally  rushed  into  the  store  of 
a  Mr.  Markey,  exclaiming,  under  apparent  excitement,  "Look 
out!  I've  shot  two  men!"  Leaving  the  store,  he  continued  to  run, 
pursued  by  the  enraged  crowd  to  a  place  called  "Tammany 
Hall,"  where  he  was  arrested  by  a  body  of  policemen. 

According  to  the  evidence,  at  the  time  of  this  struggle,  the 
night  was  dark  and  rainy.  Yates  was  indicted  for  willful  murder, 
and  on  January  24,  186.5,  was  brought  to  trial. 

His  trial  is  an  important  incident  in  legal  history. 

The  circumstances  we  have  related  were  given  in  evidence  on 
the  trial;  there  were,  of  course,  some  contradictions  and  differ- 
ences of  statement,  but  the  foregoing  are  substantially  the  facts 
in  the  case,  with  those  we  shall  give  hereafter.  It  was  proved 
on  the  defense  that  Yates  was  near-sighted;  the  materiality  of 
this  evidence  will  presently  appear.  Daniel  Cannen,  a  witness 
for  the  people,  testified  that  Curran  was  shot  about  four  rods 
from  a  lamp-post  on  which  a  light  was  burning.  John  Larkin, 
another  witness  for  the  people,  swore  that  Curran  and  Yates,  at 
the  time  of  the  shooting,  were  within  a  half  block  of  a  lamp; 
but  that  there  was  no  light  shining  from  it.  John  Maloy, 
another  wit^ness  for  the  people,  said  that  he  lighted  the  lamp 
referred  to  at  six  o'clock  that  evening;  on  his  cross-examination 
he  said  he  had  no  recollection  of  lighting  that  particular  lamp 
that  evening.  It  did  not  appear  in  evidence  that  there  was 
any  communication  made  to  Yates  at  the  time  that  Curran  was 
a  police  officer,  nor  that  there  was  any  demand  made  upon  him 
to  surrender  to  the  officer,  nor  was  there  any  proof  that  Cur- 
ran was  known  to  Yates.  One  witness  said,  "I  saw  Yates 
knocked  down,  and  saw  more  than  a  dozen  men  beating  and 
kicking  him;  I  saw  him  struggle  desperately  to  get  up,  and  he 
finally  succeeded,  but  his  face  was  covered  with  blood  and  pre- 
sented a  frightful  appearance.  In  his  struggle  to  get  up,  I 
heard  the  report  of  a  pistol,  then  I  saw  Yates  on  his  feet,  and  ho 
broke  away  and  ran,  the  crowd  after  him." 

To  rebut  the  evidence,  that  there  was  no  light  burning  at  the 
time  of  the  fatal  shot,  the  judge  permitted  the  District  Attorney, 
against  an  objection  and  an  exception,  to  prove  by  Sergeant 
Crow  that,  nearly  four  months  after  the  killing  of  Curran,  he 
went  to  the  lamp  near  which  it  took  place,  in  a  dark  evening, 
and  found  that  he  could  very  easily  read  a  newspaper  by  its 
light,  and  that  all  objects  about  it  were  plainly  visible;  this,  it 
was  contended,  must  have  plainly  revealed  to  Yates  the  uniform 
and  badge  of  the  police  officer.  This  was  objected  to  by  the 
counsel  for  Y''ates,  as  no  evidence  for  any  purpose;  that  it  of 
course  was  material  to  the  issue  that  the  light  was  such  at  the 
time  as  must  have  apprised  the  accused  of  the  character  of  his 
pursuer,  and  the  object  of  his  pursuit;  but  proof  of  the  condi- 
tion of  the  lamp,  and  its  power  to  diffuse  light,  on  the  21st  of 
January,  was  no  evidence  of  its  power  on  the  1st  of  October 
preceding;  that  the  power  of  street  lamps  to  emit  light  de- 
pends upon  many  things,  among  which  are  the  purity  and 
transparency  of  the  medium  through  which  the  rays  are 
projected. 

The  trial  resulted  in  the  conviction  of  Yates  for  the  crime  of 
murder  in  the  first  degree,  and  he  was  sentenced  to  be  hanged; 
but  his  counsel  took  an  appeal  to  the  General  Term  of  the 
Supreme  Court,  obtaining  an  order  ibr  the  stay  of  the  execution 
pending  the  appeal.     After  exhaustive  arguments  on  the  part  of 


1260 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


the  respective  connsel  engaged,  the  General  Term  affirmed  the 
conviction  of  Yates,  and  it  was  believed  his  doom  was  sealed. 
But  his  counsel,  stimulated  in  the  belief  that  the  conviction  was 
unjust— that  Yates,  subjected  to  the  fury  of  a  howling  and 
murderous  mob,  excited  and  rendered  desperate  by  the  fear 
that  he  was  to  be  cruelly  murdered,  discharged  his  pistol  in 
self-defense— removed  the  case  by  another  appeal  to  the  Court 
of  Appeals,  the  court  of  last  resort,  obtaining  another  stay  of 
the  execution. 

The  coimsel  for  the  people  contended  that  Yates  was  rightly 
convicted;  that  he  must  have  known  the  purposes  for  which 
Curran  was  pxirsuing  him,  because  the  evidence  shows  that  he, 
Curran,  was  largely  in  advance  of  the  crowd,  conspicuous  in  his 
uniform  as  a  police  officer,  and'it  was  apparent  that  Y^ates  fired  the 
fatal  shot  to  escape  lawful  arrest.  This,  with  the  fact  that  he 
had  just  committed  a  felony  by  a  murderous  attack  on  a 
citizen,  constitutes  the  crime  of  murder  in  the  first  degree. 
That  this  was  well  established  by  all  the  authorities,  many  of 
which  appear  on  the  very  ably  prepared  brief  of  the  District 
Attorney.  There  were  other  ingenious  and  learned  points  on 
which  the  proseciition  relied  for  an  affirmance  of  the  conviction. 

The  counsel  for  the  defense  insisted  that  the  judge  who  tried 
the  cause  erred  in  admitting  the  evidence  of  Sergeant  Crow,  who 
testified  that  four  months  after  the  fatal  event  he  visited  the 
place  where  it  occurred,  at  night,  and  that  he  could  easily  read 
a  newspaper  by  the  light  of  the  lamp  near  by.  We  have 
already  given  the  grounds  of  the  objections  to  this  evidence, 
made  at  the  trial.  On  the  argument  in  the  Court  of  Appeals — 
and  we  believe  in  the  General  Term — the  defense  raised  other 
points  against  the  legality  of  the  conviction,  among  which  were 
the  following:  there  was  no  proof  that  the  structure  of  the  lamp 
near  the  place  of  the  killing  was  the  same  in  January,  the  time 
of  the  trial,  as  it  was  on  the  first  of  October  preceding,  when  the 
alleged  murder  took  place;  that  there  was  no  reliable  evidence 
that  any  lamp  was  burning  at  the  time;  that  as  Yates  was  set 
upon  by  a  dozen  men,  with  what  he  might  suppose  a  murderous 
intent,  he  was  justified  in  defending  himself  with  all  reason- 
able means  in  his  power,  and  that  he  behaved  but  with  reason- 
able prudence;  that  there  was  no  act  proved  showing  any  mur- 
derous intent,  or  any  premeditated  malice. 

In  due  time  the  Court  of  Appeals  handed  down  a  decision, 
concurred  in  by  all  the  judges,  setting  aside  the  conviction  of 
Yates,  granting  him  a  new  trial.  The  opinions  of  the  judges, 
found  in  32  N.  Y.,  509,  will  be  found  full  of  interest  to  the  pro- 
fessional and  the  lay  reader. 

In  their  ojjinion  the  judges  sustain  the  points  made  by  the 
counsel  for  the  defense,  and  express,  in  strong  language,  their 
condemnation  of  the  attack  made  by  the  crowd  upon  Yates. 
"It  was  a  brutal  and  cowardly  attack,"  say  the  court,  Vof  some 
dozen  men  upon  one  man,  and  he  a  stranger  to  them ;  he  had 
done  nothing  to  invite  this  attack  except  to  express  his  prefer- 
ence for  one  of  the  presidential  candidates,  doing  nothing  to 
interrupt  the  meeting. 

"  If  a  dozen  men  were  beating  and  kicking  him,  his  firing  a 
pistol  at  the  time  was  so  nearly,  if  not  entirely,  justifiable  that 
it  takes  away  all  basis  for  the  claim,  up  to  that  time,  of  premed- 
itated malice  on  his  part.  Well  he  might  run  from  such  a 
body  of  men.  For  aught  that  appears,  he  may  have  supposed 
that  the  officer  who  seized  him  was  one  of  the  mob  who  first 
attacked  him,  and  was  trying  to  detain  him  until  the  remainder 
of  the  mob,  who  were  approaching,  could  overtake  him." 

Yates  was  again  brought  to  trial,  and  after  a  long  contest  was 
convicted  of  murder  in  the  second  degree,  and  sentenced  to 
State's  prison  for  the  term  of  twenty  years. 


THE   PEOPLE  vs.   FANNY   HYDE. 
The  history  of  American  criminal  law  has  nothing  in  it  more 
interesting  than  the  case  of  The  People  vs.  Fanny  Hyde,  charged 
with  the  murder  of  Geo.  W.  Watson.      It  was  tried  in  the  Kings 


County  Court  of  Oyer  and  Terminer,  in  April,  1872,  before  Hon. 
A.  B.  Tappen,  one  of  the  justices  of  the  Supreme  Court,  and 
associate  justices  Voorhees  and  Johnson. 

Mr.  Watson  was  a  prominent  manufacturer  of  Brooklyn,  and 
a  citizen  of  respectability.  He  was  a  married  man,  the  father  of 
five  children,  and,  at  the  time  of  which  we  are  writing,  about 
fifty  years  of  age.  He  was  an  extensive  maniifactiirer  of  hair- 
nets, having  a  large  number  of  employees;  many  of  these  were 
ladies,  of  whom  Fannj'  Hyde  was  one. 

On  the  2Cth  of  January,  1872,  there  were  working  in  the  principal 
room  in  Watson's  factory,  two  or  three  men,  Fanny  Hyde  and 
one  or  two  other  ladies,  Mr.  Watson  being  present.  About  ten 
minutes  before  twelve,  Watson  left  the  room,  according  to  his 
custom,  to  go  to  lunch;  a  few  moments  before  he  left,  while  he 
was  putting  on  his  overcoat,  Fanny  Hyde  left  the  room  through 
the  same  door  through  which  Watson  was  to  make  his  exit. 
The  doorway  led  to  a  flight  of  stairs  down  to  the  second  story. 
Soon  after  Fanny  went  out,  Watson  also  went  out. 

A  few  minutes  after  twelve  o'clock,  Mr.  Watson  was  dis- 
covered lying  dead  at  the  head  of  the  second  flight  of  stairs;  he 
was  on  his  back,  his  feet  by  the  partition,  his  head  lying  out 
beyond  the  stairs,  his  body  against  the  riser  of  the  first  stair. 
He  was  bleeding  profusely  from  a  bullet  hole  in  his  head,  back 
of  his  ear.  Fanny  Hyde  was  standing  not  far  from  him,  watch- 
ing him  with  intense  interest.  In  a  moment  all  was  confusion 
and  alarm  in  the  factory.  In  due  time  the  body  was  removed. 
Fanny  was  at  once  suspected  of  the  murder;  indeed,  soon  after 
the  occurrence,  she  admitted  she  killed  Mr.  Watson  and  sur- 
rendered herself  to  the  authorities,  alleging  that  she  committed 
the  deed  in  self-defense,  that  is,  in  defending  herself  against 
an  outrageous  and  indecent  assault  made  by  Watson  upon  her 
at  the  head  of  the  first  flight  of  stairs  we  have  described.  It 
was  alleged,  however,  on  the  other  side,  that  Fanny  shot  her 
victim  in  revenge  for  certain  charges  which  he  had  made 
against  her  character,  these  charges  having  led  to  several 
altercations  between  herself  and  Watson  ;  that  she  left  the 
room  a  few  moments  before  he  did,  knowing  that,  according  to 
his  usual  custom,  he  would  soon  follow  her  on  his  way  to  his 
lunch;  that  she  lay  in  wait  for  him  at  the  bottom  of  the  first 
flight  of  stairs  and  shot  him  as  he  was  descending  them.  We 
shall  see  hereafter  further  grounds  on  which  the  prosecution 
predicated  this  theory.  We  give  the  theory  of  the  defense  in 
the  following  history  of  Fanny  Hyde. 

Fanny  Hyde,  when  a  young  girl  a  little  over  fifteen  years  of 
age,  entered  the  employment  of  George  \V.  Watson,  a  manu- 
facturer of  hair-nets,  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn.  She  was  a  child 
of  remarkable  promise,  intelligent  beyond  her  years,  pleasing 
in  her  person  and  attractive  in  her  manners.  She  was  born  at 
Nottingham,  England;  when  very  young  she  lost  her  mother, 
and  though  she  was  well  brought  up,  it  was  without  a  mother's 
care;  she  was  a  Sunday  school  scholar  and  gave  promise  of 
future  usefulness.  It  was  said  that  "among  all  of  Watson's 
female  employees,  Fanny  Hyde  was  the  fairest."  He  was  a 
married  man  with  several  children,  and  about  forty -five  years  of 
age.  With  the  exterior  of  a  gentleman,  plausible,  insidious, 
always  carefully  presenting  his  best  side  to  the  public,  Fanny 
had  not  been  long  in  this  man's  employ  when  he  determined  to 
work  her  ruin;  the  manner  in  which  it  is  alleged  he  eft'ected  his 
object,  stamps  him  a  man  without  principle.  From  that  time 
on,  even  up  to  the  hour  of  his  death,  he  continued  his  illicit 
intercourse  with  her.  Fanny  Hyde  was  not  impure  at  heart, 
and  often  struggled  hard  to  free  herself  from  the  coil  which  her 
heartless  seducer  had  thrown  around  her.  Her  relations  with 
Watson,  however,  were  known  only  to  herself  and  to  him,  and 
she  still  moved  in  respectable  society.  Her  beauty  and  attrac- 
tive manners  brought  her  honorable  suitors,  one  of  whom  was  at 
last  accepted.  About  the  time  of  her  engagement,  she  dis- 
closed to  Watson  the  new  relations  in  life  which  she  proposed, 
and  on  her  knees  begged  of  him  forever  to  keep  their  relations 


BENCH  AND  BAR   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1261 


secret,  and  to  cease  them  now,  forever.  She  told  him  that  it  was 
her  determination  to  be  a  pure  and  exemplary  wife  to  her 
affianced  husband;  with  face  bedewed  in  tears  and  broken  down 
with  sorrow,  she  told  Watson  her  relation  with  him  had  been 
a  source  of  continual,  almost  heart-breaking  sorrow,  from  the 
time  of  its  commencement,  and  begged  him  to  aid  her  in  her 
determination  to  hereafter  live  a  pure  and  virtuous  life. 

He  listened   to   her,    apparently  much   affected  by  what  she 
said,  and  putting  his  hand  on  the  Bible,  deliberately  swore  that 
he  would  never  molest  her  again.     In  a  short  time  after  this, 
Fanny  was  united   in  marriage   to  a  respectable  and  indus- 
trious  young   man   by   the   name   of  Hyde.      Relying   on   the 
solemn   oath   which   Watson    had   taken    never   to   molest    her 
again,  she  continued  as  fore-woman  in  his  service,  with  many 
other  ladies,  married  and  single.    It  is  natural  to  believe  that, 
under  his  oath,  under  the  sanctity  of  the  marriage  vow,  and  the 
holy  relations  that  now  existed  between  Fanny  and  the   man 
she  loved,  Wataon  would  have   encouraged  the  young  wife  by 
example,   by  his  own  family   relations,    by   everything  that   is 
pure  and  sacred,  to  carry  out  the  resolution  she   had  adopted. 
But,   alas !  the  man  who  had  once  destroyed  her  virtue  and 
committed  towards  her  the  greatest  of  crimes,  forgot  his  oath, 
or   disregarded  it,    and,  disregarding   every  sacred   thing   that 
should  have  restrained  him,  determined  to  dishonor  the  young 
and  now  pure  wife,  and  compel  her  to  again  enter  upon  her 
former  relations  with  him.     It  woiild  seem  as  though  Fanny — 
now   Mrs.    Hyde— protected  and   shielded  as   she   was   by   her 
husband,  strongly  entrenched  as  she  was  in  her  new  resolution, 
and  pure  as  her  life  now  was,  would  never  again  become  the 
paramour  of  the  man  who  had  first  ruined  her.     She  never  for 
a  moment  thought  he  would  make  the  attempt,  and  if  he  did, 
she  felt  sure  of  her  ability,  under  the  strength  of  her  new  reso- 
lution, to  effectually  resist  him.    He,  however,  made  the  attempt, 
and  she  did  resist  him,  as  a  pure  and  true  wife  should  have 
done,  and  when  he  found  himself  foiled  he  resorted  to  another 
and  dreadful  mode  of  compulsion.     He  threatened,  if  she  per- 
sisted  in   her  refusal,  to   accjuaint   her   husband  with  the   full 
extent  of  their  previous  relations.     This  was  a  terrible  alterna- 
tive.    To   put  her  husband  in  possession  of   these  facts  was 
next  to  death;  the  struggle  was  fearful;  but  Watson  triumphed, 
and  the  misery  of  the  young  wife  was  complete.     She  was  again 
in  the  toils  of  the  man  who  had  blighted  her  young  life,  and  by 
him  was  compelled  to  dishonor  her  husband.     "Must  I  submit 
always  to  this  course  of  life?"  she  asked  herself,  in  her  agony. 
"There  is  one  mode  of  escape,"   she  said.     "I  will  unbosom 
luyself  to  my  husband;  will  tell  him  nil;  I  will  prostrate  myself 
before  him  for  his  forgiveness;  if  he  casts  me  off,  I  must  submit; 
if  he  forgives  me  he  will  protect  me  against  the  man  who  is 
destroying   my   very    soul."     She    carried   her   resolution   into 
effect  and  confessed  all  to  her  husband.     She  was  as  dear   to 
him  as  his  own  heart's  blood,  and  he  forgave  all  and  promised 
protection.     He  told  her  to  defy  the  wretch  if  he   ever  again 
approached  her— to  tell  him  that  she  feared  him  no  longer,  as 
her  husband  knew  all  and  had  forgiven  all.     It  was  not  long 
after  this  before  the  occasion  came  for  her  to  make  this  state- 
ment to  Watson.     She   did   so;   and  when  he  found  she  no 
longer   had  any  fears  of  her  husband,  he  resorted  to    another 
course;  and  then  came  the  fatal  end. 

On  the  trial,  Fanny  was  sworn  as  a  witness  on  her  own  behalf, 
and  among  other  things  testified  as  follows: 

"I  met  Watson  at  the  top  of  the  stairs;  asked  him  as  I  was  going 
up  the  stairs,  if  he  was  going  down?  he  said  no;  when  I  got  to 
the  top  of  the  stairs,  he  seized  me  in  a  very  indecent  manner, 
and  wanted  me  to  go  to  a  room  with  him  somewhere.  I  told 
him  I  would  not,  and  then  he  said,  'You  shall  go.'  We  had 
quite  a  struggle;  I  got  free  from  him,  and  he  seized  me  the 
second  time  as  before;  I  tried  to  break  loose  from  him,  but  could 
not;  I  had  my  pistol  with  me  and  shot  him;  I  did  not  take 
aim,  but  shot  as  I  could." 


She  was  indicted  for  murder  in  the  first  degree,  and,  as  we 
have  already  said,  brought  to  trial  for  her  life.  Few  cases 
have  ever  elicited  more  interest,  not  only  in  Brooklyn,  but 
everywhere.  It  summoned  to  the  forum  the  most  distin- 
guished members  of  the  Brooklyn  Bar.  Mr.  Winchester 
Britton,  then  District  Attorney  for  Kings  County,  conducted 
the  case  for  the  people.  Hon.  Samuel  I).  Morris,  I.  B.  Cat- 
lin,  Thomas  E.  Pearsall  and  Patrick  Keady  appeared  for  the 
defense.  The  learning,  skill  and  .eloquence  which  the  trial 
called  forth,  has  certainly  never  been  excelled  at  the  Brooklyn 
Bar.  Three  defenses  were  interposed  by  the  counsel  of  Mrs. 
Hyde:  1st,  that  there  was  not  sufficient  evidence  that  she  com- 
mitted the  deed;  2nd,  justification,  in  that  Watson  seized  her 
person  with  an  intent  to  make  an  indecent  assault,  and  in  an 
indecent  manner,  that,  to  free  herself  from  his  grasp  and 
escape  from  his  jiower,  she  discharged  her  pistol  at  him,  regard- 
less of  consequences;  3rd,  temporary  or  partial  insanity — upon 
this  defense  much  time  and  learning  was  spent. 

The  case  for  the  defense  was  opened  to  the  jury  by  General 
Catlin.  Those  who  heard  that  remarkable  address  will  never 
forget  its  impressive  eloquence,  its  masterly  array  of  facts,  the 
learning  which  marked  it,  and  the  perfect  manner  in  which 
the  jury  were  put  in  possession  of  the  whole  history  of  the  case. 
"  A  cause  well  opened,"  Ogden  Hoffman  used  to  say,  "is  more 
than  half  tried,"  and  General  Catlin's  opening  in  this  case  emi- 
nently proved  the  truth  of  Mr.  Hoffman's  remarks. 

At  the  close  of  the  evidence,  Judge  Morris  summed  up  for  the 
defense.  If  this  effort  was  the  only  one  that  this  distinguished 
lawyer  had  ever  made,  it  would  have  fully  established  his  repu- 
tation as  an  accomplished  legal  speaker,  a  finished  and  well- 
learned  lawyer.  Judge  Morris'  argument  adopted  the  theory 
for  the  commission  of  the  crime  we  have  already  given,  that 
Watson,  having  first  ruined  her,  having  her,  by  force  of  circum- 
stances, largely  in  his  power,  compelled  her  against  her  inclina- 
tions to  continue  the  relations  begun  in  her  first  departure  from 
virtue  ;  that,  notwithstanding  his  promise  not  to  molest  her  after 
her  marriage,  he  compelled  her  to  continue  her  illicit  relations 
with  him,  under  threats  of  revealing  all  to  her  husband  and 
friends.  This  terrible  state  of  things  shattered  her  intellect, 
producing  one  of  the  stages  of  insanity;  that  she  herself  in- 
formed her  husband,  and  under  his  advice  defied  Watson,  and 
when  he  found  himself  foiled  in  that  direction,  he  attempted  to 
use  force,  and  she  killed  him  in  the  attempt,  and  that  the  killing 
was  justifiable.  This  was  the  outline  of  Mr.  Morris' argument; 
but  it  was  most  admirably  conjoined  and  elaborated,  forming  on 
the  whole  a  very  perfect  structure. 

Mr.  Britton  closed  the  case  in  a  masterly  argument  in  behalf 
of  the  people.  We  have  referred  to  his  theory  of  the  case:  that 
the  killing  was  premeditated — done  in  cold  blood — with  a  design 
of  revenging  herself  for  reports  that  she  believed  Watson  had 
circulated  against  her,  and  for  accusations  made  to  her  by  him 
of  criminal  intimacy  with  other  men,  of  which  he  threatened 
exposure. 

Mr.  Britton  insisted  that  the  evidence  in  the  case,  except  her 
unsupported  testimony,  inconsistent  in  itself,  pointed  almost  in- 
dubitably to  this  view  of  the  case— to  malice  aforethought,  to 
intentional,  premeditated  murder  ;  that  the  illicit  relations  be- 
tween Fanny  Hyde  and  Watson  had  existed  with  her  free  assent 
for  a  long  time;  that  he  was  a  man  old  enough  to  be  her  father; 
that  she  was  becoming  wearied  of  the  relation,  and  was  receiving 
the  addresses  of  other  men,  which  rendered  Watson  jealous, 
causing  him  to  bitterly  upbraid  and  denounce  her,  and  to  make 
threats  of  exposure.  According  to  her  own  testimony,  at  the  very 
time  of  the  homicide,  he  accused  her  of  having  just  been  with 
another  man.  She  admitted  this  to  several  persons.  When 
asked  why  she  shot  Watson,  she  replied,  because  he  had  abused 
and  insulted  her,  called  her  names,  and  accused  her  of  being 
down  stairs  with  a  man,  and  threatened  to  discharge  her,  and 
then  she  shot  him.     That  the  act  was  premeditated  is  shown  by 


1262 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


the  fact  that  she  had  frequent  quarrels  with  Watson;  that  some 
ilays  previous  she  had  induced  her  brother  to  procure  a  pistol 
for  her;  that  when  he  gave  her  the  pistol  there  is  almost  positive 
evidence— at  least,  the  strongest  kind  of  inferential  evidence- 
that  she  informed  the  young  man  what  she  intended  to  do  with 
the  pistol,  from  the  fact  that  immediately  after  the  killing  of 
Watson,  while  Fanny  was  still  standing  by  his  body,  the  young 
man  came  hurriedly  into  the  room  and  at  once  accosted  her,  say- 
ing: "  Fanny,  I  told  you  not  to  do  this."  This  showed  plainly 
that  she  had  made  the  young  man  acquainted  with  her  design  to 
take  the  life  of  Watson. 

Again,  the  manner  in  which  she  left  the  room,  just  previous  to 
the  time  she  knew  he  was  going  to  his  lunch,  shows  she  had 
placed  herself  in  waiting  for  him  when  he  should  descend  the 
stairs.  The  fatal  wound  was  inconsistent  with  a  close  personal 
struggle;  there  was  no  stain  of  powder  on  the  neck  at  the  place 
where  the  ball  entered,  as  there  would  have  been  had  the  pistol 
been  discharged,  as  she  alleged,  while  she  was  struggling  with 
him.  Again,  the  course  of  the  ball  shows  conclusively  that  the 
pistol  must  have  been  discharged  when  she  stood  below  him,  at 
the  foot  of  the  stairs  which  he  was  descending;  the  ball  entered 
the  neck  just  below  and  back  of  the  ear,  taking  a  course  upward 
and  backward,  so  that  if  it  had  force  enough  it  would  have  come 
out  at  the  top  of  the  head.  The  fact  that  the  ball  entered  below 
the  ear,  and  the  angle  it  traced,  showed  that  that  side  of  his  head 
was  turned  towards  his  assailant.  Evidently  he  caught  sight  of 
her  as  he  was  descending  the  stairs,  with  the  fatal  weapon  in  her 
hand,  and,  turning  to  avoid  her,  he  received  the  bullet  as  he 
did.  Her  story  of  the  assault  at  the  head  of  the  stairs  is  wholly 
inconsistent— first,  because  a  man  in  his  senses  would  never  un- 
dertake such  an  act  in  a  place  so  public,  where  every  moment 
the  door  was  liable  to  be  opened  by  some  one;  secondly,  it  will 
be  remembered  that,  before  leaving  the  room,  he  put  on  his  over- 
coat, which  would  embarrass  him  in  any  unlawful  attempt,  and 
it  is  hardly  possible  to  suppose  that  a  man  would  attempt  to 
drag  a  woman  against  her  will  to  any  place  for  an  unlawful  pur- 
pose; a  single  cry  from  her  would  have  compelled  him  at  any 
moment  to  release  her,  and  there  would  have  been  no  use  for  the 
pistol.  She  does  not  allege  that  she  made  any  cry  or  any  alarm. 
Finally,  Mr.  Britton  contended  that  there  was  not  the  least  tan- 
gible evidence  of  her  insanity,  and  that  her  premeditated  guilt 
was  painfully  and  terribly  apparent. 

After  a  remarkably  able,  lucid  and  impartial  charge  by  Judge 
Tappen,  in  which  the  law  touching  the  case  was  learnedly  re- 
viewed, the  jury  retired  for  deliberation,  and  after  a  long  con- 
sultation, during  which  they  came  into  court  for  further  instruc- 
tions, they  finally,  after  being  out  all  night,  came  into  court  and 
announced  that  it  was  impossible  for  them  to  agree,  whereupon 
they  were  discharged.  It  was  understood  that  from  the  time 
they  retired  to  the  close  of  their  deliberation,  ten  were  for  ac- 
quittal and  two  for  manslaughter  in  the  third  degree.  Fanny 
Hyde  was  remanded  to  jail,  and  after  remaining  there  some  time, 
a  nolle  proseipd  to  the  indictment  was  entered,  and  she  was  dis- 
charged. 


THE   PEOPLE  vs.  RUBENSTEIN. 

This  was  a  case  that  produced  a  profound  sensation  through- 
out the  nation,  and,  in  fact,  in  Europe,  for  its  great  atrocity, 
the  singularity  of  the  circumstances  attending  it,  and  the  ability 
with  which  the  prosecution  and  defense  were  conducted. 

The  trial  commenced  on  Monday,  January  Slst,  1876,  at, 
Brooklyn;  Hon.  Calvin  E.  Pratt,  of  the  Supreme  Court,  presid- 
ing; Hon.  Henry  A.  Moore,  County  Judge  of  Kings  County, 
Hon.  Henry  Wolfert,  Hon.  Andrew  McKibben,  Justices  of  the 
Sessions,  and  associate  justices  composing  the  Court  of  Oyer 
and  Terminer. 

Winchester   Britton,    District    Attorney,    and    Henry    Snell, 


Assistant  District  Attorney,  appeared  for  the  people.  Hon.  Wm. 
A.  Beach  and  John  O.  Mott  appeared  for  the  defendant.  The 
trial  lasted  several  days. 

On  the  morning  of  the  Uth  of  December,  1875,  the  body  of 
a  woman  was  found  on  the  farm  of  Dedrich  Wessells,  in  the  town 
of  New  Lots,  Kings  County;  it  was  lying  behind  a  corn  stack  in 
the  lower  end  of  a  field.  This  field  was  bounded  on  the  side 
by  the  common  highway  or  plank-road. 

The  stack  was  situated  in  that  part  of  the  field  farthest  from 
the  road,  near  a  fence.     The  body  of  the  woman  was  lying  on 
its  back,  covered  with  a  light  snow,  which  had  fallen  the  night 
before  and  was  frozen  to   the  ground;   the  throat  had  been  cut 
with  such   violence  that  the   head  was  nearly  severed  from  the 
body.     She  lay  in  a  pool  of  blood,  which  was  frozen  about  her. 
This  discovery  produced  great  excitement.     The  constabulary 
of  the  city,  and  of  the  city  of  New  York,  immediately  entered 
on  the  work  of  investigating  this  dreadful  tragedy.     It  was  soon 
ascertained  that  the  murdered  woman  was  Miss  Sarah  Alexander, 
who  resided  in  New  York  City.     Further  investigation  fastened 
suspicion  upon  Pasach  N.  Eubcnstein,  who  had  been  somewhat 
intimate   with   the   lady.     The  autopsy  revealed,  among  other 
things,  the  fact  that  the  young  woman  was  at  least  five  months 
towards    maternity.      Circumstances     soon     developed     which 
tended   to  connect  Rubenstein   with   the  murder,  and  he  was 
promptly  arrested  and  committed  to  prison  to  await  the  action 
of    the    coroner's    inquest.      Among  the    circumstances    that 
fastened   suspicion  upon   Kubenstein   was  the  fact  that,  some 
days  before   the  discovery  of  the  body,  a  man  by  the  name  of 
Kramer,  a  resident  of  Williamsburgh,  met  Rubenstein  in  com- 
pany   with  a   young  woman   in    the.   road   nearly  opposite  the 
place  when  her  body  was  found.     Some  remarks  passed  between 
them,  and  Kramer  passed  on.     After  walking  a  few  rods,  he  was 
startled  by  the  cries  of  some  one  in  distress,  and  distinguished 
the  words,  "  Help!  help!"     He  turned  and  listened,  but  as  the 
cry  was  not  repeated,  he  passed  on.     Kramer,  afterwards,  went 
to  the  field  and  saw  the  murdered  girl,  and  at  once  recognized 
her  as  the   girl   he  had   seen  with  Kubenstein.     The  body  was 
further  recognized  as  that  of  Miss  Alexander  by  her  brother, 
who   also    testified    to  some  intimacy   between   his   sister   and 
Rubenstein.     Several   witnesses  were   called  who  identified  the 
man  and  the  body  of  the  young  girl  as  those  seen  by  them  in  a 
car  from   the   ferry-house  to  New  Lots,   some  days  before  the 
discovery  of  the  murder. 

Immediately  after  Rubenstein's  arrest,  he  was  taken  to  the 
headciuarters  of  the  police  department  of  Brooklyn,  where  his 
boots  were  examined;  upon  the  upper  surface  of  one  of  them 
a  thin  scale  was  discovered;  the  boots  were  there  taken,  with 
the  shoes  of  the  murdered  girl,  to  the  scene  of  the  murder. 
There  was,  at  the  time  of  removing  his  boots,  two  kinds  of  mud 
adhering  to  them  on  different  parts  of  the  boots;  one  piece  of  the 
mud  compared  exactly  with  the  mud  found  in  the  city  of  New 
York;  the  other  compared  exactly  with  the  soil  where  the  body 
was  found,  w^hich  was  so  soft  that  the  tracks  of  persons  walking 
there  were  plainly  indented  in  it.  On  placing  the  boots  in  these 
indentations,  or  tracks,  they  were  found  to  fit  exactly,  not  only 
in  regard  to  the  peculiar  nails  in  the  sole  of  the  boot,  but  in  a 
certain  patch  on  the  boot.  The  scale  found  on  the  shank  of 
the  boot,  on  minute  examination,  proved  to  be  a  portion  of 
corn  husk,  and  adhering  to  the  husk  was  discovered  a  minute 
piece  of  the  fringe  of  the  shawl  worn  by  the  girl.  The  corn 
husk  and  this  bit  of  the  shawl  were  encrusted  in  what  a.  chemi- 
cal analysis  decided  was  dry  blood.  The  examination  of  the 
shawl  showed  that  while  it  lay  on  the  mud  some  heavy  sulistance 
came  upon  it  and  pressed  it  into  a  sort  of  hardened  fold;  this,  it 
was  contended,  was  done  by  one  of  the  prisoner's  feet  in  stepping 
upon  the  shawl  as  it  lay  on  the  ground  among  the  corn  husks,  and 
in  this  way  the  scale  we  have  described  came  to  be  upon  the  boot. 
A  knife  was  found  near  the  body— an  unfinished  knife— evi- 


BENCH  AND  BAR   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1263 


dently  a  new  one.  Two  witnesses  testified  to  Iiaving  seen  this 
knife  in  the  possession  of  the  prisoner  not  long  before  the  dis- 
covery of  the  murder.  The  foregoing,  with  a  few  other  circum- 
stances, were  relied  on  by  the  District  Attorney  as  abundant 
evidence  for  the  conviction  of  Rubenstein.  The  defense,  how- 
ever, powerful  and  masterly,  made  by  a  master  spirit,  contended 
that  the  prosecution  had  failed  to  show  any  motive  for  the  per- 
petration of  such  an  awful  crime;  that  they  had  failed  to  prove 
that  Rubenstein  was  in  any  degree  intimate  with  the  girl,  while 
the  defense  proved  that  she  was  in  the  habit  of  receiving  the 
visits  of  a  man  by  the  name  of  Levy;  that  the  evidence  of  the 
man  Kramer  was  too  inconsistent  for  belief,  who  relates  that  he 
heard  the  cry  of  "fire!  fire!"  and  no  cry  of  "murder!"  that 
it  was  singular  there  should  be  a  cry  of  fire  at  such  a  time.  As 
to  the  scale  on  the  boot,  it  was  altogether  too  indefinite — too 
doubtful  a  circumstance  to  attach  any  importance  to;  and  as  to 
the  fitting  of  the  boot  in  the  track,  the  influence  of  the  weather, 
the  falling  and  melting  snow,  must  have  changed  the  dimensions 
of  the  track  so  that  the  witnesses  must  have  drawn  on  their 
imagination  for  the  fact  of  the  fitting  of  the  boots  to  the  tracks. 
It  is  proved  that  the  prisoner  was  seen  in  company  with  the  de- 
ceased on  the  cars;  that  this  was  so  long  before  the  enactment  of 
the  tragedy  that  no  importance  could  be  attached  to  it.  Aside 
from  this,  a  great  number  of  witnesses  testified  that  Rubenstein 
was  at  a  party  in  New  York  at  the  precise  time  he  was  said  to 
be  seen  in  New  Lots.  There  were  also  other  strong  circumstances 
which  the  defense  seized  upon  as  proof  of  Rubenstein's  inno- 
cence. After  an  exhaustive  and  powerful  address  to  the  jury  by 
Mr.  Beach,  followed  by  an  equally  eloquent,  logical  and  impres- 
sive address  by  Mr.  Britton.  Mr.  Justice  Pratt  proceeded  to  charge 
the  jury.  Of  this  charge  it  may  well  be  said  that  it  was  one  of 
the  most  learned,  close  and  well-reasoned  judicial  productions 
ever  delivered  from  the  bench  at  Oyer  and  Terminer.  The 
practicing  lawyer,  the  student  and  the  lay  reader  will  find  in  it 
great  interest,  much  instruction,  and  a  clear  analysis  of  the  law 
touching  circumstantial  evidence.  After  the  charge  the  jury  re- 
tired, and  after  an  absence  of  one  hour  returned  into  court  with 
a  verdict  of  "guilty  of  miirder  in  the  first  degree."  Sentence  of 
death  was  then  pronounced  by  Hon.  Henry  A.  Moore,  Associate 
Judge.  The  prisoner  was  sentenced  to  be  hanged  on  the  24th  of 
March,  1876.  The  case  was  removed  to  the  General  Term  of  the 
Supreme  Court  on  a  writ  of  error,  on  which  a  stay  of  execution 
had  been  granted;  but  on  the  9th  day  of  May,  187G,  the  citizens 
of  Brooklyn  were  startled  by  the  report  that  Rubenstein  had 
died  in  his  cell  in  Raymond  Street  Jail,  about  nine  o'clock  on  the 
morning  of  that  day.  The  report  proved  true;  he  died  of  in- 
cipient pulmonary  tuberculosis,  hastened  by  his  self-deprivation 
of  nourishment  and  general  nervous  prostration. 

Thus  ended  one  of  the  most  interesting  trials  of  the  present 
age — a  trial  in  which  the  importance  and  effect  of  circumstantial 
evidence  is  most  strongly  and  imjiressively  exhibited.  For  this 
reason,  and  others,  it  is  most  important  in  this  history. 


HOPE  vs.   ENGLISH. 

A  CA.SE  which  forms  an  important  incident  in  the  history  of 
Kings  County,  touching  the  law  of  libel,  was  that  of  George  T. 
Hope  against  Stephen  English,  which  was  tried  at  Brooklyn, 
March  6th,  1878,  before  Hon.  Calvin  E.  Pratt,  one  of  the  Justices 
of  the  Supreme  Court.  Messrs.  Van  Cott  and  Winslow  appeared 
for  the  plaintiff,  Moses  and  Britton  for  the  defendant.  The  case 
was  most  singular  and  important.  The  plaintifl'was  Mr.  George 
Hope,  then  and  for  many  years  President  of  the  Continental  In- 
surance Company,  one  of  the  leading  companies  in  the  United 
States.  Mr.  Hope  had  devoted  his  life  to  the  business  of  fire 
insurance,   with  eminent   success.      The    defendant,   Stephen 


English,  was  the  editor  of  The  Inswance  Times,  a  paper  published 
once  a  month  in  New  York,  devoted  to  the  insurance  interest 
not  only  in  this  country,  but  in  both  hemispheres,  as  its  editor, 
with  much  alleged  vanity,  claimed.  Some  time  in  September, 
1870,  the  editor  of  The  Times  published  an  article  in  it,  of  his 
own  motion,  highly  eulogistic  of  Mr.  Hope,  in  which  he  aays  : 
"One  of  the  most  prominent  fire  underwriters  in  the  United 
States  is  George  T.  Hope.  We  have  few  so  thoroughly  trained 
to  the  business."  He  then  proceeds  to  give  a  history  of  Mr. 
Hope's  career  and  success  in  his  business.  "Mr.  Hope's  mind," 
he  continued,  "  is  peculiarly  adapted  by  the  breadth  of  its  range 
and  views,  and  its  capacity  to  observe  and  master  at  the  same 
time  the  minutest  details,  to  preside  over  the  affairs  of  great  and 
useful  corporations.  Nothing  is  too  large  for  him  to  grasp, 
nothing  too  small  to  escape  his  obsei-vation.  Although  his  suc- 
cess makes  slight  envy,  none  can  cavil  at  the  means  by  which 
it  has  been  attained,  for  none  can  excel  him  in  liberality,  can- 
dor, truthfulness  and  honor  ;  *  •  *  *  ♦  he  is  not  what  is  com- 
monly called  an  eloquent  speaker,  but  there  is  a  logical  direct- 
ness in  his  statements  and  an  earnestness  in  his  manner  which 
convinces  every  hearer  of  his  perfect  sincerity  and  the  intelligent 
comprehension  of  the  subject  of  his  remarks." 

As  was  well  said  by  Mr.  Winslow,  in  opening  the  case  to  the 
jury,  "  that  a  man,  who  is  an  honest  man,  could  write  such  an 
article  and  publish  it  in  his  paper,  and  in  a  few  months  turn 
around  and  libel  the  object  of  his  eulogy  as  he  has,  in  the  most 
atrocious  manner,  and  in  a  great  variety  of  forms  and  methods  ; 
but  the  plaintiff,  Mr.  Hope,  became  .satisfied  that  the  defendant 
was  not  such  a  conductor  of  an  insurance  paper  as  was  entitled 
to  respect  and  encouragement ;  accordingly  he  notified  him  that 
he  did  not  want  his  paper,  and  that  he  did  not  propose  to  adver- 
tise in  it  any  more.  Then  the  gates  of  defamation  and  vitupera- 
ation  were  opened,  and  a  torrent  of  abuse  was  poured  upon  the 
plaintiff  by  the  defendant  without  the  slightest  discretion  as  to 
consequences  or  apparent  regard  for  the  laws  of  the  land.  In 
his  paper  he  described  Mr.  Hope  as  '  a  dreadful  incubus  on  the 
Continental  Fire  Insurance  Company.'  Very  soon  after  he  wrote 
another  article  for  his  paper  holding  Mr.  Hope  up  to  ridicule 
and  contempt,  censuring  his  manner,  and  endeavoring  to  under- 
mine the  respect  and  confidence  of  the  community,  and  of  his 
own  company,  by  this  sort  of  contempt."  He  finally  charged 
Mr.  Hope  with  writing  the  fulsome  eulogy  on  himself,  por- 
tions of  which  we  have  quoted.  Finally,  through  a  series  of 
articles,  English  libeled  Mr.  Hope  in  a  most  merciless  manner, 
and  for  these  libels  the  action  referred  to  was  brought. 

Mr.  Winslow  conducted  the  case  for  the  plaintiff,  Mr.  Van  Cott 
not  being  present  at  the  trial.  His  opening  to  the  jury  is  an 
effective  and  admirable  presentation  of  the  plaintiff's  case.  Some 
of  its  language  was  scathing,  causing  the  defendant  to  writhe 
under  the  lash  of  his  invectives. 

The  plaintiff  rested  his  case  after  proving  the  libel  and  the 
motives  for  it,  and  then  the  court  adjourned  for  the  day.  The 
next  morning  the  counsel  for  the  defendant  proposed  to  arrest 
the  continuance  of  the  trial  by  the  defendant  making  certain 
concessions  and  admissions,  by  appealing  to  the  generosity  and 
magnanimity  of  Mr.  Hope.  They  were  assured  that  nothing  but 
a  full  and  complete  retraction  of  all  that  had  been  said  against 
Mr.  Hope  in  the  defendant's  paper,  and  an  admission  of  the 
falsity  of  the  same,  would  be  listened  to,  and  it  was  doubtful 
if  even  that  could  be  listened  to  by  Mr.  Hope.  But  at  last,  on 
consultation,  a  document  was  prepared  and  signed  by  Eng- 
lish containing  one  of  the  most  extraordinary  recantations  of 
the  libels  and  self-accusations  that  ever  appeared  in  a  court  of 
justice.  There  were  five  distinct  admissions  or  paragraphs  of 
retraction  and  withdrawal,  some  of  which  he  admitted  were  un- 
true, and  in  all  of  them  with  his  retraction  he  said  "  he  sincerely 
regretted  their  publication."  He  agreed  to  pay  all  costs  and  ex- 
penses incurred  by  Mr.  Hope  in  connection  with  such  publica- 


1264 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


tions  under  trial,  and  he  instructed  his  attorney,  Mr.  Moses,  to 
read  this  extraordinary  paper,  signed  by  himself,  to  the  jury, 
and  promised  in  the  same  paper  to  publish  it  entire  in  the  nest 
number  of  his  paper,  Tlie  Insurance  Times.  XTpon  the  foregoing 
statement  and  retraction,  and  the  immediate  payment  of  all  costs 
and  expenditures  of  Mr.  Hope,  and  a  due  compliance  of  said 
paper,  the  cause  was  discontinued.  And  thus  ended  one  of  the 
most  important  and  interesting  cases  under  tho  law  of  libel  ever 
tried  in  any  court. 

HENRY  W.  SAGE  vs.  CITY  OE  EROOKLYN. 

Perhaps  there  is  no  case  on  record  that  more  essentially 
affects  the  property-holders  not  only  of  Brooklyn,  but  in  the 
County  of  Kings  and  in  the  State.  It  decides  the  important 
question  touching  the  rights  of  the  city  of  Brooklyn  to  take 
real  estate  from  property-owners  for  streets,  and  how  and  when 
compensation  therefor  shall  be  made.  The  action  was  brought 
against  the  city  of  Brooklyn  by  Mr.  Sage  in  the  Brooklyn  City 
Court,  to  recover  awards  made  to  him  for  lands  taken  to  widen 
and  extend  the  Sackett  street  boulevards,  near  Prospect  Park,  in 
the  city  of  Brooklyn.  The  land  was  taken  for  public  use  under 
the  Statute  of  18(58  and  the  Act  of  1870,  relating  to  the  boule- 
vards. It  appeared  that  Mr.  Sage,  the  plaintift',  had  already 
paid  a  large  assessment  imposed  upon  his  adjoining  land  for 
the  supposed  benefit  of  improvements.  But  when  he  applied 
for  payment  of  his  awards  for  his  land  buried  under  the 
boulevards,  the  city  refused  to  pay  him,  on  the  ground  that  the 
assessment  for  the  payment  of  the  awards  not  having  been  col- 
lected, there  were  no  funds  in  the  treasury  that  could  be  law- 
fully used  for  such  payments. 

The  plaintiff's  counsel,  Mr.  Winslow— then  of  the  firm  of  Van 
Cott  &  Winslow— insisted  that  the  city  had  taken  the  property 
of  the  plaintiff  and  thus  became  his  debtor,  and  had  been  such 
for  the  term  of  ten  years.  Mr.  Winslow  based  the  action  on  the 
ground  of  such  indebtedness,  and  that  the  State  made  it  the 
duty  of  the  city  to  pay  at  the  time  of  taking;  and  whether  this 
was  so  or  not,  to  allow  the  city  to  take  lands  for  such  purposes, 
without  iJayment,  would  be  in  legal  effect  a  violation  of  the 
Constitution,  which  provides  that  private  property  cannot  be 
taken  for  public  use  without  just  compensation. 

As  has  been  seen,  Mr.  Winslow  held  this  opinion  against  that 
of  a  large  majority  of  the  members  of  the  Bar. 

The  plaintiff's  demand  was  most  ably  contested  by  the  city, 
through  very  eminent  counsel,  who  appeared  and  defended. 
The  trial  resulted  in  a  verdict  for  the  plaintiff,  upon  which 
judgment  was  duly  entered.  An  appeal  was  taken  to  the  Court 
of  Ai>peals,  where,  after  arguments  by  the  respective  counsel,  of 
extraordinary  ability  and  learning,  the  plaintifTs  judgment 
was  in  all  things  affirmed.  The  plaintiff  recovered  a  large  sum 
of  money  to  indemnify  him  for  his'property  taken  from  him  by 
the  city. 

There  will  be  no  more  taking  lands  for  public  use  without 
just  and  immediate  compensation. 

To  meet  the  emergency  caused  by  this  decision,  the  Legis- 
lature of  1883,  with  the  advice  and  approval  of  the  Mayor  of 
Brooklyn,  passed  an  act  authorizing  the  issue  of  bonds  by  the 
city  to  the  amount  of  about  $300,000,  with  which  to  pay  out- 
standing awards  for  which  the  city  had  become  liable  under 
circumstances  the  same  in  principle  as  that  of  Sage  vs.  The  City 
of  Brooklyn. 

THE  CASE  OF  THE  NEWSPAPER  REPORTER. 

Soon  after  the  election  of  Judge  Selah  B.  Strong  as  a  judge  of 
the  Supreme  Court  of  the  State,  in  1852,  he  presided  at  a  term 
of  the  Kings  County  Oyer  and  Terminer.  During  the  term  a 
very  important  case  came  on  for  trial.  A  well-known  news- 
paper reporter  had  been  indicted  for  the  murder  of  his  infant 


child.  The  babe  was  in  its  cradle  while  the  father  was  at  break- 
fast; its  cries  annoyed  him,  and,  seizing  a  carving-knife,  he 
sprang  to  the  cradle  and  nearly  severed  the  child's  head  from 
its  body.  He  was  arrested,  committed  to  prison,  and,  as  we 
have  said,  indicted  and  brought  to  trial.  For  some  reason,  he 
had  failed  to  retain  counsel,  and  proposed  to  conduct  his  own 
defense,  but  was  manifestly  incompetent.  It  happened  that 
William  C.  Prime  was  sitting  in  the  Bar,  and,  touched  by  the 
prisoner's  heliJless  position,  proposed,  in  case  some  other  mem- 
ber of  the  Bar  would  assist  him,  to  undertake  the  prisoner's 
defense.  A  distinguished  lawyer  of  the  St.  Louis  Bar,  who  was 
in  Brooklyn  on  business,  promptly  offered  his  services.  A 
couple  of  days  was  given  them  for  the  defense,  and  on  the  trial 
the  plea  of  the  prisoner's  insanity  was  interposed. 

Among  the  witnesses  called  for  the  defense,  was  a  prominent 
clergyman,  who  testified  that  the  prisoner  had  called  at  his 
house  and  introduced  himself  as  a  i^ublic  lecturer,  stating  that 
he  desired  to  deliver  a  lecture  in  Brooklyn,  and  that  he  could 
lecture  upon  any  subject,  no  matter  what.  "Now,  for  instance," 
he  said,  "there  is  a  sofa;  I  can  lecture  on  that;  it's  a  glorious 
thing  to  talk  about,  full  of  mighty  suggestions.  Now,  I'll  give 
you  a  portion  of  a  lecture  on  it,"  and  then  the  man  commenced 
a  regular  lecture  on  "The  Sofa,"  and  continued  to  talk  for 
some  time.  "  Such  was  his  manner,"  continued  the  clergyman, 
"that  I  thought,  and  still  think,  the  man  is  insane." 

The  case  was  ably  summed  up  by  the  opposing  lawyers,  after 
which  Judge  Strong  proceeded  to  charge  the  jury.  His  charge 
was  manifestly  against  the  prisoner's  plea. 

"It  is  contended,  gentlemen  of  the  jury,"  he  said,  "by  the 
prisoner's  counsel,  that  his  insanity  is  apparent  from  his  having 
lectured  on  a  sofa.  Now,  gentlemen,  this  is  a  question  of  fact 
for  you  to  decide,  whether  his  having  lectured  on  a  sofa  is  any 
evidence  of  insanity.  The  court  does  not  hesitate  to  say  that, 
if  this  fact  is  any  evidence,  it  is  certainly  very  weak  and  un- 
satisfactory. You  will  remember,  gentlemen,  that  Cowper,  one 
of  the  greatest  of  England'.s  poets,  wrote  a  beautiful  poem 
dedicated  to  a  sofa." 

At  this  point  the  St.  Louis  lawyer  arose  and,  with  some  excite- 
ment in  his  manner,  exclaimed:  "Your  Honor  will  please  re- 
member that  very  soon  after  writing  that  poem,  the  great  poet 
in  a  fit  of  insanity  made  an  effort  to  take  his  own  life,  which 
came  near  being  successful.  If  he  in  a  fit  of  insanity  wrote  a 
poem  on  a  sofa,  why  may  we  not  say  our  client  was  insane  when 
he  talked  insanely  about  a  sofa  ?" 

This  sudden  turn  to  his  suggestion  regarding  Cowper  placed 
the  judge  in  a  position  quite  unexpected,  turning  the  case  of 
Cowper  and  the  sofa  quite  against  him.  He  made,  however,  an 
ineffectual  effort  to  escape  from  the  dilemma.  This  sad  inci- 
dent in  the  life  of  Cowper  produced  such  an  effect  upon  the  jury 
that  they  returned  a  verdict  of  "  Not  guilty." 


ASA  P.  AND   E.  W.  ROBINSON  vs.  THE   CITY  OF 
BROOKLYN. 

This  was  a  very  important  and  hotly  contested  suit.  The 
litigation  grew  out  of  the  Bond  street  sewer  and  its  laterals  in 
1860-61.  This  action  was  begun  in  1863,  to  recover  $50,000 
against  the  city  for  alleged  breach  of  contract.  Some  idea  of  its 
importance  may  be  gained  from  the  fact  that  those  two  distin- 
guished lawyers,  Henry  C.  Murphy  and  Hon.  John  G.  Schu- 
maker,  were  the  opposing  counsel ;  the  former  appeared  for  the 
plaintiff,  and  the  latter  for  the  city. 

The  cause  was  referred  to  John  B.  Haskins,  Esq.,  who  in 
October,  1866,  made  a  report  in  favor  of  the  plaintiffs  and 
against  the  city  for  the  sum  of  $373.11  on  items  of  damage  which 
had  been  conceded  by  the  city.  Judgment  was  entered  on  this 
report  against  the  city  for  the  above  sum  and  $250.68  costs, 


BENCH  AND  BAR   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1265 


amounting  in  all  to  $G23.79.  This,  of  course,  was  a  signal 
deft^at  for  the  jjlaintiffs,  and  they  took  an  appeal  from  the  judg- 
ment to  the  General  Term  of  the  Siii^reme  Court.  The  case  was 
argued  before  that  tribunal  in  January,  1870,  and  in  the  following 
March  judgment  was  given  granting  a  new  trial  because  of  one 
erroneous  iinding  on  the  part  of  the  Referee.  After  this  the 
cause  was  left  to  itself  for  several  years.  At  length,  in  1881,  dur- 
ing the  administration  of  Mr.  De  Witt  as  Corporation  Counsel, 
the  cause  was  brought  to  trial  before  the  same  Referee,  who, 
after  several  hearings  and  considerable  delay,  made  a  report 
more  favorable  to  the  plaintiffs  than  before,  "but  still  of  such 
small  amount  when  compared  to  their  claim  as  to  be  a  substan- 
tial success  to  the  city,"  The  precise  amount  found  for  the 
plaintiffs  was  $2,517.39,  of  which  S278.-16  was  admitted  by 
the  city,  and  which,  therefore,  the  plaintiffs  had  been  at  all 
times  entitled  to  payment.  The  balance  of  the  judgment  re- 
covered by  the  plaintiffs  consisted  of  about  20  years'  interest  on 
several  of  the  items  found  due,  amounting  to  over  $1,100,  and  of 
$1,330.'.)2,  the  costs  of  this  long,  important  and  expensive  litiga- 
tion. 

All  the  serious  questions  of  law  involved  in  the  action  are 
found  in  favor  of  the  city.  The  heavy  items  of  plaintiffs'  claim 
were  all  shut  off  by  the  Referee.  The  manner  in  which  Mr.  Has- 
kins  conducted  the  case  as  Referee  was  generally  commended, 
his  mind  seemed  so  well  adapted  to  the  disentangling  of  the 
complex  questions  of  law  and  fact  in  the  case.  The  lease  was 
finally  settled,  iinder  the  directions  of  the  Common  Council,  for 
the  sum  of  $5,020i»^. 

The  following  are  important  cases,  in  which  the  city  of 
Brooklyn  has  been  interested,  but  to  which  we  can  only  briefly 
allude : 

Brooklyn  Batik  v.  De  Grand,  23  Wend.,  342  ;  Brooklyn  Bank  v. 
Waring,  2  Sandford,  Chancery  Rep.  1;  47  N.  Y.,  139;  Brooklyn 
Park  Commissioners  v.  Armstrong,  4.")  N.  Y.,  234  ;  Brooklyn  v. 
Hamill,  43  N.  Y.,  5.54  ;  Brooklyn  City,  etc.,  B.  R.  Co.  v.  Coyiey 
Island  R.  R.  Co.,  35  Barbour,  364  ;  Brooklyn  Central  and  Jamaica 
B.  R.  Go.  v.  Brooklyn  Oity  R.  R.  Co.,  33  Barbour,  420  ;  The  Dal- 
zelle  Divorce  Case  ;  Gray  v.  Brooklyn  ;  Meade  v.  Brooklyn  ;  J'/te 
New  York  Saw  Mill  and  Lumber  Company  v.  Brooklyn  ;  The  City 
of  Brooklyn  v.  Richard  Wood,  et.  al. ;  John  J.  Hardy  v.  The  City 
of  Brooklyn;  Henry  W.  Sage  et.  al.  v.  The  City  of  Brooklyn  ; 
The  City  of  lirooklyn  v.  The  Mayor  and  Aldermen  of  the  City 
of  New  York  ;  The  People  e.c  rel.  Jesse  Johnson  v.  John 
Mitchell,  Treasurer  of  the  City  of  Brooklyn,  and  M.  O'Keeffe, 
Registrar  of  Arrears  of  the  City  of  Brooklyn  ;  The  People  of  the 
State  of  New  York  ex  rel.  E.  Darwin  Litchford  v.  Michael 
O'Keeffe,  Registrar  of  Arrears,  etc. 

These  are  only  a  part  of  the  important  cases  which  might  be 
mentioned  that  have  occupied  the  attention  of  the  city  courts. 

As  has  well  been  said,  any  one  desiring  to  catch  an  idea  and 
the  drift  of  these  coiirts  maj'  profitably  study  these  cases.  The 
result  of  the  litigation  in  which  the  city  had  been  a  party 
litigant  for  the  ten  years  ending  December  31,  1879,  is  seen  in 
the  report  of  the  Corporation  Counsel  for  those  years — Mr.  De 
Witt-in  which  it  appears  that  upon  all  jiidgments  finally  recov- 
ered against  and  in  behalf  of  the  city,  over  this  extended  period, 
there  was  a  balance  of  over  $63,101.53  in  the  city's  favor,  and 
upon  the  cash  paid  out  and  received  according  to  the  books  of 
the  Comptroller  upon  all  judgments  which  had  been  had  dur- 
ing that  time,  there  was  a  like  favorable  balance  of  $28,319.70. 
An  equally  favorable  result  of  the  litigation  for  and  against  the 
city  appears  by  the  reports  of  Hon.  John  A.  Taylor,  Corporation 
Counsel,  for  the  year  ending  December  31,  1883.  When  we  take 
into  consideration  the  vast  amount  of  litigation  in  which  the 
city  has  been  engaged,  we  may  well  adopt  the  language  of  a 
distinguished  city  official:  "  It  is  an  obvious  truth  that  no  other 
city  has  enjoyed  in  its  litigation  a  good  fortune  at  all  comparable 
with  that  of  Brooklyn." 


THE    EXECUTORS    OF    PETER    W.    RADCLIFF 


THE 


MAYOR  AND  COMMON  COUNCIL  OF 
BROOKLYN. 


This  case  is  one  which  gives  a  dramatic  interest  to  the  scenes 
and  decisions  of  the  court-room. 

On  February  6,  1827,  Leffekt  Lefferts,  who  had  presided  on 
the  Bench  of  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas  with  much  acceptability 
to  the  public  for  several  years,  retired  from  the  Bench,  and  Petek 
W.  Radcliff,  a  lawyer  eminent  for  his  learning  and  ability,  was 
appointed,  by  Gov.  De  Witt  Clinton  and  the  Council  of  Appoint- 
ment, the  successor  of  Judge  Lefferts.  He  discharged  his 
judicial  duties  ably  and  successfully,  and  the  causes  adjudicated 
in  the  Common  Pleas  of  Kings  County  were  important,  and 
usually  disposed  of  with  as  much  satisfaction  to  all  parties  as  in 
any  other  tribunal  in  the  State.  Judge  Radcliff  was  a  man  of 
inflexibility  of  purpose,  spirited,  and,  perhaps,  one  who  might 
be  called  a  proud  man.  Among  the  charming  houses  which,  in 
an  early  day ,  embellished  Columbia  Heights,  in  Brooklyn,  was 
that  of  Judge  Radcliff;  his  house,  though  not  as  expensive  as 
many  of  the  now  almost  palatial  residences  of  that  street,  was 
tasteful,  indicating  that  its  owner  was  a  gentleman  of  refinement 
and  culture.  The  mansion  was  surrounded  by  beautiful  grounds 
which  to  the  westward  sloped  toward  the  East  River,  and  over- 
looked the  Bay  of  New  York.  It  was  surrounded  by  tastefully 
arranged  shrubbery,  shade  and  fruit  trees,  and  withal  a  most 
inviting  flower  and  vegetable  garden.  This  was  his  home  down 
to  and  some  years  after  1838.  Early  in  March  of  that  year,  the 
Common  Council  of  the  City  of  Brooklyn  laid  out  the  present, 
Furman  street,  on  the  west  of  Judge  Radcliff's  grounds,  below 
and  abutting  them.  To  prepare  space  for  the  street  it  became 
necessary  to  dig  away  a  large  part  of  the  west  bank  of  the  lands 
belonging  to  the  judge.  In  doing  this  a  large,  and  the  most  at- 
tractive part  of  his  premises,  was  iindermined  and  utterly  de- 
vastated. The  judge,  at  the  commencement  of  the  digging,  saw 
what  the  result  would  be,  and  forbade  them  from  proceeding,  and 
finally  resorted  to  an  action  to  restrain  the  city  authorities  from 
proceeding;  but  the  court  ruled  against  him,  and  he  resorted  to 
an  action  for  trespass,  in  which  he  was  equally  unfortunate.  In 
the  meantime  his  beautiful  grounds  were  crumbling  away,  fall- 
ing into  the  excavations  below.  As  we  have  said,  he  was  a  man 
of  iron  will,  of  indomitable  energy,  and  he  continued  to  fight 
the  corporation  until  the  day  of  his  death,  and  enjoined  upon 
his  surviving  friends  the  duty  of  continuing  the  fight  after  his 
death.  Accordingly,  in  1847,  the  action,  the  title  of  which  we 
have  given,  was  commenced  by  his  executors  against  the  Mayor 
and  Common  Council  to  recover  of  the  city  the  damages  that 
their  testator  had  sustained  by  the  destruction  of  a  valuable  jmrt 
of  his  grounds. 

The  late  Henry  C.  Murphy  appeared  for  the  city,  and  A.  H. 
Dana  for  the  plaintiff.  Mr.  Murphy,  in  his  answer  to  the  plain- 
tiff's declaration,  alleged  that  before  the  commission  of  the 
wrongs  complained  of,  Furman  street,  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn, 
had  been  lawfully  laid  out  and  opened,  the  east  line  of  which 
and  along  and  adjacent  to  the  premises  of  Judge  Radcliff;  that 
as  a  muncipal  corporation  the  defendants,  by  virtue  of  the  power 
conferred  on  them  by  law,  took  regular  and  legal  proceedings 
for  the  grading  and  leveling  of  said  Furman  street;  that  Judge 
Radcliff  neglected  to  uphold  his  premises,  which  lay  above  the 
grade,  by  proper  props  or  retaining  walls,  &c.,  and  a  portion  of 
his  premises  slid  down  the  bank  and  was  destroyed. 

The  case  came  on  to  be  tried  at  a  Circuit  Court  held  in  Brook- 
lyn in  December,  1839,  and  was  decided  against  the  executors. 
An  appeal  was  taken  to  the  General  Term,  and  they  were  again 
beaten;  following  the  directious  of  Judge  Radcliff,  given  in  his 
lifetime,  the  case  was  taken  to  the  Court  of  Appeals,  where,  in 
December,  1850,  it  was  elaborately  argued  by  the  distinguished 
counsel  for  the  respective  parties,  and   the  executors  of  Judge 


1266 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Kadcliff  were  again  defeated.  That  illustrious  judge  and  jurist, 
Greene  C.  Bronson,  then  Chief  Justice  of  the  Court  of  Appeals, 
delivered  the  opinion  of  the  court,  holding  that  when  a  municipal 
pal  corporation  under  rightful  authority  oont<\ined  in  its  charter, 
grades  and  levels  a  street,  an  action  will  not  lie  by  an  adjoining 
owner  whose  lands  are  not  actually  taken  for  consequential 
damages  to  his  premises,  there  being  no  want  of  care  or  skill  in 
the  execution  of  the  work  of  digging,  and  in  the  absence  of  any 
provision  in  the  charter  for  the  payment  of  damages  of  that 
kind.  That  a  man  may,  for  a  lawful  purpose,  dig  in  his  own 
soil  so  near  the  premises  of  another  as  to  unsettle  the  founda- 
tions of  a  building  thereon;  that  a  man  may  also,  without  being 
liable  to  an  action  for  damages,  dig  so  near  the  premises  of  an- 
other that  his  soil  without  any  superabundant  weight  is  precipi- 
tated into  the  pit  dug. 

Chancellor  Walworth  had,  some  years  previous  to  this  (4  Paige, 
If)!)),  laid  down  a  different  doctrine,  but  Chief  Justice  Bronson 
questions  that  case  and  in  effect  overrules  it.  His  opinion  is 
found  in  4  N.  Y.,  or  4th  Comstock,  195.  Thus  ended  this  singu- 
lar litigation,  so  unfortunate  for  Judge  Eadcliff  and  his  repre- 
sentatives; as  the  court  of  dernier  ressort  had  decided  against 
them,  there  was  no  further  remedy,  and  they  were  compelled 
to  submit. 

It  was  a  fearful  blow  upon  Judge  Eadcliff;  he  saw  his  beauti- 
ful home  invaded,  its  choicest  embellishments  destroyed  and 
taken  away  from  him  by  a  great  city,  a  municipality  founded  on 
justice  and  the  sanctity  of  the  rights  of  citizens  to  their  property, 
and  appealed  to  the  laws  for  his  rights,  and  when  the  courts 
repeatedly  decided  against  him,  the  intellect  of  the  strong  man 
almost  gave  way,  and  the  trouble  which  it  caused  him  hurried 
him  to  his  grave.  It  was  one  of  those  cases  in  which  the  law 
with  its  stern  inflexibility  is  on  one  side,  and  right  and  justice 
on  the  other. 

After  the  misfortune  to  the  grounds  we  have  described,  and 
the  decision  of  the  case,  a  heavy  retaining  wall  was  built  between 
what  remained  of  the  grounds  and  the  street,  which  permanently 
protected  them.  Enough  was  left  for  a  handsome  lot.  It  is 
now  known  as  176  Columbia  Heights,  and  is  the  attractive  home 
of  Hon.  Thomas  G.  Shearman. 


THE    GREAT    ROPE-WALK    LITIGATION    WITH 
THE   CITY   OF   BROOKLYN. 

Three  are  few  cases  in  which  the  city  of  Brooklyn  has  been  a 
party,  the  history  of  which  is  more  interesting  than  this.  It  was 
one  of  several  strongly  litigated  cases  containing  the  same  cause 
of  action — litigation  like  that  of  Jarndyce  v.  Jarndyre,  which 
seemed  almost  interminable.  The  contentions  and  bitter  enmi- 
ties which  it  engendered  made  the  village  of  Brooklyn — and 
afterwards  the  city  in  its  early  days — a  scene  of  strife  most  un- 
happy in  its  nature.  But  time,  which  wears  out  the  deej^est 
traces  of  hatred  and  strife,  has  swept  away  that  which  entered 
into  this  contest,  and  changed  the  subject  of  the  contest  so  that 
few  have  any  personal  recollection  of  its  original  condition. 

In  the  year  1810,  Norris  L.  Martin,  then  largely  engaged  in 
the  ship-chandlery  business,  in  the  city  of  New  York,  leased  of 
Joshua  Sands  and  Comfort  Sands,  for  the  term  of  twenty-one 
years,  a  piece  of  land  in  Brooklyn,  extending  from  the  present 
Fulton  street  to  near  Bridge  street.  Subsequently  Mr.  Martin 
became  the  owner  in  fee  of  that  and  some  other  tracts  of  land 
adjoining,  purchased  from  James  Tillary.  Soon  after  taking 
possession  of  the  first  piece  of  land,  Mr.  Martin  erected  upon  it 
one  of  the  most  extensive  rope-walks  in  the  United  States,  with 
valuable  buildings,  or  manufactories,  as  a  part  of  the  said  rope- 
walk.  It  is  hardly  possible  for  a  person  as  he  passes  from  Ful- 
ton to  Bridge  street,  thronged  with  passengers,  carriages,  and 
embellished  with  elegant  buildings,  to  conceive  that  it  was  once 


used,  for  many  years,  as  a  rope-walk;  but  such  was  the  case.    It 
was  so  occupied  from  1811  till  1828. 

On  March  3d  of  that  year  two  petitions  were  presented  to 
the  Trustees  of  the  Village  of  Brooklyn,  pursuant  to  the  18th 
section  of  an  Act  of  the  Legislature,  entitled  "An  Act  to 
reduce  the  law  incorporating  the  village  of  Brooklyn,  and 
the  several  acts  amendatory  thereof,"  into  one  act,  and  amend 
the  same,  passed  April  3d,  1827,  j^raying  for  the  opening  of 
Washington  and  Adams  streets  through  the  said  rope-walk 
grounds,  viz. :  One  of  the  petitions  was  for  the  opening  of 
Washington  street  from  Concord  to  Fulton  streets,  and  the 
other  for  the  opening  of  Adams  street  from  its  then  present 
termination,  near  Concord,  to  Fulton  street.  The  following  are 
the  boundaries  of  the  lands  then  used  by  Mr.  Martin  as  a  rope- 
walk  :  "Beginning  at  a  point  on  a  line,  being  a  continuation 
of  the  line  of  the  easterly  side  of  Washington  street,  where  the 
same  intersects  the  southern  boundary  of  the  land  of  John 
Dikeman,  running  thence  in  a  southerly  direction  on  the  said 
continued  line  of  the  easterly  side  of  Washington  street  88  feet; 
thence  westerly  along  the  said  boundary  line  of  the  said  land  60 
feet  to  a  line,  being  a  continuation  of  the  line  of  the  westerly 
side  of  Washington  street,  88  feet  9  inches,  to  the  land  of  John 
Dikeman;  thence  easterly  along  said  Dikeman's  land  60  feet. 
The  piece  of  land  purchased  by  Mr.  Martin  of  Mr.  Tillary  ex- 
tended from  the  southern  boundary  line  just  described,  and 
running  thence  southerly  on  the  said  continued  line  on  the  east- 
erly side  of  Washington  street  198  feet  to  the  southerly  line  of 
Tillary  street;  thence  northerly  along  the  line  of  said  Tillary 
street  60  feet  and  3  inches  to  the  westerly  line  of  Washington 
street;  thence  northerly  along  the  line,  being  a  continuation  of 
the  line  of  the  westerly  side  of  Washington  street,  201  feet  8 
inches  to  the  lands  of  Norris  L.  Martin;  thence  easterly  along 
said  Martin's  land  60  feet  to  the  i^lace  of  beginning." 

It  appears  that  Mr.  Martin  owned  another  piece  of  ground  in 
this  now  populous  part  of  the  city,  which  is  described  as  follows: 
"Beginning;  at  a  point  on  a  line,  being  the  continuation  of  the 
line  of  the  easterly  side  of  Adams  street,  84  feet  5  inches,  to  the 
southern  boundary  line  of  said  Martin's  land;  thence  westerly 
along  the  said  boundarj'  line  60  feet  to  a  line,  being  a  continua- 
tion of  the  line  of  the  westerly  side  of  Adams  street;  thence 
northerly  along  last  mentioned  line  85  feet  1  inch  to  the  land 
of  John  Dikeman;  thence  easterly  along  said  Dikeman's  land 
60  feet  to  the  place  of  beginning." 

We  have  given  the  particular  boundaries  of  these  particular 
pieces  of  land  as  an  item  of  interesting  history,  not  only  of  the 
origin  of  certain  now  populous  streets  in  the  city,  but  the  origi- 
nal title  thereto,  and  the  sources  from  whence  the  city  derived 
its  title  to  the  property  of  such  immense  value,  and  showing  the 
projierty  really  in  dispute  in  the  great  case  we  describe. 

As  we  have  said,  in  March,  1828,  two  petitions  were  presented 
to  the  Trustees  of  the  Village  of  Brooklyn,  one  for  the  opening  of 
Washington  street  from  Concord  to  Fulton  street,  and  the  other 
for  the  opening  of  Adams  street  from  where  it  then  terminated, 
near  Concord  street,  to  Fulton  street.  Washington  and  Adams 
streets  were  to  be  opened  through  the  said  rope-walk.  On  the 
31st  of  March  following,  these  petitions  were  duly  granted  by 
the  Trustees  of  the  Village  of  Brooklyn,  and  in  May  following 
the  Court  of  Common  Pleas  of  King  County,  under  the  statute 
in  such  cases,  appointed  three  commissioners  to  assess  the 
damages  accruing  to  the  owners  of  said  lands  from  the  opening 
of  said  streets.  These  commissioners  were  James  W.  Burtis, 
John  D.  Conklin,  and  Nathan  Y'oung,  three  highly  respectable 
and  well-remembered  citizens  of  Brooklyn. 

On  the  9th  of  June  following,  the  said  commissioners  having 
examined  the  said  lands  and  estimated  the  damages  which 
would  result  from  the  opening  of  the  said  streets  through 
them,  rejiorted  that  the  damages  of  Mr.  Martin,  for  the 
opening  through  the  first  described  piece  of  land,  amounted 
under  all    the  circumstances    of   the  case    to    $7,424.24;  that 


BENCH  AND  BAR   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1267 


the  damages  due  him  for  the  opening  through  the  second 
described  piece  of  land  was  S2,880.  The  damage  occasioned 
by  the  opening  through  the  piece  of  land  last  described 
amounted,  under  the  circumstances  in  the  case,  to  $6,714.66. 
The  aggregated  damages  of  Mr.  Martin,  for  the  proposed 
opening  or  continuation  of  these  streets  through  his  lands, 
amounted  to  $17,008.90.  These  damages  were  satisfactory  to 
him,  and  believing  that  the  trustees  would  have  the  report  of 
the  commissioners  filed  according  to  law,  and  that  the  said 
streets  would  be  opened  in  due  form  of  law  pursuant  to  the 
statute,  took  down  his  rope-walks,  for  he  now  had  several  on 
the  lands,  and  a  valuable  stone  building  erected  on  these  lands 
for  the  safe  keeping  of  his  stock,  and  proceeded  to  erect  a  new 
and  valuable  building  on  the  line  of  Adams  street,  as  con- 
templated to  be  opened,  rebuilt  the  said  stone  huilding  in  an- 
other place,  and  erected  three  valuable  houses  on  other  lands 
along  the  said  streets  contemplated  to  be  opened.  All  these 
buildings  would  have  been  of  great  value  as  soon  as  these  streets 
were  opened  and  extended. 

We  now  approach  the  most  interesting,  and  we  may  say 
strange  history  of  this  case,  and  the  immediate  cause  of 
its  commencement.  We  have  seen  that  the  commissioners 
appointed  to  assess  Mr.  Martin's  damages  resulting  from  the 
opening  of  these  streets,  Ac,  duly  discharged  their  duties, 
estimated  his  damages  and  made  their  report;  but,  strange 
as  it  may  appear,  all  proceedings  concerning  the  said  dam- 
ages terminated  with  the  making  of  said  report,  and  the 
Board  of  Trustees  of  the  Village  of  Brooklyn  utterly  refused 
to  file  said  report  in  the  clerk's  office,  according  to  law,  and  to 
proceed  with  the  opening  of  the  said  streets,  pursuant  to  the 
earnest  petition  of  a  large  number  of  citizens  interested  in  their 
opening,  notwithstanding  Mr.  Martin  had  in  good  faith  sub- 
jected himself  to  large  expenses  in  removing  his  rope-walks  and 
buildings,  and  in  erecting  other  buildings,  along  the  line  of  one 
of  the  proposed  streets.  Such  were  his  expenses  that  he  was 
compelled  to  borrow  a  large  sum  of  money  to  aid  him  in  meet- 
ing his  expenses  until  his  damages  were  paid,  and  he  was  other- 
wise greatly  injured  by  the  singular  course  pursued  by  the 
trustees. 

Thus  the  matter  continued  until  about  the  18th  day  of 
January,  1830,  when  the  Board  of  Trustees  adopted  a  resolu- 
tion to  proceed  forthwith  to  open  Washington  street,  and 
Adams  street,  from  near  Concord  street  to  Fultou  street,  under 
the  petitions  to  which  we  have  already  alluded,  provided  Mr. 
Martin  and  the  other  persons  interested  in  the  matter  would 
consent  to  waive  the  damages  awarded  them  by  the  commis- 
sioners, and  that  a  committee  of  six  members  of  the  board  be 
appointed  to  treat  and  agree  with  the  owners  of  the  ground  re- 
quired for  the  opening  of  the  said  streets.  To  this  Mr.  Martin 
and  the  others  promptly  assented;  and  yet,  to  the  astonishment 
of  Mr.  Martin,  on  August  2,  1830,  the  said  Board  of  Trustees, 
without  his  consent  or  knowledge,  rescinded  the  resolution,  and 
by  another  resolution  placed  the  said  parties  who  had  consented 
to  waive  such  damages,  and  to  take  whatever  sum  the  said  board 
might  award  them  in  lieu  thereof,  in  the  same  situation  as  they 
were  before  such  waiver  was  made.  Here  the  matter  rested  until 
1832.  Mr.  Martin  began  an  action  in  the  Supreme  Court  against 
the  President  and  Trustees  of  the  village  for  the  damages  sus- 
tained by  him,  which  we  have  described. 

In  1834,  the  village  was  incorporated  as  a  city,  and  the  Mayor 
and  Common  Council  thereof  invested  with  all  the  powers  of 
said  Board  of  Trustees.  By  the  act  of  incorporation  no  suit 
against  the  village  of  Brooklyn,  and  no  cause  of  action  against 
it,  was  affected  by  said  incorporation,  and  the  suit  of  Mr. 
Martin  against  the  trustees  of  the  village  was  continued  against 
the  city. 

Never,  perhaps,  has  the  Shakespearean  phrase  "  of  the  law's 
delay,"  or  its  uncertainties,  been  more  strikingly  exhibited  than 
in  the  history  of  this  action,  by  every  kind  of  dilatory  device. 


The  city  by  its  counsel   at  once  Interposed  a  demurrer  to  Mr. 
Martin's  declaration,  assigning  as  one  cause  of  demurrer  that  the 
Board  of  Trustees  of  the  village,  and  the  Mayor  and  Common 
Council  of  the  city,  had,  under  the  act  of  April  23,  1827,  a  discre- 
tionary power  to  go  on  or  not  in  laying  out  the  said  streets,  until 
the  final  confirmation  of  the  commissioners*  report  of  damages; 
that  Mr.  Martin,  in  whose  favor  the  report  was  made,  could  have 
no  action  against  the  trustees  of  the  village,  or  against  the  city,  for 
neglecting  to  file  the  report  of  the  commissioners,  even  though 
he  had  sustained  special  damages.     Secondly,  a  municipal  cor- 
poration is  not  liable  for  the  misfeasance  or  nonfeasance  of  its 
officers  in  respect  to  duties  specifically  imposed  by  statute  on 
them,  unless  the  duty  be  imposed  absolutely  on  the  corporation. 
There  was  a  joinder  in  demurrer  by  Mr.  Martin's  counsel,  and 
then  another  long  delay  ensued,  and  it  was  not  until  January, 
1841,  that  the  demurrer  was  brought  on  for  argument,  before  the 
General  Term  of  the   Supreme   Court.     At   the   July   term   for 
1841,  the  court  handed  down  a  decision  sustaining  the  demurrer, 
substantially  on  the  grounds  we  have  stated,  holding  that  Mr. 
Martin's  only  remedy  was  by  mandamus  to  compel  the  Mayor 
and  Common  Council  to   file   the   report  of  the   said   commis- 
sioners, and  to  ijay  him  the  damages  awarded  by  said  report,  and 
cause  the  said  streets  to  be  opened  according  to  the  said  petitions. 
Another  singular  feature  in  the  case  is,  that  during  the  time 
that  elapsed  before  the  said  demurrer  was  argued,  Washington 
and  Adams   streets,    above  and  below  said  rope-walk  grounds, 
were  opened  and  converted   into  public  streets,  a  part   of  the 
buildings  upon  the  lands  torn  down,  and  other  parts  of  them 
consumed  by  fire;  a  fence  which  was  placed  across  Washington 
street  upon  said  rope-walk  by  Mr.  Martin,  to  prevent  intrusions 
upon  his  lands,  thrown  down  and  destroyed;  and  the  said  streets 
continued  through  the  said  rope-walk  ground  traveled  as  public 
streets  and  thoroughfares  for  several  years;  the  said  streets  were 
lighted  with  gas  at  the   expense  of  the  city.     And  also,  the  said 
streets  at  the  time  of  the  argument  of  said  demurrer  were  in  the 
very  centre  of  the  population    of  the  city,  thickly   built  upon, 
and  all  the  adjacent  streets  running  parallel  or  crossing  the 
same  were  filled  with  a  dense  population.     Washington  street, 
between   Concord   and    Fulton  streets,    had  become   one  of  the 
most  important   and   thronged  streets  in  the  city,  with  a  large 
number  of  public  and  private  buildings  constructed  on  it.    Was 
it   not,    therefore,    right   and  just   that  Mr.    Martin,   and  other 
persons  interested  in  the  lands   occupied  by   these  streets  and 
buildings,  should  receive  and  enjoy  the  benefits  accruing  from 
this   great    advancement    in   the   value   of  the   said    property, 
especially  as  the  titles  of  the  said  lands  still  remained  in  Mr. 
Martin  and    many  of  the  others,  and    especially  as   the  city 
refused  to  pay  them  the   damages   awarded  them  by  the  said 
commissioners,  and   as  it  had  opened   the  said  streets,  without 
any  legal  authority  so  to  do  ?     The  mandamus  to  which  we  have 
referred  was,  among  other  things,   to   compel  them  to  comply 
with  the  law  in  regard   to  opening  the  same.     The  city  authori- 
ties refused  to  obey  the  mandamus,  which  was  alternative,  and 
instead  thereof  set  up   in   an   answer  various  reasons  for   not 
obeying  it;   among  which   was   that   the   damages  assessed  by 
the  commissioners  were  unreasonably  large,   and  if  assessed 
would  be  a  grievous  burden  on  the  city,  and  that  the  expense  of 
such  improvements    would   greatly   exceed  the  benefit  to  be 
derived  therefrom;  that  the  Board  of  Trustees  had  no  author- 
ity, on  the  original  petitions   presented  to  them,  to  proceed  to 
open  the  said  streets;    that  no  injury  whatever  had  been  sus- 
tained by   Mr.  Martin  or  any  other  person,  and  that  no  vested 
right  had  been  conferred  in  and  by  the  proceedings  of  the  said 
Board  of  Trustees  of  the  village.     These  were  substantially  the 
answers  to  the  alternative  mandamus. 

Judge  Greenwood  and  General  N.  B.  Duryea  appeared  for 
Mr.  Martin,  andN.  F.  Waring,  Esq.,  for  the  city.  The  issue  thus 
tendered  was  argued  before  the  General  Term  of  the  Supreme 
Court  in  July,  1845.     At  the  following  October  Term  the  court 


1268 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


handed  down  a  decision  holding  that  the  Mayor  and  Common 
Council  of  Brooklyn  were  not  bound  in  law  to  file  the  reports 
of  the  said  commissioners,  nor  to  pay  Mr.  Martin  the  damages 
awarded  by  them,  or  to  take  any  further  action  whatever  con- 
cerning the  opening  of  the  said  streets,  under  the  petition  pre- 
sented to  the  Trustees  of  the  Village  of  Brooklyn.  From  this 
judgment  of  the  Supreme  Court,  Mr.  Martin  appealed  to  the 
Court  of  Appeals.  In  January,  1848,  the  matter  came  on  for 
argument  before  that  court;  in  the  following  April  it  rendered 
a  decision  affirming  in  all  things  the  judgment  of  the  Sui:)reme 
Court,  holding  that  the  Trustees  of  the  village  and  the  Common 
Council  of  the  city  of  Brooklyn  were  legally  right  in  the  course 
they  had  pursued  towards  Mr.  Martin  and  the  other  owners  of 
lands  through  which  the  streets  were  laid. 

Thus  it  is  seen  that  twenty  years  had  been  consumed  in 
this  great  and  important  litigation ;  and  that  Mr.  Martin, 
after  having  complied  with  a  resolution  of  the  Trustees  of 
Brooklyn,  that  he  should  give  up  his  lands  for  public  streets; 
after  having  sustained  great  damages  by  his  compliance 
with  said  resolution,  in  removing  his  rope-walk,  in  taking 
down  his  buildings  thereon ;  and  after  public  streets  had 
been  unlawfully  forced  through  it,  and  had  become  the 
most  thickly  pojjulated  in  the  city;  and  after  commissioners 
appointed  under  the  Revised  Statutes  had  fully  and  carefully 
assessed  his  damages  in  the  first  instance,  and  after  being 
mulcted  in  large  bills  of  costs,  he  was  turned  out  of 
court  without  any  legal  remedy.  After  seeking  in  vain  to 
compel  the  trustees  to  comply  with  the  law  touching  the  open- 
ing of  streets,  he  commenced  his  action  to  recover  it,  and  was 
defeated  on  the  several  grounds  we  have  stated,  and  on  the 
further  ground  that  his  remedy  was  by  mandamus  to  compel 
the  Common  Council  of  Brooklyn  to  pay  him  his  damages 
awarded  by  the  commissioners,  and  to  legalize  their  other  acts 
in  regard  to  the  opening  of  the  said  streets.  That,  in  conform- 
ity to  the  decision  of  the  Supreme  Court,  he  did  proceed  by 
mandamus  against  the  said  Common  Council,  and  was  defeated 
in  those  proceedings  by  the  General  Term  and  the  Court  of 
Appeals,  on  the  grounds  we  have  stated,  which,  in  substance, 
means,  that  his  only  remedy  was  an  action  against  the  board 
to  recover  his  damages,  etc.  Unfortxinately,  however,  for  Mr. 
Martin,  as  he  had  already  resorted  to  an  action  in  that  court, 
and  been  defeated  by  a  judgment  against  him,  which  must  be 
regarded  as  res  judicata,  he  was,  as  we  have  said,  left  without 
legal  remedy,  and  thus,  so  far  as  legal  redress  is  concerned,  the 
matter  still  rests.  This  case  is  a  monumental  case  of  the  oft- 
repeated  failure  of  justice  in  our  courts,  so  far,  at  least,  in  the 
view  of  common  sense  and  good  judgment,  upon  which  law  is 
said  to  be  founded.  It  is  said  that,  after  the  lapse  of  some 
time,  the  matter  was  finally  adjusted  between  Mr.  Martin  and 
the  Common  Council  of  the  city. 


COPPIN   agst.    GATEWOOD. 

This  case  was  conducted  for  the  plaintilf  by  the  late  James  T. 
Brady,  and  tended  largely  to  establish  his  splendid  reputation 
as  a  lawyer. 

The  facts  in  the  case  are,  briefly,  these  :  In  the  summer  of  1837, 
an  Englishman  of  the  name  of  Richard  Coppin,  with  his  family, 
consisting  of  a  wife  and  two  daughters,  embarked  from  Liverpool 
for  New  York,  leaving  one  son,  a  young  man  about  twenty  years 
of  age,  who  was  engaged  in  business  in  Liverpool.  Mr.  Coppin 
had  with  him  considerable  money.  During  the  voyage  he,  with 
his  wife  and  one  daughter,  died  of  ship  fever,  leaving  the  youngest 
daughter,  Sarah,  then  about  fourteen  years  of  age,  alone  in  the 
world.  She  landed  in  New  York.  An  Englishman  and  his  wife, 
■who  accompanied  them,  and  who  were  on  their  way  to  some  of 
the  Western  States,  engaged  board  for  Sarah  in— as  they  sup- 
posed —a  respectable  f  imily  near  Williamsburgh,  wrote  to  her 
brother  informing  him  of  the  state  of  affairs,  and  pursued  their 


way  westward.  They  were  imprudent  enough  to  entrust  all  of 
Sarah's  money  with  the  man  in  whose  family  she  boarded, 
directing  him  to  pay  it  out  as  her  necessities  required.  Instead 
of  doing  so,  however,  he  robbed  her  of  her  money  and  turned 
her  over  to  the  Overseers  of  the  Poor,  representing  that  she  was 
a  pauper,  which  appearances  seemed  to  indicate. 

She  was  a  strong,  bright,  active,  intelligent  girl;  and  instead 
of  taking  her  to  the  County  poor-house,  they  bound  her  out, 
under  the  statute  relating  to  paupers,  to  a  man  by  the  name  of 
Gatewood,  in  the  neighborhood,  until  she  should  attain  her  ma- 
jority. In  her  new  home  she  was  cruelly  neglected  and  compelled 
to  do  work  beyond  her  strength.  After  the  lapse  of  several 
months,  her  brother  James  arrived  in  New  York  in  search  of  his 
sister.  It  was  a  long  time  before  he  found  her.  The  meeting 
between  them  was  most  affecting. 

After  a  brief  interview  with  his  sister,  he  proposed  that  she 
should  accompany  him  to  New  York.  She  joyfully  acceded 
to  the  iirojoosal,  but  when  in  the  act  of  leaving  Gatewood  in- 
terfered, forbidding  her  to  do  so,  and  roughly  ordering  the 
young  man  to  leave,  informing  him  that  the  girl  belonged 
to  him,  that  she  was  his  property,  and  would  be  until  she 
was  of  age.  In  proof  of  his  claim,  he  produced  the  written 
indentures,  duly  executed  and  delivered  to  him  by  the  Super- 
intendents of  the  Poor  of  Kings  Count}',  making  Sarah  his 
property,  as  he  had  alleged.  This  was  a  terrible  blow  to  the 
brother.  He  had  beard  of  American  slavery,  and  believed  his 
poor  little  sister  was  reduced  to  that  condition.  Gatewood  would 
not  listen  to  any  of  his  importunities,  and,  with  threats  of  vio- 
lence, drove  him  away.  Almost  heart-broken,  he  returned  to  New 
Y'ork,  and  was  directed  by  a  young  friend  to  James  T.  Brady, 
then  a  young  lawyer  first  emerging  into  eminence.  The  young 
man's  appeal  to  Mr.  Brady  was  mo.st  touching.  "They  have 
made  a  slave  of  my  poor  little  sister,"  he  said;  "all  the  relative 
I  have  in  the  world.  I  cannot  endure  it,  and  I  have  come  to  you 
for  help,  for  indeed  she  is  not  a  slave;  she  is  the  daughter  of  a 
free-born  Englishman." 

Mr.  Brady  drew  from  the  young  man  a  full  history  of  the  case, 
and  became  deeply  interested  in  it,  promising  to  do  all  he  could 
to  regain  the  liberty  of  the  girl.  On  investigating  the  matter, 
he  found  the  Superintendents  had  bound  Sarah  to  Gatewood  in 
the  usual  indentures,  under  sec.  5,  chap.  8,  vol.  2,  of  the  Revised 
Statutes,  and  that  they  were  in  due  form  of  law;  but,  on  full  in- 
vestigation, he  believed  that  he  could  set  aside  the  indentures, 
and  he  caused  the  girl  to  be  brought  up  on  a  writ  of  habeas 
corpus  before  Hon.  Nathan  B.  Morse,  then  First  Judge  of  the 
Court  of  Common  Pleas  of  Kings  County. 

The  matter  now  became  very  important  to  the  Superintend- 
ents of  the  Poor,  as  well  as  to  Gatewood,  who  greatly  desired  to 
keep  the  girl.  The  Superintendents  had,  as  they  believed, 
complied  strictly  with  the  statute,  and  it  therefore  became  their 
duty  to  sustain  the  indentures  by  every  means  in  their  power. 
They  accordingly  retained  George  M.  Wood,  Esq.,  one  of  the 
most  eminent  lawyers  of  that  day,  and  under  his  advice,  a  return 
to  the  writ  was  made  that  Sarah  Coppin  was  held  by  Gatewood 
as  his  servant  or  apprentice,  according  to  certain  indentures 
executed  to  him  by  the  Superintendents  of  the  Poor  of  the 
County  of  Kings,  under  the  statute  made  in  such  case  and  pro- 
vided, the  said  Sarah  being,  at  the  time  of  said  indentures,  a 
pauper  within  the  meaning  of  the  statute  aforesaid. 

The  hearing  of  the  case  took  place  before  Judge  Morse,  at 
the  court-rooms  in  Brooklyn.  Its  singular  nature,  the  contem- 
plated blow  at  the  right  of  the  Superintendents  to  bind  out 
paupers  under  the  statute,  and  the  question  whether  persons 
situated  like  Sarah  Coppin  could  thus  be  deprived  of  their  free- 
dom for  a  term  of  years,  the  interest  attached  to  her  case,  and 
to  that  of  her  brother,  gave  the  matter  great  publicity.  It  was  a 
matter  of  vast  importance  to  Mr.  Brady,  in  a  professional  point 
of  view.     He  was  to  meet  one  of  the  gladiators  of  the  State;  he 


BENCH  AND  BAR   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1269 


was  to  contend  for  a  new  principle  in  law  that  was  to  overthrow 
the  official  acts  of  men  in  high  authority. 

After  closing  his  opening  to  the  judge,  Mr.  Wood,  who  believed 
he  had  a  very  easy  case,  asked  the  court  to  remand  Sarah  Coppin 
to  the  care  of  her  master,  Mr.  Gatewood,  on  the  ground  that  the 
indentures  by  which  he  held  her  were  legal,  in  strict  conformity 
with  the  statute,  therefore  conclusive;  that  the  court  had  no 
power  to  go  behind  them  to  inquire  under  what  circumstances 
they  were  executed.  He  closed  by  reading  the  statute  and  the 
indentures.  But  Brady  was  prepared  on  this  point;  and  after  an 
elaborate  argument  and  the  production  of  numerous  authorities, 
the  judge  decided  to  allow  him  to  introduce  evidence  of  the 
facts  in  the  case  iinder  which  the  indentures  were  executed. 
Among  other  things,  Brady  proved  by  the  Keeper  of  the  County 
I'oor-House  of  Kings  County  that  Sarah  had  never  been  an  in- 
mate of  that  institution.  He  proved  by  the  Overseer  of  the  Poor 
that  he  had  never,  in  any  way,  assisted  her,  or  been  called  upon 
to  assist  her.  With  this  and  some  other  proofs,  he  rested  his 
case. 

Mr.  Wood  proved  by  the  man  and  woman  with  whom  she  was 
left  that  they  soon  discovered  she  had  no  money,  and  being  un- 
able to  keep  her,  they  sent  her  away,  and  afterwards  directed  the 
Overseers  of  the  Poor  to  care  for  her.  Brady,  on  the  cross-exam- 
ination, compelled  the  man  to  admit  that  when  Sarah  came  to 
his  house  slie  had  some  money,  but  how  much,  or  what  became 
of  it,  he  never  knew.  It  was  certain  she  had  none  when  he  sent 
her  away.  At  the  close  of  the  evidence,  Mr.  Wood  insisted  that 
nothing  had  been  proved  showing  that  Sarah  should  be  dis- 
charged from  the  indentures;  that  she  was  in  every  sense  of  the 
word  a  pauper;  that  if  she  had  not  received  actual  aid  from 
the  Poor  authorities  she  was  in  a  situation  to  become  chargeable 


to  the  county;  that,  within  the  meaning  of  the  statute,  a  liability 
of  becoming  chargeable  was  sufficient,  in  analogy  to  the  condi- 
tion of  a  putative  father  in  an  order  of  filiation ;  that  the  public 
jiolicy  and  the  due  administration  of  the  poor  laws  demanded 
that  the  indentures  in  this  case  be  sustained  and  the  girl 
remanded  to  her  master.  It  is  said  Mr.  Wood  never  made  a 
more  able  argument  than  upon  this  occasion,  the  outlines  of 
which  we  have  briefly  sketched,  and  which  at  first  seemed 
conclusive. 

Mr.  Brady's  argument  was  never  forgotten  by  those  who  heard 
it;  never,  even  in  the  days  of  his  most  brilliant  success  at  the 
Bar,  did  he  excel  it  in  logic,  learning,  or  in  the  manner  in 
which  he  marshalled  and  arranged  the  facts  in  the  case.  The 
pathos  of  his  appeal  to  the  sympathy  of  the  judge  touched  all 
hearts.  If  it  failed  to  affect  the  learned  judge  the  manner  in 
which  he  presented  the  law  applicable  to  the  case  produced  re- 
sults which  pathos  could  not.  Among  the  authorities  presented 
was  the  opinion  of  Judge  Yates  in  Schermerhorn  agst.  Hull  (13th 
John's,  2G9),  which  is  not  only  a  leading  case,  but  one  so  strictly 
analogous  to  that  at  bar  that  there  was  hardly  a  shade  of  differ- 
ence, therefore  a  case  in  point,  sustaining  the  doctrine  that  be- 
fore the  Superintendents  of  the  Poor  of  any  county  have  any 
authority  to  execute  indentures,  umler  the  statute,  like  those 
under  which  Sarah  Coppin  was  held,  the  person  bound  by  them 
must  be  reduced  to  the  actual  condition  of  a  pauper  under  the 
care  of  the  Keeper  of  the  Poor-House.  The  judge,  after  due  de- 
liberation, sustained  Mr.  Brady's  views,  giving  Sarah  into  the 
care  of  her  brother,  who  in  a  short  time  returned  with  her 
to  England.  Before  leaving,  however,  young  Coppin  took 
means  to  recover  the  amount  of  money  placed  in  the  care  of  the 
man  with  whom  Sarah  had  been  left  on  her  arrival  in  New  York. 


THE   PRESENT  BAR  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Albert  N.  Abbott. 
Benjamin  V.  Abbott. 
Phillips  Abbott. 
AVilliam  A.  Abbott. 
Andrew  H.  Adams. 
John  D.  Ahrens. 
J.  R.  Allaben. 
George  F.  Alexander. 
John  J.  Allen.* 
John  A.  Anderson. 
John  Andrews,  Jr. 
George  E.  Apsley. 
John  A.  Armstrong. 
L.  Hastings  Arnold. 
Joseph  Aspinall. 
Joseph  E.  Austin. 
Frank  M.  Avery. 
Donald  F.  Ayres. 

Foster  L.  Backus. 
Albert  W.  Bailey. 
Benjamin  Baker. 
Fred  Baker. 


George  B.  Abbott. 
Samuel  F.  Abbott. 
Oliver  S.  Ackley. 
John  P.  Adams. 
George  H.  Alexander. 
William  H.  Allaben. 
Daniel  B.  Ames. 
Kobert  Ailing. 
John  Andrews. 
Frank  W.  Angel. 
Edgar  D.  Anthony. 
Henry  Arden. 
Theo.  J.  Armstrong. 
Ansel  B.  Arnold. 
Henry  Ash. 
Albert  C.  Aubery. 
William  H.  H.  -Austin. 


Gilbert  Badeau. 
Charles  H.  Bailey. 
Charles  J.  Baker. 
D.  Ira  Baker. 


♦  John  J.  Allen,  201  Montague  street,  was  born  in  TJtlca.  New  York,  1842: 
graduated  from  the  University  of  Vermout,  18G2;  graduated  from  Columbia 
College  Law  Sehool,  1866;  was  Provost  Marshal  during  the  latter  part  of  the 
War;  admitted  to  the  Bar  in  1866,  at  which  time  he  became  a  resident  of 
Brooklyn;  Assistant  U.S.  District  Attorney,  from  1866  to  1873;  Member  of 
New  York  State^ Assembly  in  1874;  is  U.  S.  Commissioner,  and  Chief  Super- 
visor of  Elections. 


Phillip  L.  Balz,  Jr. 
Ira  L.  Bamburger. 
Daniel  P.  Barnard. 
Frederick  L.  Barnard. 
Frederick  E.  Barnard. 
John  T.  Barnard. 
Edmund  Barnum. 
Joseph  H.  Bartlett. 
William  A.  Barto, 
Hiland  G.  Batchelor. 
De  Witt  C.  Bates. 
B.  H.  Bayliss. 
James  E.  Bedell. 
James  D.  Bell. 
W.  C.  Beecher. 
Henry  S.  Bellows. 
Henderson  Benedict. 
William  M.  Benedict. 
Frank  S.  Benson. 
Eugene  M.  Berard. 
John  H.  Bergen. 
J.  C.  Bergen. 
De  Leguil  Berier. 
Jacob  H.  Bernkopf. 
Marcus  P.  Bestow. 
Stephen  C.  Betts. 
Clarence  F.  Birdseye. 
Henry  M.  Birkett. 
John  Blauvelt. 
William  W.  Bliss, 


William  E.  Baldwin. 
Charles  W.  Balz. 
C.  W.  Bangs. 
William  J.  Barker. 
Frank  L.  Barnard. 
George  G.  Barnard. 
Joseph  F.  Barnard. 
David  Barnett. 
Anthony  Barrett. 
Willard  Bartlett. 
Arthur  Bassett. 
A.  P.  Bates. 
EoUin  E.  Beers. 
Franklin  Beames. 
William  M.  Beggs. 
Fred  P.  Bellamy. 
Charles  L.  Benedict 
Kobert  D.  Benedict. 
Wyllys  Benedict. 
Edgar  Bergen. 
Edward  Bergen. 
Jacob  I.  Bergen. 
Tunis  G.  Bergen. 
Marx  Bernkop. 
John  Berry. 
N.  A.  Betts. 
Henry  D.  Birdsall. 
Lucien  Birdseye. 
Benjamin  F.  Blair. 
George  C.  Blanke. 


1270 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS   COUNTY. 


William  Boeokel. 

Edward  W.  Bloom. 

Nathaniel  B.  Cooke. 

Albert  G.  Cortis. 

Peter  H.  Bohanna. 

Gilbert  Boyce. 

John  Cooncy. 

Nathaniel  Cothren. 

John  Bostelmann. 

Herbert  W.  Bower. 

William  E.  Cornell. 

John  K.  Creevey. 

Francis  C.  Bowen. 

William  H.  Boughton. 

Harold  G.  Cortis. 

James  F.  Cromble. 

Thomas  Bracken. 

Samuel  W.  Bower. 

Edward  W.  Crittenden. 

Frank  Crooke. 

Charles  W.  Brady. 

Geo.  C.  Brainerd. 

Timothy  C.  Cronin. 

Alfred  B.  Cruik.shanks. 

C.  L.  Brewer. 

Oliver  E.  Branch. 

Abel  Crook. 

Herbert  K.  Cruikshanks. 

Jacob  Braumer. 

Osborn  E.  Bright. 

Sam.  J.  Crooks. 

Bernard  Cruse,  Jr. 

Max  Brill. 

Geo.  B.  Bretz. 

Henry  C.  Grossman. 

Henry  J.  Cullen,  Jr. 

Wm.  W.  Britton. 

James  B.  Brinsmade. 

Edgar  M.  CuUen. 

Andrew  R.  Culver. 

Geo.  F.  Britton. 

Winchester  Britton. 

CuUen  &  Bergen. 

Aug.  M.  Cunningham. 

William  H.  Bradnax. 
Isaac  W.  K.  Bromley. 
Charles  L.  Brower. 
Geo.  V.  Brower. 
Millard  Brown. 
Melville  Brown. 
William  H.  Brown. 
Henry  H.  Browne. 
Wm.  Bruorton. 
Geo.  Brush. 
John  E.  Buddington. 
John  F.  Bulwinkle. 
Ellis  P.  Burke. 
C.  L.  Burnett. 
Joseph  A.  Burr. 
John  Burt,  Jr. 
Chas.  H.  Bnrtis 
William  W.  Butcher. 

Cottrell  J.  Cahaley. 
William  Caldwell. 
James  Callanan. 
Patrick  Callahan. 
Alex.  Cameron. 
Howard  Campbell. 
James  Campbell. 
Flamen  B.  Candler. 
Arthur  B.  Carlin. 
Wm.  S.  Carlisle. 
Geo.  S.  Carjienter. 
Henry  P.  Carr. 
Eugene  C.  Carroll. 
Charles  S.  Carter. 
Nathan  Carter. 
P.  S.  Cassidy. 
Frederic  W.  Catlin. 
David  G.  Caywood. 
Alfred  C.  Chapin. 
Edwin  D.  Childs. 
Simeon  B.  Chittenden,  Jr. 
Chas.  A  Clark. 
John  J.  Clark. 
Freeman  Clarkson. 
John  H.  Clayton. 
Geo.  A.  Clement. 
Thos.  J.  Clute. 
George  C.  CofBn. 
William  J.  Cogswell. 
Edwin  W.  Coggeshall. 
Wm.  Coit. 
Kandolph  H.  Cole. 
Chas.  H.  Coleman. 
Nathan  Comstock. 
H.  C.  Conrady. 
John  J.  Connell. 
Eobert  E.  Connelly. 
Charles  E.  Cooke. 


Amos  Bradnax. 
Miles  S.  Bromley. 
Earnest  P.  Brook. 
Do  Witt  C.  Brown. 
Edwin  H.  Brown. 
Albert  H.  Brundage. 
Samuel  Brown. 
John  Brunnemer. 
Charles  H.  Brush. 
Alfred  G.  Buell. 
Lewis  F.  Burchard. 
Theo.  Burgmeyer. 
Frederick  W.  Burke. 
Alex.  Burns. 
Joseph  A.  Burr,  Jr. 
Robert  S.  Bussing,  Jr. 
Alexander  Butts. 
Kennard  Buxton. 


Charles  E.  Caldwell. 
J.  A.  Callaghan. 
Alex.  Callaghan,  Jr. 
Daniel  Cameron. 
John  L.  Cameron. 
Alfred  P.  Campbell. 
Frank  Card. 
Geo.  L.  Carlisle. 
Nelson  G.  Carman,  Jr. 

Alex.  T.  Carpenter. 
Thos.  L.  Carpenter. 

Kottwell  S.  Carpenter. 

Joseph  Carson. 
John  Carr. 

Walter  S.  Carter. 
John  L.  C.  Caruana. 

F.  K.  Castner. 

David  K.  Case. 

Isaac  S.  Catlin. 

William  P.  Chambers. 

Edwin  K.  Chevalier. 

llichard  H.  Chittenden. 

James  D.  Clark. 

John  F.  Clarke. 

John  A.  Clarry. 

Nathaniel  H.  Clement. 

Frederick  Cobb. 

John  F.  Coffin. 

AVm.  S.  Cogswell. 

Walter  Coleman. 

Mansfield  Compton. 

Stephen  Condit. 

Henry  M.  Connelly. 

William  A.  Cook. 

Erastus  Cooke. 

Wm.  G.  Cooke. 

John  A.  Coombs. 

Alexander  Cornell. 


Humphrey  Y.  Cummins. 
Eugene  A.  Curran. 
Geo.  F.  Curtis,  Jr. 

Chas.  G.  Dahlgren. 
Edward  Daly. 
Edward  F.  Davenport. 
William  C.  Darney. 
Henry  B.  Davis. 
Robert  A.  Davison. 
Albert  A.  Day. 
Thomas  J.  Delancy. 
George  F.  Demarest. 
Horace  E.  Deming. 
Albert  E.  Demott. 
Walter  R.  Denslow. 
John  L.  Devenny. 
Edward  C.  Devyr. 
Henry  C.  De  Witt. 

Henry  De  Zavala. 
Fred  C.  Dexter. 

Alfred  Dickinson. 

John  J.  Diefendorf. 

Eugene  A.  Dike. 

John  Dill,  Jr. 

Abraham  D.  Ditmars. 

Edwin  R.  Dodge. 

Wm.  R.  Doherty. 

Wilton  C.  Donn. 

John  P.  Donnelly. 

E.  J.  Dooley. 

George  E.  Dorland. 

Charles  H.  Dougherty. 

J.  Hampden  Dougherty. 

Edward  A.  Doyle. 

Robert  H.  Duncan. 

Simon  Dunne. 

Charles  T.  Dunwell. 

Wilson  M.  Durack. 

W.  H.  Duryea. 

Jackson  C.  Dykman. 

Edward  Earle. 
Charles  C.  Egan. 
MaxF.  EUer. 
Geo.  F.  Elliott. 
Sumner  S.  Ely. 
Luther  W.  Emerson. 

Fred.  P.  Fairbanks. 
Wm.  E.  S.  Fales. 
Samuel  E.  Faron. 
Edward  P.  Farrell. 
Thomas  J.  Farrell. 
Morris  P.  Ferris. 
Ed-ward  E.  Fitzgerald. 
Henrv  G.  Fletcher. 


Michael  H.  Curran. 
John  Currie. 
John  L.  Curtiss. 

Abram  H.  Dailey. 
F.  E.  Dana. 
Francis  L.  Dallon. 
Wm.  B.  Davenport. 
James  S.  Davie. 
Frank  Davis. 
Henry  H.  Davis. 
Charles  O.  Dawson. 
Rodman  B.  Dawson. 
Robert  E.  De  Forest. 
John  W.  Deford. 
Richard  De  Mill. 
Geo.  P.  Denman. 
John  S.  Denman. 
Wm.  Devigne. 
T.  Henry  Dewey. 
Wm.  C.De  Witt. 
Jos.  R.  Dicker-son. 
John  Diehl,  Jr. 
T.  T.  Dickerson. 
Remsen  Dikeman. 
Tho.  D.  Dimon. 

Henry  Ditmas. 
James  E.  Doherty. 
Mathew  J.  Dolphin. 
Henry  D.  Donnelly. 

Wm.  E.  Dorehty. 

Wm.  C.  Dorney. 

Wm.  C.  Douglass. 

Morris  F.  Dowley. 

Francis  Doyle. 

Henry  Duncan. 

John  R.  Dunn. 

Walter  Durack. 

Harmanus  B.  Duryea. 

Geo.  D.  Dutcher. 

William  N.  Dykman. 

Charles  B.  Elliott. 
Charles  H.  Ellsworth. 
James  Eschwege. 
Andrew  J.  Ensign. 
Benjamin  S.  Estes. 
Charles  D.  Evans. 

Henry  C.  Fairtlough. 
Alonzo  C.  Farnham. 
James  S.  Feely. 
George  H.  Fisher. 
Geo.  M,  Flanders. 
Patrick  J.  Flemming. 
Henry  S.  Foote. 
Simon  Ford. 


BENCH  AND  BAR    OF  BROOKLYN. 


lan 


James  W.  Foote.* 
Aug.  Ford. 
Wm.  H.  Ford. 
Benj.  B.  Foster. 
Henry  J.  Fowler. 
Edwin  M.  Fox. 
Geo.  L.  Fox. 
Chas.  L.  Francis. 
A.  G.  Fransisla. 
Samuel  T.  Freeman. 
Oscar  Frisbie. 
Charles  E.  Frost. 
Henry  Fuehrer. 
Robert  Furey. 

Charles  S.  Gage. 
William  H.  Gale. 
Lawrence  Gardenier. 
William  Gardner. 
Edwin  C.  Garrett. 
Robert  L.  Garrettson. 
Wyckoff  H.  Garri.son. 
Theodore  B.  Gates. 
Wm.  J.  Gaynor. 
J.  Worden  Gedney. 
Geo.  T.  Gertrum. 
James  H.  Gilbert. 
Lemuel  E.  Gilbert. 
Geo.  B.  Gillespie. 
William  Girod. 
Wesley  Gleason. 
Chas.  H.  Glover. 
Abraham  Goldsmith. 
Wm.  W.  Goodrich. 
Geo.  H.  Graham. 
Elihu  J.  Granger. 
Henry  J.  Greata. 
George  F.  Grau. 
Samuel  Green. 
John  B.  Green. 
Joseph  W.  Green. 
R.  H.  Greene. 
Joseph  M.  Greenwood. 
Richard  B.  Greenwood,  Jr. 
Samuel  Gregory. 
Wm.  H.  Crenelle. 
Charles  O.  Grim. 
Wm.  F.  Groshon. 
Michael  Gru. 

Fred.  G.  Haerter. 
Winston  H.  Hagan. 
Henry  M.  Haigh. 
John  T.  Halliday. 
Henry  Hamilton. 
James  Hamilton. 
John  H.  Hamilton. 
Frank  W.  Hannaford. 
Wm.  J.  Harding. 
Andrew  Harrison. 
Gifford  R.  Hart. 
Wm.  H.  Harvey. 
H.  Hastings. 
Augustus  Haviland. 
Geo.  R.  Haydock. 
Henry  Heath. 


Howard  J.  Forker. 
Chas.  Fox. 
Frederick  A.  Fox. 
John  H.  Fox. 
Arthur  C.  Fraser. 
Linson  D.  Fredericks. 
Alfred  Frost. 
Charles  H.  Fuller. 
John  H.  Fnlcher. 
Cornelius  Ferguson,  Jr. 
Mathew  H.  Furman. 
Jesse  K.  Furlong. 
Michael  Furst. 


William  M.  Gage. 
Martin  V.  B.  Gallandet. 
William  Gardiner. 
W.  Gardiner. 
Samuel  N.  Garrison. 
John  V.  L.  Gates. 
Edmund  Gates. 
Judson  Gaylord. 
Chas.  Gerken. 
Adolphus  H.  Getting. 
Jasper  W.  Gilbert. 
Wm.  T.  Gilbert. 
Andrew  W.  Gleason. 
James  W.  Glendenning. 
John  M.  Glover. 
Wm.  E.  Goodge. 
John  J.  Graham. 
Horace  Graves. 
Geo.  H.  Grainiss. 
Herbert  Green. 
Edward  Greenland. 
John  Greene. 
Wm.  H.  Green. 
John  Greenwood. 
J.  Wm.  Greenwood. 
Wm.  J.  M.  Greenwood. 
H.  G.  P.  Griffith. 
Rufus  T.  Griggs. 
George  Gru. 
Wm.  A.  Guck. 
August  T.  Gurlitz. 
Die  H.  Gudmundson. 
Reese  B.  Gwillim. 


H.  Rodman  Hagner. 
Charles  Hagedom. 
H.  R.  Hall. 
Max  HalUieimer. 
Chas.  J.  Hanlon. 
M.  D.  Hanover. 
Dan'l  G.  Harriman. 
Samuel  Harris. 
Thomas  L.  Harrison. 
Fred'k  R.  Hartman. 
John  Haslett,  Jr. 
Henry  B.  Hathaway. 
C.  Augustus  Haviland. 
John  B.  Hayes. 
Samuel  E.  Heasley. 
A.  J.  Heath. 


*  James  W.  Foote.  122  Conrt  street;  bom 
the  Bar,  May  20th.  1872. 


1  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.;    aclmltted  to 


Judson  A.  Heath. 
Andrew  J.  Hennion. 
John  Hess. 
David  H.  Hewlett. 
David  Heywood. 
John  J.  Hill. 
Chas.  K.  Hilliard. 
Fred'k  W.  Hinrichs. 
Edward  H.  Hobbs. 
August  C.  Hockemeyer. 
Patrick  Hogan. 
Ole  H.  Holberg. 
Alfred  Hook. 
Henry  D.  Hotchkiss. 
Wm.  J.  Howie. 
H.  B.  Hubbard.* 
John  P.  Hudson. 
John  J.  Hughes. 
Don  A.  Hulett. 
Amos  G  Hull. 
John  H.  Hull. 
Richard  H.  Huntley. 
Lawrence  Hurlbut. 
W.  B.  Hurd,  Jr. 
E.  A.  Hutchins. 

Geo.  Ingraham. 
Richard  Ingraham. 
William  H.  Ingraham. 
Edward  W.  Ivins. 

Robert  Jackson. 
Charles  Jacot. 
John  Jacques. 
Welcome  S.  Jarvis. 
Charles  E.  L.  Jelliffe. 
Frank  Jenks. 
Edward  Johnson. 
Francis  T.  Johnson. 
Millard  F.  Johnson. 
A.  T.  Johnston. 
Charles  Jones. 
Chas.  H.  Jordan. 
Wm.  Q.  Judge. 
James  P.  Judge. 
Charles  N.  Judson. 

John  H.  Kattenstrotli. 
Patrick  Ready. 
Roswell  W.  Keene. 
Chas.  H.  W.  Keller. 
Peter  J.  Kelly. 
John  H.  Kemble. 
Edwin  Kempton. 
Fred'k  W.  Kenny. 
H.  T.  Ketcham. 
Emerson  W.  Keyes. 
John  C.  Kinkel. 
Henry  Kingham. 
Benj.  W.  Kirkham. 
Edward  H.  Kissam. 
Lawrence  Kneeland. 
Hermon  F.  Koepke. 
John  W.  Konvalinka. 
John  R.  Kuhn. 


S.  S.  Hemingway. 
John  R.  Hennessy. 
Chas.  R.  Henry. 
Eadmon  Herzberg. 
Thos.  B.  Hewitt. 
Henry  A,  Hiers. 
John  M.  Hill. 
Arthur  P.  Hinman. 
Hugo  Hirsh. 
Chas.  H.  Hodges. 
Thomas  C.  Hoge. 
Charles  F.  Holm. 
William  H.  Holms. 
Solomon  Hosford. 
Nath'l  B.  Hoxie. 
Jas.  A.  Hudson. 

John  J.  Hudson. 

Wm.  Hughes. 

H.  G.  Hull. 

Charles  P.  Hurlburt. 

Joseph  R.  Hutting. 

Lewis  Hurst. 

Lewis  H.  Hnrst. 

Joseph  R.  Hutting. 

Geo.  E.  Hyatt. 

Wm.  H.  IngersoU. 
Henry  C.  M.  Ingraham. 
Frank  A.  Irish. 


Theo.  F.  Jackson. 
Stephen  B.  Jacobs. 
Washington  I.  Jaques. 
W.  H.  E.  Jay. 
Almet  F.  Jenks. 
Alvan  R.  Johnson. 
Jesse  Johnson. 
Johnson  &  Lamb. 
Robert  Johnstone. 
Wm.  D.  Jones. 
Meyer  S.  R.  Jones. 
Townsend  Jones. 
John  H.  Judge. 
Charles  H.  Jurgen. 


Sigismund  Kaufman. 
Thomas  J.  Keighan. 
Fred  W.  Keller. 
Paul  Kelly. 
Wm.  J.  Kelly. 
John  Kenna. 
Peter  D.  Kenny. 
Edward  Kent. 
William  Ketcham, 
James  B.  Keyes. 
John  P.  Kirby. 
Brewster  Kissam. 
Adam  Kling. 
S.  F.  Kneeland. 
James  W.  Knox. 
Chas.  Kolowrat. 
J.  Alexander  Koones. 
Chas.  J.  Kurth. 


*  H.  B.  Hubbard,  «  Court  street:   admitted  to  the  Bar.  April  15th.  1857; 
has  practiced  in  Brooklyn  since  that  date. 


1272 


HISTORY   OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Stephen  G.  Laidler. 
K.  H.  L.  Laimbeer,  Jr. 
Albert  E.  Lamb. 
Charles  F.  Langford. 
Edward  B.  Lansing. 
Henry  Q.  Lansing. 
Ernest  Lasche. 
Chas.  R.  Lee. 
Samuel  Leggett. 
Joseph  H.  Leggatt. 
Joseph  Leggett. 
S.  D.  Lewis. 
Edward  Lewis. 
Walter  L.  Livingston. 
Levi  A.  Lockwood. 
Jeremiah  Loder. 
John  B.  Lord. 
John  A.  Lott,  Jr. 
Peter  D.  Loucks. 
Lorenzo  Lovejoy. 
Wm.  G.  Low. 
Chas.  J.  Lowrey. 
David  T.  Lynch. 
Wm.  R.  Lynch. 
Jardine  Lyng. 
John  Leiferts,  Jr. 

W.  B.  Maben.' 
Wm.  M.  Macfarlane. 
Arthur  C.  Maclay. 
Samuel  T.  Maddox. 
Peter  Mahoney. 
Lyman  Mallory. 
Henry  Major. 
Albon  Man. 
Henry  Manne. 
Reuben  Mapelsden. 
Josiah  T.  Marean. 
Adrian  V.  Martense. 
Andrew  L.  Martin. 
Joseph  H.  Marvin. 
Daniel  Marvin. 
Charles  P.  Mason. 
Wm.  A.  Mathias. 
B.  J.  McCatferty. 
Harry  McCIoskey. 
Daniel  McCrane. 
Jas.  W.  McDermott. 
F.  G.  McDonald. 
Robert  McFarlan. 
James  F.  McGee. 
Michael  F.  McGoldrick. 
Henry  M.  McKean. 
James  McKeen. 
Alexander  McKinny. 
M.  James  McLauchlin. 
Wm.  E.  McTighe. 
David  D.  Meeker. 
S.  L.  M.  Meeker,  Jr. 
O.  F.  G.  Megie. 
Wm.  Meldrum. 
Robert  Merchant. 
Augustus  Merritt. 
Henry  A.  Meyenborg. 


Louis  La  France. 
John  V.  Lamarche. 
Geo.  S.  Lampard. 
John  T.  Langan. 
Edward  B.  Lansing.  Jr. 
Horace  G.  Lansing. 
John  J.  Leary. 
Robert  P.  Lee. 
Henry  M.  Leverich. 
Aaron  Levy. 
John  Linsky. 
William  Lewis. 
Jose])h  G.  Liddle. 
Bloom  field  Littell. 
John  B.  Longley. 
Abraham  Lott. 
J.  Z.  Lott. 
John  J.  Louth. 
Edwin  C.  Low. 
E.  Louis  Lowe. 
Sidney  V.  Lowell. 
Isaac  Lublin. 
John  Lynch. 
J.  J.  Lynes. 
Charles  L.  Lyon. 


John  M.  MacDonald. 
Michael  T.  Maekey. 
H.  C.  MacKrell. 
James  F.  Macshane. 
Francis  T.  Magill. 
F.  Maloesay. 
Wm.  J.  Mann. 
D.  F.  Manning. 
J.  Lawrence  Marcellus. 
Rich'd  M.  Martin. 
William  K.  Martin. 
Richard  Marvin. 
Philip  D.  Mason. 
Alex.  U.  Mayer. 
B.  P.  A.  McCarty. 
Alex.  McCue. 
Albert  G.  McDonald. 
Francis  McElroy. 
J.  M.  McGee. 
John  C.  McGuire. 
William  H.  McKee. 
John  McKenna. 
Spencer  G.  McNary. 
Geo.  W.  Mead. 
S.  M.  Meeker. 
Peter  Meney. 
Jacob  C.  Meinzer. 
Theo.  N.  Melvin. 
Joseph  B.  Merket. 
Benjamin  Merritt. 
Henry  Metzinger. 
John  B.  Meyenborg. 
William  S.  Mills. 
Cornelius  E.  Minor. 
Francis  L.  Minton. 
James  Moffett. 
James  \V.  Monk. 


*  W.  B.  Maben,  397  Fulton  street;  admitted  to  the  Bar  of  Albany,  N.  Y.,  in 
1870;  practiced  in  New  York  City  from  I8C8  to  1870,  at  which  time  he  removed 
to  his  present  location;  was  elected  Justice  of  the  Second  District  Court  in 
1872. 


Theo.  F.  Miller. 
Israel  Minor,  Jr. 
John  L.  Mitchell. 
Francis  J.  Moissen. 
.\ndrew  J.  Moore. 
Thomas  S.  Moore. 
Charles  A.  Moran. 
Wm.  M.  Moorehouse. 
Samuel  D.  Morris. 
James  Morrough. 
Fred'k  L.  Moulthrop. 
Wm.  R.  Mulford. 
Arthur  Murphy,  Jr. 

Wm,  H.  Nafis. 
James  P.  Neaman. 
H.  M.  Needham. 
Edward  G.  Nelson. 
Jesse  S.  Nelson. 
Daniel  Nemirs. 
Richard  J.  Neville. 
Richard  W.  Newhall. 
Geo.  W.  Niles. 
Chas.  Noble. 
Patrick  Nolan. 
F.  P.  Norman. 
John  Notman. 
Theodore  S.  Nye. 

John  Oakey. 
Abraham  S.  O'Brien. 
Frank  N.  O'Brien. 
J.tmes  0.  O'Connor. 
Herbert  S.  Ogden. 
Cyrus  I.  Olmstead. 
Andrew  J.  Onderdonk. 
E.  P.  O'Neil. 
Fred'k  R.  Orr. 
Albert  H.  Osborn. 
Wm.  J.  Osborne. 
Stephen  M.  Ostrander. 
John  L.  Overfield. 

Wm.  S.  Packer. 
Alfred  R.  Page. 
James  A.  Palmer. 
Fred'k  S.  Parker. 
John  S.  Patterson. 
Robert  Payne. 
Joseph  M.  Pearsall. 
James  E.  Pearson. 
Geo.  A,  Pease. 
John  P.  Peckett. 
John  W.  Peckett,  Jr. 
Wm.  Peet,  Jr. 
Buel  D.  Penfield. 
Howland  D.  Perrine. 
Andrew  J.  Perry. 
J.  C.  Perry. 
John  Petterson. 
Albert  J.  Philip. 
John  Phillips. 
George  W.  Pickney. 
Henry  C.  Place. 
Fred'k  A.  Piatt. 
C.  W.  Pleasants. 
Peter  P.  Pope. 
Isaac  B.  Potter. 


Anson  B.  Moore. 
Henry  A.  Moore. 
Benjamin  S.  Moorehouse. 
John  P.  Morris. 
Benjamin  Morrison. 
Robert  A.  Morrison. 
Nathan  B.  Morse. 
Geo.  E.  Mott. 
Alfred  E.  Mudge. 
Chas.  h.  Murphy. 
Felix  T.  Murphy. 
George  I.  Murphy. 
H.  C.  Murphy,  Jr. 

Charles  W.  Nassau. 
James  Neilson. 
Joseph  Neilson. 
John  F.  Nelson. 
Jacob  Neu. 
Erastus  New. 
Richard  Newton. 
W.  S.  Niles. 
John  E.  Norcross. 
Dudley  H.  Norris. 
Thomas  J.  Northall. 
J.  Lott  Nostrand . 
Daniel  J.  Noyes. 


Frank  W.  Obernier. 
Frederick  W.  Obernier. 
Frank  O'Brien. 
Nicolson  P.  O'Brien. 
P.  J.  O'Hanlon. 
Aug.  M.  O'Neil. 
Edward  F.  O'Reilly. 
Wm.  C.  Orr. 
Wm.  E.  Osborn. 
Henry  W.  Osborn. 
P.  W.  Ostrander. 
Charles  H.  Otis. 
William  F.  Owers. 

Justus  Palmer. 
Asa  W.  Parker. 
Wm.  Parsons. 
Samuel  M.  Parsons. 
Chas.  J.  P.atterson. 
Oliver  N.  Payne. 
James  F.  Pearce. 
Geo.  W.  Pearsall. 
Thos.  E.  Pearsall. 
Wm.  W.  Pearson. 
H.  P.  K.  Peck. 
Wm.  Peet. 
Walter  Pell. 
John  Pell. 
Albert  L.  Perry. 
Albertus  Perry. 
Chauncy  Perry. 
Timothy  Perry. 
James  L.  Phelps. 
Edgar  J.  Phillips. 
James  F.  Pierce. 
Charles  Place. 
Williard  S.  Pladwell. 
I.  Hull  Piatt. 
Chas.  H.  Pollock. 


BENCH  AND  BAR   OF  BROOKLYN. 


1273 


Theophilus  D.  Powell. 
Edwin  A.  Pratt. 
James  H.  Pratt. 
Joseph  M.  Pray. 
Charles  Prentiss. 
Samuel  F.  Prentice. 
Edward  S.  Pride. 
Albert  W.  S.  Proctor.* 
Eoger  A.  Pryor. 
H.  F.  Pxiltz. 
Harrington  Putnam. 

Wm.  Quayle. 
Nevins  J.  Quinlan. 

David  J.  Ramsdell. 
Wm.  H.  Kandall. 
Henry  S.  Kasquin. 
Fred'k  W.  Rebhann. 
T.  A.  Reeves. 
James  H.  Remington. 
Frank  Reynolds. 
John  Reynolds. 
George  R.  Rhodes. 
Bushrod  F.  Rice. 
Chas.  A.  Richardson. 
Chas.  W.  Ridgway. 
James  W.  Ridgway. 
John  Ridley. 
Edward  F.  Eiley. 
Benj.  T.  Eipton. 
James  L.  Robinson. 
Willard  E.  Roby. 
Francis  C.  Roche. 
S.  A.  Rockefellow. 
Thos.  H.  Rodman. 
John  Roeseh. 
John  P.  Rolfe. 
Wm.  R.  Ronalds. 
Walter  G.  Rooney. 
Daniel  J.  Ross. 
Peter  T.  Ross. 
Samuel  Rowe. 
Richard  Rowland.! 
Joseph  Russell. 
Michael  Russell. 
Charles  Rusten. 

Albert  N.  Sabin. 
Washington  Sackman. 
Francis  G.  Salmon. 
N.  B.  Sanborn. 
Wm.  C.  Sanger. 
Edward  L.  Schad. 
Edwin  C.  Schaffer. 
N.  Pendleton  Schenck. 
Hugo  J,  Schleier. 
Henry  H.  Schoonmaker. 
Alex.  Schoonmaker. 
John  C.  F.  Schrann. 
Fred'k  Schwartz. 
Rufus  L.  Scott. 
Ludwig  Semler. 
Garrett  P.  Serviss. 


Francis  W.  Pollock. 
Calvin  E.  Pratt. 
Isaac  M.  Pratt. 
John  D.  Pray. 
John  Prentice. 
Aug.  M.  Price. 
John  D.  Prince,  Jr. 
Roger  A.  Pryor,  Jr. 
Fred'k  F.  Purdy. 
James  W.  Purdy. 

Lawrence  F.  Quinn. 

Louis  C.  Raegener. 
Sands  F.  Randall. 
Harvey  W.  Raj'nor. 
Daniel  W.  Reeve. 
Alonzo  T.  Reeve. 
Wm.  F.  Reilly. 
Daniel  S.  Remsen. 
George  G.  Reynolds. 
Wm.  P.  Rhodes. 
J.  Swift  Richards. 
Henry  L.  Rider. 
James  Ridgway. 
Joseph  S.  Ridgway. 
Emerson  L.  Riggs. 
Theodore  Ritter. 
John  F.  Roberts. 
John  J.  Roche. 
Fenton  Rockwell. 
Geo.  W.  Roderick. 
Thomas  H.  Rodman,  Jr. 
James  J.  Rogers. 
John  Rooney. 
Jacob  Rosengarden. 
Henry  Rosenthal!. 
J.  S.  Ross. 
Robert  Ross. 
Frank  Rudd. 
Merwin  Rushmore. 
Charles  H.  Russell.^ 
Henry  M.  Russell. 
C.  D.  Rust. 


Guernsey  Sackett. 
Arthur  C.  Salmon. 
Zabdiel  S.  Sampson. 
John  W.  Sanderson. 
Arthur  M.  Sanders. 
Wm.  J.  Say  res. 
Henry  J.  Schenck. 
Charles  S.  Schleier. 
Herman  W.  Schmitz. 
Jacob  C.  Schoenor. 
Geo.  H.  Schoonmaker. 
John  G.  Schnmaker. 
Wm.  E.  Scovil. 
James  M.  Seaman. 
Edward  H.  Seeley. 
Robert  Senftner. 


*  A.  W.  S.  Proctor,  397  Fulton  street;  admitted  to  the  Bar,  May  24th,  1876, 
commencing  practice  in  Brooklyn  soon  after. 

t  Richard  Rowland,  122  Court  street;  admitted  to  the  Bar  of  New  York  City, 
18G1;  practiced  in  Brooklyn  since  18C6. 

t  Charles  H.  Russell,  219  South  9th  street;  admitted  to  the  Bar.  1868;  was 
member  of  New  York  Assembly  in  1880-81;  Member  of  Senate,  1882-83, 


R.  J.  Shadbolt. 
Oscar  F.  Shaw. 
John  D.  Shedloek. 
A.  C.  Shenstone. 
J.  W.  Shepard. 
Michael  Shields. 
John  H.  Shields. 
William  A.  Shinn. 
John  U.  Shorter. 
J.  Shrady. 

Benj.  Douglass  Silliman. 
Edward  P.  Simms. 
Chas.  S.  Simpkins. 
Francis  P.  Slade. 
Wm.  A.  Sloan. 
Albert  Smith. 
Artemus  B.  Smith. 
Arthur  H.  Smith. 
Edgar  P.  Smith. 
George  H.  Smith. 
James  J.  Smith. 
James  W.  Smith. 
John  C.  Smith. 
Thomas  W.  Smith. 
John  C.  Smith  &  Son . 
Henry  Snell. 
A.  A.  Spear. 
E.  L.  Spencer. 
P.  S.  Spencer. 
Edward  H.  Spooner. 
P.  V.  R.  Stanton. 
John  M.  Stearns. 
Oscar  H.  Stearns. 
N.  McGregor  Steele. 
Joseph  Steiner. 
Wm.  W.  Stephenson. 
Edward  H.  Stiokland. 
Wm.  H.  Stillwell. 
Frank  Storrs. 
Joseph  H.  Strauss. 
Edward  B.  Stringham. 
Demas  Strong. 
Wm.  Sullivan. 
S.  Perry  Sturges. 
Wm.  M.  Summers. 
J.Edward  Swanstrom. 
Fred.  G.  Swasey. 
John  W.  Sweeney. 
Wm.  A.  Sweester. 
Halsey  A  Sweezey. 

Edward  F.  Taber. 
Edward  T.  Taggard. 
J.  Fred'k  Tapscott. 
Henry  Taylor. 
Herbert  H.Taylor. 
John  Taylor. 
Thomas  J.  Taylor. 
David  Teese. 
Henry  E.  Teller. 
D.  D.  Terry. 
Edmund  R.  Terry. 
Theodore  Thieler. 
Chas.  G.  M.  Thomas. 


John  Sessions. 
Thomas  G.  Shearman. 
Geo.  P.  Sheldon. 
Edward  M.  Shepard. 
James  A.  Sherman. 
Walter  F.  Shibley. 
Herbert  Shipman. 
Wm.  E.  Shields. 
Herman  H.  Shook.* 
Herbert  Shook. 
Jos.  A.  Shoudy. 
Adolph  Simis,  Jr. 
Geo.  L.  Simonson. 
James  E.  Skilton. 
Henry  W.  Slocum. 
Alexis  C.  Smith. 
A.  F.  Smith. 
Charles  C.  Smith. 
Freling  H.  Smith. 
George  Smith. 
Herbert  C.  Smith. 
Jesse  C.  Smith. 
Michael  A.  Smith. 
Thomas  Smith. 
Wm.  B.  Smith. 
John  B.  Snedecker. 
Henry  S.  ,Snow. 
Pascal  T.  Southern. 
A.  J.  Spencer. 
Frank  Sperry. 
Erwin  I.  Spink. 
Chas.  M.  Stafiford. 
Charles  M.  Stabler. 
Geo.  H.  Starr. 
James  S.  Steams. 
John  M.  Stearns,  Jr. 
.John  A.  K.  Steele. 
Sanford  H.  Steele. 
Thomas  E.  Stellman. 
Gerard  M.  Stevens. 
Thos.  E.  Stillman. 
John  H.  Stitt. 
Allen  N.  Stoddart. 
James  H.  Storrs. 
Baldwin  F.  Strauss. 
Geo.  W.  .Stroeter. 
Walter  Q.  Strong. 
Eugene  T.  Stuart. 
Sidney  B.  Stuart. 
Wm.  R.  Syme. 

Fr.anklin  W.  Taber. 
Wm.  H.  Taggard. 
James  Taylor. 
John  A.  Taylor. 
Noah  Tebbetts. 
Asa  W.  Tenney. 
Fr.ank  Thayer. 
Charles  A.  Thies. 
Samuel  D.  Thomas. 
Daniel  B.  Thompson.! 
Robert  B.  Thompson. 
Wm.  B.  Thompson. 
James  J.  Thornley. 


♦Herman  H.  Shook.  2G1  Broadway,  New  York;  admitted  to  the  Bar  at 
Poughkeepsie,  N.  Y.,  May,  1867;  commenced  and  has  continued  practice  in 
New  York  City  since  that  date. 

t  Daniel  B.  Thompson,  38  &  40  Court  street;  admitted  to  the  Bar,  at  Pitts- 
burgh, Penn.,  18GG;  established  in  Brooklyn  in  18G8. 


1274 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


A.  E.  Thompson,  Jr. 

David  Thornton. 

Jacob  Walters. 

Chas.  D.  Warner. 

George  Thompson. 

David  A.  TibbuU. 

Fred'k  A.  Ward 

Frank  Waters. 

Walter  Thorn. 

James  W.  Tighe. 

Gerald  Wardrop. 

Wm.  T.  Welch. 

James  J.  Thornley,  Jr. 

Wellington  Tillotson. 

Wm.  H.  Waring. 

Henry  P.  Wells. 

W.  Chas.  B.  Thornton. 

William  H.  Tilton; 

Talman  J.  Waters,  Jr. 

Oliver  J.  Wells. 

James  G.  Tighe. 

R.  E.  Topping. 

Fred.  W.  Watkin. 

Jerry  A.  Wernberg. 

Robert  P.  Tilney. 

Benj.  F.  Tracy. 

Munroe  B.  Washburn. 

Edward  W.  West. 

Henry  F.  Tobin. 

Wilbur  F.  Treadwell. 

Edward  E.  Wells. 

Geo.  S.  Wheeler. 

J.  Todd. 

James  Troy. 

N.  D.  Wells. 

Harmon  B.  Whitbeck. 

M.  H.  Topping. 

Thomas  H.  Troy. 

Robert  L.  Wensley. 

James  White. 

M.  L.  Towns. 

Wm.  B   Trellis. 

Chas.  W.  West. 

John  J.  White. 

Frank  B.  Tracy. 

Alfred  W.  Turner. 

Chas.  N.  Wheelwright. 

S.  Stewart  Whitehouse. 

J.  P.  Troy. 

Wayland  Turner. 

Henry  M.  Whitbeck. 

Wm.  L.  Whiting. 

Michael  Troy. 

Smith  Tuttle. 

Thomas  White. 

Chas.  M.  Whitney. 

Wm.  C.  Trull. 

John  R.  Tyler. 

Samuel  S.  Whitehouse. 

Foreman  Whitney. 

Louis  S.  Turner. 

Edgar  Whitlock. 

M.  D.  Wilber. 

Daniel  D.  Whitney. 

Geo.  WiUcox. 

Ruben  H.  Underbill. 

Silas  A.  Underbill. 

Henry  Wilber. 

Henry  C.  WiUcox. 

Daniel  G.  Wild. 

Sidney  Williams. 

Andrew  J.  Valentine. 

Benj.  E.  Valentine. 

Chas.  H.  Williams. 

J,  Sohenck  Williamson. 

Egbert  Van  Beuren. 

David  C.  Van  Cott. 

Thos.  H.  Williams. 

Geo.  W.  Wilson. 

A.  H.  Van  Cott. 

Alfred  Vandei-burgh. 

J.  Stuart  Willis. 

Jolin  H.  Wilson. 

Joshua  M.  Van  Cott. 

Chas.  Y.  Van  Doren. 

William  Wills. 

Tliadens  Wilson. 

Alfred  Vanderwerken. 

Adolphe  Vanrein. 

Philip  L.  Wilson. 

Henry  Winans. 

H.  D.  Van  Orden. 

Theodore  Van  Tassel. 

F.  S.  Winchester. 

Henry  G.  Wing. 

Adrien  Van  Sinderin. 

Francis  H.  Van  Vechten. 

Chas.  H.  Winslow.* 

John  Winslow. 

E.  W.  Van  Vranken. 

David  Van  Wart. 

Franklin  E.  Woodford. 

Leopold  Woiger. 

Gerard  B.  Van  Wart. 

Merit  M.  Van  Wert. 

Caleb  S.  WoodhuU. 

Stewart  L.  Woodford. 

Aug.  Van  Wyck. 

Jacob  S.  Van  Wyck. 

Aaron  Woodman. 

Thenford  Woodhull. 

Wm.  D.  Veeder. 

Thomas  Verren. 

Lawrence  Worrall. 

John  A.  Woods. 

Charles  W.  Voltz. 

J.  Voorhees. 

Alexander  H.  Wright. 

L.  A.  Wray. 

Zachariab  Voorhees. 

Christopher  C.  Wust. 

Ernest  C.  Wurtemberg. 

Richard  Wynkoop. 

Wm.  F.  Wyckoff. 

Arnold  H.  Wagner. 

Louis  A.  Wagner. 

Thomas  H.  Wagstaff. 

Daniel  T.  Walden. 

A.  H.  Yerks. 

Thomas  H.  York. 

W.  Howard  Wait. 

Alfred  I.  Walker. 

Howard  Walden. 

Samuel  Walker. 

Geo.  W.  Zener. 

Gustav  Zimmermann. 

Russell  Walden. 

Anthony  Walter. 

Zimmermann  &.  Jacobbs. 

Geo.  T.  Walker. 

Richard  ^Varburton. 

Wm.  C.  Wallace. 

Geo.  P.  Walton. 

*  Chas.  H  Winslow,  16  Court  street 

graduated  from  Columbia  Law  School, 

Wm.  J.  Walsh. 

Sidney  Ward. 

1877;  admitted  to  tlio  Bar  tbo  same  year,  establishing  himself  in  Brooklyn. 

In  concluding  the  Bench  and  Bar  of  Brooklyn,  we  cannot  re- 
frain from  saying,  that  to  those  whose  lives  form  a  part  of  it, 
others  might  have  been  added  of  equal  interest;  but,  as  we  have 
already  exceeded  the  limits  of  our  allotted  space,  we  are  obliged 
to  make  some  omission. 

Whatever  opinion  may  be  entertained  of  our  work,  one  thing 
is  certain:  we  leave  it  with  an  increased  respect  for  the  Judi- 
ciary and  the  Bar,  and  we  have  the  vanity  to  think  that  the 
few  rays  of  light  we  have  been  able  to  throw  upon  it  have  de- 
monstrated in  some  degree  its  claim  to  a  superior  position  in 
legal  history. 

We  have  spoken  reverently  of  its  deceased  members,  and 
frankly  of  its  living  ones.  We  do  not  belong  to  that  class  who 
have  a  trembling  fear  of  speaking  well  of  persons,  lest  they 
should  be  obnoxious  to  the  charge  of  undue  eulogy.  We  believe 
it  is  proper  and  just  to  speak  of  a  man's  good  qualities  and  of 
the  accomplishments  which  he  really  possesses.  We  have  dealt 
only  with  the  public  character  of  our  subjects  as  judges  and 
lawyers,  having  little  to  say  in  regard  to  them  as  private  in- 
dividuals. Still  we  hesitate  not  to  say  that  any  man  who  has 
adorned  the  Bench  or  the  Bar,  who  has,  as  a  judge  or  lawyer, 
won  the  esteem  and  confidence  of  the  public,  is  entitled  to  have 


that  esteem  and  confidence  properly  expressed,  in  and  out  of 
history.  • 

"But  since  you  moan  to  be*  impartial,"  says  the  critic,  "why 
not  speak  frankly  of  men's  faults?"  We  can  answer  only  by 
saying:  we  once  read  of  a  traveler  who  had  a  singular  penchant 
for  visiting  antique  churches,  cathedrals,  and  edifices  abounding 
with  beautiful  works  of  art,  but  he  always  disregarded  the  grand 
frescoes  of  Angelo,  the  elegant  altar-pieces  of  Horberg,  the  Ma- 
donnas of  Rapliael,  the  graces  of  Corregio,  and  the  architectural 
grandeur  aliout  him,  seeking  instead  charnel-houses,  recepta- 
cles of  the  dead,  gloomy  chambers  and  monastic  cells.  When 
asked  why  this  singular  preference,  he  replied:  "Amid  so  much 
perfection,  beauty  and  elegance,  I  am  anxious  to  learn  how 
much  corruption  there  is  to  be  found;  how  much  that  is  revolt- 
ing. I  have  a  singular  love  for  such  things  that  I  cannot  resist; 
a  love  that  throws  everything  else  into  the  shade.  Besides,  I 
dislike  descriptions  of  what  is  called  'the  beautiful,'  'the 
artistic' and  '  the  grand;'  it  has  too  much  eulogy  in  it.  I  have 
no  fear  of  being  over-eulogistic  in  my  descriptions." 

We  confess  our  attachment  for  that  writer  who,  with  due  ap- 
preciation and  proper  judgment,  describes  the  beauties  and 
merits  he  sees.  L.  B.  P. 


_y^^ 


Legal  Biographies. 


HON.  JASPER   WILLETT    GILBERT. 

It  is  not  always  that  the  ablest  advocates  make  successful 
judges.  In  the  majority  of  cases  the  advocate  becomes  a  deeply 
interested  partisan,  living  in  the  life  of  every  cause,  often  the 
most  momentous  part  of  his  client's  life,  imbued  with  his  client's 
anxiety,  glowing  with  his  resentments,  hoping  and  struggling  for 
his  success,  until  the  end ;  therefore,  unless  a  man  is  peculiarly 
constituted,  he  will,  despite  his  desire  to  be  perfectly  unpre- 
judiced, find  it  difficult  to  avoid  a  partisan  interest  in  the  excit- 
ing trials  over  which  he  presides.  His  experience,  too,  in  the 
conduct  of  cases  enables  him,  almost  at  a  glance,  to  see  the  right 
and  the  wrong  of  the  case,  and  it  is  difficult  for  him  to  avoid  a 
feeling  of  irritation  at  the  efforts  of  that  which  he  deems  the 
wrong  side  to  succeed ;  while  he  who  comes  to  the  Bench  less 
experienced  in  the  struggles  of  the  Bar,  is  more  apt  to  be  free 
from  the  evils  we  have  described. 

We  do  not  mean  to  be  understood  that  the  skilled  and  ac- 
complished advocate  does  not  make  an  accomplished  judge,  or 
that  a  lawyer  inexperienced  in  the  colli-sions  of  the  Bar  is 
always  sure  to  be  successful  on  the  Bench.  Legal  history 
abounds  in  names  of  judges  whose  career  at  the  Bar  was  limited; 
of  these  we  may  mention  Chief  Justice  Marshall,  Judge  Story, 
Bushrod  Washington,  Judge  Parsons,  Chancellor  Walworth, 
Eseck  Cownn,  William  L.  Marcy,  who  never  entered  deeply  into 
the  contests  of  the  Bar,  never  having  any  taste  for  the  excite- 
ments of  the  forum.  These  men  rank  among  the  most  illustrious 
American  judges. 

On  the  other  hand,  in  our  own  State  there  are  many  men 
whose  names  are  bright  in  judicial  history,  who  went  to  the 
Bench  from  an  exciting  and  brilliant  career  at  the  Bar,  and  in 
them  the  advocate  was  at  once  lost  in  the  erudite,  calm,  im- 
partial and  courteous  judge.  Among  these  were  Chief  Justice 
Ambrose  Spencer,  Greene  C.  Bronson,  Josiah  Ogden  Hoffman, 
Chief  Justice  Sanford  E.  Church,  James  0.  Smith,  Martin 
Grover  and  George  F.  Danforth;  and  to  these  we  may  add  the 
name  of  the  distinguished  jurist  whose  legal  and  judicial  career 
we  are  now  to  write — Hon.  Jasper  Willett  Gllbert — who,  from 
an  ardent  and  successful  career  at  the  Bar,  was  elevated  to  the 
Bench,  where  his  j  udicial  abilities  and  natural  adaptation  for  the 
place  he  occupied  was  soon  recognized  and  acknowledged  by 
the  Bar  and  the  public. 

Jaspek  W.  Gilbert  was  born  at  Rome,  Oneida  County,  New 
York,  January  15,  1812.  His  paternal  ancestor  in  this  country 
was  Jonathan  Gilbert,  who,  at  an  early  period  in  Colonial  his- 
tory, settled  at  Hartford,  Connecticut,  where  he  died  about  the 
year  1750. 

Judge  Gilbert's  father  was  Marinus  Willett  Gilbert,  named 
for  Colonel  Marinus  Willett,  with  whom  his  father  served  as  an 
officer  in  the  Continental  Army  during  the  Revolutionary  War. 

Several  years  before  the  birth  of  his  son  Jasper,  Mr.  Gilbert 
became  a  resident  of  Rome. 

After  a  preparatory  course  in  the  common  schools,  young 
Gilbert  became  a  student  at  Lowville  Academy,  where  he  re- 
mained a  considerable  time.  He  afterwards  became  a  student 
at  Watertown  Academy,  where  he  made  rapid  and  successful 
progress  in  his  studies. 

The  industry,  talents  and  quick  perceptions  of  the  young 
man  gave  promise  of  future  usefulness  in  one  of  the  learned 
professions.  As  he  early  indicated  a  preference  for  the  Bar,  on 
his  leaving  the  Academy  at  Watertown,  he  commenced  a  regular 


training  for  the  occupation  of  a  lawyer  in  the  office  of  Abraham 
Varick,  of  Utica,  New  York.  He  had  then  hardly  attained  his 
majority.  After  remaining  with  Mr.  Varick  something  over  a 
year,  he  entered  the  office  of  Hon.  Frederick  Whittlesey,  of 
Rochester,  New  York,  then  one  of  the  most  eminent  characters 
in  the  political  and  civil  history  of  the  State.  It  was  with 
Chancellor  Whittlesey  that  young  Gilbert  completed  his  legal 
studies;  this  was  in  1835.  He  was  called  to  the  Bar  at  a 
General  Term  of  the  Supreme  Court  at  Utica,  in  July,  1835,  tak- 
ing his  degi-ee  as  an  attorney  at  law  under  the  eyes  of  those  great 
historic  judges.  Chief  Justice  Savage,  Associate  Justices  Nelson 
and  Bronson;  at  this  time  he  was  only  23  years  of  age.  Young 
as  he  was,  he  at  once  opened  an  office,  in  Rochester,  N.  Y. 
Self-reliant,  studious  aud  ambitious,  be  attained  the  reputation 
of  a  rising  and  successful  young  lawyer. 

That  he  had  read  his  profession  with  diligence,  that  he  had 
mastered  its  great  profundities,  is  easily  inferred  from  the  pro- 
gress he  made  in  it.  We  shall  not  stop  to  consider  whether  he 
possessed  much  of  what  is  called  genius  or  not;  that  he  did 
possess  those  intellectual  (jualities  which  lead  to  success,  is 
certain.  Like  most  young  lawyers,  particularly  at  that  period, 
he  entered  ardently  into  politics;  giving  his  allegiance  to  the 
now  historic  Whig  party.  As  he  wielded  a  ready  and  vigorous 
pen,  he  also  became  eminent  as  a  contributor  to  the  journals  of 
that  day. 

Rochester  was  incorporated  as  a  city  in  1839,  and  young 
Gilbert  was  appointed  its  first  Corporation  Counsel;  he  there- 
fore enjoys  the  reputation  of  having  been  the  first  law  officer 
of  that  thriving  and  beautiful  city. 

In  July,  1838,  the  famous  Younij  Men's  Whig  Slate  Conven- 
tion assembled  at  Utica.  Young  Gilbert  represented  Monroe 
County  in  this  body,  took  a  conspicuous  part  in  its  deliberations, 
and  was  made  a  member  of  the  committee  appointed  to  prejjare 
an  address  to  the  people.  This  document  was  principally  writ- 
ten by  the  chairman  of  the  committee.  When  it  was  presented 
to  the  Convention  it  was  rejected,  and  Mr.  Gilbert  was  requested 
by  a  majoiity  of  the  committee  to  prepare  another;  he  did  so,  to 
the  satisfaction  of  the  committee,  and  when  reported  to  the  Con- 
vention it  was  almost  unanimously  adojjted.  Time  and  space 
will  not  permit  us  to  descant  upon  that  remarkable  paper;  suf- 
fice it  to  say,  it  was  eagerly  read  by  all  parties  in  the  State, 
warmly  commended  by  the  Whig  press,  with  the  exception  of 
the  New  York  Commercial  Advertiser,  edited  at  that  time  by  Wm. 
L.  Stone.  There  was  enough  in  this  circumstance  alone  to  have 
made  many  lawyers  lose  themselves  in  the  politician ;  but  young 
Gilbert  was  too  strongly  attached  to  his  profession  to  become  a 
mere  politician;  his  ambition  was  to  seize  its  solid  honois,  in- 
stead of  the  evanescent  fame  of  the  politician  and  place-hunter. 

He  began  his  professional  life  at  a  brilliant  period  in  the 
history  of  the  Western  New  York  Bar;  many  of  his  competitors 
were  among  those  illustrious  lawyers  who  have  made  its  legal 
history  so  famous  and  entertaining.  Like  him,  many  of  them 
were  then  young,  and  with  them  he  grew  to  eminence  and  dis- 
tinction as  a  lawyer. 

In  the  year  1839,  a  question  arose  in  the  city  of  Rochester  of 
absorbing  interest ;  this  was  the  disputed  right  of  colored 
children  to  attend  the  common  schools  of  the  city. 

A  teacher  in  one  of  the  schools  had  peremptorily  excluded 
from  its  privileges,  a  colored  child.  Mr.  Gilbert  at  once  de- 
cided that  this  act  was  unauthorized  by  law,  and  he  wrote  a 
report  to  that  effect.     John  C.  Spencer  was  then  Secretary  of 


1376 


IIISTORV  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


State  and  ex  officio  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction.  Mr. 
Gilbert's  report  was  submitted  to  this  great  statesman  and  law- 
yer, who  at  once  confirmed  Mr.  Gilbert's  report,  and  colored 
children  were  admitted  to  the  common  schools  of  Kochester. 

It  is  a  singular  coincidence  that,  in  1875,  thirty-six  years 
later,  when  Mr.  Gilbert  was  a  resident  of  Brooklyn  and  a  judge  of 
the  Supreme  Court  of  the  State,  a  similar  question  arose  in  that 
city.  It  was  started  under  the  City  Charter,  which  gave  to  the 
Board  of  Education  power  to  establish  separate  schools  for 
colored  children,  the  board  having  exercised  such  powers.  It 
was  contended  that,  under  the  14th  Amendment  of  the  Consti- 
tution, and  under  the  Civil  Eights  Act  of  this  State,  colored 
children  had  an  absolute  right  to  attend  the  public  schools 
with  white  children  in  the  district  of  their  residence.  The 
case  led  to  litigation,  and  subsequently  came  before  the  Supreme 
Court  for  adjudication.  Judge  Gilbert,  in  pronouncing  the 
opinion  of  the  court,  decided  that,  in  the  absence  of  legislation, 
colored  children  had  the  right  to  attend  the  public  schools  of 
the  city  with  white  children.  But  those  opposed  to  the  attend- 
ance of  colored  children  in  the  public  schools  appealed  from 
Judge  Gilbert's  decision  to  the  Court  of  Appeals,  where,  after 
exhaustive  argiiments,  his  opinion  was  affirmed. 

In  January,  1847,  Judge  Gilbert  was  united  in  marriage  to 
Miss  Catharine  Horn,  of  New  York  City.  He  continued  to  prac- 
tice with  increasing  success  until  October,  1847,  when  he  decided 
to  enter  upon  a  larger,  more  responsible  and  extended  arena  of 
professional  activity  and  labor,  and  he  concluded  to  become  a 
resident  of  the  city  of  New  York  and  a  practitioner  at  its  Bar, 
with  its  vast  competition,  its  opportunity  for  brilliant  success,  its 
dangers  of  signal  failure.  Fortunately  for  Judge  Gilbert,  the 
change  made  by  him  resulted  in  success.  In  1851  he  became  a 
resident  of  Brooklyn,  but  continued  his  practice  in  the  city  of 
New  York.  Few  lawyers,  perhaps,  ever  applied  themselves  with 
more  unremitting  zeal  than  he,  and  few  have  reaped  richer  re- 
wards. 

After  twenty-five  years  of  constant  practice,  with  rich  pecun- 
iary results,  he  determined  upon  a  period  of  repose,  and  sought 
recuperation  in  gratifying  his  love  of  travel.  To  this  end  he 
visited  Europe,  and  amid  the  historic  scenes  of  England  and  of 
Continental  Europe,  he  largely  gratified  his  tastes  in  viewing 
its  historic  places,  in  inspecting  its  exquisite  works  of  art, 
and  standing  by  the  tombs  of  those  who  bad  made  jurispru- 
dence, philosophy,  poetry,  sculpture  and  painting  glorious.  But 
his  respite  from  intellectual  labor  was  short.  In  the  autumn 
of  18G5  a  vacancy  occurred  on  the  Bench  of  the  Supreme  Court 
of  the  Second  Judicial  District,  which  was  to  be  supplied  at  the 
election  in  November  of  that  year.  There  were  many  eminent 
legal  gentleman  of  both  parties  in  the  district  who  would  have 
gladly  accepted  the  nomination  for  the  place. 

We  now  approach  an  event  which  must  be,  to  Judge  Gilbert, 
the  most  gratifying  incident  in  his  life— his  unanimous  nomina- 
tion, as  a  candidate  for  the  office  of  Justice  of  the  Supreme 
Court,  by  both  the  Republican  and  Democratic  parties  in  the 
Second  Judicial  District;  and,  as  has  well  been  said,  "This 
nomination  was  ratified  by  the  electors  of  the  district  by  a 
majority  so  overwhelming  as  to  amount  substantially  to  entire 
unanimity."  This  circumstance  alone  speaks  volumes  in  favor 
of  Jasper  W.  Gilbert,  not  only  as  a  lawyer,  but  as  a  citizen. 
The  man  who  could  thus  hush  the  voice  of  partisan  strife, 
and  thus  be  elected  to  the  high  and  dignified  position  of  a 
Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  State  of  New  York  without 
opposition,  although  a  pronounced  partisan  of  one  of  the  great 
parties,  must  possess  qualifications  of  a  high  order. 

At  the  expiration  of  his  term  he  was  re-elected,  and  by  re- 
peated re-elections  occupied  the  Bench  until  he  attained  that  age 
when,  by  the  Constitution,  he  was  disqualified  from  longer  sit- 
ting as  a  judge. 

He  brought  to  the  Bench  an  active,  comprehensive  mind. 
Many  of  his  opinions  in  cases  of  great  celebrity,  with  which  the 


public  is  quite  familiar,  will  continue  to  be  read  with  respect 
and  profit  long  after  the  hand  that  wrote  them  shall  be  cold 
in  death.  We  have  only  time  to  glance  at  a  few  of  these 
opinions. 

Judge  Gilbert  took  his  seat  on  the  Bench  on  January  4,  186G, 
and  presided  at  the  January  Term  of  the  Circuit  Court,  and 
Court  of  Oyer  and  Terminer,  held  in  Brooklyn,  which  com- 
menced their  sittings  at  that  time.  It  was  his  fortune  to  preside, 
during  this  term,  over  one  of  the  most  important  and  exciting 
trials  that  ever  took  place  in  Kings  County— that  of  Gonzalez  for 
the  murder  of  Ortero.     (See  Important  Trkils.J 

Judge  Gilbert  entered  upon  the  discharge  of  his  duties  with 
that  industry  and  directness  of  purpose  which  characterized  his 
career  at  the  Bar.  As  a  trial  judge  he  was  successful,  and,  what 
is  not  often  the  case,  he  was  equally  fortunate  as  a  judge  in  the 
appellate  court,  or  court  in  banc.  Neither  the  pressure  of 
sympathy,  the  pressure  of  public  opinion,  the  clamor  of  par- 
tisan zeal,  the  alleged  hardship  of  the  case,  nor  the  sophistry  of 
counsel,  were  ever  known  to  deflect  him  from  the  line  of  duty  and 
strict  impartiality. 

During  the  seventeen  years  he  pronounced  the  law  from 
the  Bench,  his  opinions,  both  upon  questions  of  practice  and 
questions  of  common  law,  statute  law,  and  equity,  are  nu- 
merous; and  the  student,  in  reading  his  opinions  in  the  New 
York  Reports,  in  Barbour's,  and  in  Howard's  Reports,  finds  in- 
dubitable evidence  of  Judge  Gilbert's  learning  and  untiring 
industry.  It  would  be  a  pleasure  to  refer  to  many  of  these,  but 
as  the  Bar  and  the  public  are  familiar  with  them,  it  would  be 
but  the  work  of  siipererogation.  Among  those  to  which  we 
venture  to  refer  are  the  following:  the  case  growing  out  of  the 
removal  of  steam-transit  from  Atlantic  street,  in  Brooklyn;  the 
construction  of  Prospect  Park;  the  case  relating  to  the  destruc- 
tion of  property  occasioned  by  the  riot  which  took  place  in 
1863;  and  that  in  which  the  right  of  the  Legislature  to  regulate 
ferriage  across  the  East  River  was  established.  All  these  were 
causes  celebre,  and  came  before  him  either  at  nisi  prius  or  at  the 
General  Term.  The  manner  in  which  his  rulings  and  opinions 
in  these  cases  were  received  by  the  Bar  and  public  need  no  de- 
scription from  us. 

For  two  years  previous  to  the  expiration  of  his  judicial  term, 
he  was  assigned  by  the  Governer  to  the  Fourth  Judicial  Depart- 
ment of  the  State.  One  of  the  last  cases  decided  by  him  was 
that  of  the  People  of  the  State  of  New  York,  oh  (lie  relation  of 
John  Negus,  ar/ainst  Richabd  S.  Roberts,  one  of  the  Board  of 
Aldermen  of  Brooklyn,  and  sixteen  other  Aldermen  of  the  city, 
whom  he  had  adjudged  guilty  of  contempt  of  court,  in  violating 
an  injunction  order  granted  by  County  Judge  Henry  A.  Moore, 
in  January,  1882.  His  opinion  in  that  case,  though  very  brief, 
is  often  quoted  for  its  learning  and  for  the  inflexibility  with 
which  he  punished  those  who,  with  premeditation,  disregarded 
and  set  at  naught  a  solemn  order  of  the  Supreme  Court. 

"To  allow  such  offenders,"  he  said,  in  pronouncing  his  judg- 
ment, "impunity  for  their  misconduct,  would  be  a  jiractical 
surrender  of  a  trust  which  has  been  confided  to  the  judiciary 
by  the  people  for  their  own  protection.  The  power  which  the 
court  possesses  of  punishing  disobedience  of  its  mandates  is 
one  of  the  safeguards  for  the  administration  of  justice.  Those 
who  commit  such  offenses  must  be  inflexibly  punished." 

Judge  Gilbert  retired  from  the  Bench  in  December,  1883, 
having,  as  we  have  said,  attained  that  age  which  is  supposed  to 
disqualify  him  from  the  duties  of  a  judge.  Though  still  in  the 
possession  of  every  faculty,  mental  and  physical,  necessary  for 
the  discharge  of  his  ofScial  duties,  it  is,  perhaps,  no  affectation 
to  say  he  is  better  qualified  by  his  experience  on  the  Bench. 

In  cases  like  his,  we  are  led  to  doubt  the  propriety  of  a  con- 
stitutional provision  which  disqualifies  judicial  officers  in  the 
very  midst  of  their  usefulness,  and  ripened  by  a  long  and  valu- 
able experience. 

On  retiring  from  the  Bench,  Judge  Gilbert  resumed  the  prac- 


LEGAL  BIOGRAPHIES. 


1277 


tice  of  his  profession,  because  he  loved  and  honored  it  from 
long  association.  He  is,  at  this  writing,  at  the  head  of  the  well- 
known  and  successful  law  firm  composed  of  his  son,  James  H. 
Gilbert,  Alexander  Cameron,  and  another  son,  William  T.  Gilbert. 
The  offices  of  this  firm  are  at  67  Wall  street.  New  York  City,  and 
213  Montague  street,  Brooklyn. 

We  leave  Judge  Gilbert  enjoying  the  fruits  of  a  long  and  suc- 
cessful legal  and  judicial  career.  With  the  full  honors  of  the 
Bench,  he  returns  to  that  arena  which,  in  his  young  manhood, 
he  adorned. 


JUDGE  CALVIN  E.  PRATT. 

In  presenting  a  biographical  sketch  of  one  who  is  in  mid 
career  of  an  active  and  useful  life,  we  are  necessarily  restrained 
from  expressions  of  commendation,  which  the  subject  would  in- 
spire were  we  writing  of  a  man  %Yhose  race  was  run  and  his  mis- 
sion and  journey  ended.  We,  therefore,  give  a  merely  historical 
narrative  of  one  of  our  citizens  who  has  long  been  conspicuous 
at  the  Bar,  in  the  field,  and  on  the  Bench.  The  family  of  Pratt, 
one  of  the  oldest  in  Massachusetts,  is  descended  either  from 
Phineas  Pratt,  who  came  from  England  to  Plymouth  in  l(i2'2 
(two  years  after  the  Pilgrims  landed  there  from  the  Maiiflowitr), 
or  from  Joshua  Pratt,  who  came  to  Plymouth  in  the  ship  Aim 
in  1G23,  and  was  one  of  the  first  purchasers  at  Dartmouth. 

Calvin  Edwaed  Puatt,  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  was  born  at 
Princeton,  in  Massachusetts,  on  the  23d  January,  1828.  His  father 
was  Edward  A.  Pratt,  a  son  of  Captain  Joshua  Pratt,  of  Shrews- 
bury; and  his  mother  was  Mariaime  Stratton,  daughter 
of  Deacon  Samuel  Stratton,  of  Princeton.  The  family 
removed  from  that  place,  in  Judge  Pratt's  early  child- 
hood, to  Sutton,  in  the  same  State,  where  he  was  diligent 
alike  in  the  district  school  and  upon  his  father's  farm  up  to 
his  fifteenth  or  sixteenth  year,  developing  and  maturing 
the  physical  and  mental  strength  for  which  he  has  since  been 
remarkable.  From  his  early  boyhood  to  the  present  hour  he 
has  known  no  idle  time.  From  Sutton  he  went  to  the  celebrated 
academy  in  Wilbraham,  and  while  pursuing  his  studies  there, 
during  a  portion  of  the  time  assisted  in  surveying  the  line  of  the 
Providence  and  Worcester  Kailroad.  The  following  season  he 
taught  one  of  the  district  schools  in  the  town  of  Uxbridge,  and 
the  next  year  in  that  of  Sutton,  and  subsequently,  for  three  suc- 
cessive winters,  in  Worcester.  Meanwhile  he  diligently  pursued 
classical  studies,  and  completed  his  preparation  for  college,  for 
which  he  was  finally  fitted  at  the  Worcester  Academy. 

In  the  spring  of  1849,  he  commenced  the  study  of  law  in  the 
office  of  Hon.  Henry  Chapin,  a  distinguished  lawyer  of  Worces- 
ter. He  was  content  with  no  superficial  knowledge,  but  was  a 
close,  thorough,  and  untiring  student— going  to  the  very  founda- 
tions, the  underlying  principles,  on  which  the  rules  of  law  in 
all  its  departments  are  based.  While  engaged  in  these  studies 
he  held  for  one  year  the  office  of  Clerk  of  the  Criminal  Court,  to 
which  he  was  appointed  in  1850.  He  was  admitted  to  the  Bar 
at  Worcester  in  1852.  He  at  once  became  anything  but  a 
"briefless  barrister."  He  was  not  subjected  to  the  long  and 
weary  waiting  which  is  the  lot  of  most  j'oung  men  on  entering 
the  profession,  but  was  speedily  in  active  practice.  He  was 
retained  almost  immediately  in  many  important  criminal  cases, 
among  which  were  a  number  for  murder— one  being  that  of 
Barker  (a  case  that  attracted  great  attention  at  the  time),  in 
which  he  was  associated  for  the  defense  with  ex-Judge  Dwight 
Foster,  the  prosecution  being  conducted  by  Judge  P.  E.  Aldrich 
and  the  late  Ilufus  Choate. 

In  order  that  he  might  be  thoroughly  prepared  and  competent 
for  the  trial  of  cases  involving  medico-legal  questions,  Mr.  Pratt 
sought  the  knowledge  to  be  obtained  by  medical  studies,  and 
pursued  especially  and  thoroughly  that  of  anatomy.  From  1851 
to  1859  (in  which  year  he  removed  to  New  York),  he  labored 
incessantly,  and  without  holiday  or  rest. 


During  this  period  his  remarkable  physical  strength  and  vigor 
disjiosed  him  to  active  exercise  and  sports.  He  became  an  ath- 
lete, was  expert  as  a  boxer  and  in  the  use  of  the  small  sword, 
broad  sword  and  bayonet,  in  which  he  took  lessons  from  skilled 
instructors.  The  passion  of  all  boys  for  military  matters  did 
not,  in  him,  cease  with  his  boyhood,  but  grew  with  his  years, 
and  in  1851  he  enlisted  as  a  private  in  the  Worcester  Light  In- 
fantry, one  of  the  oldest  military  organizations  in  the  country,' 
dating  back  to  about  1808.  He  became  successively  orderly-ser- 
geant, 2d  lieutenant  and  1st  lieutenant  of  the  company,  and  was 
then  elected  major  of  the  10th  Regiment  Massachusetts  Infantry, 
in  which  he  served  for  two  or  three  years,  when  he  accepted  a 
position  as  major  on  the  staff  of  Major-General  Hobbs.  We  note 
this  early  chapter  of  his  military  experience  (while  at  the  same 
time  in  full  practice  as  a  lawyer),  as  the  precursor  of  his  gallant 
and  skillful  action  in  the  war  of  the  Rebellion. 

During  this  period  of  Mr.  Pratt's  life  he  was  earnest  and  ardent 
in  his  political  convictions.  His  sincerity  was  shown  by  his  act- 
ing and  identifying  himself  with  the  Democratic  party,  which 
in  Massachusetts  was  not  a  popular  or  profitable  service.  He  was 
so  effective  and  acceptable  as  a  speaker  that  his  voice  was  con- 
stantly invoked  and  heard  at  the  public  meetings  of  that  party 
in  central  Massachusetts,  and  not  unfrequently  in  Connecticut, 
New  Hampshire  and  Rhode  Island.  He  had  much  humor  and 
tact,  and  a  forcible,  clear  and  ett'ective  way  of  stating  and  argu- 
ing his  case,  that  told  with  great  effect  on  "  the  masses."  He  was 
ajipointed  a  justice  of  the  peace  in  Worcester  in  1853,  and  held 
that  office  until  his  removal  to  Brooklyn,  New  York,  in  18.59.  He 
was  a  member  of  the  Massachusetts  Democratic  State  Central 
Committee,  a  delegate  to  all  the  Democratic  State  Conventions, 
and,  for  a  number  of  years,  chairman  of  the  County  Committee. 

He  was  wise  enough  at  the  same  time  not  to  allow  party  poli- 
tics to  divert  his  mind  or  interfere  with  his  attention  to  legal, 
political,  medical  and  mechanical  science,  in  all  which  he  was 
a  constant  student;  and  he  also  sought  and  acquired  rare  knowl- 
edge of  gunnery  and  other  important  branches  of  military  ser- 
vice. These  acquirements,  aided  by  a  retentive  memory,  have 
verified,  throughout  his  career  at  the  Bar,  in  the  army  and  on  the 
Bench,  Lord  Bacon's  adage  that  "knowledge  is  power." 

In  May,  1859,  Mr.  Pratt  removed  to  Brooklyn,  where  he  has 
ever  since  resided.  He  resumed  his  labor  at  the  law,  and,  in 
partnership  with  Levi  A.  Fuller,  Esq.  (having  their  office  at  No. 
39  Jauncey  Court,  New  York),  continued  in  active  practice  until 
the  breaking  out  of  the  Rebellion  in  April,  1861.  His  political 
associations  did  not  prevent  his  instantly  arraying  himself  on 
the  side  of  the  Union.  He  bade  good-bye  to  the  law  for  a  sea- 
son, and  determined  at  once  to  raise  a  regiment  and  lead  it  to 
the  front.  He  hired  the  premises  360  Pearl  street,  in  the  city  of 
New  York,  .and,  with  his  accustomed  energy,  soon  recruited  seven 
full  companies.  These  recruits,  it  must  be  confessed,  were  not 
all  of  the  (';i(e  of  the  land,  nor  even  of  the  "F.  F.  V's"  of  that 
part  of  the  city,  but  unsparing  and  incessant  drill  soon  illus- 
trated the  truth  that  strict  discipline  and  good  officers  can  make 
good  soldiers  out  of  almost  any  material.  By  an  arrangement 
with  William  H.  Browne,  Esq.,  these  seven  companies  were  con- 
solidated with  three  others,  which  had  been  recruited  by  that 
gentleman,  into  one  regiment,  being  the  3 1st  New  York  Volun- 
teers, of  which  Mr.  Pratt  was  thereupon  appointed  the  colonel 
and  Mr.  Browne  the  lieutenant-colonel.  Neither  of  these  gentle- 
men had  received  pecuniary  aid  in  raising  the  regiment,  but 
accomplished  it  in  the  short  space  of  twenty-nine  days  by  their 
own  means  and  exertions.  They  at  once  tendered  it  and  them- 
selves to  the  State,  in  the  service  of  which  it  was  "mustered  in  " 
on  the  27th  of  May,  and  into  that  of  the  United  States  on  the 
14th  of  June,  and  was  soon  thereafter  ordered  to  Washington,  to 
report  to  General  McDowell.  When  taken  into  the  State  service 
the  regiment  was  ordered  to  Riker's  Island,  in  East  River,  where 
Colonel  Pratt  devoted  himself  most  assiduously  to  its  drill  and 
equipment,  which  be  continuecl  until  abovit  the  19th  of  June, 


1278 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY 


JUDGE    CALVIN    E.    PRATT. 


18G1,  when  he  received  orders  to  move  it  on  the  following  day 
to  the  front  by  transjiorts  to  Jersey  City,  and  thence  by  railroad 
on  the  next  Monday,  to  join  the  Western  army.  He  embarked 
his  command  accordingly,  but  the  transport  became  unmanage- 
able in  Hell  Gate,  and  escaped  sinking  by  being  run  ashore  on 
Long  Island,  whence  he  marched  his  regiment  by  the  way  of 
the  Hunter's  Point  Ferry  to  New  York,  and  went  into  camp  in 
the  City  Hall  Park  barracks,  and  reported  to  the  Governor  at 
Albany  and  to  the  Adjutant-General  of  the  United  States  at 
Washington.  On  the  following  Sunday  the  men  were  "paid  off," 
and,  having  omitted  to  sign  "the  temperance  pledge,"  were  not 
in  the  best  condition  on  their  return  to  camp  at  evening.  Be- 
fore leaving  for  Washington,  a  beautiful  set  of  colors  was  pre- 
sented to  the  regiment  by  ladies  of  New  York  and  Brooklyn. 

On  the  21th,  the  regiment  proceeded  by  the  cars  at  Jersey 
City  for  Washington,  and  on  reaching  the  Northern  Depot  at 
Baltimore,  marched  through  that  city  to  the  Washington  Depot 
(at  its  southern  side).  It  was  the  first  regiment  that  moved 
through  Baltimore  after  the  iilst  April,  when  the  Gth  Massachu- 
setts was  attacked  by  the  mob,  and,  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet, 
forced  its  way  through  the  streets  on  its  march  to  Wash- 
ington, with  loss  of  many  lives,  alike  of  the  soldiers  and  of 
their  assailants.  Colonel  Pratt  expected  and  prepared  for  a 
like  reception.  On  alighting  from  the  cars,  be  ordered  the  right 
and  left  (the  front  and  rear)  companies  to  load  their  muskets 
with  ball  cartridges.  He  addressed  the  men,  enjoining  on  them 
coolness  and  steadiness,  and  under  no  provocation  to  fire  until 
they  should  receive  orders  to  do  so.  The  stern  and  steady  bear- 
ing of  both  officers  and  men  secured  for  them  an  unimpeded 
march  to  the  Washington  train,  by  which  they  reached  that  city 
in  due  time,  and  went  into  camp  on  Seventh  street,  about  two 
miles  from  the  Capitol. 

Soon  after  the  famous  grand  review  of  the  army  by  General 
McDowell,  Colonel  Pratt,  pursuant  to  orders,  moved  across  the 


Potomac  and  went  into  camp  on  Hunting  Creek,  in  the  imme- 
diate neighborhood  of  the  city  of  Alexandria,  where  he  was  in- 
cessantly engaged  in  drilling  his  men  until  about  the  10th  of 
July,  when  his  regiment,  and  the  ICth  and  32d  New  Y'ork, 
were  consolidated  into  a  brigade,  under  the  command  of  the 
senior  ofticer  (a  West  Point  graduate),  Colonel  Thomas  A.  Davies, 
of  the  IGth  New  York. 

About  the  17th  July,  1861,  Colonel  Pratt  marched  with  his 
regiment  for  Centreville,  on  the  old  Braddock  Koad,  and  after 
a  skirmish  at  Fairfax  Court  House,  encamped  on  the  second 
night  at  Centreville.  The  famous  battle  of  Bull  Run  was  fought 
on  Sunday,  July  21st.  Colonel  Pratt's  regiment  was  in  the  re- 
serve division,  under  General  Miles,  and  was  posted  on  the 
extreme  left  of  the  line  of  battle.  After  skirmishing  in  front  for 
some  time  without  finding  any  enemy  in  force  in  that  direction, 
he  was  ordered  to  take  command  of  his  own  regiment,  and  also 
of  the  32d  New  York,  and  support  General  Hunt's  battery.  A 
turning  column  of  the  rebels,  late  in  the  day,  made  a  vigorous 
attack  upon  Colonel  Pratt's  command,  but  were  handsomely  re- 
pulsed and  driven  back.  He  then  received  directions  to  retreat, 
which  was  done  in  good  order.  After  falling  back  a  short  dis- 
tance, it  being  about  sundown,  the  line  was  reformed,  arms 
stacked,  and  the  men  laid  down  to  rest.  Colonel  Pratt's  regi- 
ment and  the  32d  New  York  were  two  of  those  in  line  when 
Jeff.  Davis,  Beauregard  and  ether  rebel  generals  rode  to  the 
front  to  make  a  reconnoissance.  In  the  rebel  report  of  the  battle 
it  was  given  as  the  reason  for  their  not  advancing  on  Washington 
that  there  appeared  to  be  Union  troops  in  line  ready  for  battle. 

About  midnight  Colonel  Pratt  ascertained  that  the  whole 
Union  army  was  in  full  retreat  on  Washington,  and  he  there- 
upon gave  orders  to  fall  in,  and  marched  to  Alexandria,  where 
he  arrived  in  his  old  camp  without  the  loss  of  a  single  straggler 
from  his  command,  so  perfect  was  their  discipline. 

His  conduct  in  the  battle  of  Bull  Eun  was  so  judicious,  skillful 


LEGAL    BIOGRAPHIES. 


1279 


and  gallant  that  he  was  recommended,  without  his  knowledge,  by 
his  superior  officers  for  promotion.  His  regiment  was  marked 
for  its  discipline  and  good  conduct.  On  reaching  camp  again, 
lie  forthwith  resumed  drilling  his  men.  His  early  amateur  ex- 
perience in  tlie  militia  and  study  of  tactics  had  made  liim  at  the 
outset  a  specially  capable  instructor  and  trainer  of  his  command. 

A  new  brigade  was  soon  formed  by  General  Franklin  (of  the 
regular  army),  consisting  of  Colonel  Pratt's  regiment  (the  31st) 
and  18th  and  32d  New  York  and  95th  Pennsylvania,  of  which 
General  John  Newton  was  placed  in  command. 

The  fall  and  winter  were  occupied  by  Colonel  Pratt  in  tlie 
usual  routine  of  camp,  picket  doty  and  drilling,  and  on  courts 
marshal,  by  one  of  which  Colonel  MoCunn,  of  New  York,  was 
tried  and  dismissed;  and  much  of  Colonel  Pratt's  time  was  spent 
in  examining,  by  a  Board  of  which  he  was  the  president,  into  the 
qualifications  of  officers,  many  of  whom  were  examined  and 
dropped  from  the  rolls  on  reports  made  by  the  Board. 

In  April,  1862,  Colonel  Pratt  embarked  with  his  command  from 
Alexandria  for  the  Peninsula,  and  arrived  at  Pocosin  Creek  a 
few  days  before  the  battle  of  Williamsburgh,  remaining  on  the 
transports  until  the  Otli  of  May,  when  he  sailed  up  the  York 
River  and  landed  at  Brick  House  Point  (or  West  Point,  as  it  was 
commonly  called).  On  the  morning  of  7th  of  May,  he  received 
orders  before  daylight  to  take  his  regiment  (the  31st  New  York) 
and  '.(5th  Pennsylvania,  and  to  skirmish  in  front  —make  a  reoon- 
noissance  and  report.  In  obeying  this  order,  he  concluded  that 
from  the  nature  of  the  ground  one  regiment  was  sufficient  to  cover 
the  fronts;  so,  exercising  his  judgment,  and  taking  the  responsi- 
bility, he  kept  the  31st  Regiment  in  reserve  (his  doing  which  was 
afterward  commended  by  General  Newton).  He  then  dashed  on 
with  his  skirmishers,  and  soon  found  the  enemy.  General  New- 
ton thereupon  sent  in  the  32d  New  York  and  itSth  Pennsylvania 
to  make  an  attack.  They  encountered  the  enemy  in  such  force 
that  they  were  compelled,  after  sharp  fighting,  to  fall  back,  with 
much  loss  to  both  regiments.  Colonel  Pratt  was  thereupon  or- 
dered to  advance  with  his  regiment  (the  31st  New  York),  which  he 
did,  and  took  a  position  which  he  held  through  the  day,  carrying 
on  a  heavy  skirmish,  and  encountering  a  formidable  attack  by  a 
large  force  of  the  rebel  infantry,  which,  with  the  assistance  of  the 
27th  and  IGth  New  York  Regiments,  he  repulsed  with  great  loss 
to  them,  and  sustained  in  his  own  command  the  loss  of  eighty- 
seven  men,  a  majority  of  whom  were  killed,  and  among  them  five 
commissioned  officers  out  of  the  eighteen  who  went  into  the 
battle.  Such  a  loss  out  of  a  command  of  only  six  hundred  men 
attests  the  severity  of  the  engagement. 

The  next  day  the  regiment  received  the  thanks  of  General  Mc- 
Clellan.  Colonel  Pratt  was  specially  named  for  his  gallant  service, 
and  was  strongly  recommended  for  promotion  by  a  large  num- 
ber of  general  officers,  not  only  of  high  rank,  but  of  very  high 
personal  standing. 

Soon  after  the  battle  of  West  Point  the  army  marched  to  the 
Chickahominy  River,  which  Colonel  Pratt,  with  his  command, 
crossed  about  the  21th  of  June,  and  was  busily  engaged  in  build- 
ing bridges,  and  other  work,  preliminary  to  the  fierce  conflict 
which  soon  followed.  On  the  2Gth  the  memorable  battle  of  seven 
days  commenced  near  Mechanicsville,  on  the  extreme  right  of 
our  army. 

On  the  27th,  Colonel  Pratt  was  ordered  to  return  across  the 
river  (to  the  north  side)  to  support  General  Fitz  John  Porter. 
The  battle  was  desperate,  terrible.  Colonel  Pratt  was  ordered 
with  his  regiment  to  charge  the  enemy,  and  while  in  its  front, 
gallantly  leading  it  on,  was  struck  in  his  left  check,  about  an 
inch  below  the  eye,  by  a  bullet,  which  passed  through  into  the 
head,  back  of  the  nose,  crushing  the  bones,  and  lodging  under 
the  check  bone,  below  the  right  eye,  where  it  still  remains, 
causing  him  at  times  excruciating  pain.  He  was  taken  to  the 
rear,  but  in  spite  of  his  suffering,  and  the  state  of  almost  total 
blindness  caused  by  the  wound,  he  mounted  his  horse  and 
rode  to  the  hospital  on  the  south  side  of  the  river. 


The  wound  could  not  be  then  dressed,  and  the  next  day  he 
went,  some  six  miles,  to  Savage  Station,  where  the  surgeons 
examined  it,  pronounced  it  fatal,  and  directed  that  he  should 
not  be  moved.  A  few  hours  after  this  he  heard  sharp  firing  at 
a  short  distance,  and  learning  that  it  was  a  skirmish  between  the 
rear  guard  of  our  own  army  and  the  advance  of  the  rebels,  de- 
termined not  to  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  latter,  but  ordered 
his  horse,  and,  almost  entirely  blind  from  his  wound,  which  was 
still  undressed,  started  to  follow  the  army,  then  falling  back  to 
James  River,  which  was  reached  on  the  fourth  or  fifth  day  after 
he  was  wounded. 

An  incident  occxirred  on  his  way  to  James  River  worthy  of 
mention.  It  was  after  dark  when  Colonel  Pratt,  in  wretched 
plight,  arrived  at  the  place,  on  the  south  side  of  White  Oak 
Swamp,  where  the  6th  Corps  had  encamped  in  line  of  battle.  A 
warm  friend  of  his,  Captain  Piatt,  of  the  regular  army,  was  then 
chief  of  artillery  of  the  6th  Corps,  and  had  placed  his  guns  in 
battery  ready  for  an  attack  by  the  enemy.  Colonel  Pratt  rode 
up  to  the  battery  and  inquired  for  an  officer,  but  finding  none, 
asked  the  sergeant  for  some  feed  for  his  horse.  The  man 
replied  that  thej'  had  none  to  spare,  and  were,  in  fact,  short 
themselves.  Colonel  Pratt  asked  for  Captain  Piatt,  who  soon 
after  came,  when  the  colonel  at  once  asked  him  for  some  forage. 
The  captain  said  it  was  impossible  to  spare  any ;  that  he  was 
sorry,  but  it  was  impossible,  &c.,  and  wound  up  by  saying, 
"  Who  are  you?"  Colonel  Pratt  replied,  as  well  as  the  condition  of 
his  face  and  mouth  would  admit,  "I  am  Colonel  Pratt,  of  the  31st 
New  York."  Captain  Piatt  replied,  "I  don't  think  you  can  get 
anything  on  that  statement,  for  we  left  him  dead  on  the  other 
side  of  the  Chickahominy  three  days  ago."  "Well,  I  am  the 
man,"  Colonel  Pratt  replied.  It  is  needless  to  say  that  after 
that  he  was  supplied  with  the  necessary  forage  he  sought,  and 
having  found  his  regiment,  tied  his  horse  to  a  tree  and_  laid 
down  upon  the  ground  to  sleep. 

General  Slocum,  learning  that  Colonel  Pratt  had  come  into 
camp,  sent  Captain  Hopkins,  his  quartermaster,  who  at  last  found 
him  and  took  him  to  the  general's  headquarters,  where  he 
spent  the  night  with  the  general  upon  the  floor  of  a  small  cabin. 

The  next  day.  Colonel  Pratt  mounted  his  horse  and  started 
for  the  James  River,  witnessing  the  battles  of  Charles  City,  Cross 
Roads  and  Malvern  Hill,  and  it  was  not  until  after  those  con- 
flicts were  over  that  he  received  any  surgical  attention  to  his 
terrible  wound,  which  had  thus  remained  during  five  days 
wholly  uncared  for. 

He  returned  to  Brooklyn  about  the  7th  of  July,  and  when  so 
far  relieved  from  his  wound  as  to  be  able  to  travel,  rejoined  his 
regiment  (about  the  1st  of  September),  just  after  the  second 
battle  of  Bull  Run.  General  McClellan  then  resumed  the  com- 
mand of  the  army,  and  nominated  a  number  of  colonels  for  pro- 
motion to  the  rank  of  general.  Colonel  Pratt  was  one  of  those 
whom  he  recommended. 

About  the  evening  of  the  5th  September,  the  army  moved  on 
the  famous  Maryland  campaign  to  meet  Lee,  who  with  the  rebel 
force  had  commenced  the  expedition  which  ended  disastrously 
to  them  at  Antietam. 

On  the  10th  September,  1862,  while  on  this  march,  Colonel 
Pratt  was,  for  gallant  and  meritorious  conduct  in  the  field,  ap- 
pointed by  President  Lincoln  Brigadier-General  of  Volunteers. 
His  commission  did  not  reach  him  until  the  I'Jth,  when  he  was 
assigned  to  succeed  General  Hancock  in  command  of  a  brigade 
in  General  W.  F.  Smith's  Division  of  the  famous  Gth  Army  Corps. 

On  the  18th  September,  in  the  desperate  battle  of  Antietam, 
General  Pratt  was  stationed  in  front  of  the  Dunker  Church,  and 
bore  an  active  and  efficient  part  in  sujjport  of  the  Federal  bat- 
teries. He  was  struck  by  a  piece  of  shell,  but  the  injury  did 
not  disable  him  from  duty.  His  horse  was  at  the  same  time 
wounded  under  him. 

A  few  days  after  the  battle,  he  was  sent  with  his  brigade  to 
Cunningham's  Cross  Roads  to  intercept  Stewart,  a  rebel  general, 


1280 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


who  was  makinf;  a  raid  in  tlie  rear  of  the  Army  of  the  Potomac. 
After  this  service,  he  remained  with  the  army  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  Hafjerstown,  while  it  was  recruiting  and  receiving  sup- 
plies, until  about  the  1st  November,  when  it  moved  down  the 
east  side  of  the  Blue  Kidge  to  New  Baltimore  and  Warrentown. 
At  New  Baltimore,  General  Pratt  was  ordered  to  make  a  recon- 
noissanee  through  the  gap  west  of  that  jilace,  to  ascertain  if  the 
rear  of  the  Confederate  army  had  passed,  which  was  done  and 
report  made  that  it  had  not.  It  appears  that  at  this  time  Jackson 
and  the  two  Hills  were  far  north  of  this  point  upon  the  march, 
and  if  McClellan  had  been  permitted  to  attack  Lee  and  Long- 
street  in  his  front  at  Warrentown,  he  must  have  defeated  them 
in  detail.  At  this  time  McClellan  was  removed,  and  Burnside 
succeeded  him  in  command  of  the  army.  Thence  it  marched 
to  White  Oak  Church  and  Falmouth,  on  the  north  side  of  the 
Rappahannock,  opposite  Fredericksburgh. 

In  December,  about  the  lIHh,  14th  and  L^ith,  occurred  the  great 
and  disastrous  battle  of  Fredericksburgh.  The  necessary  limits 
of  this  sketch  of  General  Pratt  restricts  us  (as  in  all  the  other 
portions  of  the  narrative)  to  a  very  concise  mention  of  the  part 
he  bore.  His  brigade  was  the  first  of  the  left  grand  division  to 
cross  the  river,  and  was  in  the  first  line  of  the  desperate  battle 
for  two  days  and  two  nights.  It  was  hopeless  from  the  outset, 
for  our  troops  had  nothing  to  do  but  to  charge  their  uncovered 
breasts  against  the  impregnable  breastworks  of  the  rebels,  and 
though  they  did  so  again  and  again  with  the  most  intrepid,  im- 
petuous, and  reckless  bravery,  there  could,  in  the  nature  of 
things,  be  but  one  result  —that  of  failure.  On  the  night  of  the 
retreat  across  the  river,  in  the  face  of  the  enemy.  General  Pratt 
was  ordered  to  take  charge  of  the  troops  of  the  left  grand  divi- 
sion at  the  crossing.  This  most  delicate,  difficult,  and  all-im- 
portant duty  was  performed  with  such  skill  and  ability,  that  the 
last  of  the  rear  guard  was  crossed  to  the  north  bank  just  before 
daylight.  The  slightest  accident,  panic,  or  confusion  might 
have  resulted  in  the  loss  of  half  the  army.  General  Pratt 
acquired  much  added  distinction  by  his  conduct  in  this  battle 
and  at  its  close. 

Late  in  December,  in  the  same  year  (18C2),  he  went  on  what 
was  familiarly  termed  "the  mud  campaign"  of  General  Burn- 
side.  His  brigade  was  selected  to  lead  in  crossing  the  Rappa- 
hannock River,  and  in  storming  the  rebel  works.  But  a  severe 
rainstorm  made  it  impossible  to  bring  the  artillery  and  the 
pontoons  through  the  hopeless  depths  of  mud  to  the  bank  of  the 
river,  and  the  attack  and  campaign  were  necessarily  abandoned. 

The  command  of  the  army  was  then  assumed  by  General 
Hooker,  and  soon  after  General  Pratt  was  ordered  to  select  the 
requisite  number  of  regiments  and  to  form  a  Light  Division. 
He  did  so,  and  the  command  which  he  thus  organized  consisted 
of  the  ;5lKt  and  43d  New  York,  the  4'.»th  and  0'2d  Pennsylvania, 
the  0th  Maine,  the  5th  Wisconsin,  and  Halm's  Independent 
Light  Battery.  General  Pratt  was  jilaced  in  command  of  this 
fine  body  of  troops. 

A  short  time  prior  to  the  campaign  of  Chancellorsville,  General 
Pratt  stated  to  General  Hooker  that  he  would  with  his  command 
march  ten  days  without  any  supply  wagons.  General  Hooker 
doubted  this  bold  proposition,  as  up  to  that  time  the  infantry 
troops  of  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  had  not  carried  more  than 
five  days'  rations.  General  Hooker,  however,  at  once  issued  an 
order  appointing  a  Board,  of  which  General  Pratt  was  the  Presi- 
dent, to  take  the  subject  into  consideration  and  report  to  him. 
The  Board  met  at  General  Pratt's  headquarters.  Men  were  de- 
tailed from  various  regiments  to  appear  in  heavy  marching  order. 
Every  article  borne  by  them  was  weighed,  and  then  the  knap- 
sacks were  emptied  and  the  usual  three  days'  rations  were  jilaced 
in  haversacks,  and  seven  days'  rations  of  hard  tack  packed  in  the 
knapsacks.  It  was  found  that  the  extra  rations,  with  blanket 
and  extra  pair  of  socks,  did  not,  on  the  average,  weigh  more 
than  what  soldiers  usually  carried.  A  report  of  the  facts  was 
made  in  detail,  and  General  Pratt  submitted  a  proposition  to 


drive  upon  the  hoof  sufficient  meat  for  the  other  seven  days,  and 
to  furnish  each  regiment  with  a  mule  and  pack-saddle  to  carrj' 
camp  kettles  and  desiccated  vegetables  svifficient  for  the  seven 
extra  days.  The  report  was  at  once  adopted,  approved,  printed 
and  circulated  through  the  army. 

This,  we  believe,  was  the  first  attempt  to  leave  the  supply 
train  behind  for  more  than  three  or  five  days  at  one  time. 

General  Pratt's  new  command  was  then  diligently  drilled,  and 
thoroughly  fitted  for  special  service.  It  remained  through  the 
winter  in  camp,  without  being  called  on  for  any  general  picket 
duty. 

General  Pratt's  promotion  as  brigadier-general  was  confirmed 
by  the  United  States  Senate  in  the  winter  of  1863. 

His  military  service,  which  had  to  this  time  been  brilliant  and 
successful,  was  unexpectedly  terminated  by  an  imperative  call 
to  another,  though  less  congenial,  field  of  duty,  which  he  was 
not  at  liberty  to  disregard,  or  postpone  to  his  own  wishes  and 
advancement.  The  death  of  a  near  family  connexion,  by  whose 
will  (disjjosing  of  a  large  property)  he  was  made  an  executor, 
and  the  probate  of  which  will  was  resisted,  resulting  in  an  active 
and  protracted  lawsuit,  left  him  no  alternative,  but  compelled 
him  to  resign  his  commission,  and  devote  himself  to  the  war  of 
the  forum  instead  of  that  of  the  field. 

His  resignation  was  not  acted  on  until  after  the  army  had 
moved  on  what  is  known  as  the  Chancellorsville  campaign. 

General  Pratt  was  ordered  to  assume  the  duty,  with  his  com- 
mand and  that  of  General  Alexander  Shaler,  of  making  the  nec- 
essary preparations  for  the  army  to  cross  the  Rap  River,  be- 
low Fredericksburgh,  under  direction  of  General  Bonham, 
the  chief  engineer  on  General  Hooker's  staif.  This  duty  he 
performed,  and  the  crossing  by  the  army  was  successful.  The 
following  day  (May  3d)  he  received  notice  of  the  acceptance  of 
his  resignation  (which  had  been  sent  in  about  the  1st  April), 
and,  with  a  reluctant  heart,  sheathed  his  sword  and  resumed 
the  weapons  of  the  law. 

On  returning  to  his  home,  he  again  pursued  the  practice  of 
his  profession,  in  partnership  with  the  late  Grenville  F.  Jenks, 
Esq.  Ex-Judge  James  Emott  and  Hon.  Joshua  M.  Van  Cott 
afterwards  became  members  of  the  firm.  Their  business  was 
large  and  prosperous.  Among  the  cases  in  which  they  were 
employed,  were  that  of  Mrs.  Gaines,  the  widow  of  General  E. 
V.  Gaines,  and  several  capital  cases  of  great  interest. 

In  the  summer  of  18C5,  General  Pratt  was  appointed  by  Presi- 
dent Johnson  to  the  office  of  Collector  of  Internal  Revenue, 
which  he  held  until  March  4th,  18GG.  He  continued  thenceforth 
in  the  active  practice  of  law  until  IBfi!),  when  he  was  elected, 
we  may  say,  by  the  common  consent  of  the  whole  community, 
and  of  the  Bar,  as  a  judge  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  Second 
District.  He  received  the  rare  honor  of  a  nomination  by  both 
political  parties,  and  was  elected  without  opposition.  His 
term  exjfired  in  1877,  when  he  was  selected  for  a  term  of  four- 
teen years  with  the  like  expression  of  respect,  confidence  and 
approval,  for  he  again  received  an  unanimous  nomination  by 
both  the  Democratic  and  Reijnblican  parties.  The  satisfaction 
which  he  has  given  and  the  ability  which  he  has  shown  dur- 
ing his  fourteen  years'  service  as  a  judge,  could  not  be  more 
fully  vouched. 

His  experience  and  service  at  nisi  prins  exceed,  perhajis,  that 
of  any  other  judge.  He  has,  it  is  believed,  presided  at  more 
jury  trials  than  any  other  j  udge  in  this  country  (unless,  possibly, 
Judge  Van  Brunt  of  New  York)  has  done,  having  been  constantly 
engaged  during  the  last  fourteen  years  in  holding  circuit  until 
January,  1883,  when  he  took  his  seal  at  General  Term,  pursuant 
to  assignment  by  Governor  Cornell.  The  "causes  celehre" 
tried  before  him  have  been  too  numerous  for  mention  here. 
Among  them,  was  the  remarkable  case  of  linhenskin,  convicted 
of  murder  in  1875,  in  which  Judge  Pratt's  charge  to  the  jury, 
delivered  without  note,  or  reference  to  the  testimony  on  the 
trial,  which  lasted  several  days,  was  decided  by  lawyers  as  a 


(l^^^^i^c^^^Z--^/ /^^J^^^^^<^^^-^^ 


LEGAL  BIOGRAPHIES. 


1281 


model  of  lucid  statement,  and  of  exposition  of  the  law  as  regards 
circumstantial  evidence. 

His  service  during  tbis  period  was  not  exclusively  on  jury 
trials.  He  sat  in  a  great  niimber  of  important  equity  cases,  and 
from  time  to  time  at  the  General  Term.  His  opinions  are  con- 
tained in  the  volumes  of  reports,  and  constitute  a  part  of  the 
record  of  his  life. 

The  boldest,  if  not  the  best,  act  of  his  judicial  life  was  that  of 
granting  a  stay  of  proceedings  in  the  case  of  Foster,  convicted 

of  murder  in  18 .     Popular   opinion,    popular  clamor,   and 

the  public  press  were  unanimous,  excited,  vehement,  in  call- 
ing for  the  execution  of  the  culprit — against  "the  law's  delay  "  of 
an  appeal  to  the  Court  of  Appeals — therefore  against  the  stay  of 
proceedings  necessary  to  eflfect  the  appeal.  But  Judge  Pratt, 
with  whom  it  was  discretionary,  deemed  it,  under  the  circum- 
stances, the  prisoner's  right,  and  therefore  his  own  duty,  that 
the  stay  shoiild  be  granted.  To  make  the  order  was  to  defy  all 
the  potent  influences  we  have  named,  but  he  did  not  hesitate, 
and,  with  characteristic  courage,  and  the  like  boldness  which 
marked  his  action  in  the  field,  he  made  the  stay.  From  one 
end  of  the  country  to  the  other,  his  action  was  denounced. 
Threatening  letters  poured  in  ui)on  him.  Even  the  pulpit  up- 
braided him.  But  justice  held  its  even  course,  and  the  calm 
dignity  and  power  of  the  law  and  the  rights  even  of  the  guilty 
were  vindicated.  The  Court  of  Appeals,  in  its  opinion  confirm- 
ing the  conviction  of  the  prisoner,  expressed  its  strong  ap- 
jiroval  of  Judge  Pratt's  action  in  granting  the  stay,  which  it  held 
to  be  eminently  proper  and  right.  Fickle  popular  opinion  soon 
reacted  and  changed  its  direction,  and  before  the  day  fixed  for 
Foster's  execution,  the  most  prominent  lawyers,  many  ministers, 
and  a  multitude  of  others  made  urgent  appeals  to  Governor  Dix 
for  executive  clemency;  and,  to  cap  the  climax,  the  succeeding 
Legislature  amended  the  law,  so  as  to  prevent  another  conviction 
in  like  cases. 

In  the  beginning  of  this  sketch,  we  intimated  that  we  should 
refrain  from  commendations  of  its  subject,  but  we  may  be 
pardoned  if,  in  closing  it,  we  cite  the  words  of  one  of  Judge 
Pratt's  political  opponents,  who  (at  the  Republican  Convention 
which  nominated  him  for  re-election  in  1877)  described  him  as 
"a  judge  who,  in  administering  his  high  office,  has  held 
the  scales  with  even  hand,  has  been  absolutely  impartial,  and 
known  no  favorites,  who  has  been  diligent  and  efficient  in 
the  despatch  of  business,  who  has  brought  to  the  performance 
of  his  duties  clearness  and  strength  of  mind,  muscular  common 
sense,  patience  in  listening  to  cases,  laborious  study,  sound 
judgment  and  uprightne.ss,  and  who,  by  his  dignity,  courtesy 
and  kindness,  has  secured  the  respect  and  attachment  of  the 
Bar." 

Such  has  been  the  career  of  Judge  Pratt  as  lawyer,  soldier  and 
on  the  Bench;  and  such  is  the  esteem  in  which  he  is  held  in  this 
community. 


LUCIEN  BIRDSEYE. 

LnciEN  BiKDSETE  was  born  at  Pompey,  Onondaga  County,  N. 
Y.,  October  10th,  1821.  His  father,  the  late  Hon.  Victory  Biedseye, 
was  a  historic  character  of  central,  and  we  may  well  say  of  the 
State  of  New  York;  a  native  of  Cornwall,  Connecticut;  born 
December  25th,  1782;  the  descendant  of  the  most  prominent 
family  of  his  native  State. 

The  unusual  name  of  Victory  came  into  the,  family  by  an 
interesting  incident. 

One  of  Mr.  Birdseye's  maternal  ancestors,  when  a  young 
infant,  was  brought  by  its  parents  one  Sunday  morning,  in 
September,  1759,  to  the  church  to  receive  the  rite  of  baptism ; 
this  was  in  one  of  the  most  exposed  settlements  of  the  Colony 
of  New  Haven,  Connecticut,  during  what  is  known  as  the 
French  and  Indian  war. 

Upon  the  success  of  the  English  depended  the  safety  of  the 


little  settlement  from  the  tomahawk  of  the  Indian.  Hardly  had 
the  pastor  and  people  gathered  at  the  little  church,  when  a 
horseman,  bearing  a  white  flag  and  shoiiting  "  Victory!  victory! 
victory!"  halted  at  the  church  door.  In  a  moment  the  con- 
gregation were  on  their  feet,  and  the  glorious  news  of  the  victory 
of  the  English  on  the  heights  of  Abraham,  on  the  13th  of 
September,  was  announced.  The  French  and  Indians  had  been 
defeated,  and  all  danger  from  a  murderous  attack  on  the  colonists 
was  at  an  end.  General  Wolfe,  the  glorious  commander  of  the 
English,  had  fallen,  but  he  died  victorious. 

The  congregation  caught  up  the  cry,  and  the  words  "  Victory! 
victory!"  resounded  through  the  church.  When  quiet  was  restored 
the  child  was  brought  forward  for  baptism.  The  aged  minister, 
still  excited  by  the  glorious  news,  probably  forgetting  the  name 
of  the  child,  dipped  his  hand  in  the  water  and  laying  it  on  the 
forehead  of  the  child,  said,  with  impressive  fervency,  "Victory, 
I  baptize  thee,  in  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of 
the  Holy  Ghost."  Henceforth,  the  name  of  Victory  became  a 
family  name,  and  was  highly  honored  by  the  distinguished 
lawyer,  Victory  Birdseye,  to  whom  we  have  referred. 

He  prepared  for  college  partly  at  the  grammar  school  at 
Cornwall,  Connecticut,  and  at  Lansingburgh,  New  York.  In 
September,  1800,  he  entered  Williams  College,  Massachusetts, 
from  whence,  on  September  4th,  1804,  he  was  graduated.  Among 
his  classmates  were  Luther  Bradish,  Robert  and  Henry  D. 
Sedgwick.  In  the  class  of  1803  were  the  Hon.  Samuel  E.  Betts 
and  Daniel  Mosley,  afterwards  so  prominent  in  the  judicial 
history  of  New  York. 

As  he  had  decided  upon  entering  the  legal  profession,  he 
went  to  Lansingburgh,  and  became  a  law  student  in  the  office  of 
his  maternal  uncle,  Gideon  Tomlinson,  a  prominent  lawyer  of 
that  place.  His  industry  and  acumen  as  a  student  attracted 
the  attention  of  the  members  of  the  Bar,  who  did  not  hesitate  to 
express  a  decided  opinion  that  he  was  to  be  successful  as  a 
lawyer.  Victory  Birdseye  was  admitted  as  an  attorney  of  the 
New  York  Supreme  Court,  February  Vith,  1807,  and  took  the 
degree  of  counselor  at  law,  February  15th,  1810. 

In  June,  1807,  he  became  a  resident  of  Pompey,  Onondaga 
County,  New  York.  In  October,  1813,  he  married  Miss  Electa 
Beebee,  of  Onondaga  Hill.  Possessing  those  qualities  which 
admirably  capacited  him  for  the  legal  profession,  he  entered 
ardently  and  successfully  into  practice.  About  the  time  Mr. 
Birdseye  settled  at  Pompey,  that  powerful  legal  gladiator,  B. 
Davis  Noxon,  so  well  known  in  the  legal  history  of  Central  and 
Western  New  York,  settled  at  Marcellus,  Onondaga  County,  and 
became  one  of  Mr.  Birdseye's  rivals  at  the  Bar,  but  the  rivalry 
between  the  young  lawyers  was  generous  and  high-toned;  each 
seemed  to  rejoice  in  the  other's  success,  and  both  made  their 
way  to  the  front  rank  of  the  profession.  Mr.  Birdseye  was  a 
man  who,  without  any  apparent  effort,  was  always  a  favorite 
with  the  people,  and  always  receiving  evidence  of  their  confi- 
dence, personal,  political  and  professional. 

In  November,  1814,  he  was  elected  to  Congress,  serving  from 
March  4th,  1815,  to  March  4th,  1817. 

He  was  a  delegate  to  the  Constitutional  Convention  of  1821, 
which  formed  the  second  Constitution  of  the  State.  He  was 
a  member  of  the  Assembly  for  1823,  and  of  the  State  Senate 
during  the  years  1827-28.  Ho  was  again  elected  member  of 
Assembly  in  1838  and  1840,  and  was  elected  to  the  27th  Congress 
in  November,  1840;  he  occupied  a  seat  in  that  body  from  March 
1841-43.  As  a  legislator,  he  took  a  high  and  responsible  posi- 
tion, wielding  influence  as  a  strong,  cogent  and  versatile  debater; 
as  a  quick-sighted,  sagacious  and  energetic  member  of  com- 
mittees. Few  men  were  more  thoroughly  esteemed  and  honored 
at  home  than  Mr.  Birdseye;  this  is  evidenced  by  many  pleasing 
illustrations.  He  was  for  many  years  postmaster;  Master  in 
Chancery  for  several  years;  in  1818  he  was  appointed  District 
Attorney  of  Onondaga  County,  discharging  the  duties  of  that 
important  office  for  about  fifteen  years.     Time  or  space  will  not 


1282 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS   COUNTY. 


permit  ns  to  detail  bvit  a  small  part  of  the  history  of  this 
eminent  ami  highly  esteemed  lawyer;  esteemed  as  few  men 
have  ever  been.  His  long,  distinguished  and  useful  life  came 
suddenly  to  a  close. 

On  the  evening  of  September  1.5th,  1853,  he  retired  in  his 
usual  health,  and  .sometime  during  the  night  his  spirit  peace- 
fully passed  away.  Such  was  the  father  of  Luricn  Birilseye.  The 
truthful  and  faithful  historian  can  find  no  better  subject  for 
his  pen;  the  life  of  the  distinguished  father  should  form  a  part 
of  that  of  his  eminent  son. 

LuciEN  BiKDSETE,  the  real  character  of  this  sketch,  with  the 
example  of  such  a  father  before  him,  entered  life  under 
auspicious  circumstances.  He  prepared  for  college  at  the  Pompey 
Academy,  and  entered  Yale  in  October,  1837,  graduating  August 
Ifith,  1841.  A  singular  incident  connected  with  the  class  of 
1841,  is  the  fact  that  it  ha.s  furnished  four  judges  of  the  Su- 
preme Court  of  the  State  Gilbert  Dean,  Lucien  Birdseye,  and 
Joseph  F.  Barnard,  of  the  Second  District;  and  Wm.  L.  Larned, 
of  the  Third  District. 

Having  decided  to  follow  the  profession  of  his  father,  he 
entered  his  office  as  a  student  at  law,  where  he  remained  for  two 
years;  he  completed  his  legal  education  in  the  oifice  of  the 
highly  honored  law  firm  of  Kirkland  &  Bacon,  of  Utica,  New 
York.  Both  these  gentlemen  still  survive,  illustrious  examples 
of  the  beautiful  old  age  which  sometimes  crowns  the  life  of  the 
active  lawyer,  the  polished  and  erudite  scholar. 

No  name  is  more  frequently  found  in  the  legal  reports  of  the 
State  than  that  of  Mr.  Kirkland;  the  practitioner,  the  student  and 
the  judge,  in  consulting  these  reports,  are  convinced  of  the  depth 
of  Mr.  Kirkland's  learning,  the  erudition  he  has  imparted  to  the 
books,  and  the  wondrous  extent  of  his  practice;  he  is  therefore 
one  of  the  last  survivors  of  the  giants  of  the  old  Supreme  Court, 
and  the  court  of  dernier  russort  of  the  State  of  New  Y'ork.  Mr. 
Bacon  was  an  honored  member  of  the  judiciary  of  the  State,  a 
Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court,  ajurist  of  great  purity  of  character, 
mature  and  practical  learning,  impartiality  and  courtesy.  Such 
were  Mr.  Birdseye's  legal  preceptors. 

On  July  11th,  1844,  he  was  called  to  the  Bar,  at  a  General 
Term  of  the  Supreme  Court  held  at  Utica.  The  illustrious 
Samuel  Nelson— afterwards  a  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of 
the  United  States — was  then  Chief  Justice.  Greene  C.  Bronson 
and  Samuel  Beardsley — names  synonymous  with  judicial  great- 
ness— were  associate  Justices.  The  Chief  Justice,  in  admitting 
Mr.  Birdseye  to  practice,  congratulated  him  upon  his  accession 
to  the  Bar,  of  which  his  father  was  so  long  a  conspicnous 
member.  "Not  only  personally  known  to  me,"  said  the  Chief 
Justice,  "  but  he  was  my  highly  esteemed  friend,  and  I  have  no 
doubt  but  you  will  follow  in  his  honored  footsteps." 

During  his  student  days,  Mr.  Birdseye  decided  to  make 
Memphis,  St.  Louis  or  Chicago  his  future  home;  but,  on  due 
reflection,  after  receiving  his  license,  he  decided  upon  Albany, 
New  York,  as  the  jjlace  of  his  future  residence.  Accordingly,  in 
October,  1844,  he  removed  to  that  city  and  commenced  his 
practice. 

In  184G,  he  was  married  to  Miss  Catherine  M.  Baker,  of 
Pompey,  New  York. 

He  entered  at  once  into  a  very  respectable  and  increasing  prac- 
tice; in  the  meantime  his  honored  preceptor,  Mr.  Kirkland,  re- 
moved to  New  York  City  and  resumed  his  practice  there;  in  his 
removal  to  that  city,  he  followed  the  example  of  such  conspicuous 
names  as  Wm.  Curtis  Noyes,  Luther  R.  Marsh,  Wm.  and  Charles 
Tracy,  and  other  leaders  of  the  New  York  City  Bar.  Mr. 
Kirkland's  accomplishments  as  a  lawyer  were  at  once  re- 
cognized by  the  New  York  City  Bar. 

After  his  removal  to  New  Y'ork,  he  invited  Mr.  Birdseye  to 
become  his  law  partner  in  that  city:  the  invitation  was  accepted, 
and  on  the  1st  of  May,  1850,  the  firm  of  Kirkland  &  Birdseye 
opened  an  office  and  commenced  business  at  39  Wall  street. 

The  wide  and  well-known  standing  of  the  head  of  the  firm 


secured  from  the  beginning  full  and  remunerative  occupation. 
The  fact  that  a  brother  of  Mrs.  Birdseye  was  then  a  resident  of 
Brooklyn,  induced  Mr.  Birdseye,  in  the  spring  of  1850,  to  be- 
come a  resident  of  that  city. 

Early  in  July,  1856,  Hon.  Wm.  Rockwell,  a  justice  of  the 
Supreme  Court  of  the  Second  District,  suddenly  died,  and 
Governor  Clark  immediately  tendered  the  office  to  Mr.  Birdseye, 
who,  after  considerable  deliberation  and  hesitancy,  accepted  it. 
The  salary  of  a  justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  was  then  only 
S2,500  per  annum — not  a  very  inviting  remuneration  for  the 
labors  and  responsibilities  of  the  office. 

Of  the  other  three  judges  of  the  district,  Judge  S.  B.  Strong 
resided  at  Setauket,  Suffolk  County ;  Judge  Brown  at  Newbiirgh, 
and  Judge  Emott  at  Poughkeepsie.  Judge  Rockwell  had  been 
failing  in  health  for  some  time  prior  to  his  decease;  and  the  legal 
business  of  Brooklyn,  then  not  small,  and  since  so  vastly 
increased  in  volume  and  amount,  had  fallen  largely  in  arrears. 

When  he  commenced  the  duties  of  his  office,  Judge  Birdseye 
devoted  himself  to  the  clearing  off  these  arrears.  At  the  close 
of  his  term,  on  December  31,  1857,  the  calendars  of  the  Circuit 
and  Equity  Term  of  Kings  County  had  been  cleared;  the  mo- 
tions at  Chambers  had  been  heard  and  decided;  and  since 
that  time  there  has  been  no  such  accumulation  of  business  as 
had  before  185G  clogged  the  calendars  of  the  court  in  that 
county. 

At  the  fall  election  in  1857,  Judge  John  A.  Lott  was  nomi- 
nated by  the  Democratic  party,  and  Judge  Birdseye  by  the  Repub- 
lican party,  for  the  remaining  four  years  of  the  unexpired  term 
of  Judge  Rockwell.  Judge  Lott  was  elected  by  nearly  the  full 
majority  then  usual  in  that  strongly  Democratic  district,  and 
Judge  Birdseye  returned  to  practice  in  the  city  of  New  Y'ork. 

Prior  to  his  appointment,  the  firm  had  become  Kirkland, 
Birdseye  &  Sommers,  by  the  admission  thereto  of  John  B. 
Yates  Sommers,  Esq.  On  the  dissolution  of  that  firm  by  the 
retirement  therefrom  of  Judge  Birdseye,  Henry  W.  Johnson, 
Esq.,  then  of  Albany,  had  joined  Mr.  Sommers.  On  leaving  the 
Bench,  Judge  Birdseye  became  associated  with  them,  under  the 
style  of  Birdseye,  Sommers  &  Johnson^.  That  firm  was  dissolved 
in  October,  18C1,  and  Mr.  Birdseye  remained  in  practice  without 
any  associate  until  January,  18G5,  when  he  took  into  jiartnership 
Charles  P.  Crosby,  Esq.,  formerly  of  Detroit,  Mich.  That  asso- 
ciation continued  until  August,  1872,  when  it  gave  place  to  the 
firm  of  Birdseye,  Cloyd  &  Bayliss,  which  has  continued  to  the 
present  time  unchanged ;  except  by  the  admission  to  the  firm,  but 
without  change  of  name,  of  Mr.  Clarence  L.  Birdseye,  the  son 
of  the  senior  partner. 

Judge  Birdseye  possesses  many  qualities  which  give  siiccess 
to  the  lawyer  and  the  judge.  To  use  the  language  of  another: 
"Judge  Birdseye,  after  leaving  the  Bench,  was  for  several  years 
very  much  occupied  with  the  hearing  of  causes  referred  to  him. 
Finding  this  class  of  engagement  to  interfere  with  his  general 
practice,  he  declined  to  serve  any  longer  as  a  Referee.  Judge 
Birdseye  is  very  rapid  in  thought,  speech  and  action,  and 
accomplishes  a  great  amount  of  labor  in  a  short  time.  He  is 
gifted  with  a  rare  memory  of  facts,  dates  and  principles,  and 
is  enabled  to    refer  to  the  authorities  with  great  facility." 

The  amount  and  importance  of  the  litigation  in  which  Judge 
Birdseye  has  been  engaged,  is  a  truthful  and  interesting  history 
of  his  career  at  the  Bar,  and  is  a  history  which  needs  no  other 
illustration;  any  intelligible  account  of  them  that  would  put  the 
reader  in  possession  of  a  knowledge  of  the  vest  interests  involved 
in  them,  and  the  subtle  points  upon  which  they  turn,  would 
form  the  contents  for  a  respectable  volume,  and  a  mere  tabulated 
account  of  them  would  dwarf  their  interest.  They,  however, 
occupy  a  prominent  place  in  legal  history,  reported  among  the 
cases  adjudicated  in  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  State,  and  in  the 
Court  of  Apjjeals.  There  they  will  be  found  at  length,  and  we 
commend  them  to  the  practitioner  and  to  the  legal  student  for 
the  variety  and  importance  of  the  legal  principles  involved  in 


''!^  '-iyA.E.Fntd"--'^ 


LEGAL   BIOGRAPHIES. 


1283 


tliem,  many  of  wliich  aro  original,  standing  as  prominent  jirece- 
dents  in  legal  learning.  This  brings  us  to  say  that  the  briefs  of 
Judge  Uirdseye,  many  of  whicli  are  wholly  transferred  to  the 
reported  cases,  exhibit  his  industry,  his  comprehension  and  his 
analytic  powers. 

"  A  well  prepared  brief,"  said  Lord  Erskino,  "is  a  better  indi- 
cation of  a  good  lawyer  than  a  dozen  speeches  at  the  Bar;  for, 
after  all,  out  of  a  well-prepared  brief  comes  an  eloipient  argu- 
ment." In  speaking  of  the  important  cases  conducted  by  Judge 
Birdseyc  as  a  lawyer,  it  is  proper  to  add  that  many  of  his  opin- 
ions delivered  as  a  judge  commend  themselves  to  the  profes- 
sion for  the  strength  of  their  verbiage,  condensation  of  reason, 
and  unity  with  the  philosophy  of  the  law. 

They  exhibit  a  conscientious  devotion  to  his  judicial  duties 
and  an  independent  impartiality.  For  their  history  and  a  full 
understanding  of  his  opinions,  the  reader  is  referred  to  the 
reported  cases  found  in  the  3rd,  4th  and  5th  volumes  of  Abbott's 
I'r.  Kep.,  the  4th,  14th  and  15th  of  Howard's  Pr.  Kep.,  and  in  the 
'2 1  Hi  to  the  27tli  volumes  of  Barbonr's  Keports.  "  Many  of  them 
interpreting  the  Code  on  ijuostions  before  unsettled,  and  some 
on  questions  of  great  general  importance." 

Among  the  cases  conducted  by  Judge  Birdseye,  which  will 
recall  to  the  reader  their  history  and  importance  without  any 
amplification,  were  the  cases  of  "  I'rtiulij,  Bonrdman,  Jcnnain 
ami  olliers  v.  'I'ke  Michigan  tSoutliern  and  Ndrllmti  Indiana  R.  li. 
Cdmiiani/,"  which,  during  the  litigation,  was  consolidated  with 
other  corporations,  to  form  the  Lake  Shore  and  Michigan 
Southern  H.  R.  Company.  Soon  alter  Judge  Birdseye  was  re- 
tained in  this  controversy,  these  companies  passed  under  the 
control  of  Cornelius  Vanderbilt,  and  of  his  son-in-law,  a  lawyer 
of  great  ingenuity  and  force. 

"'I'he  claims  for  arrears  of  dividends  (m  the  preferred  and 
guaranteed  stock  of  the  M.  S.  A,  N.  I,  R.  R.  (Jo.  had  been 
repeatedly  presented,  without  sui'ccss,  both  in  New  York  and 
elsewhere:  13  Allen  R.  (Mass.),  400.  Other  like  cases  had  arisen 
in  other  States,  with  like  result.  (Taft  v.  H.,  1'.  &  F.  R.  R.  Co., 
H  R.  I.  Rep.,  310.)  The  utmost  resources  of  Commodore  Van- 
dirbilt  and  his  powerful  corporations  were  used  in  resisting 
these  suits.  Besides  Mr.  Clark  an<l  Mr.  Augustus  SchoU,  his 
associate  in  the  company,  there  were  emjiloyed  in  the  defense, 
at  various  times,  Samuel  J.  Tilden,  James  1'.  Sinnott,  George 
Ticknor  Curtis,  Smith  M.  Weed,  James  Matthews,  and  others. 
'I'lio  cases  were  many  times  m  the  General  Term  of  the  Supreme 
Court,  and  in  the  Court  of  Appeals.  After  much  skirmishing, 
the  cases  were  finally  tried  on  their  merits,  as  may  bo  seen  in 
84  New  York,  157;  85  New  York,  272;  01  New  York,  483.  These 
fierce  litigations  extended  over  fourteen  years,  and  were  success- 
ful. Another  noteworthy  series  of  litigations,  conducted  by 
Judge  Birdseye,  was  brought  to  an  early  and  successful  termi- 
nation, being  for  the  foreclosure,  in  the  courts  of  New  Mexico 
and  Colorado,  of  the  mortgage  on  the  Maxwell  tract  a  tract  of 
land  granted  by  the  Republic  of  Mexico  to  Beaubien  and 
Miranda,  in  1841-  some  seven  years  prior  to  the  transfer  to  the 
United  States  of  the  territory  now  comprised  in  Southern 
Colorado,  New  Mexico,  Arizona,  and  California.  Employed  in 
these  cases  in  March,  1871),  Judge  Birdseye,  before  the  close  of 
that  mouth,  had  drTlwn  his  bills  of  foreclosure;  had  attended  the 
District  Court  in  Colfax  County,  N.  M.,  and  filed  them;  had  pro- 
cured issues  to  be  joined;  had  issued  commissions  to  take  the 
necessary  evidence  at  Amsterdam,  in  the  Netherlands,  where 
nearly  all  the  bonds  secured  by  the  mortgage  were  held.  He 
had  these  commissions  executed  and  returned  before  the 
August  term,  which  term  ho  was  able  to  attend.  Just  at  its  close, 
and  literally  during  the  last  minute  allowed  by  law  for  the 
session  of  the  court,  ho  obtained  the  fiat  of  Chief  Justice  Prince 
to  an  interlocutory  decree  of  foreclosure.  On  that  he  applied 
for  and  obtained  the  appointment  of  a  Special  Term  of  the  court, 
and  at  that  term,  in  the  next  October,  obtained  final  decrees  of 
foreclosure  and  sale  in  New  Mexico.     Before  the  end   of  De- 


cember similar  decrees  were  obtained  in  Colorado,  where  nearly 
two-fifths  of  the  tract -over  1,714,000  acres — lay.  Advertising 
sales  under  these  decrees,  as  they  reipiirod,  in  Now  Mexico, 
Colorado,  New  York,  London,  and  Amsterdam,  Judge  Birdseye, 
on  the  7th  of  February,  1880,  sailed  for  Europe  to  arrange  for  the 
sales.  At  the  end  of  five  weeks  hcliad  returned  from  Amster- 
dam, with  the  necessary  arrangements  completed.  Two  days 
were  spent  in  New  Y'ork  in  collecting  the  proofs  of  publishing 
the  notices  of  sales,  preparing  the  forms  of  papers  for  the 
reports  of  sales,  deeds,  etc.,  etc.  The  sales  were  to  take  place 
at  the  Court  House  in  Cimarron,  N.  M.,  at  0  a.  m.  of  March  22d, 
1880.  A  journey  by  rail  of  over  2,.500  miles,  and  of  30  by  car- 
riage, brought  him  to  the  place  of  sale,  with  nearly  three  hours 
to  spare  before  the  hour.  Ho  bought  the  property  for  Lis  clients, 
the  bondholdera.  The  sales  were  reported,  confirmed,  deeds 
ordered,    obtained,    reported,   confirmed,  recorded.     In    May, 

1879,  letters  patent  of  the  United  States  for  the  grant  were 
obtained  from  the  Interior  Department,  Congress  having,  in 
1800,  confirmed  the  original  Mexican  title.     On  the  22d  of  April, 

1880,  Judge  Birdseye  sailed  for  Liverpool,  on  his  way  to  Amster- 
dam, where,  during  May  and  the  first  week  in  June,  he  assisted 
in  the  organization,  under  the  law  of  the  Netherlands,  of  the 
Maxwell  Land  Grant  (Company,  composed  of  the  bondholders, 
and  he  then  couvojed  the  lands  to  that  company.  Returning 
in  July,  ho  repaired  to  Now  Mexico,  to  attend  the  August  term 
of  the  court,  at  which  the  Master's  final  reports  were  confirmed. 
The  new  company  was  duly  registered  for  the  exercise  of  its 
functions  in  New  Mexico  and  Colorado,  and  was  placed  in  pos- 
session of  the  property— a  domain  nearly  as  large  as  the  State 
of  Massachusetts,  west  of  the  Connecticut." 

Judge  Birdseye,  besides  practicing  largely  in  the  New  York 
City  Courts  and  Brooklyn,  and  in  many  other  countries,  has 
extended  his  practice  into  other  States. 


WINCHESTER    BRIT'l'ON. 

WiNcuESTKit  Bun-roN  was  born  in  North  Adams,  Berkshire 
(^ounty,  Mass.,  April  0th,  1820.  His  paternal  and  maternal 
grandparents  were  hardy,  intelligent  New  England  farmers,  of 
pure  English  descent.  His  mother's  name  was  Harrington  ;  her 
grandfather  was  a  native  of  Rhode  Island,  who  very  early  in 
life  removed  to  the  town  of  Adams,  where  ho  became  the  propri- 
etor of  the  land  upon  which  more  than  one-half  of  what  is  now 
the  village  of  North  Adams  is  located. 

The  paternal  grandfather  of  Mr.  Britton  was  a  native  of  New 
Hampshire,  and  settled  in  Adams  when  Mr.  Britton's  father  was 
yet  a  young  man.  The  marriage  of  his  parents  took  place  at 
that  place.  His  mother  died  at  the  early  age  of  eighteen,  when 
Winchester  was  an  infant.  Before  her  death  she  gave  him  to 
her  father  and  mother,  with  whom  ho  lived  on  their  farm  until 
he  was  ten  years  of  age.  His  father,  having  removed  to  Troy, 
N.  Y.,  took  his  boy  to  his  home  in  that  city. 

One  of  Mr.  Britton's  early  recollections  is  that  of  accompany- 
ing his  grandfather  to  the  tavern  in  the  then  small  village  of 
North  Adams,  and  there  reading  the  President's  Message.  As 
ho  read  with  exceeding  ease  and  fluency,  greatly  to  the  satisfac- 
tion of  his  hearers,  the  guests  and  others  at  the  hotel,  it  is  cer- 
tain that  his  education  had  not  been  neglected,  and  that  he  was 
possessed  of  much  intelligence.  His  remarkably  brilliant  black 
eyes  and  his  hair,  which  was  as  black  as  his  eyes,  always  at- 
tracted attention,  while  strong  and  active  physical  powers  gave 
abundant  promise  of  vigorous  manhood. 

Not  long  after  his  removal  to  Troy,  he  commenced  preparing 
for  college  at  the  Clinton  Liberal  Institute,  at  Clinton,  N.  Y. ; 
completing  his  preparatory  course  at  the  Troy  Conference  Acad- 
emy, at  Poultney,  Vt.  In  the  autumn  of  1847  he  entered  the 
Sophomore  class,  third  term,  at  Union  College.  While  in  col- 
lege, he  was  entered  as  a  law  student  in  the  office  of  John  Van 
Buren,  then  Attorney-General  of  the  State,  where  he  remained 


1284 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


about  one  year,  daring  which  time  his  collegiate  studies  were 
suspended  on  account  of  failing  health.  His  studentship  with 
Mr.  Van  Buren  was  not  so  confining  and  enervating  as  it  was  in 
college,  and  admitted  of  greater  relaxation.  His  health  becom- 
ing restored,  he  re-entered  college,  where  he  continued  until  he 
graduated.  His  chum,  after  returning  to  college,  and  till  he 
graduated,  was  President  Arthur,  then  a  member  of  the  Junior 
class. 

Young  Britton  for  a  considerable  time  was  at  the  head  of  his 
class,  but  undertaking  to  pursue  both  his  legal  and  collegiate 
studies,  he  divided  his  time  between  Union  College  and  the  cele- 
brated Law  School  at  Cherry  A^Uey.  This  close  application  to 
his  studies  caused  a  second  failure  of  his  health,  compelling  him 
to  abandon  them.  About  this  time  the  discovery  of  gold  in  Cali- 
fornia created  intense  excitement  throughout  the  nation.  Young 
Britton,  inspired  by  the  hope  of  regaining  his  health  by  travel, 
determined  to  visit  the  new  El  Dorado.  Accordingly,  in  Decem- 
ber, 18-18,  he  embarked  at  New  Y'ork  on  the  Crescent  Cily,  bound 
for  Chagres.  The  Crescent  Cily  was  the  first  steamer  that  left 
New  Y'ork  for  California.  He  remained  six  weeks  on  the  Isth- 
mus, and  then  sailed  from  Panama  for  San  Francisco  in  the 
sailing  vessel  Philadelphia.  While  on  the  Isthmus  the  cholera 
broke  out  with  much  fatality;  but,  happily,  young  Britton, 
though  constantly  exposed  to  its  ravages,  escaped  its  attack. 

After  a  voyage  of  eighty-seven  days  the  Philadelphia  made  the 
port  of  San  Francisco  in  safety,  and  the  young  man  found  him- 
self in  the  land  of  gold,  where  many  adventurous  men  soon 
found  themselves  in  a  short  space  of  time,transfen'ed  from  pov- 
erty to  wealth.  Imbued  with  the  spirit  of  adventure  and  enter- 
prise, Britton  sought  the  mining  regions  with  success.  After  a 
few  months  he  acquired  interests  in  San  Francisco,  and  his 
time  was  divided  between  that  city  and  the  mines;  and  he  was 
rewarded  by  the  acquisition  of  a  very  handsome  fortune.  But 
before  he  had  much  time  to  congratulate  himself  upon  his  good 
fortune,  he  learned  by  sad  experience  that  riches  often  take 
wings  and  fly  away,  for  in  one  night  his  fortune  was  all  swept 
away  by  the  memorable  fire  that  nearly  destroyed  the  city  of 
San  Francisco.  Yielding  to  an  ardent  desire  which  had  taken 
possession  of  him,  he  determined  to  return  to  his  home.  Ac- 
cordingly, in  August,  1851,  he  sailed  from  San  Francisco  home- 
ward. On  his  passage  to  Panama  he  again  encoiintered  the 
cholera  under  many  dangerous  circumstances.  During  the 
seven  days'  voyage  from  Acapulco  to  Panama,  one  hundred  and 
fifty-one,  nearly  one-third  of  his  fellow  passengers,  died  of  the 
terrible  disease;  but  he  reached  his  home  in  safety,  where  he 
continued  until  the  October  of  the  following  year,  when  he  re- 
turned to  San  Francisco  and  engaged  in  business.  It  was  dur- 
ing his  sojourn  at  home  that  he  made  the  acquaintance  of  the 
estimable  and  accomplished  j'oung  lady  who  subsequently,  in 
March,  1853,  became  his  wife.  She  was  the  daughter  of  William 
W.  Parker,  Esq.,  of  Albany.  On  his  return  to  California  he 
took  a  deep  interest  in  politics,  receiving  the  nomination  for 
member  of  the  Legislature  of  the  new  State,  but  was  defeated  in 
the  canvass.  He  was,  however,  soon  after  elected  a  member  of 
the  Common  Council  of  San  Francisco,  and  Supervisor  of  San 
Francisco  County.  While  alderman,  he  took  an  active  j^art, 
among  other  things,  in  measures  for  thfi  supply  of  water  and  gas 
to  the  growing  city.  While  discharging  his  oificial  duties,  an  in- 
cident occurred  deeply  interesting  to  him  and  to  the  jjublic,  one 
which  he  will  never  forget. 

Under  the  peculiar  customs  of  California  at  that  period,  to  be 
a  public  man,  in  any  sense,  invited  personal  collisions.  The  bit- 
ter antagonism  existing  between  John  Cotter,  then  an  alderman 
of  San  Francisco,  and  John  Nugent,  editor  of  the  San  Francisco 
Herald,  resulted  in  one  of  the  most  celebrated  duels  in  the  his- 
tory of  California.  Mr.  Britton,  an  excellent  shot,  was  a  friend 
and  second  of  Cotter.  In  the  contest  Nugent  was  very  severely 
wounded  and  removed  from  the  field,  but  Cotter  was  unharmed. 
Since  this  duel,  though,  as  we  have  said,  Mr.  Britton  was  skiUful 


in  the  use  of  the  pistol,  he  has  seldom,  if  ever,  taken  one  in  his 
hand. 

On  January  1st,  1853,  in  accordance  with  a  promise  made  to 
his  afiianced  wife,  he  bade  a  final  farewell  to  the  Pacific  slope, 
and  with  a  large  experience,  with  health  restored,  he  returned  to 
his  native  land,  completed  his  classical  studies,  received  his 
college  degree,  and  returned  to  his  legal  studies. 

Such  was  the  diligence,  industry  and  success  with  which  he 
pursued  them  that,  after  the  lapse  of  six  months,  he  was  called 
to  the  Bar,  and  he  immediately  removed  to  the  city  of  New 
Y'ork,  where,  without  an  acquaintance,  he  began  his  legal  career. 
His  married  life,  which,  as  we  have  seen,  commenced  in  March, 
1853,  was  an  exceedingly  happy  one,  but  it  terminated  in  18.54 
by  the  death  of  his  lovely  and  amiable  wife,  which  to  him  was 
an  excessively  severe  domestic  blow.  She  died  in  Brooklyn,  at 
the  early  age  of  nineteen,  leaving  an  infant  son,  who  survived 
her  but  a  few  days.  For  a  time,  Mr.  Britton  was  heart-stricken 
and  felt  himself  alone  in  the  world.  But  time,  which  assuages 
sorrow,  his  indomitable  energy  and  never-failing  courage,  and 
professional  ambition,  sujiported  him,  enabling  him  to  overcome 
all  obstacles  and  to  attain  signal  success.  As  an  illustration 
of  the  obstacles  which  Mr.  Britton  overcame  in  his  way  to 
success,  it  may  be  remarked  that  his  receipts  from  his  first  year's 
practice  in  the  city  of  New  York  were  exactly  seventy-five 
dollars.  Not  at  all  discouraged  by  this  meagre  retxirn  from  his 
profession,  he  took  an  appeal  to  time,  and  with  each  succeeding 
year  his  income  increased,  until  it  is  exceeded  by  few  in  the 
profession. 

In  December,  1855,  his  second  marriage  took  place;  the  lady 
of  his  choice  was  Miss  Caroline  A.  Parker,  a  sister  of  his  former 
wife,  a  lady  possessing  all  the  accomplishments  and  all  the 
attributes  which  constitute  an  affectionate  and  agreeable  wife, 
a  tender  and  loving  mother,  capable  of  jiresiding  with  grace- 
ful dignity  over  the  home  of  such  a  man  as  Winchester  Britton, 
which  we  may  say  without  afi'ectation  is  one  of  the  happiest  of 
homes.  Eight  boys  and  three  girls,  aU  of  whom  are  living,  are 
the  fruits  of  this  happy  union. 

In  1870,  Mr.  Britton  transferred  his  legal  business  to  Brooklyn, 
where  he  had  resided  since  1853.  His  professional  reputation 
had  now  become  so  extended  that  he  at  once  entered,  in  his  new 
field  of  labor,  upon  an  unusually  large  and  remunerative  prac- 
tice, not  only  in  the  courts  of  the  city  of  New  York,  in  Brooklyn, 
in  the  surrounding  counties,  but  in  the  State  courts  and  in  the 
Court  of  Appeals.  He  had  been  in  practice  in  Brooklyn  but 
one  year  when  he  was  elected  District  Attorney  for  the  County 
of  Kings;  he  entered  upon  his  official  duties  in  January,  1872, 
discharging  them  with  singular  acceptability  until  within  about 
eleven  months  before  the  expiration  of  his  official  term,  when 
charges,  originating  in  the  high  political  excitement  that  pre- 
vailed, were  made  against  him,  resulting  in  his  removal  from 
ofiice  by  Governor  Dix. 

So  little  foundation  was  there  for  the  charges  against  Mr. 
Britton,  so  devoid  were  they  of  merit,  that  the  very  next  fall 
after  his  removal  he  was  re-elected  to  the  .same  office  by  a 
majorit}'  more  than  double  that  by  which  he  was  first  elected. 

The  oflicte  of  District  Attorney  imposed  great  responsibility 
and  labor  upon  Mr.  Britton.  Though  criminal  law  practice  is 
not  exactly  suited  to  his  taste,  yet,  after  all,  it  has  attractions  for 
his  active,  energetic  mind.  "It  gives  ample  room  for  the  exer- 
cise ofhis  well-disciidined  mental  energies— his  power  of  collect- 
ing, combining  and  amplifying.  It  gives  scope  to  his  critical 
knowledge  of  statute  law  and  the  subtle  rules  of  evidence."  It 
was  his  fortune  during  his  term  of  office  to  be  called  upon 
to  conduct  many  exciting  criminal  cases,  among  which  was  the 
celebrated  case  of  the  People  v.  Eubenstein,  tried  at  Brooklyn  in 
January  and  February  of  1876.  Rubenstein  had  been  indicted 
for  one  of  the  most  mysterious  and  atrocious  murders  known 
in  legal  history;  the  evidence  against  him  was  purely  circum- 
stantial.    Many  of  these  circumstances  were  remote  and  discon- 


^^. 


-y^^^/-^-^f^ 


LEGAL   BIOGRAPHIES. 


1385 


nected,  and  the  whole  crime  was  enshrouded  in  such  mystery 
that  the  work  of  convicting  the  alleged  perpetrator,  who  was 
defended  by  that  powerful  legal  gladiator,  Wm.  A.  Beach,  was 
an  herculean  task;  but  with  consummate  skill  and  great  energy, 
Mr.  Britton  seized  iipon  these  circumstances,  blended  them 
together,  and  they  each  tended  to  throw  light  upon,  and  to  prove 
the  other,  reaching  a  conclusion  that  overthrew  the  ingenious 
hypothesis  upon  which  a  great  lawyer  founded  a  formidable 
defense,  resulting  in  the  conviction  of  the  prisoner. 

No  one  can  read  the  admirable  and  tonchingly  eloquent 
address  to  the  jury  for  the  defense  in  the  case  without  the  highest 
admiration.  None  can  read  the  closing  argument  of  Mr. 
Britton  to  the  jury  without  equal  admiration.  It  may  be  sum- 
med up  in  a  few  words;  it  was  exhaustive,  it  was  learned,  it  was 
eloquent,  it  was  convincing.  It  left  no  doubt  in  the  minds  of 
the  jury,  the  spectators,  or  the  Bar  that  Rubenstein  was  guilty 
of  one  of  the  most  cruel  murders  on  record.  His  conviction 
was  therefore  swift  and  certain. 

Space  will  not  permit  us  to  give  a  detailed  account  of  the 
many  criminal  trials  which  Mr.  Britton  conducted  for  the  people, 
but  they  all  tended  largely  to  enhance  his  fame  and  to  place  him 
in  the  front  ranks  of  living  advocates. 

Among  his  civil  triumphs  at  the  Bar,  was  the  case  of  Edgerton 
V.  Page — a  leading  case  in  the  Court  of  Appeals,  and  among  the 
first  there  argued  by  him.  This  case  established  the  doctrine  of 
constructive  eviction  of  a  tenant  by  a  landlord,  with  the  quali- 
fication that  no  such  eviction  could  exist  unless  the  tenant 
actually  left  before  the  expiration  of  his  term,  qualifying  in  this 
respect  the  case  of  Dyett  v.  Pendleton.  John  Graham,  then  in 
the  height  of  his  fame  as  a  lawyer,  was  his  opponent.  Taking 
the  whole  history  of  this  case,  its  result  was  a  triumph  for  Mr. 
Britton  of  which  any  lawyer  in  the  nation  might  well  be  proud. 

He  is  now  in  the  active  practice  of  his  profession,  in  the 
plenitude  of  professional  success.  There  are  very  few,  if  any, 
important   cases  in  Kings  County  in  which  he  is  not  engaged. 

In  the  prolonged  contest  resulting  in  the  defeat  of  the  project 
known  as  the  Bond  Elevated  Railroad,  he  was  prominent,  and 
it  is  not  a  little  remarkable  that  the  ultimate  decision  of  the 
Supreme  Court  was  jdaced  upon  the  precise  ground  described 
in  Mr.  Britten's  brief  His  latest  important  argument  in  the 
Court  of  Appeals  was  made  against  George  F.  Comstock  in  the 
case  of  Crooke  v.  The  County  of  Kings,  on  the  part  of  the 
defendant  and  respondent.  This  case  is  a  contest  on  behalf  of 
the  heirs  of  the  wife  of  the  late  Gen.  Philip  S.  Crooke,  to  establish 
their  title  to  real  estate  of  great  value.  Among  other  questions, 
it  involves  the  wills  of  Mrs.  Catin,  the  mother  of  Mrs.  Crooke, 
and  of  Mrs.  Crooke,  and  the  validity  and  proper  execution  of 
certain  powers  and  trusts  therein  contained;  and  requires  a  con- 
struction of  the  statute  of  the  powers  and  trusts  of  this  State, 
which  had  been  before  the  Court  of  Appeals,  and  must  neces- 
sarily become  a  leading  case  upon  those  subjects. 

From  the  foregoing  it  will  be  seen  that  Mr.  Britton  is  a  man 
of  untiring  energy.  Many  of  his  compeers  at  the  Bar  give  to 
their  profession  divided  allegiance;  many  make  it  second  to  the 
attractive  but  more  ephemeral  contest  of  the  political  arena; 
but  Mr.  Britton  has  an  utter  distaste  for  those  practices  and 
associations  which  are  so  necessary  for  a  politician,  and  his 
abnegation  of  politics,  except  in  the  exercise  of  rational  political 
convictions,  is  thorough  and  complete,  and  therefore  his  success 
as  a  lawyer  is  the  reward  of  a  constant  and  thorough  mental 
elaboration  and  study.  It  is  proverbial  among  his  neighbors 
that  none  of  them  gets  home  so  late  at  night  as  not  to  see  the 
lights  burning  in  his  well-stocked  library. 

He  is  positive  in  his  convictions,  rests  confidently  upon  them, 
and  is  not  specially  reserved  in  expressing  his  opinion  concern- 
ing them.  He  is  always  sincere  and  in  earnest,  dislikes  hypoc- 
risy, and  is  destitute  of  those  platitudes  which  enables  one  to 
agree  with  everybody. 

Therefore,  he  is  not  what  may  be  called  a  popular  man  with 


the  masses,  nor  is  he  convivial  in  his  tastes.  With  his  chosen 
friends  he  is  social,  genial  and  approachable.  He  is  especially 
a  domestic  man,  and  his  home  to  him  is  an  empire  of  happiness 
and  pleasure;  and  to  be  best  appreciated  he  must  be  seen  in  his 
family,  among  his  children,  to  whom  he  is  mo.st  tenderly  attached 
and  to  whose  success  in  life  his  sole  ambition  is  directed. 


EDWARD  H.  HOBBS. 

Edwakd  H.  Hobbs  is,  in  every  sense,  a  lawyer  who  has,  with 
much  success,  subordinated  all  his  faculties  to  his  profession. 
He  avoids  those  sporadic  efforts  which,  while  they  may  dazzle, 
weaken  the  intellect  by  undue  distribution.  He  has  sought  for 
honorable  distinction  in  his  professiou,  with  great  directness  of 
purpose,  with  a  zealous,  hopeful  temperament;  has  toiled  with 
assiduity,  and  has  meditated  upon  the  means  by  which  it  was 
to  be  realized  unceasingly;  never  practicing  those  arts  by  which 
ephemeral  and  meretricious  professional  honors  are  often 
acquired.  With  the  aid  of  an  indomitable  self-reliance,  a  reali- 
zation of  his  professional  aspiration  has  been  his  reward. 

Mr.  Hobbs  was  born  in  EUenburgh,  Clinton  County,  New  York, 
June  5,  1835.  His  father  was  Benjamin  Hobbs,  a  farmer,  one  of 
the  pioneers  of  the  country  lying  between  the  Adirondaoks, 
Lake  Champlain,  and  the  St.  Lawrence  River.  He  was  a  captain 
in  the  American  army  in  the  war  of  1812,  and  participated  in 
many  of  the  stirring  events  which  occurred  along  the  Northern 
frontier  during  that  period. 

Mr.  Hobbs'  ancestors  were  among  the  early  colonial  settlers 
of  the  country;  the  paternal  branch  was  English,  and  the  mater- 
nal Welsh  extraction. 

The  family  must  have  been  somewhat  extensive  at  an  early 
period,  for  we  find  that  Mr.  Hobbs  had  six  great-uncles  who 
served  in  various  capacities  in  the  American  army  during  the 
Revolutionary  War. 

As  we  have  said,  his  father  was  a  farmer  and,  like  most  of  his 
class,  in  moderate  circumstances.  The  early  years  of  young 
Hobbs  were  spent  on  his  father's  farm;  when  old  enough,  he 
attended  the  common  or  district  school,  where  he  exhibited 
studious  habits  and  a  scholarly  mind,  and  where  the  Prome- 
thean spark  began  to  burn  within  him.  But  the  mediocrity  of 
his  father's  means  compelled  him  to  rely  principally  upon  him- 
self for  his  intellectual  advancement;  and  thus  we  may  say,  that 
Mr.  Hobbs  stands  among  that  class  of  legal  practitioners  known 
as  self-made  men,  whose  lives  and  career  so  signally  embellish 
the  history  of  the  Bencli  and  Bar  of  Kings  County. 

While  yet  a  lad  he  removed  to  Malone,  Franklin  County,  and  was 
entered  as  a  student  at  Franklin  Academy,  where  he  prepared 
for  college.  Like  many  other  young  men  of  limited  means,  Mr. 
Hobbs  supported  himself  during  his  student  years  by  teaching; 
he  enjoyed  the  benefits  which  experience  as  a  teacher  gives  to 
young  men  preparing  for  any  profession,  especially  that  of  the 
law — mental  discipline,  self-government,  and  the  government  of 
others.  After  due  preparation,  in  1858,  he  entered  Middlebury 
College,  Vermont.  In  his  senior  year  the  war  of  the  Rebellion 
broke  out,  and  the  enthusiastic  and  patriotic  nature  of  young 
Hobbs  caught  the  martial  spirit  that  everywhere  prevailed  in  the 
Northern  States,  and  in  his  ardor  to  serve  his  country,  he  turned 
from  classic  halls,  from  the  ambitions  of  the  scholar,  from  his 
dreams  of  legal  honors  (for  he  had  early  determined  to  become  a 
lawyer),  to  those  fields  of  strife  "where  the  death-bolt  flew 
deadliest."  He  entered  the  army  as  a  private  soldier,  serving 
gallantly  wherever  duty  called  through  most  of  the  war.  His 
gallantry  on  the  field,  the  facility  with  which  he  perfected  him- 
self in  military  discipline,  soon  raised  him  to  the  rank  of  captain. 
He  participated  in  many  of  the  battles  which  will  be  recorded 
for  all  time  in  history.  He  served  throughout  the  Peninsular 
campaign  under  McOlellan,  in  North  Carolina  under  Foster, 
and  in  South  Carolina  under  Hunter.  He  was  in  all  the  battles 
of  those  campaigns,  including  Yorktown,  Williamsburg,  Bottom's 


1286 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Bridge,  Seven  Pines,  all  McClellan's  seven  days'  memorable 
change  of  base,  and  in  the  attack  of  Admiral  DuPont  and 
General  Hnnter  on  Charleston  Bar. 

This  record  needs  no  embellishments.  It  is  written  in  living 
characters  in  the  history  of  the  nation,  and  the  career  of  a  gal- 
lant soldier  is  blended  with  the  civic  honors  of  the  Bar. 

In  the  last  scenes  of  the  war,  Mr.  Hobbs  was  compelled,  by  ill- 
health,  to  resign  his  commission,  and  he  returned  to  his  home, 
and  soon  began  preparing  for  the  Bar.  To  this  end  he  entered 
the  Albany  Law  School,  where  he  remained  until  his  call  to  the 
Bar.  This  was  in  the  year  1866.  Shortly  after  taking  his  degree 
as  Bachelor  of  Law,  he  removed  to  the  city  of  New  York,  and 
then  began  his  practice,  taking  up  his  residence  in  Brooklyn. 
With  the  learning,  ability,  energy  and  ambition  of  Mr.  Hobbs, 
professional  success  was  assured.  He  began  his  practice  as  the 
law  partner  of  F.  A.  Wilcox,  in  Wall  street.  Upon  the  election 
of  Judge  Donohue  to  the  Bench  of  the  Supreme  Court,  Mr. 
Hobbs  entered  his  old  firm  in  copartnership  with  Mr.  Wilcox 
and  ex-Judge  Beebe,  imder  the  firm  name  of  Beebe,  Wilcox  & 
Hobbs.  This  firm  did  the  largest  admiralty  business,  perhaps, 
in  the  country.  To  Mr.  Hobbs,  however,  was  committed  the 
common  law  business  of  the  firm,  and  he  soon  acquired  the  rep- 
utation of  a  thorough  and  successful  commercial  lawyer.  With- 
out going  into  a  general  history  of  the  large  number  of  import- 
ant cases  in  the  conduct  of  which  Mr.  Hobbs  participated,  we 
refer  the  reader  to  their  history,  found  in  the  State  and  Federal 
Law  Reports,  through  the  last  fifteen  years.  These  demonstrate 
much  more  fully  and  adequately  than  we  can  the  career  of  Mr. 
Hobbs  at  the  Bar.  Since  1883  he  has  practiced  by  himself,  with 
increasing  devotion  to  his  profession. 

We  have  spoken  of  the  devotion  of  Mr.  Hobbs  to  his  pro- 
fession, but  he  has  been  and  is  an  active  politician,  feeling  that 
a  good  citizen  is  in  duty  bound  to  participate,  more  or  less,  in 
political  aSiiirs.  It  would  be  far  better  for  the  country  if 
politics  were  removed  from  the  meddlers,  the  party  thimble- 
riggers,  the  professional  place-hunters  and  jobbers,  into  the 
hands  of  the  respectable  and  responsible  class  of  the  community. 
These  sentiments,  we  believe,  have  actuated  Mr.  Hobbs  in  his 
participation  in  politics,  for  he  has  never  been  an  ofiiceseeker, 
nor  the  instrument  of  office  seekers,  being  too  independent  for 
this,  and  never  tolerated  those  brazen-faced  ward  politicians, 
alwaj-s  boasting  of  their  influence. 

He  earU',  from  principle,  allied  himself  to  the  Republican 
party,  and  to  that  organization  he  has  always  given  his  undi- 
vided fealty.  He  has  served  at  least  ten  years  as  a  member  of 
the  Republican  General  Committee  ;  has  frequently  served  as  a 
member  of  the  State  Committee,  and  is  now  its  treasurer.  He 
has  often  occupied  a  seat  in  Republican  State  Conventions,  and 
represented  the  Second  Congres-sional  District  as  a  delegate  in 
the  Republican  National  Convention  in  1884;  and,  without  any 
undue  assumption  of  influence,  his  voice  has  been  potent  in  the 
deliberation  of  those  bodies,  and  in  defining  their  policies. 
Perhaps  no  man  was  more  active  and  more  influential  in  Kings 
County  in  organizing  successful  opposition  to  the  Third  Term 
and  to  the  Third  Term  machine. 

In  1882  he  was  nominated  by  the  Republicans  of  Kings  Coiinty 
for  Surrogate,  for  the  duties  of  which  office  he  possessed 
acknowledged  abilities.  As  an  evidence  of  this,  and  of  his  high 
standing  as  a  citizen  and  a  gentleman,  we  refer  to  the  fact  that  he 
received  between  thirty  and  forty  thousand  more  votes  than 
the  State  ticket ;  nevertheless,  he  was  defeated  by  the  whirlwind 
which  followed  the  nomination  of  Judge  Folger  to  the  executive 
chair.  This,  we  believe,  is  the  only  time  which  Mr.  Hobbs  has 
consented  to  become  a  candidate  for  office,  though  nominations 
for  legislative  and  other  offices  have  been  tendered  him,  and  he 
has  never  held  an  official  position. 

He  is  united  by  marriage  to  Julia  Ellen,  a  daughter  of  the  late 
Captain  Benjamin  Buxton,  of  Baltimore,  a  relation  that  has 
brought  reciprocal  happiness. 


Without  pretension  or  ostentation,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hobbs  occupy 
an  elevated  and  highly  respected  position  in  the  society  of 
Brooklyn  ;  their  home  is  one  of  refinement  and  intelligence, 
presided  over  by  those  domestic  amenities  which  so  largely 
adorn  the  American  home. 


TUNLS  G.  BERGEN. 
Among  the  junior  members  of  the  Bar,  few  occupy  a  more 
conspicuous  position  than  Tunis  G.  Bergen.  He  is  one  of  those 
whose  career  evinces  the  enlarging  and  liberalizing  advantages 
to  the  legal  profession  of  accomplishments  outside  of  mere  tech- 
nical legal  knowledge;  one  of  those  who  subordinate  history  and 
elegant  literature  to  the  enlargement  of  his  professional  learning. 
He  entered  into  the  investigation  and  research  of  the  law  with 
avidity  and  delight,  with  a  determination  to  make  himself  per- 
fectly familiar  with  the  principles  of  legal  science,  mastering 
the  scholastic  refinements,  subtleties  and  abstruse  speculations 
of  the  old  black-letter  law  writers;  therefore  his  knowledge  of 
legal  principles,  precise  and  accurate,  is  rendered  practical  by  a 
strong  and  retentive  memory. 

Mr.  Bergen  was  born  at  Brooklyn,  May  17th,  1847.  He  first 
saw  the  light  in  the  old  Bergen  homestead,  still  standing  on 
Third  avenue,  facing  the  bay,  between  Thirty-third  and  Thirty- 
fourth  streets.  With  this  old  mansion  there  are  many  historic 
reminiscences;  indeed,  much  of  the  history  of  the  days  that 
tried  men's  souls  is  blended  with  the  memories  it  begets. 
During  that  period  of  the  Revolution  in  which  Long  Island  and 
New  York  were  in  possession  of  the  enemy,  this  old  house 
was  occupied  by  British  officers,  and  the  antique  walls  of  some 
of  its  rooms  are  still  embellished  by  several  paintings  which 
they  left  upon  vacating  the  house.  A  hut  still  remains,  once 
occupied  by  slaves  belonging  to  the  Bergen  estate.  Five  gen- 
erations of  the  Bergen  family  have  occupied  the  ancient  man- 
sion. Its  quaint  but  substantial  architecture  gives  ample  promise 
that  generations  to  come  will  occupy  it.  To  use  the  language  of 
another,  "It  has  been  supposed  that  Mr.  Bergen  was  a  son  of 
Tunis  G.  Bergen,  member  of  Congress  from  Kings  County,  a 
man  who  took  an  active  interest  in  Brooklyn  affairs.  Such, 
however,  is  not  the  case.  Mr.  Bergen's  father  was  Garret  G. 
Bergen,  a  brother  of  Tiinis  G.  Bergen,  and  he  affixes  the  Jr.  to 
his  name  to  avoid  confusion  from  the  similarity  of  names." 

It  will  be  seen  that  the  Bergen  family  has  a  known  genealogy 
extending  far  back  into  the  past.  The  family  was  descended 
from  Hans  Hansen  Van  Bergen,  called  also  "Hans  Hansen  the 
Norman,"  who  married  Sarah  Rapalj'e,  famous  as  the  first  female 
child  born  of  civilized  people  within  the  bounds  of  the  Colony 
of  New  Netherlands  or  the  State  of  New  York.  Of  this  marriage 
have  sprung  more  than  eight  generations  of  the  Bergen  family, 
who  have  successively  been  born  and  reared  on  American  soil, 
occupying  lands  on  Manhattan  Island,  and  originally  the  greater 
portion  of  the  area  of  the  city  of  Brooklyn  extending  along  the 
water  from  the  Wallabout  and  Fulton  Ferry  to  Bay  Ridge. 

"Young  Bergen  commenced  his  education  at  public  school 
No.  2,  Brooklyn,  which  was  sustained  largely  by  members  of 
the  Bergen  family,  of  which  there  were  several  in  the  vicinity. 
At  first  this  was  a  private  school,  but  afterwards  was  organized  as 
the  second  public  school  in  Brooklyn.  Mr.  Jacob  Sands  was  then 
principal  of  that  school,  and  is  still  serving  in  that  position. 
Mr.  Peter  Rouget,  Principal  of  No.  10,  taught  Mr.  Bergen 
French  when  the  latter  was  very  young.  Y'oung  Bergen  en- 
tered the  Polytechnic  after  leaving  No.  2  ;  from  thence  he 
entered  Rutgers  College,  New  Brimswick,  N.  J.,  where  in  1867 
he   graduated." 

Mr.  Bergen,  intent  upon  attaining  a  finished  legal  education, 
decided  to  pursue  his  legal  studies  under  the  advantages  of  the 
German  Law  Institution,  and  became  a  student  in  the  Univer- 
sity of  Berlin,  and  also  Heidelberg,  where,  under  the  instruc- 
tions of  the  accomplished  and  learned  legal  professors,  he,  at 


^m^ 


/    ^^ 


LEGAL  BIOGRAPHIES. 


1287 


the  latter  Institution,  received  the  degree  of  Doctor  in  Public 
Law.  This  was  in  1871.  Leaving  this  famous  institution,  he 
went  to  Paris,  and  became  a  student  in  the  law  department  of 
the  University  of  that  city,  an  institution  ranking  first  among 
the  collegiate  institutions  of  Europe.  He  also  attended  lectures 
at  Sorbonne  and  at  Oxford.  With  the  endowments  thus  ac- 
quired in  the  best  legal  institutions  of  Europe,  he  returned  to 
his  native  land,  and  entered  the  legal  department  of  Columbia 
College.  In  due  time  he  passed  a  creditable  examination  and 
was  called  to  the  Bar,  and  at  once  entered  upon  a  highly 
respectable  and  remunerative  practice  in  the  city  of  New  York. 

"While  in  Europe,  Mr.  Bergen  witnessed  some  of  the  most 
exciting  and  historic  scenes  of  the  Franco-Prussian  war.  He 
was  several  weeks  at  the  headquarters  of  the  Crown  Prince, 
where  he  had  every  advantage  as  a  neutral  observer  for  witness- 
ing the  great  events  around  him.  He  was  at  the  battle  of 
Woerth,  in  Alsace,  where  MacMahon  met  with  such  a  di.sastroTis 
defeat.  He  has  in  his  possession  several  French  and  German 
battle-flags  and  swords,  picked  up  after  the  battle.  During  this 
summer  (1870)  he  visited  Switzerland,  and  was  about  to  ascend 
Mont  Blanc  with  a  party  of  three  gentlemen  and  several  guides, 
but  was  dissuaded  by  some  friends,  who  wished  him  to  ascend 
with  them  at  a  later  date.  The  change  was  fortunate,  as  the 
party  with  whom  he  intended  to  make  the  ascent  were  all  lost 
in  the  snow,  and  perished." 

In  187!t  he  was  chosen  orator  by  the  alumni  of  Rutgers  Col- 
lege; he  accepted  the  invitation,  and  his  oration  was  highly 
commended  for  the  clearness  and  elegance  of  its  style,  the 
force,  strength  and  effect  of  its  matter,  and  the  attractive 
manner  in  which  it  was  delivered. 

Mr.  Bergen  was  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Education  in  1877, 
serving  about  one  year.  In  July,  1880,  he  was  reappointed. 
He  has  served  as  Chairman  of  the  Attendance  Committee,  and 
as  a  member  of  the  following  committees:  Studies,  Central 
Grammar  School,  Law,  and  Finance.  He  was  a  candidate  for 
President  of  the  Board  in  1881,  but  was  defeated  by  Mr.  Daniel 
Manger.  In  January,  1882,  he  was  again  a  candidate  for  the 
same  office,  and  was  eminently  successful,  receiving  twenty-five 
votes.  Since  then  he  has  been  twice  unanimously  re-elected  to 
the  same  office. 

It  is  a  singular  fact  that  during  the  existence  of  the  Board  of 
Education  in  Brooklyn,  there  has  never  been  a  time  when  there 
was  not  a  member  connected  with  it  by  the  name  of  Bergen. 

Mr.  Bergen  has  served  as  Chairman  of  Public  Schools  Nos.  10 
and  27,  and  also  on  the  committees  of  Nos.  2,  39  and  40;  and 
thus  it  will  be  seen  how  intimately  and  aisefully  he  has  been, 
and  still  is,  identified  with  the  cause  of  education  in  the  city  of 
Brooklyn. 

Mr.  Bergen  justly  enjoys  the  reputation  of  a  successful  writer, 
whose  style  is  free  from  all  affectation  and  all  superfluity — per- 
spicuous and  pure— a  style  which  pleasingly  sets  off  thought, 
research,  logic  and  argument. 

While  in  Europe  he  contributed  a  number  of  articles  to  the 
journals  of  his  native  country  on  the  Franco-Prussian  war  and 
other  subjects,  which  were  read  with  great  interest.  Since  his 
return  home  he  has  furnished  the  articles  on  Long  Island  for 
the  Encyclopiedia  Britannica. 

But,  as  we  have  already  said,  the  love  of  the  legal  profession  is 
paramount  to  every  other  branch  of  learning,  and  his  devotion 
to  it  is  rewarded  by  a  position  as  a  lawyer,  not  only  highly 
respectable  and  successful,  but  one  that  gives  indubitable 
evidence  that  he  is  approaching  its  highest  rank. 


HON.   GEORGE  THOMPSON. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was  born  at  Stanford,  in  the  eastern 

part  of  Dutchess  County,  in  the  month  of  January,   1817.     On 

his  father's  side,  he  was  descended   from  Anthony  Thomjison, 

one  of  the  original  settlers  who  came  over  from  England  to  New 


Haven  with  the  Puritan  colony  in  1637;  while,  on  the  mother's 
side,  he  was  descended  from  Peter  Brown,  one  of  the  still  more 
famous  Plymouth  colony,  who  emigrated  to  this  country  in 
1C20.  Caleb  Thompson,  the  fourth  in  descent  from  the  original 
colonist,  was  born  at  New  Haven,  February  24,  1732,  two  days 
after  General  Washington's  birth,  and  was  the  grandfather  of 
the  subject  of  this  memoir.  In  his  childhood,  he  removed  with 
his  father  to  Goshen,  Conn.,  and  about  his  eighteenth  year,  he 
removed  with  his  father's  family  to  Stanford,  N.  Y.,  where  he 
died  in  1823,  having  arrived  at  the  age  of  ninety-one  years, 
leaving  a  large  number  of  descendants.  His  youngest  son, 
Leonard,  more  particularly  known  in  military  circles  as  General 
Thompson,  removed  to  Bloomfield  in  1832,  and  died  at  Avon, 
Livingston  County,  in  1841. 

Young  Thompson  spent  several  years  at  home  with  his  father, 
mainly  engaged  in  farm  labor,  but  showing  a  considerable 
aptitude  for  study,  was  sent,  in  183.5,  to  the  seminary  at  Lima, 
Livingston  County,  and  entered  Union  College  at  Schenectady, 
then  under  the  management  of  the  celebrated  Dr.  Nott,  in  the 
fall  of  1836,  and  graduated  with  distinction  in  July,  1839. 
Between  the  intervals  of  college  life  and  graduation,  he  taught 
successively  in  a  private  and  public  school.  Having  concluded 
to  enter  the  study  of  law,  he  entered  the  office  of  George  Hosmei-, 
of  Avon,  Livingston  County,  then  a  lawyer  of  distinction,  and 
afterwards  spent  a  couple  of  years  in  the  office  of  Hastings  & 
Husbands,  in  Rochester.  He  was  admitted  to  practice  at  the  May 
term  in  New  York,  but  afterwards  spent  nearly  two  years  in  the 
office  of  Messrs.  Cutting  &.  Owen,  then  located  at  72  Wall 
street,  for  the  purpose  of  familiarizing  himself  with  the  practice 
in  the  city  of  New  York.  In  1848,  he  entered  into  business  with 
Judge  Soper,  who  was  then  practicing  law  in  Williamsburgh, 
Kings  County,  but  found  time  during  his  legal  (employment, 
among  his  other  occupations,  to  edit  a  weekly  political  journal, 
known  as  the  "  Klmjs  County  Patriot,"  which  did  effectual  ser- 
vice during  the  campaign  of  1848,  as  a  Cass  and  Butler  organ. 
In  the  spring  of  1851,  the  local  government  of  Williamsburgh, 
then  under  the  control  of  the  Whig  party,  having  become  grossly 
corrupt  and  extravagant,  an  organization  was  formed  for  the 
purpose  of  reforming  such  abuses.  A  journal  was  started,  under 
the  auspices  of  several  prominent  gentlemen  of  that  place.  This 
paper  was  named  the  "Independent  Press,'"  and  though  not  the 
nominal  editor,  a  large  part  of  the  editorial  matter  was  furnished 
by  Mr.  Thompson.  An  entire  revolution  having  been  effected 
in  the  government  of  the  place  by  the  reformatory  movement, 
Mr.  Thompson  was  elected  by  the  unanimous  vote  of  the  Board 
of  Trustees  as  Corporation  Counsel  and  Attorney,  though  several 
of  the  board  were  politically  hostile  to  him.  In  the  fall  of  1852, 
he  was  re-elected  to  the  same  office  by  a  large  popular  vote,  and 
after  the  expiration  of  his  term,  declined  to  be  a  candidate  for 
further  re-election. 

In  the  meantime,  he  was  nominated  and  elected,  against  his 
desire,  to  the  position  of  Superintendent  of  Common  Schools  in 
the  Williamsburgh  section  of  the  city.  For  several  years,  after 
the  expiration  of  his  office,  he  ceased  to  engage  in  active  po- 
litical life.  In  the  fall  of  1866,  without  any  solicitation  on  his 
part,  he  was  nominated  by  the  Democratic  convention  of  the 
city  of  Brooklyn  as  a  candidate  for  the  office  of  City  Judge  of 
that  city.  His  political  opponents  considered  the  election  of 
Judge  Reynolds,  the  rival  candidate,  as  certain,  but  at  the  com- 
ing election  it  was  found  that  Mr.  Thompson  had  been  chosen 
to  the  office  by  several  thousand  majority.  The  method  of  his 
filling  the  office,  and  the  acceptability  of  his  administration,  are 
best  shown  by  the  unanimous  expression  through  the  Kings 
County  Bar  at  the  time  of  his  retirement  from  office.  A  com- 
mendatory letter,  almost  unanimously  signed  by  the  leading 
members  of  the  Bar,  expressing  their  "  regret  at  the  severance  of 
the  relations  existing  between  them;"  stating  that  "these 
relations  had  existed  for  six  years,  and  that  more  than  half 
that  period  Judge    Thompson    alone   discharged  the  judicial 


1288 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


'A^^i^. 


duties  of  that  court,  and  that  throughout  his  whole  term  those 
duties  had  been  performed  with  ability  and  honor;  that  the 
ample  legal  knowledge  which  he  brought  with  him  to  the  Bench 
had  so  ripened  with  his  judicial  practice  and  experience  as  to 
impress  them  deeply  with  the  sufficiency  and  clearness  of  his 
legal  opinions  and  decisions,"  and  that  they  "therefore  tender 
to  Judge  Thompson  a  respect,  esteem  and  regard  for  their  past 
intercourse,  with  their  best  wishes  for  his  future  happiness." 

At  the  expiration  of  his  term  of  office  Judge  Thompson  con- 
cluded to  gratify  a  long-deferred  wish  of  visiting  the  Old  World, 
and  spent  two  years  and  a  half  in  absence  from  his  native  land. 
In  this  time  he  visited  all  the  important  cities  of  Europe,  and 
considerable  portions  of  Asia  and  Africa,  including  the  Nile  and 
the  Holy  Land.  The  outlines  of  his  journey  were  given  in 
many  letters  sent  to  this  country,  and  laublished  in  many  of  the 
papers  at  home.  He  has  repeatedly  been  urged  to  collect  and 
compile  such  letters  in  permanent  form,  but,  for  reasons  best 
appreciated  by  himself,  has  declined  to  enter  upon  such  a  task. 

Judge  Thompson  has  been  a  candidate  for  only  one  political 
office  since  his  residence  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn,  a  period  of 
more  than  thirty  years;  that  office  came  to  him  by  unusual  una- 
nimity of  assent,  and  he  retired  from  it  without  soliciting  its 
continuance. 


WALTER  L.   LIVINGSTON. 

Walter  L.  LrvrnasTON,  on  his  father's  side,  was  a  lineal  de- 
scendant of  Robert  Livingston,  first  proprietor  of  the  manor  of 
Livingston,  a  Scotchman  who  came  to  this  country  in  1C77.  On 
his  mother's  side  he  is  a  great-grandson  of  Count  Admiral  de 
Grasse,  who  commanded  the  French  fleet  on  the  occasion  of  the 
surrender  of  Lord  Cornwallis,  at  Yorktown.  His  father's  mother 
was  a  granddaughter  of  Chief  Justice  Allen,  of  Pennsylvania, 
and  was  herself  a  remarkable  woman,  managing  her  large 
landed  estate  in  Columbia  County,  where  she  removed  at  the 


time  ol  her  marriage  with  his  grandfather,  and  she  was  widely 
and  popularly  known  throughout  the  county  as  the  "Widow 
Mary." 

Mr.  Livingston's  father  was  her  eldest  son;  his  name,  Henry 
W.  Livingston.  He  married  Caroline,  one  of  the  daughters  of 
Francis  Depau,  who  was  at  that  time  a  leading  merchant  of  New 
York  City.  Mr.  Depau  was  born  in  France,  but  came  to  South 
Carolina  at  the  time  of  the  revolt  in  St.  Domingo,  and  subse- 
quently removed  to  New  York  City.  In  Charleston  he  met  and 
married  Silvie,  youngest  daughter  of  Admiral  de  Grasse,  who, 
with  her  sisters,  had  fled  to  this  country  to  escape  the  horrors  of 
the  French  Revolution. 

Walter  L.  Livingston  was  born  on  the  21st  of  December,  1830, 
at  his  grandfather  Depau's  house  in  Broadway,  near  Franklin, 
New  York;  his  parents  were  residents  of  Columbia  County,  in 
this  State,  at  the  time,  but  had  come  to  New  York  to  spend  the 
winter. 

As  early  as  when  Mr.  Livingston  was  but  five  years  of  age,  the 
whole  family  went  to  Europe,  including  himself,  and  until  the 
age  of  sixteen  he  vibrated  between  the  two  continents,  having  in 
that  time  made  as  many  as  eight  voyages  across  the  Atlantic, 
when  a  voyage  averaged  about  thirty  days. 

The  first  school  he  attended  was  in  Paris,  where  he  remained 
a  year;  he  then  studied  at  home  with  a  tutor  until  he  was  about 
thirteen  years  old,  when  he  was  sent  to  the  Jesuits'  College  at 
Fribourg,  in  Switzerland,  which  then  enjoyed  quite  a  high 
reputation.  After  leaving  there,  Mr.  Livingston  attended  the 
College  of  Juilly,  near  Paris,  where  he  remained  until  his  family 
returned  to  this  country.  After  his  return  here,  he  went  to  the 
St.  Mary's  College  in  Baltimore.  He  never  graduated  from  any 
college,  and  when  not  at  school  was  kept  studying  at  home 
under  a  tutor  until  he  reached  the  age  of  nineteen  years,  when 
he  entered  the  law  office  of  a  relative,  the  Honorable  Francis  B. 
Cutting,  of  New  York.  Mr.  Livingston  remained  with  Mr.  Cut- 
ting until  the  Hon.  Josiah   Sutherland,   of  Columbia  County, 


LEGAL  BIOGRAPHIES. 


1289 


lately  a  Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court,  opened  an  ofBce  in  New 
York  City,  in  connection  with  the  Hon.  Claudius  L.  Monell, 
also  of  Columbia  County,  and  at  the  time  of  his  death  a  Judge 
of  the  Superior  Court  of  the  City  of  New  York,  when  he  became 
a  student  in  their  office,  and  remained  there  until  he  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  Bar  in  May,  1852,  at  the  city  of  New  York.  Shortly 
after  his  admission  he  became  a  clerk  in  the  office  of  Alex- 
ander A.  Hamilton,  Jr.,  a  grandson  of  the  illustrious  Hamilton, 
who  was  then  carrying  on  a  large  practice  in  New  Y'ork  City,  in 
partnership  with  Francis  K.  Eives,  son  of  the  Hon.  William  C. 
Rives,  of  Virginia.  After  remaining  there  a  short  time,  Mr. 
Livingston  opened  an  office  for  himself  at  No.  72  Wall  street, 
and  it  was  then  that  be  became  acquainted  with  a  gentleman 
who  entered  his  office  as  a  student,  and  who  has  since  acquired 
a  lucrative  practice  at  the  Bar,  and  become  distinguished  enough 
in  the  politics  of  this  State  to  receive  the  Republican  nomina- 
tion for  Lieutenant-Governor.  I  refer  to  the  Hon.  Sigismund 
Kaufman,  of  Brooklyn.  In  1855,  Mr.  Livingston  accepted  a 
proposition  from  Philip  S.  Hamilton,  the  j-oungest  son  of  the 
great  statesman,  to  become  a  member  of  his  firm,  and  for  a 
while  he  practiced  in  what  was  then  known  as  Williamsburgh 
(now  part  of  Brooklyn),  as  a  member  of  the  firm  of  Hamilton, 
Dougherty  ifc  Livingston.  After  leaving  that  firm  he  opened  an 
office  at  41  Wall  street,  in  the  city  of  New  Y'ork,  and  carried  on 
the  practice  of  his  profession  there  until  he  was  elected  Surro- 
gate of  Kings  County,  in  1876.  During  that  time  Mr.  Living- 
ston was  for  thirteen  years  counsel  for  the  French  line  of  steamers, 
known  as  the  "  General  Trans-Atlantic  Company." 

In  1857,  he  was  married  to  Silvia,  daughter  of  Washington 
Coster,  of  New  York  City ;  he  has  but  one  child,  a  daughter,  now 
married. 


In  1861,  he  removed  from  New  Yark  to  Brooklyn,  and  took  up 
his  residence  at  92  Hewes  street,  where  he  has  since  resided. 
A  few  years  after  his  coming  to  Brooklyn,  it  was  found  necessary 
then,  as  recently,  to  reorganize  the  Democratic  party  in  Kings 
County,  and  Mr.  Livingston  became  a  member  of  the  General 
Committee  which  was  then  formed.  In  the  year  1867,  he  was 
elected  a  member  of  the  Constitutional  Convention  which  met 
in  that  year.  There  were  four  members  elected  on  the  same 
ticket  from  each  of  the  Congressional  districts  in  the  city  of 
Brooklyn,  and  the  ticket  on  which  Mr.  Livingston  was  running 
had  the  honor  of  being  successful  over  the  one  bearing  no  less  a 
distinguished  name  than  that  of  the  Reverend  Henry  Ward 
Beecher,  who  ran  then,  as  I  believe,  for  the  only  time,  for  a 
political  office. 

The  records  of  the  Constitutional  Convention  show  that  Mr. 
Livingston  was  not  an  idle  member  of  that  body.  He  was  ap- 
pointed on  several  important  committees,  and  took  an  active 
part  in  the  debates  on  almost  every  subject  of  importance  which 
came  up — prominent  among  others,  the  judiciary  article,  the 
powers  and  duties  of  the  Legislature,  the  sale  and  adulteration 
of  liquors,  and  the  bill  of  rights. 

Soon  after  that  he  became  a  prominent  candidate  on  the 
Democratic  side  for  the  office  of  Comptroller  of  the  City  of 
Brooklyn,  at  the  request  of  the  leading  members  of  the  party  in 
the  county,  and  it  is  well  known  here  that  he  would,  without 
doubt,  have  received  the  nomination  had  not  his  independent 
course  in  regard  to  the  patronage  of  the  office  been  displeasing 
to  some  of  the  powers  that  then  were;  that  is,  he  distinctly  an- 
nounced that  on  that  point  he  should  act  according  to  the  dic- 
tates of  his  best  judgment. 

In  1876,  a  split  having  occurred  in  the  Democratic  party  in 


1290 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


this  county,  Mr.  Livingston  accepted  an  independent  nomina- 
tion for  Surrogate,  and  was  endorsed  by  the  Republicans;  that 
was  the  year  when  Mr.  Tilden  ran  for  President,  and  carried  the 
county  by  18,000  majority.  Notwithstanding  that  high  tide, 
which  was  expected  to  carry  everything  before  it,  Mr.  Living- 
ston wa-s  elected  by  a  majority  of  70  votes,  on  a  poll  of  over 
Itt.OOd.  His  opponent  brought  an  action  ot  quo  warranto  against 
him,  and,  under  a  law  exclusively  applicable  to  Kings  County, 
claimed  the  right  to  re-count  the  ballots  in  the  boxes  six  months 
after  the  election,  although  it  was  proved,  without  contradic- 
tion, that  the  boxes  had  not  been  sealed,  and  had  been  kept  in 
such  a  careless  manner  as  to  deprive  a  re-count  of  all  weight  as 
evidence.  The  re-count  was  permitted  by  the  trial  court,  and 
the  result  differed  from  the  election  returns  sufficiently  to  elect 
his  opponent  by  a  small  majority,  if  taken  as  evidence  of  the  vote 
cast.  The  trial  court  left  it  to  the  jury  tc  find  who  was  elected, 
charging  them  that  if  they  accepted  the  returns  as  correct,  Mr. 
Livingston  was  elected,  and  if  they  found  that  the  re-count  was 
correct,  than  his  opponent  was  elected.  The  jury  found  in  favor 
of  the  re-count.  On  appeal  to  the  Court  of  Appeals,  the  judg- 
ment was  reversed,  and  a  new  trial  granted.  The  court  also  re- 
instated Mr.  Livingston  in  office  pending  the  new  trial,  which 
never  came  off,  his  opjjoneut  abandoning  the  contest.  The  ap- 
peal was  argued  by  Mr.  Livingston,  in  person,  against  the  Hon. 
B.  F.  Tracy,  recently  one  of  the  Justices  of  the  Court  of  Ajjpeals. 
As  the  case  was  one  of  great  importance,  that  eminent  jurist  ex- 
erted all  his  great  jiowers  and  extensive  learning  in  behalf  of 
his  client,  liut  Mr.  Livingston's  argument,  as  is  generally  con- 
ceded, was  quite  equal  in  ability,  legal  logic  and  learning  to 
that  of  his  distinguished  opijonent.  The  opinion  of  the  court 
in  the  case  (79th  N.  Y.,  279;  and  same  case  80th  N.  Y.,  GC)  fully 
shows  that  Mr.  Livingston  was  rightfully  entitled  to  the  office, 
and  that  the  court  highly  appreciated  his  argument.  Mr.  Liv- 
ingston entered  upon  the  discharge  of  his  difficult  duties  with 
great  industry  and  directness  of  purpose,  with  legal  learning 
and  accomplishments  which  gave  undoubted  assurance  that 
these  duties  would  be  performed  to  the  entire  satisfaction  of  the 
Bar  and  the  public.  His  numerous  opinions,  found  in  the  3d, 
4th  and  5th  volumes  of  Kedfield's  Surrogates'  Reports,  for  clear- 
ness of  expression,  thorough  logical  discussion,  research,  calm- 
ness and  impartiality,  exhibit  his  rare  ability  as  a  judicial  officer. 
At  the  close  of  his  official  term  he  returned  to  the  jsractice  of 
his  profession.  Mr.  Livingston  ranks  among  the  ablest  and 
most  successful  members  of  the  Kings  County  Bar;  he  is  one  of 
the  most  high-minded  and  valuable  citizens  of  Brooklyn,  and 
his  intercourse  with  his  fellow-citizens  is  characterized  by  those 
pleasing  amenities  which  so  well  adorn  social  life. 


TIMOTHY  PERRY. 

Timothy  Peeky  was  born  at  New  Ipswich,  New  Hampshire, 
November  7,  1820.  His  father,  Chauncy  Perry,  Sen.,  was  a 
man  of  strong  native  mental  powers,  a  sturdy,  industrious  New 
England  farmer,  who  never  knew  how  to  make  any  compromise 
with  what  he  deemed  a  wrong,  or  to  sacrifice  principle  to  policy; 
whose  purity  of  character  was  proverbial,  and  whose  chief 
wealth  consisted  of  a  large  family  of  children,  of  whom  he  had 
just  reason  to  be  proud,  and  to  whom  he  could  have  pointed  and 
said,  with  the  Koman  mother,  "These  are  my  jewels." 

It  was  his  chief  anxiety  to  give  his  children  the  best  education 
his  limited  means  afforded;  how  well  he  did  this  is  attested  by 
their  intelligence,  virtue,  and  their  reasonable  success  in  life. 

Timothy  was  the  youngest  of  five  brothers,  all  of  whom  en- 
tered the  so-called  learned  professions;  the  three  elder  being 
clergymen,  and  the  two  younger  lawyers. 

Timothy's  early  history  is  the  history  common  to  so  m.any  of 
the  young  men  of  New  England,  sons  of  farmers.  He  received 
his  elementary  education  at  the  district  school,  and  after  master- 
ing all  the  branches  taught  in  that  school,  he  entered  New  Ips- 


wich Academy,  then  one  of  the  most  popular  and  successful 
institutions  of  that  kind  in  New  Hampshire.  Here  he  acquired 
a  very  thorough  and  practical  education,  and  became  an  accom- 
plished and  successful  teacher,  devoting  himself  to  that  calling 
in  the  winter  for  several  years,  and  during  the  summer  months 
he  was  engaged  in  working  on  his  father's  farm.  All  his  leisure 
hours  were  devoted  to  the  improvement  of  his  mind,  in  perfect- 
ing himself  in  his  studies,  and  in  preparing  for  future  fields  of 
usefulness. 

At  length  he  accepted  the  position  of  teacher  of  mathematics 
and  natural  science  in  the  New  Ipswich  Academy,  discharging 
these  duties  with  great  acceptability  for  about  two  years,  until 
August,  1853.  At  this  time  his  brother  Chauncy  was  a  practicing 
lawyer  at  Greenpoint,  then  a  part  of  the  town  of  Buskwick,  in 
Kings  County,  L.  I.,  having  opened  an  office  there  the  pre- 
vious year.  At  the  earnest  request  of  his  brother,  Mr.  Perry 
abandoned  the  profession  of  a  teacher  and  became  a  student 
at  law  in  the  office  of  his  brother,  and  a  resident  of  Green- 
point.  He  piirsued  his  studies  with  diligence  and  success, 
and  in  April,  1857,  was  called  to  the  Bar.  On  the  1st  day  of  May 
following  he  entered  into  partnership  with  his  brother  in  the 
practice  of  law.  This  relation  was,  from  the  first,  profitable  and 
agreeable,  and  the  firm  took  a  high  and  responsible  position 
among  the  leading  law  firms  of  the  County  of  Kings.  It  com- 
bined those  qualifications  that  naturally  inspired  the  public  with 
confidence  in  it,  and  as  a  result,  it  was  soon  rewarded  by  a  very 
remunerative  practice.  This  partnership  still  continues,  conduct- 
ing its  business  in  the  same  office  occupied  by  the  senior  partner 
in  1852,  and  in  which  the  junior  partner  read  his  profession. 

The  firm  of  G.  &  T.  Perry  is  undoubtedly  the  oldest  law  firm, 
with  a  single  exception,  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn.  Although 
engaged  in  the  general  practice  of  law,  the  specialty  of  this 
firm,  for  a  long  time,  has  been  the  examination  of  titles  to  real 
estate,  in  which  department  it  ranks  deservedly  high.  After  the 
consolidation  of  Greeni)oint — once  a  part  of  the  town  of  Bush- 
wick — with  Brooklyn,  it  became  the  Seventeenth  Ward  of  the 
city,  and  was  represented  by  Timothy  Perry,  as  alderman,  in 
the  Common  Council,  from  1858  until  18G3.  This  included  the 
first  years  of  the  war.  The  Common  Council  undertook  to  fur- 
nish volunteers  and  to  aid  the  draft,  by  assisting  the  families  of 
all  those  who  entered  the  service  of  their  country.  Mr.  Perry 
took  an  active  part  in  this  undertaking,  and  in  the  Citizens'  Aid 
Association  of  the  Seventeenth  Ward,  which  furnished  a  large 
number  of  volunteers.  In  1803  Mr.  Perry  became  a  member  of 
the  Brooklyn  Board  of  Education,  occupying  the  position  till 
1870.  In  January,  1882,  Mr.  Perry  was  appointed  to  the  same 
office  by  Mayor  Low,  but  resigned  his  place  in  May,  1883,  to  ac- 
cept the  office  of  member  of  the  Board  of  Elections  of  the  city  of 
Brooklyn,  of  which  board  he  is  now  president. 

For  the  last  twenty -five  years  he  has  been  closely  identified 
with  the  growth  and  enterprise  of  his  section  of  the  municipality. 
He  has  been  a  director  and  vice-president  of  the  Mechanics  and 
Traders'  Bank  of  Brooklyn  since  1870,  and  for  the  past  four 
years  has  been  president  of  the  Greenpoint  Savings  Bank,  one  of 
the  most  flourishing  institutions  of  its  kind  in  the  city. 

While  Mr.  Perry  is  of  a  retiring  disposition,  lacking  the  self- 
assertion  necessary  for  great  success  as  a  jury  lawyer,  he  pos- 
sesses rare  qualifications  for  another  quite  as  important  depart- 
ment of  his  profession,  that  of  legal  adviser  and  counselor;  for, 
as  was  well  said  by  Ogden  Hoft'man,  "the  place  to  try  a  lawsuit 
IS  really  in  its  preparation  in  the  law  office;  unless  it  is  well  tried 
there,  it  will  prove  a  failure  at  the  Bar,  and  it  is  often  the  case 
that  the  most  brilliant  jury  lawyer  is  wholly  indebted  for  his 
success  to  the  solid  learning,  sound  sense  and  practical  judg- 
ment of  what  is  known  as  an  office  lawyer." 

Mr.  Perry  has  earned  and  holds,  to  a  remarkable  degree,  the 
confidence  of  the  community,  as  shown  not  only  by  the  positions 
of  trust  to  which  he  has  been  promoted,  but  by  his  large  em- 
ployment in  the  business  of  the  devolution  of  estates,  the  inter- 


'-'•?  rhyAJJBUohie  - 


.^^^^-^F" 


LEGAL   BIOGRAPHIES. 


1291 


pretation  of  devises,  and  of  the  law  which  controls  real  property. 
There  is,  probably,  no  lawyer  in  Kings  County  who  has  ever 
drawn  a  greater  number  of  wills  during  his  practice  than  he ; 
and  no  will  ot  his  drawing  has  ever  been  set  aside  by  the  courts. 
It  will  thus  be  seen  that  Mr.  Perry  has  led  an  exceedingly  dil- 
igent life;  that  he  is  still  in  the  midst  of  that  diligence,  with  his 
harness  on. 


RUFUS  LEONARD  SCOTT. 

A  WELL-KNOWN  lawyer,  residing  in  the  Twenty-fifth  Ward,  in 
the  city  of  Brooklyn,  and  conducting  his  extensive  business, 
with  numerous  assistants,  in  the  Bennett  Building,  New  York  City. 
His  practice  is  general,  exclusive  of  criminal  practice. 

Mr.  Scott  was  born  in  Lanesborough,  Mass.,  March  31st,  1835. 
His  father,  Leonard  Scott,  for  the  latter  part  of  his  life,  was  a 
resident  of  Brooklyn.  He  was  a  man  remarkable  for  his  wiry, 
vigorous  constitution,  his  strong  moral  princijiles,  and  his 
fervent  piety. 

Our  present  subject  is  a  descendant,  on  his  father's  side,  in 
the  sixth  generation,  from  William  Scott,  who  settled  in  Hatfield, 
Mass.,  about  the  year  1CG8:  and,  on  his  mother's  side,  in  the 
seventh  generation,  from  Nathaniel  Dickinson,  who  removed 
from  Wethersfleld,  Conn.,  to  Hadley,  Mass.,  in  1G59.  The  au- 
thentic annals  of  both  of  these  families,  readily  traced  to 
pioneer  and  Colonial  limes,  give  an  unmistakable  earnest  that 
their  descendants  would  be,  as  they  have  been,  the  inheritors  of 
worth,  of  character,  and  telling  virility.  The  Scotts  and  the 
Dickinsons  were  typical  New  Englanders,  and  abounded  in 
traits  of  thrift,  enterprise  and  industry,  together  with  all  those 
well-known  talents  belonging  to  versatile  and  hardy  Eastern 
people.  Both  by  deeds  done  and  occupations  selected,  each  of 
these  ancient  families  gave  frequent  proof  of  being  of  a  stalwart 
mould.  They  are  recorded  as  having  been  brickmakers,  car- 
penters, blacksmiths,  and  farmers.  They  evidently  dignified 
their  chosen  pursuits  so  as  to  win  the  confidence  of  their  neigh- 
bors, for  frequently  the  names  of  Scott  and  Dickinson  appear  in 
the  olden-time  lists  of  "Selectmen,"  "Representatives  to  the 
General  Court,"  and  also  among  the  "  Delegates  to  the  Constitu- 
tional Conventions."  Besides  this,  they  are  found  to  have  occu- 
pied numerous  positions  requiring  labor,  probity,  ability,  and 
the  confidence  of  the  people.  Both  families  have  honorable  war 
records— active  participants  in  the  "French  and  Indian  war  of 
1754."  In  the  Battle  of  Lexington,  April,  1775,  there  were 
present  among  the  "Minute  Men"  four  Dickinsons  and  five 
Scotts.  There  were  also  representatives  of  both  families  in  the 
battles  fought  for  American  Independence,  and,  later,  in  the 
War  for  the  Union. 

With  such  ancestry,  and  the  energizing  influences  of  New 
England  enterprise,  Eufus  Scott  was  early  impressed  to  push 
out  for  a  high  and  useful  career,  and  unflinchingly,  and  in  the 
face  of  many  obstacles,  began  his  education  as  the  master-key  to 
advancement.  Before  he  bad  reached  his  eighteenth  year  he 
had  fitted  himself  at  Lenox  Academy  to  become  a  teacher,  and 
although  so  young,  he  had  so  won  the  confidence  of  the  com- 
munity in  which  he  lived,  that  they  selected  him  for  the  teacher 
of  the  school  in  his  native  town.  About  this  time  he  determined 
to  adopt  the  legal  profession  as  his  life  pursuit;  he  bent  all  his 
energies  in  that  direction.  It  was  not  long  before  he  yielded  to 
those  influences  which  are  so  continually  at  work,  attracting  the 
aspiring  youths  of  our  country  towns  toward  the  great  metrop- 
olis. He  arrived  in  New  York  with  his  hands  for  his  only 
friends,  and  his  capital  chiefly  under  his  hat.  He  at  once  set  out 
with  determined  ardor,  doing  whatever  he  found  in  the  shape  of 
honorable  remunerative  work;  either  mental  or  manual  labor  was 
welcome  if  it  afforded  the  means  of  promotion.  He  taught  dis- 
trict schools;  he  toiled  among  laborers  engaged  in  ice  storage, 
in  the  vicinity  of  Orange,  N.  J.  This  occupation  was  most  try- 
ing in  those  days,  and  if  young  Scott  had  not  been  possessed  of 


the  indomitable  perseverance  characteristic  of  his  family,  and 
the  frame  of  a  Massachusetts  farmer,  his  plans  of  attaining 
legal  fame  by  the  aid  of  funds  earned  in  the  New  Jersey  ice 
sheds  would  have  been  chilled  to  an  early  death.  At  last,  he 
was  ready  to  enter  a  law  ofiice.  He  began  his  study  with  ex- 
Attorney-General  Levi  S.  Chatfield.  Afterwards  he  studied  for 
a  time  in  the  ofiice  of  ex -Judge  Joseph  Neilson,  of  this  city.  In 
1861  Mr.  Scott  was  admitted  to  the  Bar  of  the  State  of  New  York. 
Eemoving  to  Brooklyn  that  year,  he  began  the  practice  of  law, 
meeting  at  once  a  success,  ever  increasing,  until  now  he  enjoys, 
at  his  prime,  a  business  larger  than  many  of  his  older  legal  coji- 
freres.  The  secret  of  his  success  in  gaining  his  numerous  and 
profitable  clientage  seems  to  be  attributable  to  his  advising  his 
employers  away  from  hopeless  litigation,  and  in  his  thorough, 
patient  preparation  of  the  causes  he  undertakes.  His  oratory  is 
cold  and  devoid  of  flowers,  but  he  delivers  his  points  with  fair- 
ness and  a  clearness  that  wins  the  attention  of  the  Bench,  and 
compels  his  legal  antagonist  to  admit  that  he  is  a  dangerous  op- 
ponent. In  i^olitics,  Mr.  Scott  is  alert  and  quietly  active.  He 
does  not  seek  or  desire  political  preferment  for  himself,  but 
seeks  to  secure,  by  every  proper  means,  an  economical  and  wise 
management  of  the  affairs  of  our  city  and  State.  In  November, 
1877,  he  was  induced  to  withdraw  a  portion  of  his  time  from  his 
professional  engagements,  in  order  to  accept  the  office  of  "  Eeg- 
istrar  of  Arrears  "  for  the  city  of  Brooklyn.  He  held  this  posi- 
tion until  September  4th,  1879,  and  his  administration  of  the 
affairs  of  that  ofiice  was  characterized  by  various  vigorous  and 
wise  measures,  from  which  our  city  is  still  reaping  great  benefits. 
The  period  of  his  official  life  was  one  of  peculiar  difficulty. 
Brooklyn  was  staggering  under  the  weight  of  an  enormous 
debt;  property  was  everywhere  depressed  in  value  by  burdening 
assessments,  and  taxes  levied  to  meet  the  then  present  needs  of 
the  city  treasury,  and  to  pay  for  past  lavish  improvements.  The 
city  was  also  suffering,  in  common  with  the  rest  of  the  country, 
from  the  effects  of  the  panic  of  1873.  Each  year  this  amount  was 
increasing.  Many  property  owners  had  become  discouraged, 
and  much  valuable  real  estate  was  practically  abandoned  by 
those  holding  titles  to  it.  It  produced  no  revenue  to  the  city. 
If  offered  for  sale,  no  buyer  would  be  willing  to  pay  even  the 
amount  due  the  city  for  the  fee  simple  of  such  property.  The  city 
had  a  cumbrous  and  expensive  method  of  collecting  arrearages 
by  means  of  "sale  for  taxes."  In  that  time  of  commercial  depres- 
sion the  system  broke  down  completely.  The  efforts  made  to 
sell  real  estate  for  taxes  only  increased  the  burdens  on  each 
piece  put  up  at  auction,  and  made  the  prospect  of  its  ultimate 
redemption  still  more  hopeless.  Each  attempted  sale  failed  to 
produce  revenue,  for  no  buyers  appeared.  The  result  was 
simply  vast  sums  drawn  from  the  city  to  pay  for  futile  adver- 
tising. The  matter  became  a  most  serious  municipal  problem, 
and  the  prospect  of  corporate  bankruptcy  was  one  that  con- 
fronted every  thoughtful  citizen. 

Mr.  Scott  perceived  the  situation,  and  felt  especially  called 
upon  to  devise  a  remedy.  Being  made  up  of  the  material  of  re- 
formers, he  at  once,  without  fear  or  favor,  proposed  a  jjlan,  which 
has  since  been  approved  by  a  permanent  adoption,  although  it 
was  one  thoroughly  iconoclastic,  and  calculated  to  awaken  bitter 
opposition  on  the  part  of  many  who  had  before  profited  out  of 
the  misfortunes  of  delinquent  taxpayers.  The  remedy  proposed 
by  Mr.  Scott,  and  embodied  in  his  annual  report  to  the  Mayor, 
December  4th,  1878,  consisted,  first,  in  cutting  down  the  adver- 
tising expenses  of  lands  to  be  oft'ered  for  sale  on  account  of 
taxes.  He  proposed  that  a  simple  announcement  of  tax  sales  be 
made  in  the  daily  paj^ers,  instead  of  repeatedly  advertising  each 
piece  separately.  The  plan  involved  the  furnishing  of  cheaply 
printed  lists  of  property  to  be  sold  to  interested  parties  seeking 
information.  By  this  means  $100,000  to  $200,000  would  be  saved 
to  the  taxpayers  in  the  sale  of  arrearages  then  subject  to  sale. 
Of  course,  the  press,  that  had  for  years  been  growing  rich  on  this 
class  of  advertising,  opposed   the  reform,  as  they  also  did  Mr. 


I'JO? 


HISTOKT  OF  KIXGS  COUNTY. 


Sv>....  .^v  ..........   ..;;h  »n  its  power.    But  the  r...:..        -  i:^ 

way  to  adoption  by  the  force  of  its  merit,  anj  has  been  engrafteil 
into  the  laws  of  the  State,  so  that  its  benefits  are  made  oontinn- 
oas.  To  make  this  reform  effective  in  results,  at  the  time  of 
financial  peril,  when  it  was  aJoptevl,  Mr.  Soott  devised  and  first 
pabliolT  advocated  a  compromise  plan,  by  which  over-burdened 
property  might  be  so  far  relieved  that  owners  would  be  induced 
to  make  an  effort  to  revleem  such  pivperty.  This  phm  consisted 
in  reducing  the  amount  of  accumulated  and  defaulted  taxations, 
etc..  on  property  that  was  burilened  to  near  or  quite  its  actual 
value,  to  a  sum  within  the  ability  of  the  owner  to  ^lay.  In  lieu 
of  such  partial  payments,  property-holders  were  to  be  released 
from  the  full  amount  due  on  the  tax-roUs  for  arrearages. 

This  was  a  most  just  arrangement,  because,  under  the  laws. 
taxes  in  default  had  been  largely  increase^!  by  usurious  rates  of 
interest.  It  was  wise,  because,  if  the  city  attempted  to  force  the 
poiTment  of  the  whole,  it  would  have  obtained  nothing  but  an 
nnceitain  title  to  abandoned  lands.  The  plan  proposed  by  Mr. 
Scott  was  adopted  by  the  city  substantially,  and  later  became  a 
law  by  the  act  of  the  Legislature.  This  measure  resulted  in  the 
rapid  payment  of  large  sums  of  long  over-due  taxes.  The  city 
treasury  was  benefite^l.  and  hnndre^ls  of  hiUidsome  homes,  pro- 
ducing each  year  prompt  and  increasing  revenues  to  the  city, 
now  exist,  where  otherwise  there  would  have  been  commons  for 
years.  Thus,  by  a  wise  foresight  and  a  quick  discernment  of 
practical  reforms,  benefits  of  the  widest  nmge  are  often  secured. 

Mr-  Scott  has  been  active  in  many  other  direction's,  as  a  private 
citizen,  in  promoting  reforms  smd  improvements-  iLvny  fine 
buildings  in  Brooklyn  are  the  result  of  his  own  real  estate  opera- 
tions, or  his  encouragement  and  assistance  to  others  in  that 
class  of  improvement.  He  has  for  a  long  time  laborer!  to  secure 
for  our  city  an  e^juitable  and  practical  system  of  ■•  rapid  transit."' 
He  was  one  of  the  early  promoters  of  the  founding  of  the  Bnsh- 
wicfc  and  East  Brooklyn  Dispensary,  smd  also  one  of  the  founders 
of  the  Bushwick  Savings  Bitnk.  of  which  he  is  now  a  trustee. 
and  the  attorney.  He  has  always  been  active  on  the  side  of  the 
people  at  large,  and  more  than  one  corporation  hsis  been 
thwarted  in  its  efforts  to  invade  the  rights  of  citizens  by  the  zeal 
and  legal  ability  of  Bofus  L.  Scott. 

PoUticaUy.  Mr.  Scott  is  a  Democrat:  he  h.is  been  invaluable  to 
his  party  by  his  persistent  and  consistent  advocacy  of  reforms 
in  policy,  and  purity  in  all  the  workings  of  party  management 
and  party  machinery,  from  the  simplest  caucus  up  to  the  more 
important  functions.  The  contemporary  press  of  the  city  of 
Brooklyn  is  not  wanting  in  records  of  many  hard-fought  battles 
in  ward  meetings  and  conventions,  wherein  Mr.  Scott  has  stood 
like  a  rock  amid  howling  opposition,  and  in  the  face  of  oppos- 
ing majorities.  But  though  sometimes  outnumbered  and  de 
feated,  time  has  generally  vindicated  his  judgment,  and  no  man 
in  the  ranks  of  his  party  in  this  city  is  more  widely  respected. 
Testimony  of  this  has  been  given  by  numerous  offers  of  advance- 
ment to  high  positions  of  political  honor  and  trust.  But  Mr. 
Scott  has  hitherto  refused  to  accept  them.  Being  free  from  bad 
habits,  regular  in  his  manner  of  living,  of  iron  constitution, 
and  orvl&ined  by  nature  with  a  rich  bestowment  of  physical,  in- 
tellectual and  moral  gifts  to  be  a  leader,  it  is  manifest  that  he 
will  be  called  imperatively  by  his  fellow  citizens  to  fill  a  still 
higher  place  in  the  affairs  of  this  city  and  State  than  any  he  htts 
yet  occupied,  active  and  useful  as  he  has  been  in  his  bnsy  and 
patriotic  life. 

In  June,  186*!,  Mr.  Scott  was  married  to  Maria  E.  Hull, 
daughter  of  William  M.  Hull,  Esq..  of  Greenpoint. 


EDMUND  TERRY, 
Me.  Tekby  has  been  identified  with  the  Kings  County  Bar. 
and  the  Bar  of  the  City  and  County  of  New  York,  for  over  forty, 
four  years.  As  his  practice  has  been  extensive  at  both  Bars,  and 
has  extended  to  other  counties,  he  is  perhaps  one  of  the  most 
experienced  and  highly  respected  lawyers  now  in  practice. 


He  went  to  the  Bar  learned  in  the  msthematioal  niceties  of  the 
special  pleading  practice  during  the  existence  of  the  Court  of 
Chancery,  when  to  become  a  successful  special  pleader,  familiar 
with  the  plea,  the  demurrer,  the  joinder,  the  rejoinder,  the  sur- 
rejoinder, the  rebutter  and  sur-rebntter.  then  the  rwUonalt  of 
judicial  investigation,  required  not  only  a  logical  mind,  but  a 
profound  and  accurate  knowledge  of  the  law.  It  is  certain  that 
Mr.  Terry  was  accomplished  in  these,  and  that  when  the  inno- 
vations of  the  Code  swept  the  old  practice  away  and  instituted 
another  procedure,  he  soon  became  accomplished  in  its  form- 
ulsB,  and  he  has  ever  since  practiced  under  it  with  success. 

Edmund  Terry  was  born  at  H.artford.  Conn.,  May  2od,  ISIT, 
and  is  one  of  five  surviving  sons  of  Hon.  Roderick  Terry  and 
Harriet  Taylor  Terry. 

His  father  was  a  merchant  of  Hartford,  Conn. :  a  member  of 
the  City  Council  for  many  years:  a  member  of  the  Legislature 
of  the  State,  and  President  of  the  Exchange  Bank  of  Hartforvl, 

Mr.  Terry's  paternal  grandfather  was  the  Hon.  Eliphalet 
Terry,  of  Connecticut,  for  many  years  Judge  of  the  County 
Court,  and  a  representative  in  the  State  .Assembly  thirty-three 
successive  years.  His  mother  was  a  daughter  of  the  Eev.  John 
Taylor,  for  many  years  minister  at  Deerfield,  Mass.,  Mendon, 
N.  T..  and  afterwanls  in  Michigan. 

Edmund  Terry,  on  his  father's  side,  is  a  lineal  descendant  of 
Governor  Bradford,  who  came  over  in  the  yiciijfioiKr,  and,  on  his 
mother's  side,  of  Orovemor  John  Haynes,  of  Massachusetts,  who 
was  the  first  Governor  of  Connecticut,  and  also  of  Governor 
George  Wyllys,  of  Connecticut. 

After  a  thorough  preparatory  course,  Mr.  Terry  entered  Tale 
College,from  whence,  in  1S;!7,  he  wjis  graduated  with  high  honors. 
In  conformity  to  an  early  and  settled  resolution  to  become  a 
lawyer,  he  entered  the  Law  Depjirtment  of  Harvard  University, 
at  Cambridge,  at  the  time  when  that  illustrious  jurist  i\nd  truly 
accomplished  scholar.  Joseph  Story,  presided  over  it.  It  was 
a  rare  and  splendid  opportunity  to  acquire  the  learning  of  his 
profession  which  thus  presented  itself  to  the  young  attorney, 
and  one  which  was  appreciated  and  duly  taken  advantage  of. 
He  completevl  his  legal  education  in  the  office  of  the  late  Wil- 
liam W.  Ellsworth,  of  Hartforvl,  and  was  called  to  the  Bar  in 
that  city.  Soon  after  taking  his  degree  as  counselor-at-law  at 
Hartforvl,  he  removed  to  the  city  of  New  York,  where,  after  a 
period  of  study  in  the  office  of  Walter  Edwards,  Esq.,  he  was 
admitted  to  the  Bar  of  the  State  of  New  York.  He  begsin  the  prac- 
tice of  his  profession  in  the  city  of  New  York  and  in  Brooklyn 
in  1S40.  His  abilities  as  a  lawyer  were  very  soon  recognized, 
and  his  industry  in  the  discharge  of  his  professional  duties 
soon  met  its  appropriate  reward.  He  has  continued  to  practice 
his  profession  in  Brooklyn  and  New  York  since  1848.  His 
practice  has  not  been  confined  to  those  cities,  as  we  have  said. 

.\fter  he  had  practiced  a  few  years  in  the  State  courts,  he  was, 
on  motion  of  Daniel  Webster,  admitted  to  practice  in  the  Su- 
preme Court  of  the  United  States. 

Mr.  Terry  hivs  alwavs  been  what  may  be  termed  a  general  law- 
yer, without  any  specialty  in  his  practice.  He  has  always  de- 
clined any  official  position,  and  never  was  ambitious  of  political 
distinction.  His  ambition  has  always  been  confined  to  the  en- 
grossing duties  of  his  profession. 

In  March.  1S.>.5,  he  was  mivrried  to  .Vnna,  daughter  of  the  lata 
John  H.  Prentice,  of  Brooklyn.  He  has  a  family  of  seven  sons 
ivnd  one  daughter,  having  lost  two  other  sons  by  death. 

Though  he  is  one  of  the  most  laborious  men  in  his  profession, 
he  has  always  found  time  for  performing  all  the  duties  of  a  good 
citizen,  and  for  amiable  and  refreshing  relaxation  in  the  domestic 
circle. 

That  he  should  occupy  a  high  and  respectevl  position  at  the 
respective  Bars  of  which  he  is  a  member,  is  a  natural  and  just 
reward  for  those  acknowledged  endowments  so  long  recognized 
by  the  public  and  his  professional  brethren. 


^1^ 


1  ^-'?" 


7^^'Z'2.^'7 


^,-t  "^"T-, 


BIOGRAPHY  OF  ANDREW  J.  PERRY,  ESQ. 


1293" 


ANDREW    J.    PERRY,    Esq. 


This  gentleman  comes  of  good  New  England  stock; 
his  ancestry  on  the  paternal  side  being  of  Connecticut, 
and,  on  the  maternal  side,  of  Rhode  Island  origin.  His 
father,  Cyrus  Perry,  and  his  mother,  Waity  Comstock, 
were  both  natives  of  the  town  of  Wilton,  Saratoga 
county,  N.  Y.,  where  they  lived  and  died.  Of  their  eight 
children,  all  born  in  Wilton,  Andrew  J.,  the  subject  of 
this  sketch,  was  the  second.  Growing  up  amid  the  ex- 
periences and  with  the  advantages  of  a  farm  life,  his 
education  was  gained  at  the  district  school;  until,  am- 
bitious for  a  wider  field  than  that  offered  by  the  pater- 
nal acres,  he  entered  the  Academy  at  West  Poultney, 
Vermont,  and  in  due  time  he  entered  as  Sophomore  at 
Union  College,  Schenectady,  N.  Y.,  whence  he  was 
graduated  with  credit  in  the  class  of  1846,  and  imme- 
diately coming  to  New  York  city,  became  a  student 
at  law  in  the  office  of  the  late  John  Mason,  Esq. 

Making  diligent  use  of  his  opportunities,  he  was,  in 
1848,  admitted  to  practice,  and  began  his  professional 
career  in  partnership  with  James  H.  Raymond,  Esq., 
a  connection,  however,  which  was  terminated  in  the 
following  year  by  Mr.  Raymond's  death,  since  which 
Mr.  Perry  has  entered  into  but  two  professional  part- 
nerships— one  with  the  late  Chief-Justice  Bosworth,  of 
the  Superior  Court,  terminated  by  his  election  to  the 
Bench,  and  the  other  with  Moses  B.  Maclay,  Esq., 
which  was  of  brief  duration.  In  1855,  he  was  made  a 
member  of  the  Board  of  Education  of  New  York  City, 
and  for  a  year  was  Chairman  of  its  Evening  School 
Committee. 

In  1858  he  linked  his  fortunes,  in  marriage,  with 
Julia  L.,  daughter  of  H.  J.  Olcott,  of  Cherry  Valley, 
N.  Y.,  and  became  at  once,  as  he  since  continued,  a 
resident  of  Brooklyn.  He  has  resided  in  the  Twen- 
tieth, the  Fourth,  and,  for  the  past  twenty  years,  in 
the  Sixth  Ward  of  the  city  ;  at  all   times  taking  con- 


siderable interest  in  all  political,  social,  charitable,  and 
local  improvement  matters  affecting  the  interests  of 
his  adopted  home. 

He  has  been  prominent  in  Republican  political 
circles,  and  was  (from  1870  to  the  beginning  of  the 
year  1883)  a  member  of  the  Republican  General  Com- 
mittee of  Kings  County,  and  member  and  several 
years  Chairman  of  its  Executive  Committee.  In  1872 
he  received  the  Republican  nomination  for  Repre- 
sentative in  Congress  from  the  then  Second  District 
of  the  State  ;  which,  however,  being  strongly  dem- 
ocratic, he  failed  of  an  election.  He  was  also  strongly 
supported  in  convention,  in  1873,  as  the  Republican 
nominee  for  Mayor  of  the  city  of  Brooklyn. 

Mr.  Perry  was  a  member  of  the  Brooklyn  Board  of 
Elections  for  two  years,  and  its  President  until  his 
resignation  of  the  office  in  1883.  He  was  also  an 
active  member  of  the  Committee  of  One  Hundred,  a 
reform  association  composed  of  public-spirited  citizens, 
who  brought  about  important  legislation  for  the  cor- 
rection of  municipal  abuses  ;  the  work  of  the  com- 
mittee being  done  mostly  from  1871  to  1874. 

In  March,  1883,  Mr.  Perry  received  from  President 
Arthur,  by  and  with  the  advice  and  consent  of  the 
Senate,  the  appointment  of  U.  S.  General  Appraiser 
at  the  Port  of  New  York,  an  office  for  the  hearing  and  de- 
termining appeals  by  importers  from  advances  of  valu- 
ations made  by  the  Appraiser  on  ad  valorem  dutiable 
merchandise.  There  are  four  of  these  Districts  of  Ap- 
praisal covering  the  United  States,  and  the  district 
which  includes  the  port  of  New  York  is,  of  course,  the 
most  important  in  the  amount  and  value  of  its  importa- 
tions, and  the  cases  for  adjudication  which  arise  there- 
from. The  office  of  a  general  appraiser  is  substantially 
a  court  of  enquiry  and  decision,  and  its  decisions,  based 
upon  testimony  of  witnesses,  duly  sworn  and  examined, 


1294* 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


are  of  very  great  importance,  not  only  to  the  interests 
of  the  general  government  but  to  those  of  the  importer. 
It  is  gratifying  to  know  that  Mr.  Perry's  administration 
of  this  important  office  has  been  satisfactory  both  to  the 
government  at  Washington  and  to  the  mercantile 
community  generally. 

Mr.  Perry  has,  for  many  years,  successfully  prose- 
cuted a  general  law  practice  in  the  city  of  New  York, 
devoting  to  it  all  his  energies  and  time.  Yet,  that  he 
is  not  unmindful  of  the  claims  of  society  upon  him,  is 
evidenced  by  the  fact  that  he  is  a  trustee  of  the  Brooklyn 
Homfeojiathic  Hospital,  and  is  a  member  of  the  Long 


Island  Historical  and  of  the  New  England  Societies,  as 
well  as  of  the  Brooklyn  Club  and  the  Hamilton  Club.  He 
has,  also,  for  many  years,  been  an  attendant  upon  the 
Westminster  Presbyterian  Church,  of  which  the  Rev. 
Dr.  James  M.  Ludlow  is  Pastor,  and  has  been  member 
and  President  of  its  Board  of  Trustees. 

In  person,  Mr.  Perry  is  tall,  being  apparently  six 
feet  in  height  ;  in  build,  is  rather  slender  than  other- 
wise; and  inheriting,  as  he  does,  from  a  line  of  long- 
lived  and  sturdy  ancestors,  a  vigorous  constitution,  and 
with  health  unimpaired,  he  ranks  among  the  younger 
rather  than  the  older  citizens  of  Brooklyn. 


LEGAL    BIOGRAPHIES. 


1293 


HON.  WILLIAM  H.  WARING. 

FouB  generations  of  the  Waring  family  have  been  residents  of 
Brooklyn.  In  1803,  the  grandfather  of  the  present  sketch, 
Henry  Waring,  then  a  wealthy  and  influential  merchant  of  New 
York,  residing  in  Frankfort  street,  purchased  for  his  summer 
residence  the  then  well-known  and  for  those  days  the  elegant 
residence  formerly  belonging  to  Lodewick  Bamper,  on  Brooklyn 
Heights;  a  description  of  this  house  and  of  its  eccentric  proprie- 
tor is  to  be  found  in  Stiles'  History  of  Brooklyn,  at  page  308, 
and  foot-note.  This  property,  with  the  purchases  of  adjoining 
land  made  bj-  Mr.  Waring,  extended  in  length  from  the  water 
front  o\er  Brooklyn  Heights  to  the  vicinity  of  Henry  street,  and 
in  width  from  a  line  near  Clark  street  to  a  line  near  Red  Hook 
lane.  The  house  itself  stood  within  the  lines  of  Columbia 
Heights  near  the  corn,er  of  Clark  street,  and  was  reached  from 
the  Ferry  road  (Fulton  street)  by  a  street  midway  between  Clark 
street  and  Red  Hook  lane,  and  known  on  the  early  maps  of 
Brooklyn  as  Waring  street.  This  street  was  closed  about  the 
time  Mr.  Waring  sold  the  land  for  the  erection  of  the  large  build- 
ing used  for  many  years  as  a  boarding-school  for  young  ladies, 
and  which  afterward  was  the  original  building  of  the  present 
Mansion  House  hotel.  Mr.  Waring  continued  to  occupy  his 
residence  on  the  Heights  and  his  Frankfort  street  house  alter- 
nate summers  and  winters  until  the  outbreak  of  the  war  of  1812, 
when  he  moved  his  family  to  his  native  town  of  Greenwich, 
Connecticut.  On  the  conclusion  of  the  war  he  returned  to 
Brooklyn,  and  took  up  his  permanent  residence  in  the  village. 
When  Columbia  street,  since  known  as  Columbia  Heights,  was 
opened  in  1833,  the  old  Bamper  House  was  removed,  and  Mr. 
Waring  purchased  the  premises  bounded  by  Fulton,  Washing- 
ton and  Johnson  streets,  extending  about  one  hundred  and  fifty 
feet  on  Fulton  street.  Upon  this  property  he  built  the  large 
frame  house  with  Corinthian  pillars  now  standing  on  Washington 
street,  and  known  as  the  "  Waring  Mansion."  In  18.52,  when  the 
property  was  sold  by  his  heirs,  the  house  was  purchased  by  the 
late  Rodney  S.  Church,  turned  round  upon  Washington  street, 
where  it  still  stands,  with  a  basement  story  added,  and  will  be 
readily  recognized  by  those  who  had  occasion  to  visit  it  during 
the  Rebellion  drafts  as  the  headquarters  of  the  Provost  Marshal. 
From  the  return  of  Mr.  Waring's  family  to  Brooklyn,  in  1815, 
until  his  death,  which  occurred  in  April,  1851,  he  took  an  active 
interest  in  the  affairs  of  Brooklyn,  both  as  village  and  city;  a 
selectman  of  the  village  and  alderman  of  the  city  for  many 
years,  one  of  the  founders  of  the  Long  Island  Bank,  and  of  the 
Brooklyn  Savings  Bank,  in  each  of  which  institutions  he  was 
for  many  years  respectively  a  director  and  trustee.  President 
of  the  Long  Island  Insurance  Company,  and  active  in  politics  as 
a  Democrat  of  the  old  school,  he  was  always  a  prominent  figure 
in  the  history  of  Brooklyn,  and  contributed  largely  to  its  pros- 
perity. He  lived  long  enough  to  see  it  rise  from  a  settlement 
without  corporate  organization,  and  with  a  population  of  less 
than  four  thousand,  to  an  active,  enterprising  city  of  more 
than  three  hundred  thousand  inhabitants.  On  page  137  of 
Stiles'  History,  will  be  found  an  extended  sketch  of  this  old 
Brooklynite,  accurate  in  all  particulars  save  one,  viz.,  in  the 
statement  that  he  commanded  the  privateer  '  Adflia,'  which 
was  fitted  out  by  New  York  merchants  during  the  war.  The 
fact  that  the  command  of  the  privateer  was  tendered  to,  but 
declined  by  him,  gave  rise  to  the  statement  that  he  actually 
commanded  it. 

A  letter  in  the  Brooklyn  Eigle,  written  by  the  late  Alden  J. 
Spooner,  and  published  a  few  days  after  Mr.  Waring's  death, 
thus  speaks  of  him;  "  In  adding  a  small  tribute  to  his  memory, 
it  is  due  to  him  to  say  he  discharged  his  various  public  duties 
with  integrity  and  ability,  and  that  his  deportment  was  ever 
affable  and  gentlemanly  in  all  his  associations;  as  a  part  of  the 
municipal  authority  of  Brooklyn,  during  six  successive  years  he 
was  always  punctual  in  his  seat,  with  a  watchful  eye  to  the 
best  interests  of  Brooklyn,  a  friend  to  a  strict  construction  ol 


its  charter;  nothing  would  induce  him  to  exceed  its  corporate 
powers  for  any  purpose,  and  especially  in  the  disbursement  of 
the  public  funds,  regarding  the  good  old-fashioned  economy  as 
an  antidote  of  extravagance  and  excessive  taxation.  Liberal  and 
charitable  in  all  his  intercourse  in  life,  he  never,  directly  or  in- 
directly, elevated  himself  or  his  friends  at  the  public  expense. 
His  standing  in  society  contributed  in  no  small  degree  to  estab- 
lish the  first  monied  institutions,  the  Long  Island  Bank  and  the 
Savings  Bank,  as  also  the  Long  Island  Insurance  Company,  to 
which  he  lent  an  efiicient  aid  as  president.  His  well-earned 
reputation,  whether  in  public  or  private  life,  is  an  inestimable 
legacy  to  his  descendants,  of  which  they  may  be  proud." 

The  only  survivor  of  Mr.  Waring's  children  now  living  in 
Brooklyn  is  Mr.  Henry  P.  Waring,  aged  eighty-four,  of  which 
eighty  years  have  been  passed  in  Brooklyn. 

Of  the  second  generation  of  the  Waring  family,  the  best  known 
in  Brooklyn  was  Nathaniel  T.  Waring,  born  August  27,  1806, 
educated  at  the  village  school  of  Thomas  Laidlaw,  and  at  Eliza- 
beth, N.  J.,  and  graduated  at  Union  College,  Schenectady,  in 
182G.  He  was  a  college  mate  of  William  H.  Seward,  of  the  late 
Judge  John  A.  Lott,  and  the  late  J.  Sullivan  Thorne.  He 
studied  law  at  the  law  school  of  Judge  Gould,  in  Litchfield, 
Connecticut,  and  with  Judge  Radcliffe,  of  New  York,  was  admit- 
ted to  the  Bar  in  1829,  commenced  the  practice  of  his  profession 
in  the  then  village  of  Brooklyn,  and  continued  in  active  practice 
at  the  Brooklyn  Bar  until  his  death,  which  occurred  in  May, 
1877.  He  was  a  well-known  and  active  politician,  of  the  same 
political  faith  as  his  father,  though  he  never  held  any  public 
office,  save  such  as  was  directly  connected  with  his  profession, 
as  Master  in  Chancery  under  the  old  State  Constitution,  Corpora- 
tion Attorney  in  the  early  history  of  the  city,  and  later  for  several 
terms  as  Corporation  Counsel.  He  was  noted  as  the  "  sheriff's 
lawyer"  for  many  years,  having  been  counsel  for  a  number  of 
sheriffs,  from  Richard  Udell  to  George  Remsen.  Few  were 
better  known  on  Long  Island  than  "Nat.  Waring,"  as  he  was 
familiarly  called,  and  few  with  whom  so  many  anecdotes  and 
reminiscences  are  connected  in  the  memories  of  the  old  settlers. 

William  H.  Waring,  the  son  of  Nathaniel  F.  and  Clara  A. 
Waring,  was  born  February  7th,  1831,  in  Hicks  street,  near  Pine- 
apple. The  house,  modernized  and  enlarged,  is  still  standing, 
and  known  as  No.  102.  His  early  ancestors  on  his  father's  side 
had  come  to  this  country  in  its  early  history  from  England,  and 
had  settled  in  Greenwich,  Conn.  There  is  a  romantic  tradition 
still  extant  in  the  family,  that  one  of  his  ancestors  was  married 
to  Lady  Ann,  the  daughter  of  the  Earl  of  Millington.  When 
very  young.  Lady  Ann  fell  in  love  with  a  play  actor,  with  whom 
she  eloped,  and  after  marriage  sailed  for  America,  disowned  her 
aristocratic  parents.  On  the  voyage  thither  the  quondam  play 
actor  was  taken  ill  of  a  fever  and  died.  Lady  Ann,  too  proud 
to  return  to  her  home,  and  finding  her  way  to  Greenwich,  she 
was  made  town  clerk,  and  subsequently  married  a  Waring. 
The  records  of  the  town,  in  her  handwriting,  are  still  extant,  and 
a  tombstone  in  the  old  graveyard,  at  Greenwich,  still  marks  the 
jJace  of  her  burial  and  records  her  title  and  lineage.  The  name 
of  Millington  was  preserved  in  the  family  until  the  last  genera- 
tion. On  his  mother's  side,  he  is  descended  from  the  Dutch. 
Lodowick  Hackstaff,  one  of  the  Dutch  burgesses  of  New  York 
before  the  Revolution,  was  his  mother's  grandfather.  He  built 
the  first  house  that  was  erected  in  White  street,  then  remote 
from  the  city,  and  where  for  many  years  he  lived  and  died. 
The  little  frame  house  on  Clark  street,  near  Henry,  where  the 
subject  of  this  sketch  attended,  in  early  childhood,  "  woman's 
school,"  is  still  standing,  and  adjoining  it  was  subsequently 
built  the  Quaker  meeting-house  on  the  corner  of  Clark  and 
Henry  streets,  in  the  basement  of  which  "Quaker  Heely  "  acted 
as  pedagogue,  and  of  whom  Mr.  Waring  was  one  of  the  pupils. 
The  school  and  its  master  will  readily  be  recognized  by  old 
Brooklynites.  Receiving  his  preparatory  education  at  Union 
Hill  Academy,  Jamaica,  and  Kinderhook  Academy,  at  Kinder- 


1294 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COVNTY. 


HON.  ■U'IT,L7A'\r  H.  WARrNfi 


hook,  Columbia  County,  he  entered  Harvard  College,  fi-om  which 
he  graduated  in  1852.  After  graduation,  he  passed  a  year  and  a 
half  traveling  in  Europe,  studied  law  with  the  "  Quaker  firm  " 
of  lawyers,  Wetmore  &  Browne,  was  admitted  to  the  Bar  in 
1855,  from  which  time  he  has  continued  the  practice  of  his  pro- 
fession in  New  York  City.  While  at  Kinderhook  young  Waring 
formed  the  acquaintance  of  his  grandfather's  old  friend  and 
political  associate,  Martin  Van  Buren,  and  it  being  the  year 
that  the  distinguished  ex-President  was  the  candidate  of  the 
Free  Soil  party  for  the  Presidency,  he,  at  an  early  age,  espoused 
the  Free  Soil  cause,  and  on  the  organization  of  the  Republican 
jjarty  abjured  the  political  faith  of  his  fathers,  and  has  always 
from  that  time  been  a  steadfast  Republican.  While  in  Europe 
he  for  a  time  became  the  traveling  companion  of  his  former 
"guide,  philosopher  and  friend,"  the  ex-President  above  named. 
As  a  lawyer,  Mr.  Waring,  although  a  ready  debater  and  an  orator 
of  considerable  reputation,  has  always  preferred  the  more  quiet 
and  lucrative  practice  of  the  office,  though  he  has  not  un- 
frequently  appeared  in  the  courts  in  important  cases. 

He  has  always  taken  an  active  interest  in  the  welfare  and 
prosperity  of  Brooklyn,  but,  though  frequently  tendered,  declined 
to  accept  office  until  1877,  when  he  was  unanimously  tendered 
the  Republican  nomination  of  representative  in  the  Legislature 
from  the  then  Fifth  District,  comprising  ths  Seventh  and  Four- 
teenth Wards.  The  convention  which  nominated  him  had 
previously  balloted  over  ninety  times  and  failed  to  agree  upon  a 
candidate,  when  Mr.  Waring's  name  was  suggested  and  unani- 
mously accepted  on  the  first  ballot.  This  was  without  his 
knowledge  of  his  candidacy,  and  unaccompanied  by  the  pipe- 
laying  and  log-rolling  which  usually  obtained  on  similar  occa- 
sions. Elected  in  the  autumn  of  that  year,  he  served  in  the  Legis- 
lature on  the  important  committees  of  the  affairs  of  cities,  in- 
surance and  charitable  and  religious  societies.  He  introduced 
and  was  instrumental  in  the  passage  of  the  well-known  two- 
thirds  assessment  law,  whereby  local  improvements,  upon  which 
the  city  had  run  mad  and  nearly  bankrupted  its  treasury,  were 
checked.  He  also  introduced  and  jirocured  the  passage  of  the 
bill  to  repeal  the  so-called  Queens  County  Railroad  Charter,  by 
which  the  beautiful  Lafayette  avenue  was  to  be  given  over  to 


the  rapacity  of  speculators,  and  rescued  the  avenue  from  inva- 
sion by  railroads  through  a  fraudulently  organized  corporation. 
It  was  mainly  through  bis  efforts  that  the  "job  "  was  defeated  to 
impose  a  burden  of  upwards  of  $500,000  upon  the  city  by  the 
imposition  upon  the  county  at  large  of  the  assessment  for  the 
improvement  of  the  Ocean  Parkway  Boulevard.  The  Legisla- 
ture of  1878  was  noted  for  the  great  number  of  bad  bills  which 
were  introduced,  especially  those  relating  to  Brooklyn,  and 
Mr.  Waring  contributed  in  a  large  measure  towards  their  defeat; 
among  others,  a  bill  to  transfer  the  management  of  Greenwood 
Cemetery  from  its  then  and  present  board  of  trustees,  and  to 
establish  a  new  system  of  government  for  that  "  city  of  the 
dead";  a  bill,  introduced  at  the  instance  of  John  Kelly,  to  with- 
hold further  appropriations  from  New  York  for  the  building  of 
the  great  bridge;  a  bill  to  extend  the  streets  of  the  city,  at  the 
discretion  of  the  Common  Council,  to  the  water  front,  thereby 
destroying  the  water  front  for  its  present  commercial  purposes; 
a  bill  to  change  the  entire  policy  of  the  Episcopal  Church,  of 
which  he  is  an  active  member,  and  has  been  for  many  years  a 
warden  and  vestryman;  and  numerous  bills  to  impose  upon  the 
city  large  assessments  for  local  improvements,  and  for  the  legal- 
ization of  fraudulent  contracts.  Upon  the  reapportionment  of 
the  Assembly  Districts,  Mr.  Waring's  ward— the  seventh — was 
thrown  into  the  Eleventh  Assembly  District,  comprising, 
besides  the  Seventh,  the  Twenty-first,  Twenty-third  and  Twenty- 
fourth  Wards.  He  was  again  unanimously  nominated  to  rep- 
resent this  district  in  the  Legislature  of  1881,  and  elected  by 
nearly  1,800  majority.  Early  in  the  session  he  took  a  .stand 
against  corporate  aggressions.  In  the  struggle  against  the  con- 
solidation of  the  telegrajjh  companies  he  was  conspicuous,  and 
was  on  the  side  of  the  people  on  the  Railroad  Commission  bill. 
He  advocated  free  tolls  on  the  canals;  introduced  a  comprehen- 
sive bill  for  the  legalization  of  primary  elections  and  the  punish- 
ment of  fraud  at  those  elections,  the  main  features  of  which  were 
subsequently  incorporated  into  the  so-called  Chapin  law;  as  a 
member  of  the  Committee  on  General  Laws,  he  contributed 
largely  to  the  enactment  of  important  legislation  coming  from 
that  committee.  As  a  member  of  the  Committee  on  the  Re- 
vision of  our  Tax  Laws,  he  rendered  important  service  to  the 


LEGAL    BIOGRAPHIES. 


1395 


metropolis  and  the  business  interests  of  this  community  by  his 
opposition  to  the  taxation  of  broker's  sales,  to  the  taxation  of 
the  earnings  of  the  poor  in  the  savings  banks,  and  was  the 
earnest  champion  of  the  rights  of  the  beneficiaries  in  the  mutual 
benefit  societies.  As  a  legislator,  Mr.  Waring  was  regarded  as 
one  of  the  most  industrious  and  conscientious  workers  of  the 
Assembly,  and  he  brought  to  the  consideration  of  every  subject 
the  habits  of  a  mind  trained  by  his  profession  and  a  life  of 
thoughtful  study,  which  qualified  him  to  take  a  jirominent  part 
in  the  discussion  of  all  important  questions  brought  before 
that  body. 

JOHN  M.  STEARNS. 

The  centennial  celebration  of  the  town  of  Reading,  Vt.,  in 
1872,  elicited  the  following  facts  from  Mr.  Stearns: 

"  My  ancestors  were  plain  New  England  farmers  from  the 
time  of  their  first  emigration  from  Nottinghamshire,  England, 
to  Massachusetts  Bay,  in  1(530.  Isaac  Stearns,  with  Charles 
Stearns,  his  nephew,  were  among  the  first  settlers  of  Watertown, 
Mass.  They  and  their  descendants  figured  largely  in  the 
annals  of  Watertown,  while  their  representatives  are  now  found 
in  nearly  every  State  in  the  Union.  Charles  Stearns  died  at 
Watertown  about  1695;  his  son,  Shubael  Stearns,  settled  at  Lj'nn. 
Shubael  had  a  son,  Samuel,  born  1683,  and  a  grandson,  Thomas, 
born  in  1717,  who  was  my  great-grandfather,  and  who  settled  in 
Lynn.  My  grandfather  was  born  in  1749,  and  died  in  1777, 
leaving  two  sons — Daniel,  aged  five,  and  my  father,  Paul,  aged 
three.  These  two  settled  in  Rea,ding,  Vt.,  in  179G,  and  became 
"  farmers.  My  father  had  a  good  ediication,  and  served  his  town 
many  years  in  those  capacities  which  required  a  good  penman 
and  ready  arithmetician.  In  1802,  he  married  Lucy  Kneeland, 
my  mother.  Of  her  family  I  know  little.  Her  brother,  Abner 
Kneeland,  acquired  some  notoriety  from  starting  the  infidel 
newspaper,  the  Boston  Investigator,  also  for  inventing  an  orthog- 
raphy that  dispensed  with  all  silent  letters."  The  following 
particulars  in  Mr.  Stearns'  history  are  gleaned  from  the  general 
catalogue  of  the  Kimball  Union  Academy,  at  Meriden,  N.  H. : 
"John  Milton  Stearns,  A.M.,  was  born  at  Heading,  Vt., 
December  10,  1810  ;  was  at  Kimball  Academy  from  1829  to  1832  ; 
studied  theology;  was  ordained  in  June,  1838;  was  teacher  and 
acting  pastor  at  various  places  from  1832  to  1838;  editor  of 
the  Green  Mountain  Emporium,  at  Montpelier,  Vt.,  1838  to  1840; 
Middlebury,  Vt.,  Free  Press,  1840;  Democratic  Plowman,  1842  to 
1843;  Farmer  and  Mechanic,  New  York  City,  1847  to  1848;  has 
practiced  law  since  1849;  received  the  honorary  degree  of  A. 
M.  from  Kutgers  College,  N.  J.,  1855." 

In  1844,  he  came  to  Williamsburgh,  we  might  say  as  an  adven- 
turer, having  achieved  no  marked  success  in  his  previous 
undertakings,  save  the  hard  economies  and  discipline  which  bis 
experience  had  iinposed.  With  a  wife  and  two  children,  a  few 
dollars  in  hand,  and  a  respectable  debt  of  $300  owing  in  the 
country;  without  acquaintances,  without  employment,  without 
professional  or  business  reputation,  he  determined  to  begin  the 
world  here  as  he  found  it;  to  await  no  opportunity,  to  despise 
no  employment  because  it  appeared  servile,  and  to  beg  no 
man's  patronage  as  a  favor,  but  because  of  the  advantage  to  be 
derived  by  the  employer.  So  he  started  at  once  to  utilize  his 
knowledge  of  printing  and  book-selling,  as  a  walking  broker 
through  the  business  streets  of  New  York,  having  arranged 
with  stationers,  printers  and  book-binders  to  execute  his  orders 
at  a  small  profit  to  himself.  He  sold  Harpers'  cheap  publica- 
tions, also  their  heavier  works  on  orders.  He  sometimes  sold 
clocks;  but  he  says  he  never  sold  to  a  man  who  did  not  become 
his  enemy  for  life,  for  the  clocks  would  not  go.  So  that  branch 
of  trade  was  presently  dropped.  Besides  being  diligent  in 
business,  he  sought  to  exemplify  another  motto,  "Always  be 
cheeiful  in  business."  In  these  pursuits,  he  was  careful  not  to 
make  known  his  afliliation  with  the  clergy,  lest  he  should  be 
thought  appealing  to  the  charities  of  his  customers,  rather  than 


standing  on  his  merits  as  a  business  man,  and  giving  value  for 
value  received — a  laudable  pride,  which  is  sadly  lacking  in  some 
of  the  brethren  of  the  cloth.  He  realized  six  or  seven  hundred 
dollars  a  year  in  trade,  which  supported  his  family,  and  in  three 
years  paid  oif  his  debts.  About  1846,  he  commenced  the  study 
of  law,  as  time  and  opportunities  permitted;  obtaining  a  certi- 
ficate of  clerkship  from  a  local  lawyer,  on  which  Hallet,  the  old 
County  Clerk  of  New  York,  made  an  allowance  of  two  and  a 
half  years  for  classical  studies,  and  filed  the  papers  in  his  office. 
Under  the  Constitution  of  1847,  which  admitted  any  reputable 
citizen  to  practice  law  upon  passing  an  examination  by  the 
Court,  he  was  examined  by  the  judges  in  open  Court  at  General 
Term,  held  in  the  City  Hall,  Brooklyn,  and  admitted  March 
8th,  1849,  to  practice  in  all  the  courts  in  the  State,  being  then  in 
the  39th  year  of  his  age.  It  was  the  second  year  of  his  practice 
before  his  profession  paid  his  expenses,  but  subsequently  it 
became  substantial  and  successful.  He  is  still,  after  thirty  four 
and  a  half  years,  in  the  active  duties  of  his  profession.  He 
carried  his  Christian  principles  into  the  practice  of  the  law, 
thereby  gaining  a  "good  name,"  which  is  better  than  "great 
riches."  Although  he  has  not  amassed  a  large  fortune,  he  stands 
high  in  his  profession— a  Nestor  of  the  Bar,  secure  in  the  confi- 
dence and  esteem  of  his  fellow-citizens,  and  holding  many 
important  positions  of  trust. 


JOHN    M.    STE.tRNS. 

Speaking  of  the  lawyer's  reputation,  Mr.  Stearns  says:  "It 
is  often  brilliant  for  to-day,  but  in  a  short  time  it  comes  to  be 
that  with  resjject  to  which  '  the  memory  of  man  runneth  not.' 
The  name  that  has  been  widely  praised  may  survive  for  a  gene- 
ration, but  the  life  work  has  scarcely  a  skeleton  or  fossil  to 
preserve,  and  vanishes  when  the  old  briefs  of  the  dead  man  are 
given  to  the  flames,  with  the  remark  that  they  were  great  achieve- 
ments for  their  day." 

Notwithstanding  his  busy  professional  life,  Mr.  Stearns  has 
published  several  volumes,  large  and  small,  of  his  writings. 
The  first  was  the  Wreath  of  Wild  Poses,  in  1846;  this  was 
followed  in  1866  by  TJie  Rights  of  Man  the  true  Basis  of  Reconstruc- 
tion; The  Puritanas  a  Character  in  History,  1876;  The  Bible  in  Har- 
mony with  Nature,  being  a  review  of  Thomas  Paine,  James 
Anthony  Froude,  and  the  scientists.  He  has  also  written 
An  Appeal  for  Lay  Preaching,  and  Tom  Paine  on  Trial,  and 
Tlie  Infidels  in  Court,  1880;  and  has  bee^i  a  frequent  contributor 


1296 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


to  the  Brooklyn  Times  and  other  papers.  He  has  been  en- 
gaged for  seTeral  years  in  writing  a  work  on  Municipal  Law, 
as  developed  in  the  history  of  the  Patriarchs,  the  Mosaic  ritual, 
the  laws  and  jurisprudence  of  Rome  and  the  Middle  Ages, 
the  Roman  traditions  of  Great  Britain,  especially  of  the 
Dmids,  and  the  Saxon  laws  down  to  the  days  of  Magna  Charta 
— to  elucidate,  in  fact,  the  historical  development  of  law  as 
a  science.  During  his  long  professional  career,  he  has  acciimu- 
lated  a  large  library,  especially  rich  in  ancient  law.  In  1872, 
he  gave  an  address  at  the  centennial  celebration  of  the  first 
settlement  of  his  native  place,  which  was.  published  as  a  part  of 
the  history  of  the  town.  In  1867,  with  his  wife  and  niece,  he 
visited  the  French  Exposition  at  Paris,  traveling  through  parts 
of  France,  England  and  Scotland.  He  published  a  series  of 
letters  containing  observations  and  sketches  of  what  he  noted  in 
the  Old  World.  This  excursion  having  proved  beneficial  to  his 
health,  then  somewhat  impaired,  he  has  since  traveled  through 
most  of  the  States  and  Territories  of  the  Union,  visiting  also 
Manitoba  and  the  Red  River  country  of  the  North.  He  has  spent 
some  S15,000  in  these  travels,  but  in  addition  to  the  varied 
knowledge  so  gathered,  he  believes  that  his  life  has  been  pre- 
served thereby  to  the  sound  old  age  of  seventy-three,  with  a  fair 
prospect  for  lengthened  days.  Mr.  Stearns  has  twice  married; 
first.  Emetine  H.  Adams,  of  Bethel,  Vt.,  in  September,  1836; 
second,  Mrs.  Sarah  J.  Valentine  Vandberg,  December  16,  1861. 
He  has  two  children:  Helen  J.,  who  married  Hon.  Homer  A. 
Nelson,  of  Poughkeepsie,  in  1855,  who  is  widely  known  as  a 
lawyer  and  politician,  having  been  County  Judge  of  Dutchess 
County  four  years;  member  of  Congress,  1861-1862;  Secretary 
of  State  of  New  York  three  years,  and  State  Senator  for  two 
years  last  past.  J.  Milton  Stearns,  Jr.,  has  practiced  law  with 
marked  success,  as  far  as  his  health  permitted.  He  has  latterly 
given  special  attention  to  the  law  of  patents. 

Mr.  Stearns  himself  has  never  held  any  ofiice  above  that  of 
Notary  Public  and  Commissioner  of  Deeds.  In  1860,  he'.was  a 
candidate  for  the  Assembly,  and  again  in  1861.  He  had  reason 
to  believe  that  certain  great  corporations  required  a  "man  of 
straw  "  for  their  purposes,  rather  than  a  person  of  independent 
thought  and  judgment;  hence  he  was  in  both  years  defeated. 
His  political  preferences  of  late  years  have  been  for  the  Repub- 
lican party. 

In  person,  Mr.  Steams  is  somewhat  above  the  average  size,  hale 
and  ruddy,  hair  frosted  by  seventy-three  winters,  but  his  bright 
blue  eye  is  as  keen  now  as  thirty  years  ago.  He  is  a  man'of  great 
force  of  character,  strong  in  his  opinions,  and  courageous  in 
their  defense;  at  the  same  time  permeated  with  an  acute  sense 
of  humor,  altogether  a  typical  New  Englander  of  the  best  class. 
His  long  and  varied  experience  of  life  has  mellowed,  not  soured, 
his  disposition,  so  that  his  comments  on  men  and  things,  though 
somewhat  sarcastic,  are  given  with  a  merry  twinkle  of  the  eye, 
that  makes  them  sparkling,  but  not  acid.  In  these  character- 
istics he  resembles  Carlyle,  without  Carlyle's  bitterness. 

It  has  already  been  mentioned  that  he  was  ordained  to  the 
ministry  in  early  life.  The  reasons  that  impelled  him  to  change 
his  profession  may  be  gleaned  from  the  following  committee 
report,  which  he  made  to  the  Congregational  Association  of  New 
York  State,  under  a  resolution  in  reference  to  the  employing  of 
lay  preachers: 

"  As  one  who  has  failed  in  his  early  aspirations  for  usefulness 
and  success  in  the  Christian  ministry— first,  through  his  pre- 
sumed lack  of  educational  preparation  for  the  work,  and  the 
influences  that  dominated  churches  in  that  regard;  and,  again, 
through  the  contests  for  ascendency  between  old  school  and 
new  school,  old  measures  and  new  measures,  back  of  which  lay 
the  contest  as  between  justice  and  right,  and  apologies  for 
human  slavery— I  confess  I  bring  from  this  experience  an 
earnest  interest  in  behalf  of  the  humblest  servant  of  Christ,  in 
his  efforts,  in  duty,  and  his  aspiration  for  aggressive  work  in  the 
interests  of  Zion.     I  confess  I  looked  for  saintly  sympathy  from 


the  clergy  of  those  times;  but  found  I  could  only  be  appre- 
ciated as  a  factor  on  the  one  side  or  the  other  of  the  great 
contests  that  were  agitating  the  land.  And  when  I  look  back 
and  remember  what  slight  influences,  or  perhaps  unconscious 
prejudices,  and  unguarded  remarks,  shut  out  the  prospects  I 
had  cherished,  and  finally  changed  the  whole  course  of  my  life, 
I  am  impressed  with  the  duty  of  treating  the  modest  and  humble 
aspirations  of  young  men  with  great  tenderness  and  care.  The 
amms  responded  to  the  discourse  of  the  humble  exhorter  have 
often  been  the  inspiration  of  hope  to  his  soul,  and  developed  in 
due  time  the  preacher  as  a  man  of   God  with  power. 

"  But  I  may  be  asked  why  I  have  not  returned  to  the  work? 
This  I  have  often  asked  myself,  and  found  my  chart  of  life  made 
up  and  controlled  by  inexorable  laws.  You  might  as  well  ask  a 
sea  captain  in  mid  ocean  why  he  did  not  come  to  land.  If  the 
ghosts  of  human  quarrels  could  be  laid  by  a  word  and  the  wav- 
ing of  a  wand,  we  could  make  an  end  of  toil  in  the  legal  pro- 
fession.    But  we  have  no  such  power. 

"I  might  occasionally  have  lent  a  hand  in  the  interest  of  my 
cherished  early  hopes.  But  I  have  always  believed  that  church 
order  is  essential  to  permanence  of  religious  influence;  and  to 
go  from  secular  duties  to  the  pulpit  without  the  immediate 
sanction  of  church  authorities  would  have  done  violence  to  a 
useful  popular  sentiment,  and  not  have  been  useful  to  the 
cause." 

BREWSTER   KISSAM. 

Brewstek  Kissam  was  born  in  the  city  of  New  York  on  the 
16th  day  of  March,  1849,  and  is  now  in  his  thirty-sixth  year.  He 
is  a  son  of  George  Brooks  Kissam,  who  in  his  lifetime  was  a 
well-known  lawyer,  and  law  partner  of  Hon.  Dudley  Selden, 
deceased.  Brewster  Kissam  received  an  ordinary  common  school 
education,  and  at  the  age  of  fourteen  years  went  to  sea.  He  fol- 
lowed this  life  for  about  two  years,  having,  during  that  time, 
been  to  China,  Japan,  the  East  Indies,  California,  and  other 
parts  of  the  globe.  Upon  his  return  to  New  York,  about  the 
year  186.5,  he  commenced  the  study  of  law  in  the  law  ofiice  of 
Charles  B.  Hart,  in  New  York.  In  April,  1870,  being  then 
twenty-one  years  and  one  month  old,  he  was  admitted  to  the 
Bar  in  that  city,  and  entered  immediately  upon  the  active  prac- 
tice of  his  profession-  in  this  State.  In  October,  1870,  a  few 
months  following  his  admission  to  the  Bar,  he  married  a  Miss 
Emma  C.  Atkinson,  of  Brooklyn,  who  is  now  his  wife.  The 
issue  of  this  marriage  is  one  child. 

Mr.  Kissam  is  well  known  as  a  lawyer,  has  a  large  and  lucrative 
practice  in  the  cities  of  New  York  and  Brooklyn,  and  has  acted 
as  counsel  in  many  important  law  cases.  As  a  lawyer,  he 
has  the  reputation  of  carrying  conviction  to  the  minds  of  the 
court  and  jury,  by  the  sound  common  sense  of  his  arguments 
rather  than  by  any  attempted  flights  of  oratory. 

In  politics,  Mr.  Kissam  is  an  uncompromising  Democrat.  For 
a  period  of  five  years  he  represented  his  ward  in  the  Democratic 
General  Committee  of  Kings  County,  and  took  an  active  part  in 
the  deliberations  and  discussions  of  that  body. 

He  resigned  from  the  committee  in  the  fall  of  the  year  1878. 
He  has,  during  the  past  ten  years,  represented  his  district  in 
numerous  city  and  county  conventions,  and  in  several  State  con- 
ventions. In  the  fall  of  1877  he  was  chairman  of  the  Kings 
County  delegation  to  the  Democratic  State  Convention,  held  at 
Albany.  Mr.  Kissam  has  always  taken  an  active  interest  in  the 
politics  of  the  party  with  which  he  is  identified,  and  for  several 
years  past  has  taken  the  stump,  each  fall,  in  the  interest  of  his 
party.  Although  not  a  particularly  flowery  speaker,  he  is  known 
as  a  forcible  and  common  sense  one. 

In  the  fall  of  the  year  1881,  Mr.  Kissam  was  appointed  as  one 
of  the  three  Commissioners  of  Charities  and  Corrections  of  Kings 
County  for  the  term  of  four  years  from  the  1st  January,  1882. 

This  position  he  still  holds,  continuing,  at  the  same  time,  the 
practice  of  his  profession. 


(yJ/^Qu/v^/r   L^^ 


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CL     O    hl.t£lccyn^ 


LEGAL    BLOGRAPHIES. 


1297 


The  duties  and  responsibilities  devolying  upon  him  as  a  com- 
missioner are  very  great,  involving  the  care,  management  and 
control  of  the  Penitentiary,  Almshouse,  Hospital,  Lunatic  Asy- 
lum, Asylum  for  the  Incurable  Insane,  and  their  4,000  inmates. 
His  record  as  a  commissioner  is  well  known  to  the  people  of  this 
county.  Reforms  in  this  department,  previously  commenced, 
have  been  continued,  and  other  important  reforms  have  been 
effected  during  his  term  of  office. 

Mr.  Kissam  is  about  five  feet  ten  inches  in  height,  weighs  210 
pounds,  is  dark  complexioned,  and  has  dark  eyes  and  hair. 


JOHN  A.   NICHOLS. 
John  A.  Nichols  is  a  son  of  John  and  Eliza  (Camerden)  Nichols, 
and  was  born  at  Port  Richmond,  Staten  Island,   August  28th, 

1831.  He  was  educated  at  the  old  Academy  in  Newark,  New 
Jersey,  read  law  in  the  office  of  Norman  B.  Judd,  of  Chicago,  and 
was  admitted  to  the  Bar  in  1855.  In  1860,  he  received  the  hon- 
orary degree  of  A.  M.  from  Kenyon  College,  at  Gambler,  Ohio. 
He  was  engaged  in  the  practice  of  his  profession  in  Chicago  until 
1864,  when  he  removed  to  Brooklyn  and  became  identified  with 
insurance  interests  in  New  York.  A  year  later  these  interests 
necessitated  his  removal  to  Baltimore,  Maryland,  where  he  was 
manager  of  an  extensive  agency  and  organized  an  insurance 
company,  still  in  existence,  of  which  he  was  for  some  time  pres- 
ident. He  returned  to  Brooklyn  in  1873,  residing  at  No.  437 
Clinton  avenue,  and  was  again  prominently  connected  with 
New  York  insurance  interests  until  1882,  when  he  resumed  the 
practice  of  the  law,  his  offices  being  located  at  73  Broadway. 

Politically,  Mr.  Nichols  is  a  Republican.  In  January,  1880, 
he  was  elected  president  of  the  Kings  County  Republican 
General  Committee,  and  in  the  following  spring  he  was  appointed 
Commissioner  of  Quarantine  by  Governor  Cornell,  which  posi- 
tion he  yet  holds.  He  has  long  been  active  and  influential 
both  in  local  and  State  politics,  and  has  served  as  a  delegate  from 
his  district  to  all  Republican  State  Conventions  for  some  years 
past.  Mr.  Nichols'  religious  affiliations  are  with  the  Prot- 
estant Episcopal  Church,  and  he  and  his  family  are  communi- 
cants of  the  Church  of  the  Messiah,  Brooklyn,  with  which  he 
is  officially  connected  as  vestryman.  For  several  years  past  he 
has  regularly  been  a  delegate  to  the  Diocesan  Conventions. 

March  19th,  1855,  Mr.  Nichols  was  married  to  a  daughter  of 
Francis  Bortells,  of  Palmyra,  Wayne  County,  New  Y^ork;  they 
have  four  sons  and  a  daughter.  The  identification  of  Mrs. 
Nichols  with  the  charitable  institutions  of  Brooklyn  is  well 
known,  and  dates  back  almost  to  the  time  when  Mr.  Nichols  first 
became  a  resident  of  the  city.  It  is  to  the  Sheltering  Arms 
Nursery,  however,  that  she  devotes  most  of  her  time  and  gen- 
erosity. Of  this  institution  she  is  president  and  a  more  than 
liberal  supporter. 

A.  ORVILLE  MILLARD. 

A.  Obville  Mtt.t.ar-q  is  a  native  of  Ulster  County,  New  York, 
born  January  9th,  1809,  a  son  of  T.  Aitken  and  Charlotte  (Bo- 
selle)  Millard.  His  parents  died  when  he  was  a  mere  child,  and 
he  had  a  hard  struggle  until  he  reached  young  manhood.  He 
taught  school  and  was  engaged  in  civil  engineering  until  he 
was  twenty-one  years  of  age,  when  he  came  to  New  York  and 
began  to  read  law  in  the  office  of  Samuel  Sherwood,  one  of  the 
most  distinguished  lawyers  of  that  time. 

At  the  time  of  his  arrival  in  New  York,  Broadway  extended 
only  as  far  up  as  Canal  street,  with  farms  above,  and  Brooklyn 
was  a  mere  country  village  clustering  about  Fulton  Ferry.  He 
lived  in  New  York  during  the  whole  of  the  memorable  year  of 

1832,  during  the  terrible  ravages  of  the  cholera,  and  also  during 
the  period  of  the  abolition  riots,  in  1834,  when  he  witnessed 
many  scenes  of  turbulence  and  excitement  which  have  become 
historical.    It  is  matter  of   interest   in  this    connection  that 


Brooklyn's  growth  dates  from  1833,  the  year  after  the  cholera 
season,  when  New  Yorkers  sought  that  locality  for  country  seats 
remote  from  the  city,  and  only  a  few  years  later  the  slope  only 
a  short  distance  from  the  ferry  was  dotted  with  viUas,  with 
partially  cultivated  spaces  between.  The  rapid  growth  of 
Brooklyn,  during  the  earlier  years  of  its  advancement,  Mr. 
Millard  attributes  to  the  fact  that  the  assessors  of  Kings  County 
exempted  personal  property  from  taxation,  which  afforded  an 
inducement  to  New  York  merchants  to  settle  in  Brooklyn. 

In  July,  1833,  Mr.  Millard  was  admitted  to  the  Bar,  and  at 
once  opened  an  office  at  No  7  Nassau  street.  He  was  engaged  in 
the  general  practice  of  his  profession  until  1849,  when  he  retired 
from  active  professional  life;  but  being  engaged  in  real  estate 
practice,  he  continued  the  same  until  the  commencement  of 
the  Rebellion.  He  has  been  a  resident  of  Brooklyn  since  1839, 
and  has  since  taken  a  deep  interest  in  the  growth  and  pros- 
perity of  the  city  at  large,  and  especially  of  Old  Bedford,  within 
the  confines  of  which  he  has  so  long  had  his  home.  He  was 
for  several  years  one  of  the  supervisors  of  Brooklyn,  and  was 
one  of  the  earliest  members  of  the  Board  of  Education,  which 
he  assisted  materially  to  organize.  He  was  appointed  Master 
in  Chancery  by  Governor  Bouck  about  1843,  and  held  the 
office  until  the  Court  of  Chancery  was  abolished.  The  rapid 
development  of  his  part  of  the  city  is  attributable  in  a  great 
degree  to  the  operations  in  real  estate  of  Mr.  Millard  and  others, 
and  to  him  is  due  the  credit  of  having  induced  many  worthy 
citizens  to  take  up  their  residence  in  that  locality. 

It  is  probable  that  Judge  Millard,  in  view  of  his  long  resi- 
dence in,  and  his  identification  with  the  interests  of  Brooklyn, 
is  more  thoroughly  conversant  with  the  history  of  its  progress 
from  a  village  to  its  present  status  as  the  third  city  in  the  Union, 
than  any  other  resident.  He  has  been  a  property-holder  and 
a  close  and  attentive  observer  of  passing  events,  and  the  various 
interests  of  Brooklyn  have  been  watched  by  him  through  many 
years  of  development,  and  he  is  thoroughly  acquainted  with  the 
causes  which  have  resulted  in  the  remarkable  progress  of  the 
city.  The  introduction  of  the  Croton  water  in  New  York  gave 
to  that  city  an  impetus  and  advantages  that  left  Brooklyn  at  a 
standstill  until  the  Ridgewood  water  was  introduced,  which  gave 
her  an  immediate  and  vigorous  acceleration  of  growth.  The 
next  important  event  of  which  Mr.  Millard  speaks  in  this  con- 
nection, was  the  introduction  of  horse  railroads  in  New  York, 
in  consequence  of  which  thousands  of  families  moved  up  town, 
and  the  settlement  of  the  Brooklyn  shore  was  retarded  until  the 
introduction  of  the  street  railways  in  Brooklyn;  and,  with  other 
far-seeing  citizens,  Mr.  Millard  believes  that  the  progress  of 
Brooklyn  will  be  comparatively  slow  until  she  can  compete  with 
New  York  in  the  matter  of  rapid  transit. 

Mr.  Millard  has  been  a  life-long  Democrat;  he  was  reared  in 
the  Episcopal  Church,  and  for  many  years  has  been  interested 
in  St.  Luke's  Episcopal  Church  on  Clinton  avenue. 


FRANCIS  E.  DANA 
is  of  the  old  New  England  Dana  family,  which  has  produced 
some  men  eminent  in  letters  and  in  the  profession,  while  all  its 
members  have  been  at  least  respectable  law-abiding  citizens;  in 
fine,  it  is  a  good  example  of  the  New  England  aristocracy  of 
talent  and  intelligence.  Mr.  Dana's  great-grandfather  was  a 
member  of  the  Connecticut  Assembly  from  the  Connecticut 
Colony  that  had  settled  in  the  Connecticut  lands  in  Pennsyl- 
vania; returning  to  his  home,  he  fell  a  victim  to  the  [massacre 
in  the  Wyoming  Valley,  whence  his  widow  and  nine  children 
made  their  way  back  on  foot  to  friends  in  Connecticut. 

Mr.  Dana  is  of  the  third  generation  of  lawyers  in  the  family; 
his  father,  Mr.  Alexander  Hamilton  Dana,  and  his  grand- 
father, Elizur  Dana,  of  Owego,  having  been  bred  to  the  law 
before  him.  He  was  horn  in  Livingston  street,  Brooklyn, 
January  21,    1836  ;    his    early    education    was    acquired  at  a 


1298 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


private  school  in  Powers  street,  kept  by  a  Mr.  Fairchild,  and 
at  the  Columbia  College  Grammar  School.  Atthe  age  of  sixteen, 
he  commenced  the  study  of  the  law  in  his  father's  office  in  New 
York,  where  his  training  was  thorough  and  practical;  he  passed 
a  good  examination  and  was  admitted  to  the  Bar  February  12, 
1858.  He  soon  after  began  the  practice  of  his  profession  in 
New  York.  Many  of  his  clients  being  Brooklyn  people,  in  1869 
he  removed  to  this  city,  where  his  practice  largely  centered, 
although  he  still  has  often  to  appear  in  New  York  courts.  He 
is  regarded  by  his  brethren  on  the  Bench  and  at  the  Bar  as  an 
able  lawyer;  in  the  trial  of  causes,  his  cases  are  carefully  prepared 
and  skillfully  presented:  shrewd,  wary,  and  self-controlled, 
sharp  in  attack  and  strong  in  defense,  not  often  disconcerted, 
he  nearly  always  is  master  of  the  situation.  Before  a  jury,  his 
style  is  temperate  and  collected,  rather  than  vociferous,  yet 
sufficiently  animated;  it  is  more  impressive  than  impulsive, 
more  logical  than  declamatory,  and  he  wins  by  force  of  reason- 
ing rather  than  by  appeals  to  prejudice.  In  arguments  addressed 
to  the  Court,  his  briefs  and  points  are  clear,  succinct,  and  well 
sustained  by  authorities;  his  words  terse  and  direct.  Among 
the  brilliant  triumphs  that  Mr.  Dana  has  won,  may  be  men- 
tioned the  following  cases,  viz.:  The  Phcenix  Warehousing 
Company,  respondent,  v.  Daniel  D.  Badger,  appellant,  reported 
in  the  67th  New  York  Court  of  Appeals  Reports,  page  294. 
In  this  case  Mr.  Dana  appeared  for  the  respondents,  having 
been  their  attorney  though  the  lower  courts,  and  the  Court 
sustained  his  position,  that  a  trustee  of  a  corporation  who  has 
taken  part  in  its  management  and  contracted  with  it  as  a  cor- 
poration, cannot  afterwards  dispute  the  validity  of  its  incorpo- 
ration ;  also  that  a  subscription  to  the  articles  of  incorporation, 
with  a  statement  of  the  number  of  shares  opposite  the  name,  is 
a  sufficient  and  binding  subscription  for  stock,  and  takes  effect 
on  filing  the  certificate.  Another  is  the  case  of  W.  L.  Palmer, 
appellant,  v.  W.  Purdy,  as  executor,  etc.,  respondent,  83d 
New  York,  page  144,  in  which  Mr.  Dana  appeared  for  the  appel- 
lant, and  the  Court  of  Appeals  held  in  his  favor,  that  though  one 


of  several  original  debtors  may  contract  with  the  others  for  their 
assumption  of  the  common  debt  so  as  to  acquire  the  rights  of  a 
surety,  their  notice  to  the  creditor  of  their  changed  attitude 
must  be  definite  and  distinct.  Another  and  a  very  interesting 
case  in  connection  with  the  colored  public  schools,  which  Mr. 
Dana  conducted  in  behalf  of  the  Board  of  Education,  is 
reported  in  the  93d  New  York,  page  400,  as  The  People  ex  rel. 
Theresa  W.  B.  King,  by  guardian,  appellant,  v.  John  Gallagher, 
principal,  etc.,  respondent;  Mr.  Dana  appearing  for  respondent. 
The  Court  held  that  under  the  provisions  of  the  Common  School 
Act,  passed  in  1864,  applying  to  cities  and  incorporated  towns, 
the  school  authorities  have  power  to  establish  schools  for  the 
exclusive  use  of  colored  children,  and  that  the  establishment  of 
such  separate  schools  is  not  an  abridgment  of  the  "privileges 
or  immunities  "  preserved  by  the  Fourteenth  Amendment  to  the 
Constitution ;  that  eqnalUi/  and  not  identity  of  rights  and  privileges 
is  what  is  guaranteed;  that  neither  the  Fourteenth  Amendment 
nor  the  Civil  Rights  Act  of  1873  restrict  the  right  to  establish 
separate  colored  schools;  as  the  common  schools  are  granted  by 
the  State  to  its  citizens,  and  depend  solely  upon  State  laws  for 
their  origin  and  support,  they  are  not  within  the  purview  of  the 
Constitution.  This  case  attracted  widespread  attention,  from 
its  importance,  and  brought  many  commendations  to  the 
attorney  for  the  able  manner  in  which  he  conducted  it.  Mr. 
Dana  has  been  so  absorbed  in  his  profession  that  he  has  never 
interested  himself  in  politics,  beyond  voting,  generally,  the 
Republican  ticket,  and  has  never  held  office,  except  as  a  member 
of  the  Board  of  Education,  to  which  he  was  first  appointed  in 
July,  1880,  and  reappointed  by  Mayor  Low  in  1883;  he  has  been 
chairman  of  the  Law  Committee  since  1881,  and  carried  on  the 
litigated  cases  of  the  Board. 

In  person,  Mr.  Dana  is  of  commanding  height,  erect,  and 
well  proportioned. 

In  1869,  he  married  Julia,  youngest  daughter  of  Rev.  Dr. 
Budington;  their  pleasant  house  on  Washington  avenue  is  the 
abode  of  refinement  and  culture. 


LEGAL    BIOGRAPHIES. 


1299 


HON.    JOHN    VANDERBILT. 


Tlie  Hon.  John  Vanderbilt  (referred  to  on  pages  352  and 
363,  as  a  partner  in  the  legal  firm  of  Lott,  Murphj-  &  Van- 
derbilt), was  the  eldest  sou  of  John  Vanderbilt  and  Sarah 
Lott,  his  wife,  of  Flatbush.  In  1835,  as  we  have  seen,  he  be- 
came the  junior  member  of  the  distinguished  and  very 
representative  firm  above  referred  to.  It  is  said  of  the  three 
gentlemen  comprising  this  firm,  that  "they  brought  into 
local  politics  the  principles  of  statesmanship,  and  to  civil 
service  the  habits  of  fidelity,  independence  and  diligence, 
and  that  grade  of  culture,  force  and  knowledge,  which  made 
their  public  records  a  bright  part  of  the  history  of  their 
county,  just  as  their  private  careers  have  been  a  most 
honorable  part  of  the  social  and  intellectual  history  of  their 
city." 

On  the  1st  of  May,  1844,  Mr.  Vanderbilt.  then  only  twenty- 
five  years  of  age,  was  appointed  by  Governor  William  C. 
Bouck,  to  the  responsible  position  of  first  Judge  of  the  Court 
of  Common  Pleas  of  Kings  county,  to  succeed  Judge  Green- 
wood, who  had  resigned.  He  discharged  the  duties  of  this 
important  position  with  faithfulness  and  credit  for  two 
years,  until  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas  was  abolished  by  the 
adoption  of  the  New  Constitution  in  1846,  and  the  creation  of 
the  County  Court  as  at  present  constituted.  It  has  been  said 
that,  at  the  time  of  his  retirement  from  the  bench,  there  was 
not  a  more  popular  man,  politically  and  socially,  in  the  city 
of  Brooklyn,  than  he!  In  the  fall  of  1852,  he  received  the 
Democratic  nomination  for  the  State  Senate,  to  which  position 
he  was  chosen  by  a  large  majority.  He  filled  this  station 
creditably  for  the  full  term  of  two  years.  During  his  term  as 
Senator  he  was  appointed  one  of  the  Commissioners  to  inves- 
tigate the  harbor  encroachments  of  New  York.  He  was  also 
selected  as  one  of  the  Commissioners  to  investigate  the  affairs 
of  President  Nott  and  Union  College.     In  the  fall  of  1856  he 


was  nominated  on  the  Democratic  ticket  for  Lieut. -Governor, 
with  Amasa  J.  Parker,  of  Albany,  as  Governor,  but  the 
Democrats  were  not  successful  in  the  issue  of  the  election. 
For  several  years  before  his  death,  which  occurred  at  Flat- 
bush,  May  16,  1877,  Judge  Vanderbilt  was  retix-ed  from 
active  service  by  a  shock  of  paralysis;  but,  "  in  the  prime  of 
his  energy  was  certaiiily  the  most  vigorous  and  handsome 
man  in  public  or  political  life  in  this  county,  if  not  in  the 
State.  His  strong,  manly  beauty  mated  with  and  was  the 
exponent  of  qualities  of  mind  and  heart,  as  attractive  as  his 
gifts  and  giaces  of  person.  In  a  time  when  '  rings '  were 
unknown,  he  was  a  Democrat;  in  a  time  when  sectionalism 
was  hardly  an  apparition,  and  wlien  the  State  had  its  full 
rights,  whether  it  was  weighed  or  counted  as  a  factor,  he 
was  a  patriot,  and  one  who  gloried  in  his  whole  country;  in  a 
time  when  shysters  had  not  been  evolved,  and  when  jietti- 
foggers  were  limited  to  a  satirical  stage  or  a  sarcastic  litera- 
ture, he  was  a  lawyer;  in  a  time  when  gentlemen  were  as 
dominant  in  politics,  and  scholars  as  dominant  in  council  as 
they  now  are  not,  he  was  a  scholar  and  a  gentleman.  His 
rapidity  of  public  development,  his  activity  in  affaus,  his  not 
surpassed  qualities  of  good-fellowship,  the  magnetism  of  his 
mind  and  manners,  and  the  impressive  appeal  which  he 
covild  address  to  the  ])eoi)le,  early  made  him  and  long  kept 
him  what  he  was  freely  called,  '  Kings  County's  Favorite 
Son,'  when  that  appellation  was  forcible  by  its  vanity,  sig- 
nificant in  its  meaning,  and  when  it  had  not  been  vulgarized 
by  its  application  to  the  politicians  by  profession,  and  to  the 
place-hunters  by  occupation." 

Judge  Vanderbilt  married  Gertrude  Phebe  Lefferts, 
daughter  of  John  Lefferts,  of  Flatbush.  She  survives 
him,  and  is  elsewhere  noted  (p.  1316)  as  the  author  of  the 
Social  History  of  Flatbush. 


JOHN     O  AKEY,     ESQ 


John  Oakey,  Esq.,  although  born  in  Brooklyn,  removed 
in  his  early  childhood  with  his  father  to  Flatbush,  at  which 
place  he  has  spent  the  greater  part  of  his  eventful  life,  and  is 
justly  claimed  by  Flatbush  as  one  of  her  representative  men. 
He  was  educated  at  Erasmus  Hall,  from  which  institution 
he  passed  in  1845,  to  enter  Yale  College,  graduating  with 
honor  in  1849.  He  studied  law  in  New  York  city,  with  Hon- 
James  Humphrey,  M.  C;  he  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1851, 
and  for  twenty-three  years  practised  law  in  New  York  city; 
during  all  this  period  he  was  the  Notary  of  the  Nassau  Bank; 
from  1857  to  1861  he  was  the  Justice  of  the  Peace  for  the  vil- 
lage of  Flatbush.  When  the  civil  war  broke  out  in  1861,  he 
was  the  first  man  who  left  Flatbush  for  the  seat  of  war;  he 
was  then  a  member  of  the  7th  Regiment,  New  York;  upon 
his  departure  his  wife  was  presented  by  several  gentlemen  of 
the  village,  with  a  check  for  $100;  and  efforts  were  imme- 
diately made  by  which  a  village  relief  fund  of  several 
thousand  dollars  was  raised  for  the  aid  of  those  who  might 
go  to  the  war.  In  1866  he  was  elected  Member  of  the  Assembly 
on  the  Republican  ticket,  in  a  strongly  Democratic  district, 
and  was  returned  in  1867,  thus  serving  two  years  in  the 
Assembly;  during  a  portion  ef  this  time  he  was  Chairman  of 
the  Committee  on  Commerce  and  Navigation,  succeeding 
Hon.  Dewitt  C.  Littlejohn.    In  1868,  he  was  appointed  Judge 


Advocate  with  the  rank  of  Colonel,  on  the  staff  of  Major- 
General  Shaler,  First  Division,  N.  G.,  S.  N.  Y.;  this  position 
he  held  for  five  years,  until  1873.  From  1874  to  1878  he  was 
Counsel  for  the  Brooklyn  Police  and  Excise  Departments, 
and  in  1878,  he  was  appointed  as  Assistant  District  Attorney 
of  Brooklyn  and  Kings  County.  He  has  been  the  founder  of 
several  large  and  flourishing  amateur  dramatic  associations, 
and  the  President  as  well  as  founder  of  the  Amaranth  Society 
of  Brooklyn.  Through  his  iastrumentality  the  late  Lieut.- 
Commander  George  W.  De  Long,  of  the  ill-fated  Jeannette 
of  the  Arctic  expedition,  was  advanced  to  his  position  of 
honor.  He  was  with  Col.  Oakey  as  office  boy  for  three  or 
four  years,  and  through  Col.  Oakey's  influence  with  some  of 
our  prominent  business  men,  young  De  Long  received  an  ap- 
pointment of  a  cadetshii)  in  1861. 


Of  Judge  John  Lefferts,  mentioned  on  page  225,  it  should 
be  further  said,  that  as  a  member  of  the  Convention  of  1831 
for  Amending  the  Constitution  of  the  State,  he  was,  with 
John  Van  Buren  and  others,  one  of  the  so-called  "  Immortal 
Seventeen  "  who  refused  to  adopt  a  law  conferring  upon  the 
people  the  privilege  of  choosing  their  own  Presidential  Elect- 
ors, instead  of  allowing  it  to  remain  in  the  Legislature. 


THE  GARFIELD  BUILDING,  COB.  COURT  AND   EEM8ES  STREETS,   BROOKLYN. 
(This  cut  used  by  permission  of  Mr.  A.  A.  Low.) 


NOTES 


LITERATURE     AND     SCIENCE 


BROOKLYN 


LIBRARIES,  LITERHRY  AND  SCIENTIFIC  SSSOCmTIONS,  CLUBS, 
AUTHORS     AND     SCIENTISTS. 


LIBRAKIES. 

Brooklyn  Institute. — The.  Apprentices'  Library  Association 
of  Brooklyn  (now  the  Brooklyn  Institute),  had  its  origin  in 
the  summer  of  1823,  in  the  office  of  the  Long  Island  Star, 
where  the  editor,  Colonel  Alden  Spooner,  William  Wood*  of 
New  York,  and  other  gentlemen  conferred  together  on  the  sub- 
ject of  education  and  mental  improvement  for  the  apprentice 
lads  and  youth  of  the  village;  and  a  few  days  after,  the  follow- 
ing advertisement  appeared  in  the  Star  and  Patriot:  "  Notice. 
— A2}prentices''  Library:  The  citizens  of  the  village  of  Brook- 
lyn, and  particularly  the  master-mechanics,  are  requested  to 
attend  a  meeting  at  the  house  of  William  Stephenson,  at  8 
o'clock  on  Thursday  evening,  for  the  purpose  of  forming  and 
establishing  an  Apprentices'  Library  in  this  village.  The 
honorable,  the  trustees  of  this  village,  and  the  reverend, 
the  clergy,  are  particularly  invited  to  attend.  August  7, 
18-33." 


*  William  Wood,  said  t 
in  that  city,  about  1805,  i 
brother,  under  the  firm 
Europe  five  times,  and  w 
don.  England.  Revulsion 


3  have  been  born  in  Boston,  at  1777,  commenced  bi 
I  the  earthen  and  glass  ware  Une,  in  company  with  a 
style  of  W.  &  T.  N.  Wood.  Subsequently  he  visited 
as  for  two  years  engaged  in  mercantile  pursuits  in  Lon- 
i  in  trade  occurring  after  the  close  of  the  war  in  1815,  in- 


volved Mr.  Wood's  house  in  pecuniary  difficulties,  which,  added  to  other  circum- 
stanies  of  a  peculiar  nature,  Induced  him,  about  1822,  to  remove  to  New  York, 
where  his  brother  had  previously  settled.  Previously  to  this  he  had  commenced 
that  peculiar  specialty  of  benefaction,  which  so  distinguished  his  whole  future  life. 
On  the  anniversary  of  Washington's  birthday,  February  22,  1820,  he  established  in 
Boston,  the  first  mercantile  library  in  the  United  States,  It  is  also  said,  with 
what  truth  we  know  not,  that  during  his  stay  in  England,  he  had  commenced  a 
mercantile  library  in  London.  In  November  of  the  same  year  he  commenced  and 
itablishment  of  the  now  large  and  famous  Mercantile  Library 


accomplished  the 
Association  0/  New 
pears  upon  the  recor 
year,  as  Vice-Preside 
ness  partner,  ''  was  tt 
fit  of  young  men  enga 
be  induced  to  take  an 
their  evenings,  thus  v 
examples  of  a  society 


York.     With  ch, 
ds  of  that  Associ; 

ent.  **  His  chief  desire,"  says  Mr.  Ja 
:o  establish  libraries  in  New  York  anc 
aged  in  merchants'  counting  houses  3 
n  interest,  and  to  which  they  could  ha 
withdrawing  them  from  the  baneful  ii 
which  they  would  otherwise  be  e: 


odesty,  Mr.  Wood's 


;  ap. 


iitss 


i.  B.  Henshaw,  his  busi- 
elsewhere  for  the  bene- 
nd  such  others  as  could 
I'e  free  access,  and  spend 
ifluences  and  corrupting 
:posed;  and  where  their 


literary  and  conversational  abilities  could  be  developed."  His  plan  for  establishing 
these  libraries  was  to  visit  personally  the  merchants  and  leading  citizens  of  a  place, 
make  Ichown  his  intentions,  invite  subscriptions  and  donations  of  books,  and  pre- 


The  meeting  held  in  pursuance  of  this  call,  Included  the 
best  citizens  of  the  village,  the  men  of  largest  forethought,  of 
unselfish  impulse,  of  persistent  effort,  who  tenderly  watched 
over  the  interests  of  the  village,  and  carefully  guided  the 
embryo  city  through  the  perils  incident  to  the  critical  and 
somewhat  rapid  development  of  its  muscular  youth.  An  ad- 
journed meeting  was  held  on  the  14th,  a  constitution  was 
adopted,  and  thirty  persons  subscribed  and  paid  their  initiation 
fees.  August  28,  1823,  the  Association,  then  numbering  up- 
wards of  180  members,  commenced  its  existence  by  the  elec- 
tion of  the  following  officers:  Robert  Snow,  President;  Thomas 
Kirk,  Vice-President;  Andrew  Mercein,  Treasurer;  Robert 
Nichols,  Secretary;  George  S.  Wise,  Fanning  C.  Tucker, 
Thomas  Haynes,  Gamaliel  King,  Joseph  Herbert,  Andrew 
Demorest,  Losee  Van  Nostrand,  Augustus  Graham,  and  Dr. 
Josiah  Noyes.  The  nucleus  of  a  library  was  formed  by  dona- 
tion. A  place  for  its  reception  was  found  at  No.  143  Fulton 
street,  and  on  November  15th  books  were  issued  for  the  first 

pare  a  proper  place  for  their  reception  and  use.  In  this  work,  he  went  simply  and 
naturally  to  work,  often  e.vperiencing  contumely  and  opposition;  but  inevitably 
commending  himself  to  the  good  and  true,  by  the  quiet  c.-^ndor  of  his  address,  and 
the  evident  sincerity  of  his  purpose.  As  soon  as  the  success  of  his  New  York  enter- 
prise was  well  assured,  he  repeated  the  experiment  in  Brooklyn,  When  the  Ap- 
prentices' Library  was  fairly  under  way,  he  disappeared  for  other  scenes  of  similar 
usefulness. 

Lord  Brougham's  Sketches  0/ Public  Characters,  published  in  1839  (vol.  II,  p. 
80)  says,  that  "although  the  remote  origin  of  these  institutions  may  be  traced  to 
Franklin.  Mr.  William  Wood  has  the  high  merit  of  establishing  them  on  their 
present  plans,  and  adapting  them  peculiarly  to  the  instruction  of  mechanics  and  ap- 
prentices. He  founded  the  first  in  Boston,  in  1820;  he  has  had  the  satisfaction  of 
seeing  the  plan  adopted  in  New  York,  Philadelphia,  Albany,  and  other  towns;  and 
I  have  now  before  me  a  letter  in  which  he   says  that  he  has  succeeded  in  forming 


;he\ 


Dn  business."  Mr.  Wood  also  established 

,  literary  societies,  etc.    He  was  a  bach- 

,  good  convivial  powers,  and  a  great  fondness 

d  youth,  whom  he  delighted  to  assist  and  in- 

do  by  his  excellent  education  and  extensive 


one  at  New  Orleans,  wher< 
many  minor  libraries  for  sailors, 
elor,  but  possessed  warm  sympathle 
for  the  companionship  of  children  a 
struct,  as  he  was   well   qualified  t 
reading. 

He  was  for  many  of  the  later  years  of  his  life,  a  resident  of  Canandaigua, 
N.  Y.,  and  to  him  and  his  friend,  Mr.  John  Grieg,  that  beautiful  village  is  indebted 
for  many  of  its  charms  and  conveniences.  There  he  died  aged  about  seventy-five 
years,  after  an  entire  devotion  of  many  years  to  the  advancement  of  the  great  ob- 
ject which  seems  to  have  been  the  mission  of  his  life. 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


time  to  ten  apprentices.  The  Trustees  of  the  Brooklyn  Union 
Sunday-school  transferred  their  library  to  the  new  institution, 
allowing  the  members  of  the  school  the  benefit  of  the  books 
of  both  libraries.  Mr.  Erastus  Worthington  was  appointed 
librarian,  to  issue  books  from  four  to  nine  P.  M.  every  Satur- 
day, with  a  compensation  of  75  cents  per  day.  Jan.  16,  1834, 
the  directors  reported  734  volumes  and  150  pamphlets,  in  con- 
stant use  by  70  readers.  Nov.  30,  1834,  an  act  of  incorporation 
was  passed.  The  need  of  a  more  suitable  building,  sufliciently 
large  to  contain  the  library  and  a  public  lecture-room  was 
felt. 

A  site  was  bought  on  the  corner  of  Cranberry  and  Henry 
streets,  where  the  corner-stone  was  laid  by  General  Lafayette, 
on  the  4th  of  July,  1835,  and  the  edifice  comjileted  May  3, 
1826.  The  library  occupied  the  basement  of  this  building — 
the  Post-office  the  first  floor,  and  the  large  room  above  was 
used  as  a  police  court  and  for  public  meetings.  In  1836,  a  free 
reading-room  was  opened  every  day  in  the  week,  except  Sun- 
day. In  1837,  Mr.  Stoothoof  succeeded  to  the  librarianship. 
In  tills  year  also  a  savings-bank  was  established  in  the  build- 
ing for  the  benefit  of  adult  mechanics.  Thus  for  several  years 
the  Apprentices'  Library  carried  on  its  useful  work  among 
the  youth  of  Brooklyn.  But  some  of  its  friends  died,  others 
removed,  the  readers  gradually  fell  off,  and  the  institution 
became  embarrassed  by  debt.  Finally,  in  1836,  the  building  was 
sold  to  the  city  for  $1,100  and  the  books  were  boxed  and  stored 
away.  In  1840,  Mr.  Augustus  Graham,*  its  most  prominent 
benefactor,  and  others,  reorganized  the  society,  and  reopened 
the  library.  The  new  board  of  directors  in  Feb.,  1840,  con- 
sisted of  Augustus  Graham,  Pres.;  Robert  Nichols,  Vice-Pres.; 
P.  J.  Arcularius,  Treas.;  Francis  Dow,  Sec'y;  James  Walters, 
Losee  Van  Nostrand,  Thomas  S.  Woodcock,  Alden  Spooner, 
Henry  C.  Murphy,  Charles  Congdon,  Gabriel  Furman,  Stephen 
Cornell  and  Austin  Melvin,  Directors.  In  Oct.,  1841,  the  as- 
sociation removed  to  the  new  and  substantial  granite  build- 
ing on  Washington  street,  near  Concord,  now  known  as  the 
Brooklyn  Institute,  which  the  Brooklyn  Lyceum  had  erected 
at  a  cost  of  |35,000.     In  1843,  the  costly  edifice  and  grounds 

*  Augustus  Graham  was  one,  and  the  first,  of  the  two  (pretended)  brothers  who 
came  to  Brooklyn,  about  1815,  and  rapidly  made  friends  among  those  who  realize 
substantial  elements  of  character.  Shortly  after  him  came  John  Bell — which  was 
his  real  name,  and  then  Mrs.  Isabella  Taylor,  who  assumed  the  position  of  house- 
keeper in  their  joint  home  on  the  corner  of  Front  and  Dock  streets,  being  under- 
stood to  be  their  s-ster.  She  died  first  and  Augustus  next  died,  but,  a  little  before 
his  decease,  it  became  known  that  he  had  previously  married,  and  that  none  of  the 
three  were  really  related  each  to  the  other.  Whatever  the  motives  which  induced 
them  to  practice  the  peculiar  comedy  of  their  Brooklyn  life,  it  is  certain  that 
brothers  and  sisters  can  rarely  be  found  to  agree  in  more  perfect  harmony  than  in 
their  case.  The  Grahams  were  exemplary  as  men  of  character  and  probity,  while 
their  works  do  praise  thtm  in  this  as  well  as  in  other  communities. 

The  two  Grahams  made  a  fortune  in  the  distillery  business,  near  the  Navy 
Yard:  and  finally  (1822),  became  interested  in  the  Brooklyn  White  Lead  Works. 
They  kept  no  separate  accounts;  lived  from  a  common  purse:  and  their  union  was 
always  most  affectionate,  while  their  probity  and  correct  business  habits  derived 
for  them  general  respect  and  consideration.  They  continued  together  as  partners 
till  death  severed  their  connection. 

Mr.  Graham  was  ever  animated  by  a  noble  spirit  of  enlightened  generosity  ;  his 
moral  character  was  pure  and  simple:  bestowing  benefits  with  munificence  and  yet 
with  just  discrimination,  avoiding  ostentation  and  notoriety:  distributing  very 
largely  in  private  channels  unknown  to  the  world.  It  was  a  favorite  sentiment 
with  him,  and  often  repeated,  that  he  desired  to  be  his  own  executor,  and  admin- 
ister his  estate  during  his  life  time.  Although  most  frugal  in  the  personal  use  of 
his  ample  means,  he  left  but  little  for  his  executors  to  do  in  the  way  of  distributing 
an  accumulated  hoard. 

He  greatly  enjoyed  and  valued  church  privileges,  and  attended  the  ministra- 
tions of  the  Rev,  Dr.  ('ox  in  Henry  street.  Among  the  Brooklyn  institutions  to 
which  he  contributed  were  the  Protestant  Orphan  Asylum,  the  Institute,  the  City 
Hospital,  the  Gr.^ham  Institute,  which  he  founded,  and  the  New  York  Asylum  for 
the  Blind,  New  York  Home  for  the  Friendless,  and  the  Mariner's  Family  Asylum. 
Brooklyn  will  ever  have  reason  to  cherish  the  memory  of  the  twain,  recognized 
among  us,  for  nearly  half  a  century,  as  the  Brothers  Graham.  Mr.  G.  died  sud- 
denly, in  his  69th  year,  March  nth,  1853. 


were  purchased  by  the  Apprentices'  Library  Association,  for 
$18,000.  By  an  act  of  the  Legislature,  April  13,  1843,  the 
charter  of  the  Association  was  extended  for  25  years,  under 
the  name  of  the  Brooklyn  Institute.  Through  the  liberality 
of  Mr.  Graham,  the  institution  was  at  this  time  relieved  from 
debt,  and  at  his  death,  an  endowment  of  |27,000  was  secured 
to  the  Association  for  the  support  of  free  lectures  on  Science 
and  Art.  In  1868,  the  building  was  largely  altered  and  im- 
proved, at  an  expense  of  ,f  30,000.  The  Institute  building  is 
three  stories  in  height,  contains  a  commodious  library,  read- 
ing-room, public  hall,  picture  gallery,  two  school-rooms,  and 
a  number  of  artists'  studios.  The  library  consists  of  about 
13,000  volumes.  The  Presidents  have  been  as  follows:  Robert 
Snow,  1833-'32;  Fanning  0.  Tucker,  1832-'40;  Augustus 
Graham,  1840-53;  Charles  M.  Alcott,  lS52-'4;  Rollin  Sanford, 
1854-'8;  Peter  G.  Taylor,  1858-'72;  William  Everdell,  Jr., 
1872-'9;  John  B.Woodward,  1879-'80;  Jesse  C.  Smith,  lH80-'4. 
The  other  officers  for  1884  are:  Dr.  Andrew  Otterson,  Vice- 
Pres.;  D.  Littlejohn,  Treas.:  A.  P.  Baxter,  Sec'y;  I  H.  Froth- 
ingham,  J.  How,  Crawford  C.  Smith,  S.  W.  Sneeden,  Trustees. 

The  Brooklyn  Lyceum  was  organized  Oct.  10th,  1833,  its 
object  being,  besides  affording  rational  amusement,  to  pro- 
mote the  intellectual  and  moral  improvement  of  its  members 
and  especially  the  interests  of  the  young;  also,  "  to  improve 
the  condition  of  schools  and  advance  the  cause  of  popular 
education."  First  Officers:  Hon.  Peter  W.  Radcliff,  Pres.; 
Gen.  Jer.  Johnson,  Theo.  Fames,  Vice-Pres'ts;  Gabriel  Thur- 
man.  Cor.  Sec.;  Alden  J.  Spooner,  Rec.  Sec.;  Josiah  Dow, 
Treas.  Its  membership  embraced  the  elite  of  the  city.  A 
course  of  lectures  was  commenced  November,  1833,  and  Oc- 
tober 31st,  1835,  the  corner  of  the  fine  granite  front  edifice 
on  Washington  street,  now  known  as  the  Brooklyn  Institute, 
was  laid.  Josiah  Dow  was  the  largest  contributor  to  this 
building,  which  cost  $34,000.  Pecuniary  difficulties  led  to  its 
sale,  in  1839,  to  Robert  Bach,  who  held  it  until  it  was  pur- 
chased, in  1848,  by  Mr.  Augustus  Graham,  who  presented  it 
to  the  Apprentices'  Library  Association.  The  Brooklyn  Ly- 
ceum of  Natural  History  was  organized  here,  February  32d, 
1838,  by  Maj.  D.  B.  Douglass,  Joseph  Howard,  Jr.,  W.  R. 
Dwight,  Jonathan  Trotter,  and  many  other  well-known  citi- 
zens, and  for  many  years  flourished  well. 

The  Brooklyn  City  Library  was  incorp.  February,  1839, 
under  the  provisions  of  the  General  Act  relative  to  Public 
Libraries.  The  sum  of  .12,925  was  subscribed  by  a  number  of 
our  more  prominent  citizens,  "for  the  purpose  of  procuring 
and  erecting  a  public  library;"  a  board  of  twelve  Trustees 
were  chosen,  and  the  following  Board  of  Officers  elected: 
Rev.  Evan  M.  Johnson,  Pres.;  Henry  E.  Pierrepont,  Sec,  and 
W.  J.  Cornell,  Treas.  This  library  was  on  the  plan  of  the 
old  Society  Library  of  New  York  city,  each  subscriber  to  the 
stock  being  entitled  to  one  share  therein,  for  every  $35  paid 
by  him,  and  having  certain  rights  which  were  not  extended 
to  the  mere  annual  subscriber.  The  library  accumulated 
about  3,000  valuable  volumes,  many  of  which  were  purchased 
esiiecially  for  them,  in  England;  but,  finally,  coming  into 
desuetude,  the  books  were  i)laced  on  deposit  with  the  Appren- 
tices' Library,  in  the  Brooklyn  Institute,  and  the  association 
virtually  became  extinct.  When  the  L.  I.  Historical  Society 
was  formed,  in  1863,  through  the  efforts  of  some  of  the  officers 
of  this  society,  who  represented  the  majority  of  the  stock  of 
the  old  City  Library,  the  books  belonging  to  the  latter  society 
were  exhumed  from  the  dust  under  which  they  had  been  so 
long  hidden,  and  were  divided  between  the  Apprentices' 
Library  and  the  L.  I.  Historical  Society,  each  association 
taking  what  was  best  suited  to  its  respective  uses. 

Garfield  Building  Law  Library. — In  a  handsome,  com- 
modious, and  elegantly  furnished  i-Qom  op.  the  top  floor  of  the 


LITERATURE  AND   SCIENCE. 


1303 


**4ltB5--«»'^-''-^' 


THE    lUlOOKLYN    INSTITUTE. 


"  Garfield  Building,"  is  a  law  library,  provided  by  Mr.  A.  A. 
Low,  for  tlie  use  of  the  many  lawyers  who  occupy  this 
building,  of  which  he  is  the  owner.  It  is  admirably  arranged 
and  kept,  and  comprises  a  sufficiently  large  and  well  chosen 
collection  of  legal  works  of  reference,  to  enable  a  lawyer  to 
construct,  by  its  aid,  a  very  good  brief. 

The  Law  Library  in  Brooklyn  originated  in  a  subscription 
of  |1,850  by  twenty-four  practitioners  at  law,  residents  of 
Kings  county,  who  associated  and  incorporated  themselves 
January  8,  1850,  under  the  general  act  of  1796,  and  acts 
amendatory  thereof.  The  qualification  of  membership  was 
ownership  of  one  or  more  shares  of  .|50  each,  and  the  pay- 
ment of  annual  dues  of  f  10  each.  In  1863,  the  Legislature 
organized  a  Law  Library  of  the  Second  Judicial  District,  and 
appropriated  |.3,000  to  the  use  of  the  Law  Library  of  Brook- 
lyn, to  be  expended  in  the  purchase  of  books  of  which  they 
should  have  the  custody.  The  money  thus  received  from 
the  State  was  carefully  expended,  and  a  valuable  library 
formed,  which  is  now  kept  in  the  County  Court-House,  and  is 
open  for  the  general  use  of  the  profession. 


The  Brooklyn  Library.*  (The  Mercantile  Library  Associa- 
tion.)— As  early  as  October,  1857,  the  subject  of  organizing  a 
new  library  association,  to  be  controlled  and  managed  by  the 
young  men  of  Brooklyn,  was  discussed  in  private  by  two 
friends  of  the  enterprise  (Lewis  Roberts  and  James  P.  "Wal- 
lace); and  at  their  personal  solicitation  about  twenty  gentle- 
men met  at  the  Athenaeum,  November  19,  as  a  preliminary  step 
to  more  formal  action  on  the  subject.  Among  these  twenty, 
besides  Messrs.  Roberts  and  Wallace,  were:  W.  W.  Tufts, 
A.  E.  Orr,  John  S.  Ward,  Charles  A.  Silliman,  Charles  Con- 
dit,  H.  P.  Journeay,  R.  W.  Ropes,  Sidney  Sanderson,  Charles 
A.  Townsend,  Dr.  A.  Cook  Hull.  Under  their  action,  a  call 
was  signed  by  about  600  citizens,  and  a  public  meeting  held 
November  30.  Some  ,|13,000  was  pledged  by  those  jiresent;  a 
constitution  adopted,  and  a  meeting  held  on  December  17,  at 
which  836  subscribers  aud  $8,865  receipts  were  announced. 
On  the  23d,  the  following  officers  were  elected :  Lewis  Roberts, 

*  For  an  extremely  interesting  and  detailed  history  of  the  library, 
see  that  prepared  by  James  P.  Wallace,  Esq.,  and  published  in  the 

Brooldijn  Eagle,  March  29, 1884. 


1304 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS    COUNTY. 


Pres.;  Henry  HUl,  Vice-Pres.;  Charles  S.  Farley,  Cor.  See.; 
Henry  P.  Journeay,  Treas.  The  new  association  was  given 
rent  free  for  iive  years,  the  ample  accommodations  in  the 
Athenaeum,  and  the  use  of  the  4,000  Tohimes  in  tlie  library. 
The  rooms  were  opened  May  7,  1858,  and  a  public  meeting 
held  to  celebrate  the  event,  at  wliich  more  than  .'j!3,000  were 
subscribed.  At  the  end  of  the  first  year  the  association  had 
1,511  members.  The  4,000  volumes  in  the  library  at  the  open- 
ing increased  to  11,400.  A  handsome  gain  to  tlie  association 
was  yielded  by  a  course  of  lectures  by  Rev.  Dr.  Storrs,  Rev. 
Henry  Ward  Beecher,  Rev.  Dr.  E.  H.  Cliapin  and  Hon. 
George  W.  Curtis.  Classes  in  French,  German  and  Spanish 
languages  and  in  book-keeping  were  organized,  and  steps 
taken  to  make  the  rooms  head-quarters  for  the  exhibition  of 
fine  arts.  Mr.  Wallace  visited  most  of  the  Brooklyn  studios, 
and  secured  a  meeting  of  artists,  at  which  he  explained  the 
proposed  plan,  and  obtained  their  approval.  In  the  follow- 
ing year  the  first  Art  Reception  in  Brooklyn  was  held  in  the 
rooms  of  the  library,  and  from  that  has  grown  our  Brooldyn 
Art  Association.  This  much  prominence  is  given  to  the 
origin  and  first  year  of  the  library,  because  it  was  the  founda- 
tion of  all  that  has  followed;  and  because  it  will  aid  to  i)re- 
serve  the  memory  of  some  who  were  active  in  building  that 
foundation.  It  would  be  grateful  to  name  them  all,  but  that 
would  exceed  our  limits. 

The  institution  was  incorijorated  March  15,  1859.  Mr. 
Franklin  Woodrufl:  became  president  in  March,  1804,  and  by 
annual  re-elections  held  the  office  imtil  JIarch,  1869.  He 
was  supported  by  an  able  board,  and  under  its  administration 
the  greatest  advance  of  the  library  was  accomplished.  In 
the  spring  of  1864,  ground  was  purchased  on  Montague  st., 
for  the  erection  of  a  jiermanent  library  building.  By  unre- 
mitting efliorts,  and  the  munificent  aid  of  Messrs.  S.  B.  Chit- 
tenden, J.  H.  Frothingham,  Franklin  Woodruff,  A.  A.  Low, 
and  H.  B.  Clatlin,  the  necessary  $125,000  was  secured,  and 
a  new  charter  granted,  with  a  permanent  board  of  trustees. 
The  corner-stone  of  the  new  edifice  was  laid  October  27, 1867, 
and  on  the  18th  of  January,  1869,  the  building  was  opened 
by  a  public  reception.  It  is  the  work  of  Peter  B.  Wight, 
architect,  and  is  both  elegant  and  well  adapted  to  its  purpose. 
The  library  now  contains  80,000  volumes,  besides  a  large 
collection  of  pamplets.  After  the  building  was  finished, 
$50,000  was  raised,  of  which  .f20,000  was  given  by  the  Hon. 
S.  B.  Chittenden,  to  be  spent  in  purchasing  books.  In  five 
years  the  library  increased  from  21,000  volumes  to  53,000, 
and  the  title  of  the  institution  was  changed  to  The  Brooklyn 
Library,  significant  of  the  growth  and  general  scope  of  the 
library,  and  its  adaptation  to  the  wants  of  the  whole  com- 
munity. 

Mr.  S.  B.  Noyes  has  been  the  intelligent  and  faith- 
ful librarian  from  the  begmning,  except  from  1866  to  1869. 
The  catalogue  which  he  compiled  was  very  nearly  perfect, 
has  a  wide  reijutation  for  thoroughness,  and  reflects  the 
highest  credit  upon  the  capacity,  discrimination  and  untiring 
industrj-  of  its  author;  and  its  fullness  of  detail,  its  clear  and 
comprehensive  arrangement,  and  the  thorough  knowledge  of 
the  requirements  of  such  a  work  evinced  by  its  every  page, 
continue  to  call  forth  the  most  flattering  encomiums  from 
critics  qualified  to  estimate  and  appreciate  its  excellence. 
The  library  has  been  enabled  to  remove  all  indebtedness  from 
its  property.  It  has  a  circulation  of  over  100,000  volumes 
annually.  The  Officers  for  1883-'4,  are:  WilUam  A.  White, 
Pres.;  Alfred  C.  Barnes,  Vice-Pres.;  Charles  F.  Adams,  Cor. 
Sec;  S.  B.  Chittenden,  Jr.,  Rec.  See.;  James  L.  Morgan,  Jr., 
TVeas. 

Previous  Presidents.— liewia  Roberts,  Lebbeus  Chapman, 
Jr.,   James  H.   Frothingham,   James  Thorne,   Adrian  Van 


Sinderen,  Franklin  Woodrufl,  John  R.  Kennady,  George  L. 
Nichols,  and  William  B.  Kendall. 

The  Long  Island  Historical  Society  has  already  received 
fuU  mention,  on  page  40,  m  connection  with  the  general 
history  of  the  Island  from  which  it  derives  its  name. 

We  present,  on  the  opposite  page,  a  view  of  its  building, 
which  forms  one  of  the  most  conspicuous  architectural  orna- 
ments of  the  city. 

The  Mechanics'  Free  Reading-Room,  No.  15  Hicks  street, 
is  a  department  of  the  Bethel  Misaion,  which  has  been  under 
the  care  of  Plymouth  Church  since  June  1,  1866.  It  occupies 
spacious  rooms  in  the  new  building,  and  owns  an  excellent  li- 
brary of  2,000  volumes,  and  a  reading-room  furnished  with  the 
leading  papers  and  magazines  of  the  day.  This  reading-room  is 
open  every  evening,  except  Sunday;  popular  lectures  and  con- 
certs, largely  attended,  are  given  during  the  winter  months, 
the  success  of  which,  together  with  the  number  who  frequent 
the  rooms  daih-,  testify  to  the  usefulness  of  the  institution. 
G.  M.  Dewes  is  Suixrintendent  for  1883-'4;  E.  S.  Wright  and 
R.  S.  Bussmg,  Asst.  Supts. 

Brooklyn  Library  Association  of  the  Eastern  District. — A 
library  was  collected  in  the  then  village  of  Williamsburgh, 
in  1839;  lectures  delivered  by  Gen.  Jeremiah  Johnson,  Hon. 
James  Humphrey  and  others;  but,  after  a  career  of  limited 
usefulness,  it  ceased  to  exist.  A  few  years  later  the  Wil- 
liamsburgh Lyceum  was  formed,  and  did  some  good  work  in 
itsday.  In  1854  a  Young  Men's  Literary  Association  furnished 
lectures  for  two  years,  but  had  no  library.  Then,  a  Young 
Men's  Christian  Association  gained  possession  of  the  library 
of  the  defunct  Lyceum,  and  presented  a  good  series  of  lec- 
tures, among  which  appeared  Thackeray  and  Edward  Everett; 
but  the  enterprise  was  not  more  successful  than  its  predeces- 
sors. In  1859  a  more  extended  effort  was  made  to  establish  a 
Library  Association,  and  the  subscription  list  was  headed  by 
Noah  Waterbury,  with  $3,000,  on  condition  of  $10,000  being 
raised.  This,  too,  failed.  In  1864,  however,  success  crowned 
the  i>ersistent  efforts  of  "  the  faithful  few,"  and  this  associa- 
tion was  organized  January  9th,  1865,  and  incorporated  April 
3d,  1865;  its  rooms  opened  to  members  and  the  public.  May 
15th,  1865.  In  1865  a  library  building  was  purchased  and  fur- 
nished, and  by  1870  there  were  927  members,  8,000  volmnes, 
and  a  circulation  of  30,536  volumes,  with  reading  and  chess 
rooms,  lecture  and  language  classes,  and  a  Debating  Associa- 
tion in  full  operation.  Sylvester  M.  Beard  was  President ; 
Alfred  S.  Collins  and  G.  W.  Frost,  Librarians. 

The  joresent  Eastern  District  Library  is  a  consolidation 
of  eight  district  libraries,  which  were  organized  under  the 
law  of  1838.  It  is  a  free  library,  open  to  the  general  public 
on  Tuesday  and  Friday  of  each  week,  from  4  to  9  o'clock 
P.  M.,  on  Wednesday  for  gu-ls,  and  on  Saturday  for  boys, 
from  4  to  6  o'clock  P.  M.  It  is  under  the  charge  of  a  com- 
mittee composed  of  members  of  the  Board  of  Education, 
resident  in  the  Eastern  District  of  the  city;  which  committee, 
at  the  time  of  opening,  consisted  of  Messrs.  Jonathan  S. 
Burr,  Daniel  L.  Northrup,  Thomas  W.  Field,  Daniel  D. 
Winant,  James  Hall,  James  Murphy,  Daniel  Maujer,  Corne- 
Uus  H.  Schapps,  Henry  G.  Burnham,  John  R.  Jurgens,  Sam- 
uel M.  Meeker,  Roswell  C.  Brainard. 

It  was  opened  to  the  public  in  February,  1866,  and,  during 
the  eighteen  yeai-s  it  has  been  in  operation,  the  number  of 
books  loaned  average  over  18,000  volumes  per  year.  It  started 
with  7,200  volumes.  It  now  has  17,000.  Samuel  S.  Martin, 
Librarian. 


LITERARY    ASSOCIATIONS. 
The  Hamilton  Literary  Association.— On  the  18th  of  No- 
vember, 1830,  a  few  young  men  of  the  then  village  of  Brook- 


LITERATURE  AND  SCIENCE. 


1305 


THE   LONG    ISLAND    HISTOKIUAL    SOClKi'VT. 


lyn  met  in  the  school-room  of  Mr.  Theodore  Eames,  deter- 
mined to  form  a  literary  society.  A  constitution  was  jirepared 
by  Henry  C.  Murphy,  and  a  society  was  duly  organized  and 
named,  November  39th,  1830,  "The  Young  Men's  Literary  As- 
sociation of  Brooklyn."  In  October,  1831,  the  name  was  altered 
to  the  Hamilton  Literary  Association,  and  Henry  O.  Murphy 
was  chosen  its  first  president.  Among  its  original  members 
were  Edgar  J.  Bartow,  George  W.  Dow,  Horace  H.  Dow, 
Josiah  C.  Dow,  Richard  W.  Dow,  John  Tasker  Howard, 
Joseph  Howard,  John  Jewett,  Jr.,  'William  Jones,  Jr.,  Thos. 
G.  King,  Abiel  A.  Low,  Seth  H.  Low,  Henry  C.  Murphy, 
Israel  Ward  Raymond,  John  H.  Raymond,  Francis  P.  San- 
ford,  D.  N.  Schoonmaker,  Elias  R.  Stoddard,  Henry  Silliman, 
Joshua  M.  Van  Cott,  Alden  J.  Spooner,  and  Robert  Tucker. 
On  the  30th  of  March,  1843,  the  association  was  incorporated, 
Gabriel  Furman,  the  first  historian  of  Brooklyn,  then  in  the 
Senate,  cheerfully  aiding  the  project.  The  act  of  incorpora- 
tion stated  the  purpose  of  the  associati<m  to  be  the  establish- 
ing and  maintaining  a  reading-room,  literary  and  scientific 
lectures,  debating  exercises,  and  of  employing  such  other 
means  as  may  be  suitable  for  promoting  moral  and  intellec- 
tual improvement,  etc.  Notwithstanding  this  ample  scope 
of  powers,  the  association  limited  itself  to  the  special  purpose 
of  a  debating  society;  yet  it  had  some  influence  in  jilanting 
many  of  the  distinctively  literary  institutions  which  have 


arisen  in  our  midst.  It  originated  the  first  course  of  volunteer 
lectures,  and  from  it,  also,  sprung  the  Brooklyn  Lyceum  (since 
the  Brooklyn  Institute).  In  its  rooms,  the  best  spirits  of  our 
city  in  literature  and  science  have  found  the  most  congenial 
associates  and  the  best  means  and  stimulus  of  improvement. 
The  association  had  rooms  in  the  Brooklyn  Lyceum  for  sev- 
eral years,  then  moved  to  the  Brooklyn  Athenaeum  building, 
on  the  corner  of  Clinton  and  Atlantic  streets,  and  afterward 
to  rooms  in  the  Hamilton  buildings,  on  the  corner  of  Court 
and  Joralemou  streets,  erected  by  one  of  its  most  honored 
alumni,  Abiel  Abbot  Low,  who  has  placed  the  name  of  Ham- 
ilton Buildings  upon  its  front,  as  well  from  cherished  associa- 
tions with  the  society  as  from  sentiments  of  honor  to  an  il- 
lustrious national  character.  After  an  existence  of  more 
than  fifty  years,  the  Literary  Association  was  in  1883  merged 
into  the  Hamilton  Club. 

Franklin  Literary  Society. — At  a  social  gathering  in  the 
autumn  of  1864,  of  a  few  young  men  of  Brooklyn,  a  sugges- 
tion was  made  that  an  organization  be  effected  for  more  fre- 
quent meetings  with  a  view  to  mutual,  social  and  intellectual 
advantage.  Accordingly,  at  a  meeting  held  Oct.  19th, 
1864,  at  the  house  of  W.  H.  Spencer,  No.  151  Montague  street, 
a  debating  society  was  org.,  with  James  H.  Lightbody  as 
President,  under  the  name  of  the  Franklin  Club.  This  name 
was  changed  the  following  year  to  its  present  form.     At  this 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


first  meeting  there  were  present:  James  H.  Lightbody,  D. 
Webster  Tallmadge,  William  H.  Spencer,  George  J.  Laigh- 
ton,  Rufus  W.  Povrell,  Ardon  K.  Powell,  Charles  E.  Tall- 
madge, Jolin  E.  Ketcbam,  and  Richard  D.  Jaques,  most  of 
whom  still  remain  members  of  the  Society,  either  upon  the 
active  or  honorary  lists. 

During  its  early  years,  the  society  held  its  meetings  in  the 
school-room  of  Rev.  L.  W.  Hart,  in  Joralemon  street;  subse- 
quently in  the  Polytechnic  Institute.  For  the  next  eleven 
years  the  society  met  in  the  building  of  the  Safe  Deposit  Com- 
pany, comer  of  Montague  and  Clinton  streets.  Since  October 
1st,  1883,  its  meetings  have  been  held  in  the  rooms  formerly 
occupied  by  the  Hamilton  Literary  Association,  No.  44  Court 
street,  corner  of  Joralemon. 

Ex-Presidents  :  James  H.  Lightbody,  Jacob  L.  Downing, 
D.  Webster  Tallmadge,  Henry  Chapin,  Jr.,  Sherwood  B.  Fer- 
ris, Herman  H.  Shook,  John  A.  Quintard,  Francis  M.  Edger- 
ton,  William  H.  Spencer,  William  H.  Williams,  Charles  W. 
Hallock,  Samuel  B.  Duryea,  Cornelius  S.  Van  Wagoner,  John 
R.  Anderson,  John  A.  Wright,  Alvan  Tenney,  Milton  B. 
Clapp,  Henderson  Benedict,  Henry  N.  Gassaway,  John  R. 
Kuhn,  Conrad  C.  Stutts,  George  H.  Murphy,  Selah  Youngs, 
Jr.,  John  T.  Barnard,  Henry  Chapin,  Jr.,  Daniel  Alexander, 
William  R.  Castle,  Robert  M.  Nesbitt,  Edward  W.  Searing, 
Charles  N.  Chad  wick,  David  A.  Boody,  Arthur  Murphy,  Jr., 
Peter  J.  Kelly,  George  H.  Roberts,  Jr.,  George  G.  Dutcher, 
Amos  G.  Sullivan,  Albert  P.Woodruff,  Oliver  J.  Wells,  Fred- 
erick C.  Dexter,  George  E.Waldo,  Josej^h  M.  Pearsall,  Robert 
M.  Nesbitt;  present  Officers,  1883-1884:  Herbert  W.  Groser, 
Pres.;  Fredericks.  Burnham,  Vice-Pres.;  Arthur  B.  Risley, 
Second  Vice-Pres.;  Joseph  M.  Pearsall,  Cor.  Se&y;  Robert  M. 
Nesbitt,  Rec.  Sec'y.  Board  of  Trustees:  George  H.  Murphy, 
Chairman;  Joseph  M.  Pearsall,  See'y;  Edward  Carroll,  Jr., 
Treas.;  Frederick  C.  Dexter,  John  B.  O'Donohue.  Auditing 
Committee:  G.  H.  Murphy,  J.  M.  Pearsall. 

Everett  Literary  Association,  org.  during  the  summer  of 
1873,  ly  eight  gentlemen.  Meetings  were  held  at  the  residence 
of  members,  and  were  devoted  to  intellectual  development. 
First  Officers  were:  C.  A.  Cook,W.  H.  Hasey,  Jno.  H.  Has- 
kell, C.  D.  Rowe  and  Geo.  S.  Jellerson.  In  May,  1873,  the 
Society  secured  rooms  in  the  hall,  corner  Fulton  and  Bedford 
aves.,  where  it  first  came  prominently  into  notice  through  a 
course  of  lectures  delivered  by  several  well-known  men, 
Mark  Twain  and  Paul  B.  Du  Chaillu,  being  among  the  num- 
ber. 

In  1875,  the  Association  began  the  publication  of  the 
Everett  Literary  Journal,  under  the  editorship  of  Ringgold 
McCay,  author  of  "Geraldine,"  "The  Magnet,"  and  other 
works  of  local  fame.  This  journal  is  a  monthly  magazine, 
published  exclusively  for  the  use  of  members.  In  1876,  the 
association  was  incorporated,  since  which  time  it  has  grown 
steadily  in  numbei-s  and  usefulness,  and  at  present  is  seriously 
contemplating  the  advisability  of  moving  from  present  quar- 
ters in  the  Hamilton  building,  to  larger  and  more  convenient 
club  accommodations  in  the  Hill  vicinity.  Present  Officers 
are:  Herman  F.  Koepke,  Samuel  Walker,  Phillip  Comstock, 
Dexter  Hiscox;  Evan  J.  Rustin  and  Oliver  E.  Stanton,  Edi- 
tors. 

Polytechnic  Debating  Society,  org.  at  Polytechnic  Insti- 
tute, Dec.  1875,  for  social  and  intellectual  advantages,  by 
seven  members.  Present  membership,  41.  First  Officers: 
J.  L.  Laidlaw,  Pres.;  Wm.  A.  Heydecker,  Sec'y;  Edward  S. 
Field,  Treas.  Several  professors  and  instructors  of  the  Poly- 
technic are  members,  though  the  society  has  had  no  connec- 
tion with  the  Institute  for  several  years.  Present  Officers: 
Horace  M.  Gulick,  Pres.;  Edwd.  S.  Field,  Vice-Pres.;  Chas. 
H.  Genung,  See.;  Jolm  L.  Laidlaw,  Treas. 


The  Bryant  Literary  Society.— On  the  Bd  of  Nov.,  1878,  a 
notice  was  read  from  the  pulpit  of  the  Memorial  Presbyterian 
Church,  then  on  Prospect  Place,  requesting  all  interested  in 
the  foi'mation  of  a  literary  society,  to  meet  at  the  residence 
of  Mr.  B.  S.  Ban-ett  on  the  following  evening.  The  following- 
named  gentlemen,  J.  Bruce  Lindsay,  Esq.,  D.  G.  Bushnell, 
Walter  L.  Burckettand  B.  S.  Barrett,  subsequently  organized 
the  society,  which  continued  steadily  to  prosper  until  its 
present  memliership  numbers  206,  and  its  regular  fortnightly 
meetings  are  attended  by  an  audience  varying  from  three  to 
eight  hundred  people.  Fusf  Officers:  B.  S.  Barrett,  P;es.; 
D.  A.  Boody,  Vice-Pres.;  Walter  L.  Burckett,  Sec'y;  D.  G. 
Bushnell,  Treas.;  Rev.  T.  A.  Nelson,  J.  Bruce  Lindsay,  W. 
P.  Millar,  Exec.  Com. 

During  the  first  five  years  of  its  existence,  the  Society  met 
at  the  residences  of  its  members;  and  at  the  end  of  its  first 
season,  the  membership  had  increased  to  some  sixty  or 
seventy.  The  Chapel  of  the  Memorial  Presbyterian  Church, 
St.  John's  Place  and  Seventh  avenue,  where  the  meetings  are 
usually  held,  is  almost  invariably  crowded  to  its  utmost 
capacity  by  members  and  their  friends. 

Although  the  Society  was  organized  by,  and  at  first  com- 
posed of  members  of  the  Memorial  Church,  it  is  by  no  means 
a  sectarian  association,  but  comprises  among  its  membersliip 
persons  of  various  creedsr  and  some  who  are  not  identified 
with  any  church  whatever. 

It  was  originally  comi)Osed  exclusively  of  gentlemen,  but 
as  its  sphere  of  interest  and  usefulness  broadened,  ladies  were 
admitted  to  full  membership,  and  assigned  active  work  in  the 
preparation  and  reading  of  articles,  selections,  etc.,  and  also 
in  the  musical  parts  of  the  exercises,  in  which  several  capaci- 
ties they  have  proved  to  be  a  most  desirable  and  welcome  ac- 
cession to  its  numbers.     Present  membership,  about  325. 

Officers  (1884):  Ithamar  Du  Bois,  Pres.;  D.  P.  Temiileton, 
Vice-Pres.;  B.  S.  Bairett,  Rec.  Sec'y;  James  M.  Dewar,  Cor. 
Sec'y;  W.  L.  Burckett,  Treas. 

Tupper  Literary  Society,  org.  Nov.  5,  1880,  at  the  residence 
of  Wm.  V.  Tupper,  171  Clinton  street,  for  social  and  mental 
culture,  with  8  members.  Present  membership,  54.  First 
Officers:  J.  Henry  Rieger,  Pres.;  John  C.  Zahrt,  Vice-Pres.; 
Walter  E.  Meyer,  Se&y  and  Treas.;  John  A.  Jochum,Wm.  H. 
Dill,  Trustees.  Present  Officers:  James  Arnold,  Pres.;  Wal- 
ter V.  Odell,  Vice-Pres.;  Wm.  H.  Dill,  Sec'y  and  Treas.;  Al- 
bert Edwards,  C.  R.  Bigelow,  Trustees. 

The  Philomathean  Society,  one  of  the  best  known  and 
most  i)opular  literary  societies  in  Brooklyn,  is  located  in  the 
Hamilton  Building,  corner  Court  and  Joralemon  streets.  It 
was  organized  with  twenty  young  men,  March  31st,  1880,  at 
No.  166  State  street,  with  the  following  first  board  of  offi- 
cers: Dr.  Wm.  M.  Hutchinson,  Pres.;  Thos.  E.  Cross- 
man,  Vice-Pres.;  E.  F.  Mac  Phail  and  Geo.  Preston,  Sec'ys; 
H.  W.  Linker,  Treas.;  Wm.  J.  Boars,  Chairman;  Fred  L. 
Colver,  F.  R.  McDermott,  and  H.  J.  Gabel,  Executive  Com- 
mittee. The  objects  of  the  society  are  the  improvement  in 
literary  matters,  and  the  cultivation  of  fraternal  relations, 
and  it  is  not  identified  or  connected  with  any  religious  sect, 
social  body  or  political  party;  and  is  purely  literary  in  its 
character.  This  society  is  unincorporated.  For  several  years 
its  meetings  were  held  in  the  Bethel  Chmch  buUding  of  Ply- 
mouth Church,  where  the  society  grew  in  membership  and 
prospered;  and  in  the  spring  of  1883,  moved  to  its  jiresent 
handsomely  furnished  quarters.  One  of  the  most  important 
assistants  to  the  society's  growth  is  the  Philomathean  Review, 
a  monthly  magazine,  published  regularly  since  April,  1881. 
It  was  started  (and  for  a  year)  under  the  editorship  of  E.  F. 
MacPhail,  assisted  by  Fred  L.  Colver;  but,  since  Jtme,  1883, 
Mr.  Colver  has  been  the  editor,  and  from  May,  1883,  the  pro- 


LITERATURE  AND   SCIENCE. 


1307 


prietor  as  well.  Messrs.  A.  H.  Brownell  and  Wm.  G.  Bowdoin 
are  its  associate  editors.  From  a  small  beginning  the  Review 
has  kept  pace  with  the  growth  of  the  society,  and  now  reaches 
far  beyond  the  circle  of  its  membership  and  friends.  Present 
membership  of  the  society  is  about  50,  besides  many  promi- 
nent citizens,  who  are  honorary  members.  Present  OFFICERS: 
Thos.  E.  Grossman,  Pres. ;  Wm.  G.  Bowdoin,  Vicc-Pres. ;  John 
J.  Grace,  Sec' y  and  Clerk:  Wm.  H.  Carter,  Treas.:  Fred  D. 
Youngs,  Marshal,  Fred  W.  Farnell,  Librarian;  Executive 
Committee:  F.  W.  Barnaby  {Chairman),  Fred  L.  Colver,  Edw. 
W.  Bok,  Edw.  V.  Howard  and  E.  E.  Malmar.  A  large 
number  of  lectures  and  entertainments  have  been  given  under 
the  auspices  of  the  society,  which,  also,  has  a  small  but  well 
selected  librarj-. 

Of  the  many  literary  associations,  debating  clubs,  musical, 
social  and  literary  associations,  which  have  "  had  their  day" 
in  Brooklyn,  it  is  impossible  to  obtain  a  very  complete,  or,  in- 
deed, a  sufficiently  interesting  history. 

Among  those  of  which  but  a  memory  remains,  we  may  men- 
tion TJie  Kings  Co.  Lodge  Library  Association  of  Williams- 
burgh,  incorporated  1847;  the  Franklin  Debating  Association, 
organized  1852;  the  Eccleston  Literary  Association,  oganized 
1854;  the  Columbia  Literai'y  Association,  organized  1855;  the 
St.  Charles  Institute,  1854;  and  numerous  others,  some  of 
which  have  been  connected  with  certain  churches,  institu- 
tions, schools  and  benevolent  enterprises,  etc. 


SCIENTIFIC    ASSOCIATIONS. 

The  Brooklyn  Entomological  Society  was  organized  in 
April,  1872.  The  present  membership  is  40.  This  society 
possess  a  fine  collection  of  Coleoptera  and  Lepidoptera,  and 
a  valuable  librarj'  of  entomological  literature.  The  society 
began  the  publication  of  The  Bulletin  of  the  Brooklyn  Ento- 
mological  Society,  in  May,  1878,  a  periodical  which  stands 
second  to  none  in  the  esteem  of  entomologists  of  both  the 
Old  and  New  Worlds.  The  Officers  for  1883-'4  are  :  Rev.  Geo. 
D.  Hulst,  Pres.;  Edw.  L.  Graef,  Vice-Pres.;  Chas.  Fuchs, 
Treas.;  August  Fuchs,  .Sec;  F.  G.  Schaupp,  Cor.  Sec;  Jno.  B. 
Smith,  Librarian;  the  last  two  gentlemen  are  also  the  editors 
of  the  Bulletin. 

The  Brooklyn  Microscopical  Club. — This  association  was 
organized  Fob.  10th,  1S81,  for  the  purpose  of  advancement  in 
microscopical  studies  upon  the  conversational  plan.  Some  of 
the  members  possess  instruments  noted  for  definition  and 
power,  which  are  exhibited  at  their  meetings.  Many  of  the 
members  have  become  experts  at  mounting  objects,  and,  by 
this  means  and  exchanges,  have  become  possessed  of  valuable 
cabinets  in  histology,  entomology,  lithology  and  the  diatoma- 
ceee.  There  are  about  50  members.  Meetings  on  the  first  and 
third  Tuesday  of  each  month  at  members'  residences.  Mr.  G. 
D.  Hiscox,  435  Greene  ave..  Secy. 

The  American  Astronomical  Society.— This  society  was 
organized  Jan.,  1883,  for  the  purpose  of  advancement  in  as- 
tronomical studies,  and  the  discu&sion  of  kindred  subjects. 
It  has  a  well  represented  local  membership;  and  correspond- 
ing members  among  the  leading  astronomers  of  the  U. 
S.  Their  ultimate  object  is  the  erection  of  a  public  observa- 
torj'  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn.  Many  of  the  members  possess 
fine  telescopes.  The  Pi-esident,  Mr.  S.  V.  White,  has  the 
largest  private  telescope  in  the  U.  S.,  a  13-inch  glass  by  the 
Clarkes,  equatorially  mounted  under  a  substantial  dome. 

Prof.  H.  A.  Parkhurst,  has  a  battery  of  3  telescopes 
mounted  upon  one  equatorial  movement,  the  largest  of  which 
is  a  9-inch  glass  by  Fitz. 

W.  T.  Gregg,  has  a  6-inch  glass,  mounted  equatorially  under 
a,  dome. 


Rev.  Dr.  J.  M.  Ferris,  of  Flatbush,  has  a  5-inch  glass,  also 
under  a  dome. 

The  Packer  Institute  has  a  fine  telescope  with  6-inch  glass 
by  Fitz,  also  under  a  dome. 

Prof.  Chas.  E.  West,  has  a  fine  6i-inch  glass  by  Byrne. 

Mr.  G.  P.  Serviss,  possesses  a  fine  equatorial  of  3|  aperture 
by  Byrne. 

Mr.  G.  D.  Hiscox,  has  a  Newtonian  reflector  of  10-inch 
aperture,  and  a  3-inch  comet  seeker. 

The  society  meets  in  the  Physical  Laboratory  of  the  Packer 
Institute,  the  first  Monday  evening  of  each  month.  S.  V. 
White,  Pres.:  W.  T.  Gregg,  Vice-Pres.;  G.  P.  Serviss,  Sec'y. 


CLUBS. 


The  Excelsior  Club  was  org.  December  8th,  1854,  for  the 
])romotion  of  social  intercourse  among  its  members,  who 
numbered  originally  18.  The  club  was  incorp.  in  1874,  under 
the  State  Laws  of  1865.  The  present  membership  is  220;  the 
present  Officers:  Chas.  W.  West,  Pres.;  Thos.  G.  Wells,  Vice- 
Pres.;  H.  C.  Richardson,  Cor.  Sec:  H.  W.  Cowing,  Ree.  Sec; 
John  D.  Barnes,  Treas.  This  club  has  fitted  up,  for  the  ac- 
commodation of  its  members,  the  dwelling  house  on  the 
corner  of  Clinton  and  Livingston  streets,  a  property  which  it 
has  owned  for  five  years.  This  organization  is  purely  social, 
its  members  being  young  gentlemen  of  assured  social  posi- 
tion. 

The  Brooklyn  Club  was  organized  through  the  efi'orts  of 
the  late  Dr.  A.  Cooke  Hull,  and  incorporated  April  24th,  1865. 
First  Directors  were:  Henry  E.  Pierrepont,  Pres.;  Henry  C. 
Murphy,  Henry  Sanger,  John  Simpkins,  Robert  J.  Hunter, 
William  M.  Vail,  M.  Firman  Hunt,  George  L.  Kent,  A.  Cooke 
HuU,  Franklin  Woodruff,  William  B.  Kendall,  Henry  E. 
Pierson,  William  Kent,  James  Humphrey,  Ethelbert  S.  Mills, 
William  H.  Wallace,  George  W^  Parsons,  Samuel  McLean, 
Luther  B.  Wiman,  Charles  J.  Lowrey. 

The  original  membership  was  83;  the  first  Officers  being 
H.  E.  Pierrepont,  Pres.;  Geo.  W.  Parsons,  Vice-Pres.;  A.  C. 
Hidl,  Treas.;  and  W.  B.  Kendall,  Sec. 

The  object  of  this  club  is  to  promote  social  intercourse 
among  its  members,  and  to  provide  a  pleasant  resort  for 
them,  where  entertainment  can  be  furnished,  vrithout  gam- 
bling. The  membership  limit  of  three  hundred  has  long 
since  been  reached.  The  club  occupies  the  house  formerly 
known  as  the  "Greenleaf  School,"  on  the  corner  of  Clinton 
and  Pierrepont  streets,  which  has  been  very  artistically  reno- 
vated, and  where  may  be  found  every  convenience  suggested 
by  the  most  exacting  club  men.  Present  Officers:  Benj.  D. 
Silliman,  Pres.;  Calvin  E.  Pratt,  Vice-Pres.;  Henry  E.  Dodge, 
Treas.;  Geo.  B.  Abbott,  Sec.  Receptions  are  held  at  the  club 
House  on  the  last  JSaturday  evening  of  each  month. 

The  Kings  County  Club  is  essentially  a  political  organiza- 
tion, although  neither  in  its  constitution  or  by-laws  is  any 
political  allusion  made.  It  originated  within  the  Republican 
party  in  Brooklyn  in  1872,  and  was  fully  organized  in  Novem- 
ber of  that  year.  There  has  been  from  the  beginning  an  un- 
written law  that  none  but  Republicans  should  become  mem- 
bers; this  law  has  been  respected.  The  rooms  of  the  club 
have  always  been  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  City  Hall 
Square,  and  have  been  at  all  times  generously  open  in  the 
service  of  the  party,  though  the  club  meetings  are  uniformly 
private.  The  membership  was  over  two  hundred,  prominent 
not  alone  in  politics,  but  in  everything  pertaining  to  public 
welfare  and  social  improvement.  The  first  Officers  were  : 
A.  J.  Perry,  Pres.:  R.  D.  Benedict,  Vire-Pre.i.:  Lorin  Palmer, 
Treas.;  and  E.  B.  Tower,  Sec.  In  1881  the  club  began  to  show 
signs  of  financial  weakness;  the  rooms  at  that  time  were  at 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


150  Pierrepont  street,  elegantly  appointed  and  luxuriously 
furnished;  too  much  money  had  been  spent  to  secure  these 
surroundings,  and  the  recent  campaign  had  been  very  expen- 
sive; the  Republican  State  Committee  thought  it  advisable  at 
this  time  to  overtake  the  property,  and  the  Kings  County 
Club  was  thus  quietly  though  permanently  dissolved. 

The  Clinton  Club  was  organized  in  1874,  at  the  rooms 
which  it  occupied  until  1879.  on  Clinton  avenue,  near  De 
Kalb,  when  larger  and  more  commodious  quarters  were  se- 
cured at  the  corner  of  Atlantic  and  Vanderbilt  avenues, 
which  the  club  occupied  until  it  was  dissolved  by  the  consent 
of  the  members  Ajiril  5,  1883.  This  organization  was  purely 
social;  the  void  caused  by  its  dissolution  is  felt  very  keenly  in 
the  social  circles  of  Brooklyn,  more  especially,  perhaps,  on 
"TheHiU." 

The  Hamilton  Club  was,  in  a  measure,  an  outgrowth  of  the 
Hamilton  Literary  Association,  which  has  existed  more  than 
fifty  years.  Its  Library  and  pictures  are  now  in  possession  of 
the  Club.  After  a  long  and  honorable  career,  the  Hamilton 
Literary  Association  seemed  to  be  waning  somewhat  in  its 
prosperity;  many  of  its  members  desired  to  f<irm  an  organiza- 
tion more  social  in  its  nature,  with  some  of  the  features  which 
appertain  to  club  life.  Accordingly,  a  club  was  organized, 
in  May,  1883,  comprising  many  members  of  the  old  organiza- 
tion, and  retaining  its  library  and  pictures  with  the  name, 
the  Haviilton  Club.  It  was  organized  under  the  general  act 
of  1875,  and  was  formed  for  literary,  artistic,  economic  and 
social  jjurposes.  The  corporators  were  as  follows  :  Samuel 
McLean,  David  H.  Cochran,  Joshua  M.  Van  Cott,  Joseph 
Brown,  John  Winslow,  Charles  Storrs,  Thomas  H.  Rodman, 
Nelson  G.  Carmen,  Jr.,  John  F.  Prager,  John  D.  Pray, 
Thomas  S.  Moore,  William  H.  Wallace,  John  Notnian, 
Brian  H.  Smith,  J.  Spencer  Turner,  Josejih  Yeoman,  and 
James  McKeen.  The  first  Officers  were  :  Samuel  McLean, 
Pres.;  A.  A.  Abbott,  Sec;  D.  H.  Cochran,  Vice-Pres.;  Tasker 
H.  Marvin,  Treas. 

The  present  Officers  are  the  same,  with  the  exception  of 
Secretary,  James  McKeen  having  been  elected  for  1884.  The 
membership  has  increased  from  100  to  320.  The  Club 
rented  temporarily  the  residence  of  the  late  Dr.  A.  E.  Sum- 
ner, on  the  corner  of  Clinton  and  Joralemon  streets,  which 
it  will  use  as  a  Club  House  until  the  completion  of  its  per- 
manent building  (already  commenced),  on  the  corner  of 
Clinton  and  Remsen  streets. 

The  Lincoln  Club  was  organized  in  April,  1878,  at  the  res- 
idence of  Thomas  J.  Evans,  and  was  incori^orated  Nov.  19th, 
1879.  First  Officers  :  John  M.  Pratt,  Pres.;  E.  R.  Kennedy, 
Vice-Pres.;  Thos.  J.  Evans,  Sec;  Wm.  Ray,  Treas.  "The 
primary  object  of  this  Association  shall  be  to  discountenance 
and  rebuke,  by  moral  and  social  influences,  all  disloyalty  to 
the  Federal  Government,  and  preserve  its  just  prerogatives, 
and  at  the  same  time  to  preserve,  without  infringement,  the 
rights  reserved  to  the  States,  and  the  rights  and  liberty  of  the 
citizen."  The  secondary  object  of  the  Club  is  sociability. 
The  buildings,  situated  at  65  and  67  Putnam  ave.,  which  are 
used  for  club  purposes,  belong  to  the  Club,  are  very  elegantly 
furnished,  and  possess  every  comfort  and  convenience.  The 
present  membership  is  200.  Officers  :  Henry  S.  Germond, 
Pres.;  James  H.  Pratt,  Vice-Pres.;  Chas.  K.  Wallace,  Sec; 
Emerson  W.  Keyes,  Treas.  While  this  club  still  reserves 
the  right  in  an  emergency  to  declare  its  Republican  prin- 
ciples, yet  in  municipal  matters,  it  proposes  rather  to  en- 
large the  social  than  the  political  features. 

The  Oxford  Club  was  org.  in  1880,  and  was  incorporated 
June  26th  of  that  year,  with  40  members,  and  the  following 
Officers  :  Alfred  C.  Barnes,  P/es.;  Jno.  A.  Nichols,  Tw'e- 
Pres.;  James  Mitchell,  Treas.;  Henry  T.   Richardson,  Sec 


The  present  Officers  are  the  same,  with  one  exception; 
H.  H.  Watson  is  the  present  Secretary.  The  building  occu- 
pied by  the  Club,  is  on  the  corner  of  Lafayette  avenue  and 
Oxford  street,  and  was  purchased  from  John  D.  Norris  for 
$45,000.  The  Club  has  since  acquired  an  adjoining  lot  upon 
which  it  pur])oses  building  extensive  additions.  While  the 
Oxford  is  essentially  a  social  club,  it  is  distinguished  for  its 
literary  and  scientific  character.  On  the  third  Saturday  even- 
ing of  each  month,  a  literary  or  musical  entertainment  is  en- 
joyed by  the  members  and  their  invited  guests.  A  Ladies' 
Reception  is  given  annually,  and  complimentary  dinners  to 
distinguished  men  are  of  common  occurrence.  Present 
membership  is  275. 

Paul  Morphy  Chess  Club,  org.  1880,  for  mstruction  and 
recreation  in  the  game  of  chess,  with  seven  members; 
Present  membership,  fifty.  James  T.  Burdick,  M.  D.fPres.; 
Walter  Edmistone,  Sec;  W.  W.  Silver,   Vice-Pres.;  Prof.  J. 

C.  Ryan,  Treas. 

Tha  Carleton  Club  was  organized  on  the  24th  of  March, 
1881,  with  the  following  gentlemen  as  Directors:  George  D. 
Mackay,  J.  H.  Lyles,  F.  A.  Parsons,  W.  J.  D.  Campbell,  W. 
B.  Hewett,  R.  H.  Thomas,  J.  G.  Atwood,  M.  J.  Bailey,  C.  J. 
McKay,  J.  F.  Tapscott,  F.  H.  Herrick,  D.  S.  Willard,  and 
F.  Saunders. 

Its  object  is  the  promotion  of  social  intercourse  among  its 
members,  who  numbered  originally  65  and  have  now  in- 
creased to  125. 

The  first  Officers  were  as  follows  :  George  D.  Mackey, 
Pres.;  James  H.  Lyles,  Vice-Pres.;  F.  A.  Parsons,  Treas.; 
W.  J.  D.  Campbell,  Rec.  Sec;  W.  B.  Hewett,  Cor.  Sec 
The  Club  secured  a  handsome  house.  No.  74  St.  Marks  ave., 
which  they  purchased  in  Oct.,  1883. 

The  23resent  Board  of  Officers:  Hon.  M.  H.  Clement,  Pres.; 
Col.  E.  O.  Hotchkiss,  Vice-Pres.;  C.  J.  McKay,  Treas.;  W.  J. 

D.  Campbell,  i?ec  Sec;  H.  Greenman,  Cor.  Sec. 

The  Union  Club  was  organized  in  Brooklyn,  E.  D.,  April 
2d,  1881,  and  incorporated  under  the  laws  of  New  York  State. 
The  object  of  the  club  is  the  jiromotion  of  social  intercourse 
among  its  members,  who  numbered  at  first  but  63.  Member- 
ship at  present,  110.  The  original  Officers  were:  John  C. 
Rapp,  Pres.;  John  Moller,  Vice-Pres.;  J,  Henry  Dick,  Treas.; 

E.  W.  Van  Vranken,  Sec  The  club  house  is  pleasantly  lo- 
cated on  South  Eighth  street,  near  Fourth,  and  is  possessed 
of  ample  accommodations  for  the  members.  Present  Offi- 
cers: H.  H.  Robertson,  Pres.;  E.  W.  Van  Vranken,  T7ce- 
Pres.;  Samuel  Guthrie,  Treas.;  William  W.  Boyd,  Sec 

The  Empire  Club  was  org.  at  No.  45  Broadway,  February 
8tb,  1881,  and  was  iucorp.  shortly  afterward  with  25  members. 
The  object  of  the  club  is  social  and  recreative.  The  first  and 
present  Officers  are  :  W.  E.  Andariese,  Pres.;  James  W. 
Smith,  Vice-Pres.;  A.  C.  Hockmeyer,  Sec;  and  James  Rod- 
well,  Treas.  The  present  membership  is  50,  including  the 
more  prominent  social  lights  of  the  Eastern  District.  An  an- 
nual dinner  is  given  in  March  to  the  members  exclusively; 
and,  in  February  of  each  year,  the  club  holds  a  reception  in 
honor  of  the  ladies  of  Williamsburgh.  These  social  efl'orts 
rank  among  the  most  elegantly  appointed  entertainments 
given  in  Brooklyn. 

Windsor  Club. — The  amenities  of  club  life  in  the  Eastern 
section  of  the  city  are  in  no  instance  more  agreeably  illus- 
trated than  in  the  Windsor  Club,  an  organization  with  a  lim- 
ited membership,  in  which  are  numbered  some  of  the  first 
business  and  professional  men  of  the  Nineteenth  Ward.  The 
club  practically  had  its  beginning  in  the  Acme  Club,  organ- 
ized in  February,  1881,  with  the  following  Officers:  Pres., 
Jno.  H.  Shults;  Treas.,  A.  P.  Day;  Sec,  W.  W.  Hanna.  A  reor- 
ganizatioia  took  place  in  1883,  when  the  name  of  the  Windsor 


LITERATURE  AND   SCIENCE. 


Club  was  adopted.  The  Officers  are  as  follows:  Pres.,  Jas. 
A.  Taylor;  Vice-Pres.,  F.  H.  Evans;  Sec,  William  C.  Bryant; 
Treas.,  A.  P.  Day.  Among  the  other  members  may  be 
named:  Assemblyman  Alfred  Hodges,  John  H.  Shults,  Dr. 
W.  M.  L.  Fiske,  Dr.  G.  W.  Baker,  F.  W.  Wurster,  W.  M. 
Hayes,  J.  C.  Onbert,  H.  N.  Fiske,  James  A.  Sperry,  E.  A. 
Parker,  Fred.  Malleson,  ex-Alderman  Andrew  D.  Baird, 
Daniel  Richards,  Matthew  Dean,  Russell  Johnson,  and  M.  B. 
Smith.  The  rooms  of  the  club  are  pleasantly  situated  at  the 
junction  of  Lee  and  Division  avenues,  and  are  fitted  up  with 
liberal  taste  and  with  ideal  comfort.  To  the  decorations  the 
lady  friends  of  the  club  have  contributed  with  very  happy 
results.  Nothing,  indeed,  is  wanting  to  make  the  Windsor  a 
first-class  club  in  all  that  should  be  implied  by  the  term. 

The  Eclectic  Club  was  org.  April  10th,  1882,  at  the  resi- 
dence of  V.  G.  Pierra,  No.  188  St.  John's  Place,  where  the 
monthly  meetings  are  still  held.  This  club  is  distinctively 
literary,  and  its  chief  object  is  free  discussion,  without  fear  of 
giving  offence,  upon  the  greater  issues  of  the  day  and  topics 
of  general  interest.  OFFICERS:  F.  G.  Pierra,  Pres.;  Charles 
H.  Requa,  Sec. 

The  Constitution  Club  was  org.  at  371  Fulton  street,  Sep- 
tember r)th,  1883.  Its  object,  "  to  unite  independent  citizens, 
without  regard  to  party,  to  uphold  economical,  pure,  and 
wise  g(>\ei'unifnt  in  city.  State  and  Nation,  as  originally  con- 
templated b_\-  the  Constitution."  The  members  in  each  ward 
annually  elect  one  member  of  the  General  Committee,  which 
in  turn  elects  the  officers  of  the  club,  "  which  is,  in  short,  a 
corps  of  iudependeut  minute  men  who  defend  at  the  iioUs  the 
principles  for  which  their  fathers  fought  on  the  battle-field;" 
the  ordinary  privileges  of  a  social  club  are  furnished  at  a 
moderate  cost,  and  a  reading-room  and  lyceum  maintained. 
Officers:  Thomas  H.  Rodman,  Pres.;  Ambrose  Snow,  Henry 
Hentz,  and  D.  H.  Houghtaling,  Vice-Pres' ts.;  John  Gibb, 
Treas.;  Wm.  H.  Cromwell,  Sec. 

The  Twilight  Club. — In  the  early  part  of  1883,  a  number 
of  gentlemen  in  New  York  and  Brooklyn  determined  to  or- 
ganize a  club,  which  should  have  for  its  object  "to  cultivate 
good-fellowship  and  practice  the  new  gospel  of  relaxation;" 
the  requirements  of  membership  to  be  "aclubable  fellow 
with  one  dollar  in  his  pocket."  The  club  has  no  formal  or- 
ganization, no  dues,  no  assessuaents,  no  by-laws,  no  officers, 
except  an  executive  committee  and  a  secretar}'  to  attend  to 
the  details  of  the  dinners.  The  first  executive  eommiitee  con- 
sisted of  E.  V.  Smalley,  Chas.  F.  Wingate  {Sec),  Henry 
Hall,  W.  G.  McDowell,  and  Col.  W.  P.  Fogg.  The  first 
meeting  was  held  at  Mouquin's  restaurant,  Fulton  street,  N. 
Y.,  January  4,  1883,  which  was  attended  by  twenty-one  gen- 
tlemen. Shortly  after,  the  club  took  permanent  head- 
quarters in  the  Mills  building.  At  each  of  its  weekly  meet- 
ings, a  different  chairman  is  selected.  The  membership  has 
expanded  to  two  hundred,  and  includes  every  profession  and 
nearly  every  occupation.  The  topics  of  tlie  day  are  dis- 
cussed in  a  profound  and  interesting  manner.  The  Club  has 
entertained  many  eminent  guests,  and  has  dined  at  Green- 
wood Lake,  Coney  Island,  and  other  summer  resorts.  The 
experience  of  the  Twilight  Club  has  demonstrated  the  truth 
that  Herbert  Spencer  noted— the  overworked  condition  of 
American  professional  and  business  men,  and  that  they  need 
and  enjoy  such  relaxation  as  this  club  affords. 

The  Brooklyn  Art  Guild  was  organized  in  the  studio  of 
J.  B.  Whittaker,  ia  December,  1880,  for  the  purpose  of  main- 
taining a  school  offering  the  best  advantages  for  the  profes- 
sional study  of  art  at  rates  within  the  reach  of  all.  The 
original  membership  was  eleven  ;  the  first  Officers:  J.  C. 
Beard,  Pres.;  J.  B.  Whittaker,  Vice-Pres.;  F.  Sheffield,  Sec, 
and  J.  S.  Hodgson,  Treas.     Its  success  proved  that  it  has  met 


a  want  in  the  community.  Its  day  and  evening  classes  have 
outgrown  the  rooms  first  used,  and  larger  rooms  have  been 
secured  at  No.  191  Montague  st.  The  first  instructor  was 
John  Sartain,  who  has  been  succeeded  by  Thomas  Eakins, 
of  the  Pennsylvania  Academy  of  Fine  Arts.  In  November, 
1883,  this  organization  recognized  the  wisdom  of  uniting  with 
the  Brooklyn  Art  Association,  and  are  now  known  as  the 

Student's  Guild,  of  the  Brooklyn  Art  Association.  The 
present  membership  is  nearly  100,  officered  by  Wm.  Potts, 
Pres.;  F.  Sheffield,  Vice-Pres.;  M.  E.  Robinson,  Sec,  and 
Chas.  Sickels,  Treas.  This  Society  is  not  incorporated,  is 
governed  by  a  constitution,  and  is  beneficent. 

The  Durer  Club  was  organized  on  Monday  evening,  Dec, 
13,  1881,  in  the  parlors  of  Tredwell's  publishing  house.  No. 
14  Red  Hook  Lane,  of  this  city.  The  first  Board  of  Officers 
wei'e,  viz.:  J.  H.  Piatt,  Pres.;  R.  L.  Dickinson,  Vice-Pres.; 
W.  C.  Tubby,  Sec;  E.  O.  Kindberg,  Treas.;  F.  Tredwell, 
Curator.  The  object  of  the  Club  is  to  disseminate  art  mat- 
ters, and  art  thought  generally;  and  to  that  end  etchings  are 
published  occasionally,  pamphlets  of  recognized  merit  issued 
and  distributed,  lectures  given,  essays  read,  and  discussion 
on  art,  or  kindred  subjects,  courted.  The  membership  is 
limited  to  fifty  members;  the  meetings  are  irregular,  subject 
to  the  call  of  the  secretary;  the  attitude  of  the  Club  is  social 
and  informal. 

The  Rembrandt  Club  was  org.  in  the  fall  of  1880,  through 
the  efforts  of  several  well-known  residents  of  Brooklyn.  The 
first  meeting  was  held  in  the  library  of  Mr.  Henry  T.  Cox, 
where  a  Club  was  iuformally  formed,  whose  object  should  be 
to  meet  socially,  on  the  first  Monday  of  each  month  at  the 
houses  of  the  members,  and  discuss  art  in  all  its  bearings. 
One  year  later,  the  membership  having  increased  to  34,  it 
was  considered  advisable  to  formulate  a  constitution  and  by- 
laws, which  was  done  by  Mr.  Geo.  V.  Brower ;  thus  was  the 
Rembrandt  Club  organized.  The  first  Offickrs  were:  Henry 
T.  Cox,  Pres.;  Dan'l  M.  Tredwell,  Vice-Pres.;  J.  B.  Stearns, 
Treas.,  and  L.  D.  Mason,  Sec.  The  original  plan  of  this 
Club  was  adhered  to  strictly  until  the  fall  of  1883,  when  a 
light  collation  at  the  Club's  expense  was  added  to  enhance 
the  evening's  i>leasure.  The  present  membership  of  the  Rem- 
brandt is  70,  officered  by  D.  M.  Olcott,  Pres.;  J.  E.  Hill,Fice- 
Pres.;  J.  B.  Stearns,  Treas.;  J.  B.  Ladd,  Sec.  Three  well- 
known  resident  gentlemen,  whose  art  galleries  are  con- 
spicuous for  excellence,  are  members  of  this  Club :  Aaron 
Healy,  No.  198  Columbia  Heights  ;  Henry  T.  Cox,  No.  236 
Henry  street,  and  David  Lyall,  No.  19  President  street. 

The  Faust  Club. — At  au  accidental  meeting,  early  in  1872, 
at  which  were  present  Messrs.  William  Hudson,  John  Car- 
roll, Ed.  Lamb,  Gabriel  Harrison,  James  McCloskey,  and  Dr. 
Henderson,  all  gentlemen  well-known  in  theatrical  circles, 
it  was  suggested  that  a  social  club  be  organized  in  Brooklyn 
that  should  be  represented,  if  not  entirely,  at  least  chiefly, 
by  the  various  professions,  and  whose  primary  object  should 
be  to  promote  social  intercourse  of  a  high  intellectual  char- 
acter among  its  members.  In  response  to  some  fifty  notices 
sent  to  prominent  artists,  journalists,  musicians,  dramatists, 
lawyers  and  physicians,  an  inaugural  meeting  was  held  at 
the  Lyceum  on  Washington  street,  and  the  Faust  Club  was 
almost  immediately  organized.  Rooms  were  secured  at  No. 
177  Remsen  street,  at  an  annual  rental  of  $3,000.  Thomas 
Kinsella,  of  the  Brooklyn  Daily  Eagle,  recently  deceased, 
was  elected  President,  a  position  which  he  held  for  two 
years.  The  names  of  many  of  Brooklyn's  representative 
professional  men  were  soon  on  the  membersliii)  roll.  The 
Club  was  essentially  a  Bohemian  organization,  owing  to  the 
character  of  the  majority  of  its  members,  who  were  artists, 
I  actors,  journalists  and  musicians.     Its  tone  was  elevating, 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS   COUNTY. 


its  general  tastes  luxurious  and  extravagant ;  and,  while 
rich  in  genius,  talent  and  wit,  it  lacked  the  necessary 
funds  to  cany  out  to  successful  fniition  the  plans  and 
schemes  that  were  suggested  by  generous  hearts  backed  by 
scanty  purses.  Owing  to  this  fact,  together  with  the  uafor- 
tuoate  introduction  of  a  mercantile  element  into  their  midst, 
the  Faust  Club  was  forced  to  dissolution  in  the  winter  of 
1875,  after  an  existence  of  varying  fortunes  covering  about 
three  years. 

In  Prospect  Park,  in  the  picturesque  vicinity  of  the  Rustic 
Farm  House,  the  Faust  Club  erected  its  own  monument.  Tliis 
was  done  thoughtlessly  perhaps,  though  none  the  less  really. 
The  untiring  zeal  and  well  directed  efforts  of  Mr.  Gabriel  Har- 
rison, the  active  spirit  of  the  club,  succeeded,  with  tlie  aid  of 
the  votaries  of  the  professions  which  John  Howard  Payne 
adorned,  in  raising  sufficient  money  to  2>erpetuate  in  bronze 
the  memory  of  the  author  of  "Home,  Sweet  Home."  This 
bust  of  the  poet,  dramatist  and  statesman,  was  executed  by 
the  well-known  sculjitor,  Henry  J.  Baerer,  and  is  conceded 
by  critics  to  be  a  work  of  rare  excellence.  It  rests  upon  a 
granite  shaft,  eleven  feet  in  height,  occupying  a  prominent 
position  in  the  park,  where  it  was  unveiled  and  formally  pre- 
sented to  the  citj'  of  Brooklyn,  by  the  Faust  Club,  on  the  37th 
day  of  September,  1873.  Tliirty  thousand  spectators  were 
present;  600  children  sang  in  chorus  "  Home,  Sweet  Home," 
and  our  national  anthem,  "America."  John  G.  Saxe  read  an 
original  poem,  eulogistic  of  the  man  and  commemorative  of 
the  event  of  the  day.  Mr.  Thos.  Khisella,  in  behalf  of  the 
Club,  formally  made  the  presentation  to  the  Park  Commis- 
sioners for  the  people  of  Brooklyn,  to  which  address  Hon.  J. 
S.  T.  Stranahan  replied  elo(iuently. 

The  Apollo  Club.— At  the  residence  of  Chauncey  Ives,  Jr., 
on  the  evening  of  Thursday,  Nov.  1.  1877,  sixteen  gentlemen 
met  for  the  purpose  of  organizing  a  musical  society  that 
should  eventually  equal  the  Mendelssohn  Society  of  New  York ; 
one  week  later  the  Ai)ollo  Club  was  informally  organized,  and 
officered  by  Silas  Nettle,  Pres.;  J.  C.  Meacham,  ]'ice-Pns.; 
Wm.  Payne,  Sec'y;  E.  M.  Jewell,  Treas.;  Dudley  Buck,  Direc- 
tor and  Leader.  The  first  rehearsal  of  the  club  was  held  in 
Evans'  music  room,  at  177  Montague  street,  on  the  evening  of 
November  28th,  at  which  i)lace  they  were  continued  until 
March  27,  1878,  when  a  reception  concert  was  given  by  the 
club,  which  at  this  time  numbered  twenty  gentlemen,  in  the 
Academy  Assembly  Rooms.  This  concert  was  quite  as  great 
a  social  as  musical  success;  a  reputation  of  musical  excellence 
in  male  chorus  singing  was  established,  and  the  untiring 
efforts  of  Mr.  Buck,  as  organizer,  leader  and  director  of  the 
club,  rewarded  by  api)reciative  comments  and  criticisms  from 
all  quarters.  At  this  time  the  question  of  reorganization  on 
a  less  exclusive  basis  was  discussed,  the  finances  of  the  society 
were  on  the  ebb,  and  money  was  necessary  to  carry  out  the 
ambitious  schemes  born  of  recent  success.  To  further  this 
end,  a  meeting  was  held  at  the  residence  of  Dr.  A.  E.  Sumner, 
June  5,  1878,  when  the  reorganization  was  effected  by  the 
election  of  Wm.  B.  Leonard,  Pres.:  W.  W.  Sherman,  Vice- 
Pres.;  H.  S.  Brown,  Secretary;  W.  B.  Kendall,  Treas.  A  sub- 
scribing membership,  whose  limit  slKjuld  ))e  300,  was  insti- 
tuted, which,  together  with  an  active  membersliip  of  60,  should 
constitute  the  club.  Its  success  since  that  time,  has  been  phe- 
nomenal, and  is  due  to  the  unit}'  of  purpose  which  has  ever 
characterized  the  society  as  a  whole.  Three  concerts  are 
given  during  the  season  at  the  Academy  of  Music,  at  a  cost 
of  fl.OOO  each;  these  entertainments  are  recognized  social 
events  in  Brooklyn,  the  interior  decorations,  floral  and 
otherwise,  being  especially  noteworthy.  The  Apollo  to-day  is 
in  the  front  rank  of  musical  societies;  it  stands  related  in 
Brooklyn  to  vocal,  as  does  the  Philharmonic  to  instrumental 


music;  and  is  a  powerful  organization  musically,  socially  and 
financially.  It  begins  its  seventh  season  with  a  full  compli- 
ment of  subscribing  and  active  members;  a  library  of  more 
than  150  part  songs  and  choruses;  a  lialance  of  |7,000  in  the 
treasury,  and  the  most  brilliant  record  of  uninterrupted  suc- 
cesses that  has  ever  been  won  bj'  any  musical  club  of  similar 
character  in  tliis  country. 

The  Brooklyn  Woman's  Club. — There  is  no  aspect  in 
modern  society  that  more  strongly  shows  the  tendency  of 
civilization,  than  the  movement  for  the  elevation  of  woman. 
The  improvement  in  her  condition  is  in  large  measure  due  to 
the  banding  together  of  the  more  thoughtful  among  them, 
into  associations  of  various  kinds,  and  for  various  purposes. 
These  coteries  or  clubs  are  a  marked  feature  in  societj'  of  the 
present  day. 

To  the  women  of  Brooklyn  belongs  the  honor  of  founding 
the  third  Woman's  Club  in  the  country.  In  the  spring  of 
1869,  at  the  house  of  Mrs.  Anna  C.  Field,  The  Brooklyn 
Woman's  Club  was  organized. 

It  was  not  until  Januar}-  6,  1870,  that  the  regular  meetings 
were  instituted.  At  that  time  some  changes  were  made  in 
the  constitution,  and  the  list  of  officers  completed.  The 
papers  of  incorporation  were  signed  on  March  31,  1871. 

In  accordance  with  the  provisions  of  the  constitution, 
semi-monthly  day  meetings  and  monthly  evening  receptions 
have  been  held — the  former  attended  by  women  only;  the 
latter  liy  men  and  women. 

The  admission  of  gentlemen  as  associate  menibei's  is  a 
peculiar  feature,  and  stamps  the  Club  as  the  vanguard  of  the 
future,  wlien  men  and  women  shall  find  the  best  results  in 
co-ojieration. 

Article  2  of  the  constitution  is  as  follows: — "  The  object  of 
this  Association  shall  be  the  improvement  of  its  members, 
and  the  practical  consideration  of  the  important  questions 
that  grow  out  of  tlie  relations  of  the  individual  to  society, 
and  the  effect  of  existing  institutions  upon  individual  de- 
velopment. It  shall  be  independent  of  sect,  party  and  social 
cliques,  the  basis  of  membership  being  earnestness  of  pur- 
pose, love  of  the  truth,  and  a  desire  to  promote  the  best 
interests  of  humanity." 

There  are  six  standing  committees,  viz.:  on  Literature, 
Music,  the  Drama,  Art,  Science,  and  Philanthrophy.  At  the 
day  meetings  these  committees,  in  the  order  of  succession, 
present  papers  on  topics  within  the  scope  of  each  committee, 
which  are  discussed  by  tlie  members.  The  art  of  conversa- 
tion is  strenuously  cultivated,  and  the  ability  to  make  correct 
and  accurate  statements  is  the  me  plus  idtra  towai'd  which 
all  effort  is  directed. 

At  the  receptions  of  the  Club,  members  and  associate- 
members,  with  invited  guests,  find  opportunity  for  social 
intercourse  and  enjoyment,  which  is  enhanced  by  literary 
and  musical  contributions  of  a  high  order  of  excellence. 
Music  is  an  essential  feature  of  all  meetings. 

The  Club  aims  to  encourage  and  foster  the  various  gifts  of 
each  member,  so  as  to  develop  and  improve  all;  and  as  tach 
contributes  the  result  of  her  talents  in  any  special  direction 
for  the  general  good,  in  like  manner  each  is  benefitted  by 
tlie  attainments  of  others.  Thus  by  mutual  action  and  re- 
action, by  the  interchange  of  gifts,  acquirements,  and  ex- 
perience, every  member  enlarges  her  mental  outlook,  and 
advances  her  culture. 

While  results  of  this  nature  evade  a  tangible  summing  up, 
they  are  the  most  important  and  satisfactory  the  Club  has 
attained.  Always  keeping  the  object  of  this  Association  in 
view,  the  Club  has  been  a  home  or  receptacle  for  new  ideas 
and  reform  movements,  and  in  this  capacity  has  served  a 
noble  end  by  the  impulse  and  sympathy  it  has  given  them. 


LITERATURE  AND   SCIENCE. 


1311 


The  need  for  a  suitable  boarding-house  for  teachers,  artists, 
and  women  engaged  in  business,  which  should  possess  the 
refinement,  j^iace,  and  good  cheer  of  a  well-ordered  home, 
and  at  the  same  time  protect  inviolate  the  freedom  of  the 
individual,  early  absorbed  the  energies  of  the  Club.  To  this 
scheme,  Mrs.  Anna  C.  Field  devoted  her  time  and  talents, 
and  directed  the  efforts  of  the  other  members  to  success, 
which  culminated  in  establishing  The  Business  Woman's 
Union  in  the  spring  of  1871. 

The  management  of  the  Union  was  relinquished  to  an  able 
Board  of  Trustees,  it  being  beyond  the  intent  of  the  Associa- 
tion to  actively  engage  in  such  enterprise.  It  is  most  gratify- 
ing to  state  that  to  the  wise  conduct  of  the  oflficers  of  the 
Utiioii,  Brooklyn  possesses  an  institution,  which  is  an  honor 
to  her,  and  a  boon  to  women. 

Mrs.  John  F.  Des  Slazes  and  Mrs.  Elliston  Perot,  were  sent 
as  delegates  to  the  International  Prison  Conference,  held  in 
London,  July  3,  1872;  and  Mrs.  Charlotte  B.  Wilbur  acted  in 
liice  capacity  at  the  Prison  Convention  in  Baltimore  in  the 
following  year. 

In  the  early  jiart  of  May,  1873,  the  preliminary  business 
pertaining  to  the  establishment  of  a  brancli  of  the  State 
Charities  Aid  Association  in  Brooklyn,  occupied  the  Club,  and 
gave  the  impetus  which  resulted  in  forming  the  well-known 
and  efficient  Brooklyn  Branch  of  the  State  Charities  Aid 
Association. 

The  movement  which  has  completely  revolutionized  the 
care  of  the  sick,  by  the  system  of  trained  nurses,  was  brought 
to  the  attention  of  the  people  by  the  Club  in  May,  1873. 

The  founding  of  Cooking  Schools  was  in  large  measure  due 
to  the  impulse  received  at  the  meetings. 

To  the  discussion  of  educational  matters — industrial,  in- 
tellectual, and  moral — and  to  the  training  and  care  of  the 
youug  in  the  home  and  beyond  it,  the  Club  has  enthusiastic- 
ally devoted  much  time  and  effort.  By  the  interchange  of 
ideas  on  these  subjects,  it  has  been  instrumental  in  creating 
and  molding  public  opinion  to  more  advanced  ground. 

The  deep  interest  felt  by  the  members  in  securing  the  in- 
fluence of  women  in  the  education  of  the  young,  resulted  in 
the  circulation  of  petitions,  at  different  times,  asking  the 
Mayor  to  appoint  women  as  members  of  the  Board  of  Educa- 
tion. These  petitions,  numerously  signed,  were  presented  to 
Mayor  Sohroeder,  at  his  olBce,  in  May  1876,  and  to  Mayor 
Low,  in  May,  1883. 

Lectures  have  been  delivered  before  the  Club  by  Sir.  George 
William  Curtis,  Rev.  John  Weiss,  Rev.  John  W.  Chadwick, 
Col.  T.  Wentworth  Higgiuson,  Dr.  Mary  Putnam  Jacobi, 
Miss  Emily  Faithful,  Miss  Kate  Hilliard,  Mrs.  Lucy  Wright 
Slitchell,  Mrs.  Abby  Sage  Richardson,  and  Mr.  Daniel  G. 
Thompson. 

Among  those  to  whom  receptions  have  been  given  are: 
Rev.  Moncure  D.  Conwa}',  Mrs.  Julia  Ward  Howe,  Prof. 
Maria  Mitchell,  Miss  Emily  Faithful,  Rev.  Celia  Burleigh, 
Miss  Louisa  M.  Alcott.  and  Mrs.  Lucy  Stone. 

Presidents  of  the  Clith:  Rev.  Celia  Burleigh,  Miss  Kate 
Hilliard,  Mrs.  M.  W.  H.  Elwell,  Mrs.  Imogene  C.  Fales,  Mrs. 
Ellen  T.  Brock  way. 

The  Society  of  Old  Brooklynites  was  organized  through 
the  efforts  of  Joel  Couklin  and  Alden  J.  Spooner,  who  con- 
ceived the  idea  of  forming  a  society  whose  object  should  be 
social  intercourse  among  residents  who  had  resided  in  Brook- 
lyn for  the  period  of  fifty  years;  to  that  end  on  March  24, 
1880,  a  meeting  was  held  at  the  Hamilton  Rooms  on  Court 
street;  fourteen  gentlemen  were  present,  and  so  fully  ex- 
pressed themselves  in  favor  of  the  project  that  a  meeting  was 
held  in  the  Com-t-house  on  April  29th,  and  the  preliminaries 
toward  organization  attended  to,   which  resulted  in     the 


formation  of  the  above  society  May  20,  1880.  The  first 
Officers  were  :  Jno.  W.  Hunter,  Pres.:  Henry  A.  Moore, 
First  Vice-Pres.;  Wm.  Taylor,  Second  Vice- Pres.;  Samuel 
H.  Cornwell,  Rec.  Sec;  C.  C.  Smith,  Treas.  The  original 
membership  was  38;  the  present  about  150,  headed  by  the 
following  Officers  :  Jno.  W.  Hunter,  Pres.:  Edward  D. 
White,  First  Vice-Pres.;  Albert  H.  Osborn,  Second  Vice- 
Pres.:  Henry  D.  Young,  Treas.;  Samuel  A.  Haynes,  Sec. 
Since  the  organization  of  this  society  eleven  deaths  have 
been  recorded;  by  courtesy  of  the  Surrogate,  the  Old  Brook- 
lynites meet  on  the  first  Thursday  of  each  month  at  his 
room  in  the  Court-house,  and  enjoy  an  evening  of  social  in- 
tercourse; original  papers  are  read  and  commented  upon; 
historic,  artistic,  scientific  and  literary  topics  are  discussed; 
and,  later  on,  the  Brooklyn  Advance  publishes  the  more 
noteworthy  proceedings  of  this  venerable  organization. 

St.  Nicholas  Society  of  Nassau  Island  was  organized  in 
1848,  and  was  designed  to  collect  and  preserve  information 
respecting  the  history,  settlements,  manners,  &c.,  of  the 
early  inhabitants  of  Long  Island  (formerly  called  Nassau 
Island),  and  to  afford  pecuniary  relief  to  reduced  members  of 
the  society  and  their  families.  Eligibility  to  membership 
requires  a  person  to  be  wholly,  or  in  part,  of  Dutch  descent,  or 
a  descendant  of  a  person  who  was  an  inhabitant  of  this 
island  previous  to  1786.  The  first  President  of  this  society 
was  the  late  venerable  General  Jeremiah  Johnson.  An  an- 
nual dinner  is  given,  at  which  old  customs  are  observed,  and 
the  memories  of  old  days  revived.  These  reunions  bring 
together  a  noteworthy  class,  and  are  occasions  of  great  in- 
tellectual as  well  as  social  interest.  The  Officers  for  1883 
-'84  are:  John  W.  Hunter,  P)-e,s.;  H.  D.  Polhemus,  High 
Steward:  E.  11.  Willetts,  Treas.,  and  H.  B.  Hubbard,  Sec. 

The  New  England  Society  of  Brooklyn  held  its  first  meet- 
ing and  festival  on  December  21st,  1880,  the  anniversary  of 
the  landing  of  the  Pilgrim  Fathers  on  Plymouth  Rock  and 
for  this  reason  called  Forefathers'  Day.  The  objects  of  the 
society  are  "  to  commemorate  the  landing  of  our  Pilgrim 
Fathers  on  Plymouth  Rock;  to  encourage  the  study  of  New 
England  history,  and  to  that  end  to  establish  a  library;  and 
to  promote  charity  and  good  fellowship  among  its  members." 
The  membership  of  the  society  is  large  and  embraces  the 
elite  of  the  New  Englanders,  or  their  descendants,  in  Brook- 
lyn. The  annual  festivals  of  the  society  are  intellectual 
feasts  of  a  high  order.  Two  Presidents  of  the  United  States, 
an  ex-President,  and  many  distinguished  men,  native  and 
foreign,  have  been  entertained  by  this  noteworthy  organiza- 
tion. Benjamm  D.  Silliman  was  the  first  President,  and  still 
occuijies  the  office.  John  Winslow  and  Charles  Storrs  are  the 
present  Vice-Presidents;  S.  B.  Noyes  and  Rev.  A.  P.  Putnam, 
Secivtaries:  and  William  B.  Kendall,  Treasurer. 

St.  Patrick's  Society  is  a  Roman  Catholic  organization, 
whose  chief  object  is  to  celebrate  with  a  public  dinner  the 
anniversary  of  St.  Patrick's  birth.  This  society  was  insti- 
tuted in  1850,  with  a  membership  of  fifty,  which  has  since 
increased  to  two  hundred.  Fir'st  Officers  were  :  John 
O'Mahoney,  Pres.;  Chas.  Hawley  and  Jas.  Bennett,  Vice- 
Presidents;  John  O'Rorke  and  John  N.  Doyle,  Secretaries; 
and  James  Galway,  Treas.  This  society  is  purely  social.  The 
annual  dinners  are  recognized  as  feasts  for  the  mind  as  well 
as  the  body,  because  of  the  many  intellectual  men  who  gather 
around  the  board.  The  present  Officers  :  Thomas  Kinsella 
(deceased),  Pres.:  William  Sullivan  and  James  H.  Greene, 
Vice-Presidents;  A.  Murphy  and  E.  J.  Regan,  Secretaries; 
B.  McCafferty,  Treas.;  Very  Rev.  William  Keegan,  Chaplain, 
and  Rev.  John  M.  Kiely,  A.'ts't  Chaplain. 

New  York  Arbroath  Association  was  established  in  1878, 
for  the  purpose  of  affording  assistance  to  persons  coming 


1312 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


from  Arbroath,  Scotland;  to  promote  social  intercourse 
among  natives  of  Arbroatli  residing  in  or  near  New  York 
and  Brooklyn,  and  to  perpetuate  a  burial  fund  for  members 
of  the  association.  Meetings  are  held  quarterly,  either  in 
the  Mechanics'  Exchange  on  Fulton  st.,  Brooklyn,  or  in  the 
Caledonian  Club  Rooms  in  New  York.  The  Officers  for 
1883-'84are:  James  Ross,  Pres.;  D.  F.  Smith,  Vice-Pres.: 
James  Allan,  Treas.:  George  T.  Addison,  Sec. 

The  Caledonian  Club.  On  the  9th  of  March,  1866,  a  num- 
ber of  gentlemen,  of  Scottish  birth,  or  descent,  met  at  369 
Fulton  street,  and  organized  this  Club.  Their  names  were: 
John  Maltman,  David  Wilson,  Jas.  Palmer,  Alex.  Balmer, 
Peter  Wilson,  M.  Alexander,  Jas.  Blue,  W.  S.  Reid,  Robert 
Bowie,  and  Geo.  Brown.  The  Club  was  incorporated  March 
19th,  1868.  The  object  of  the  association  is  to  preserve  the 
ancient  customs,  games,  costumes  and  literature  of  Scotland: 
to  establish  a  library,  and  to  found  a  charitable  fund.  None 
but  those  of  Scottish  descent  are  eligible  to  membership;  and, 
at  all  public  entertainments,  or  celebrations,  the  oflScers  are 
obliged  to  dress  in  Highland  costume.  The  first  club-rooms 
were  in  the  Brooklyn  Institute;  after  which  Granada  Hall  on 
Myrtle  ave.  was  secured.  Two  years  after,  the  Club  moved  to 
the  corner  of  Atlantic  ave.  and  Clinton  street.  Three  years 
ago,  Adelphi  Hall,  on  Myrtle  ave.,  was  secured,  at  which  place 
the  Caledonians  still  meet.  Annual  athletic  games  are  held 
during  the  summer  at  Ridgewood  Park.  The  present  mem- 
bership of  the  Club  is  150.  A  library,  consisting  of  about 
1,000  volumes  of  miscellaneous  works,  has  been  procured  for 
the  use  of  the  members  of  the  Club.  It  is  proposed  to  add 
to  this,  as  fast  as  the  means  of  the  Club  will  permit,  copies  of 
the  most  valuable  and  interesting  works  of  ancient  and 
modern  Scottish  literature. 

Several  papers  on  interesting  subjects  have  been  read  be- 
fore the  Club,  and  provision  has  been  made  to  encourage 
further  efforts  in  this  direction,  and  to  give  members  more 
frequent  opportunities  for  social  and  literary  intercourse. 

The  Burns  Association  was  organized  at  the  Wall  House 
in  1862,  under  the  name  of  the  Burns  Friendly  Association  of 
Brooklyn,  E.  D.,  and  was  then,  as  now,  composed  entirely  of 
those  born  in  Scotland,  or  of  Scotch  parents  here.  The  ob- 
ject of  the  association  was  to  assist  needy  Scotchmen,  to 
preserve  tender  memories  of  "  Auld  Scotia,"  and  to  celebrate 
in  a  becoming  manner  the  birthday  of  Robert  Burns,  the 
patron  saint  of  the  society.  First  Officers:  James  Lindsey, 
Pres.;  Robert  McFarlane,  Vice-Pres.;  and  James  C.  Eadie, 
Sec.  As  the  membership  increased  the  organization  became 
more  liberal  and  nationality  was  less  recognized.  The  char- 
itable work  of  the  society  was  carried  on  for  about  ten  years, 
when,  owing  to  a  number  of  impositions  practiced  upon  it, 
the  benevolent  effort  was  abandoned,  and  the  word  "  Friend- 
ly "  stricken  from  the  title.  Meetings  are  held  at  the  offices 
of  James  C.  Eadie,  No.  45  Broadway.  The  special  feature  of 
the  association  is  the  annual  dinner  given  January  25th,  in 
commemoration  of  the  birth  of  the  poet — Robert  Burns.  At 
these  banquets  many  illustrious  men  have  been  entertained, 
including  William  CuUen  Bryant,  John  G.  Saxe,  Bayaid 
Taylor,  Henry  Ward  Beecher,  and  all  the  Maj-ors  of  Brook- 
lyn for  the  past  twenty  years.  The  membership  is  twenty- 
five.  Officers:  James  C.  Eadie,  Pres.  (for  twenty  years) ; 
Andrew  J.  Baird,  Vice-Pres.;  J.  W.  Fleming,  Treas.;  Geo.  E. 
Darling,  See. 

The  Brooklyn  Saengerbund. — In  May,  1863,  it  was  pro- 
posed to  unite  the  Thalia  and  Liederkranz  Singing  Clubs  in 
one  organization.  This  plan  was  carried  out,  and  the  con- 
solidated society  was  naxaed  "  The  Brooklyn  Saengerbund," 
The  head-quarters  were  at  the  Old  Pavilion,  No.  200  Court 
street,  now  known  as  Piper's  Club  House,  where  for  years 


the  meetings  of  the  society  were  held.  The  membership  at 
present  is  250.  In  1867  this  organization  secured  the  prize  at 
Philadelphia  for  musical  excellence:  and  again,  in  lf^81,  their 
efforts  were  similarly  rewarded.  Many  entertainments  in  aid 
of  charity  are  given  during  the  year;  and  never  has  the 
Saengerbund  scored  a  failure.  In  October,  1883,  the  society 
bought,  for  $40,000,  the  property  at  the  corner  of  Smith  and 
Schermerhorn  streets  (a  building  80x120  feet),  remodelled  it  at 
large  expense,  and  have  occupied  their  new  quarters  since 
December,  1883. 

The  Weber  Quartette  was  organized  in  the  spring  of  1876, 
at  the  residence  of  Caleb  C.  Fabry,  and  named  in  compliment 
to  Albert  Weber,  of  piano-forte  fame,  who  was  at  once  made 
an  honorary  member.  The  first  members  were:  Caleb  C. 
Eabry,  1st  tenor;  J.  Knowles,  2d  tenor;  J.  V.  Provost,  1st 
bass;  W.  H.  Liscomb,  2d  bass.  The  reputation  of  this  quar- 
tette increased  steadily  for  four  years,  when,  by  the  addition 
of  N.  A.  Northrup,  John  Purdy,  C.  H.  Jordan  and  E.  B. 
Campbell,  in  the  order  named  above,  an  octette  was  formed, 
which,  for  two  years,  delighted  audiences  throughout  New 
York  and  New  England  as  well  as  local.  The  members 
belonged  to  the  order  of  Free  Masons  and  assisted  largely  at 
dedications,  funerals,  and  all  masonic  celebrations  and  enter- 
tainments. In  1882,  the  octette  was  disbanded,  giving  place 
to  a  quartette  composed  of  Messrs.  Eabry,  KJiowles,  Provost, 
and  Jordan,  who,  after  two  seasons  of  unusual  success,  have 
finally  disbanded. 


AMATEUR   DRAMATIC    ASSOCIATIONS. 

(See  pages  1162-1165.) 

The  Gilbert  Dramatic  Association  is  an  outgrowth  from 
the  Nonchalant  Club  and  was  regularly  organized,  June  36, 
1878,  the  original  membership  being  eleven.  The  first  OFFI- 
CERS were:  Geo.  A.  Watson,  Pres.;  E.  S.  Seaman,  Vice-Pres.; 
Wm.  B.  Vernam,  Sec;  Frank  G.  Read,  Treas.  Very  soon 
the  membership  was  augmented  to  two  hundred,  through 
efforts  made  by  T.  C.  Hammill  and  Geo.  A.  Wasson,  among 
the  rank  and  file  of  the  23d  Regt.  of  Brooklyn.  The  first 
dramatic  effort  of  the  association  was  made  at  the  Athenasum; 
' '  Sweethearts  "  and  "  Aunt  Charlotte's  Maid  "  were  performed 
in  a  highly  creditable  manner;  four  entertainments  followed, 
given  in  the  same  jilace;  the  sixth,  which  closed  the  initial 
season,  was  given  at  the  Brooklyn  Academy,  when  "Married 
Life"  was  played.  The  reception,  which  followed  the  per- 
formance, was  held  in  the  Assembly  Rooms.  The  Waverly 
Theatre,  corner  of  Court  and  Remsen  sts.,  was  used  exclu- 
sively during  the  second  season.  The  membership,  too,  was 
extended  to  100,  and  the  dues  increased  to  $2.00  monthly,  a 
necessary  step  to  insure  financial  support  to  the  club  and  to 
subscribers'  seats  at  the  performance.  The  entertainments  of 
the  third  and  fourth  seasons  were  given  at  the  Athenwum; 
the  Waverly  Theatre  having  been  demolished.  During  these 
seasons  the  Gilbert  scored  a  succession  of  dramatic  triumphs, 
and  felt  warranted,  at  the  beginning  of  the  fifth,  to  secure 
the  Academy  of  Music  in  which  to  present  all  future  dramatic 
efforts.  The  membership  and  dues  have  each  increased  one- 
third.  The  financial  condition  is  solid  and  its  success  assured. 
The  present  Officers  are:  Wm.  R.  Carroll,  Pres.;  Jolm  W. 
Noble,  Vice-Pres.;  Fred.  O.  Nelson,  Treas.;  Nat.  B.  Evans, 
Sec. 

Among  Amateur  Dramatic  organizations  not  previ- 
ously mentioned  (pages  1162-1165)  a.re  Ihe  Athenmn, 
Arcadian,  Barrett,  Benton,  Clifton,  Euterpe,  Mel- 
pomene  and  Montague, 


LITERATURE  AND   SCIENCE. 


Among  the  literary  and  artist  clubs  and  societies, 
the  following  deserve  mention:  the  Irving,  Social 
Literary  Union,  Brooklyn  Debating  Society,  org.  1875, 
and  the  Pencil  Sketch  Club,  org.  1883  (membership 
of  both  sexes,  and  holds  its  meetings  in  the  Brooklyn 
Institute). 

The  Pioneer  Amateur  Photographic  Club,  of  New  York 
and  Brooklyn  membership,  org.  1883.  Officers:  L.  P.  At- 
kinson, Pees.  (Brooklyn);  Herbert  Seymour,  Sec;  Gilbert  A. 
Robertson,  Treas. 

The  Crescent  Literary  Society,  org.  May,  1882.  Member- 
ship, about  30.  Wm.  51.  Brockett,  Pres.;  A.  H.  Zugalla,  Sec; 
Eugene  De  Comps,  Treas. 


The  Mechanics'  and  Traders'  Exchange  is  an  association 
of  business  men  which  was  organized  in  July,  1871,  for  the 
purpose  of  establishing  equitable  business  relations  among 
merubers,  and  to  adjust  business  misunderstandings.  This 
exchange  was  incorporated  May  28,  1872,  and  is  authorized  to 
maintain  a  fund  for  the  support  of  indigent  members  and 
their  families,  and  to  sustain  a  library  and  reading-room.  In 
1875  the  membership  was  500;  the  number  at  present  is  300. 
The  first  Officers  were:  Henry  Harteau,  Pres.;  Abram 
Allen,  Vice-Pres.;  Jeremiah  Van  Riper,  Treas.;  Oliver  Faurot, 
See.  The  association's  rooms  are  at  No.  363  Fulton  street, 
where  meetings  are  held  daily  from  12  to  1  o'clock.  The 
pjvseni  Officers  are:  Elbert  Snedeker,  Pres.;  Thos.  B.  Rutan, 
Viee-Pres.;  Benj.  C.  Miller,  Treas.,  and  F.  L.  Barnard,  See. 


AUTHORS    AND    SCIENTISTS. 


From  its  earliest  village  daj'S,  Brooklj^n  has  never 
lacked  the  presence,  among  its  inhabitants,  of  a  few 
who  dabbled  in  literature,  or  wooed  the  poetic  muse. 
That  their  productions,  whether  in  verse  or  prose, 
saw  the  light  only  in  the  columns  of  the  village  news- 
paper, proves  no  want  of  merit.  Brooklyn  was  then — 
as  it  has  been  until  a  recent  period — quite  overshadowed 
by  the  great  city  across  the  river.  Yet,  even  in  those 
days,  the  village  writer  sometimes  found  voice  beyond 
the  confines  of  his  native  place.  Of  such  was  Gren- 
viLLE  A.  Sackett,  who,  although  a  diligent  and  com- 
petent lawyer,  was  possessed  of  more  than  ordinary 
poetical  genius;  and  under  the  signature  of  "  Alfred," 
wrote  some  of  the  best  and  most  widely  circulated 
fugitive  poetry  of  the  day  in  the  New  York  Mirror, 
Nexo  York  Times,  and  Long  Island  Star.  He  was  the 
son  of  Samuel  Sackett,  one  of  the  most  prominent  citi- 
zens of  the  village;  and,  with  his  brother,  Clarence  D. 
(also  a  lawyer),  was  buried  on  the  same  day,  from 
Trinity  Church,  New  York.  Of  the  same  era,  also, 
was  the  late  Aldex  J.  Si'OONer,  Esq.,  whose  career  as  a 
lawyer  we  have  elsewhere  portrayed.  But  Mr.  Spooner 
was,  by  tastes  and  instincts,  much  more  of  a  litterateur 
than  a  lawyer.  This  is  evidenced  not  only  by  his  ac- 
tive and  absorbing  interest  in  everything  pertaining  to 
the  literary  development  of  Brooklyn,  and  by  his  helpful 
spirit  towards  every  literary  venture,  but  in  the  many 
graceful  papers  which  he  contributed  to  the  jjress,  and 
to  the  magazines  of  his  day.  He  was  a  facile  writer 
— as  might  have  been  exjsected  from  the  son  of  such 
a  veteran  editor  as  Col.  Alden  Spooner — he  had  a 
poetic  temperament,  great  felicity  of  expression,  and  a 
quiet  underlj^ing  vein  of  humor,  which  gave  a  peculiar 
charm  to  his  slightest  effort.  His  well-known  sketches 
of  the  Last  of  the  Leather-breeches,  in  which  he  chroni- 
cled, with  exceeding  gusto,  the  long  litigation  between 
the  village  authorities  and  old  Jacob  Patchen;  his 
sketches  in  the  Brooklyn  Monthly  (1869)  on  The  First 
Episcopal  Church  in  Brooklyn  (old  St.  Ann's);   'The 


Dominie^s  Ride  with  the  Devil,  and  other  similar 
papers  on  Long  Island  topics,  possess  a  charm  of 
fancy  and  description  strongly  reminding  one  of  (if, 
indeed,  not  fully  equal  to)  Washington  Irving's  legend- 
ary tales.  It  is  to  be  regretted  that,  with  his  rich  store 
of  personal  reminiscence,  his  wide  acquaintance  with 
the  best  literature,  and  his  deep  and  abiding  love  for 
his  native  land,  he  never  set  himself  seriously  to 
work  upon  some  work  of  permanent  value.  It  was  un- 
derstood in  his  later  days,  that  he  had  made  some 
progress  towards  a  history  of  Long  Island;  but  his 
sudden  death  has  deprived  us  of  what — had  it  ever 
been  completed — would  undoubtedly  have  been  a 
classically  elegant  work  of  its  kind. 

Contemporary  with  him,  of  course,  was  the  late 
Henry  C.  Murphy,  whose  literary  record  has  been 
presented  on  pp.  360-360  of  this  volume;  and  among  the 
same  group  of  young  literati,  most  promising  in  his 
early  manhood,  perhaps,  of  all,  but  most  sadly  unfortu- 
nate in  the  sun-setting  of  his  life,  was  Gabriel 
Furman,  of  whom  a  careful  biography  will  be  found 
in  the  chapter  on  the  Bench  and  Bur  of  Kings  county. 

These  were  all  native-born  to  the  island,  or  the  vil- 
lage; but  there  was  a  resident  of  Brooklyn  who, 
in  1835,  created  for  himself  a  widespread,  though 
ephemeral  fame,  by  the  stupendous  literary  hoax  which 
he  played  upon  the  public.  This  was  Richard  Adams 
Locke,  long  since  dead,  but  in  his  prime  a  bright  and 
pushing  man.  "  One  day,  his  fancy  rioting,  he  con- 
ceived the  notion  of  deceiving  the  public,  and  he  did 
it  very  effectually.  In  August,  1835,  there  appeared 
in  the  columns  of  the  New  York  Sun  a  pretended  ex- 
tract from  the  pages  of  a  '  Supplement  to  the  Edin- 
burgh Journal  of  Science,^  under  the  title  of  *  Great 
Astronomical  Discoveries  lately  made  by  Sir  John 
Herschel,  LL.D.,  F.R.S.,  etc.,  at  the  Cape  of  Good 
Hope.'  This  was  the  Moon  Hoax.  Several  numbers 
of  the  Sun  were  required  to  complete  the  story.  Men 
went  wild  in  speculations  over  the  wonderful  discov- 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS   COUNTY. 


eries.  The  publication  created  as  great  an  excitement 
abroad  as  at  home;  and  at  home  the  serious-minded 
Mercantile  Advertiser  of  New  York,  said:  '  It  appears 
to  carry  intrinsic  evidence  of  being  an  authentic  docu- 
ment;' while  the  Commercial  Advertiser  was  morally 
certain  that  in  it  could  be  traced  '  marks  of  trans- 
Atlantic  origin.'  Meanwhile,  Locke  chuckled,  and 
the  Sim  made  monej-  by  the  fabulous  sale  of  its  sheets. 
A  pamphlet  edition  of  the  Hoax  was  subsequently 
published  by  the  proprietors  of  the  Sun,  and  of  this 
sixty  thousand  copies  were  sold — and  so  were  the 
buyers.  Ten  or  twelve  years  ago,  a  single  copy  of  this 
pamphlet  (then  long  out  of  print)  was  disposed  of  at 
a  library  auction  sale  for  the  price  of  $3.75." 

Whatever  lionor  Brooklyn  may  have  gained  in  the 
fields  of  literature,  is  however,  mostly  due  to  her 
adoijted,  rather  than  to  her  native-born  children.  Her 
nearness  and  accessibility  to  New  York,  the  pleasant 
features  of  her  civic  topography  and  environments, 
and  the  delightful  social  atmosphere  pervading  her 
population,  has  ever  rendered  "The  City  of  Churches" 
a  favorite  dwelling-place  for  those  of  studious  tastes 
and  literary  occupations.  Add  to  these  advantages  a 
cheaper  scale  of  house-rents,  and  a  greater  variety  of 
eligible  locations,  and  of  opportunities  for  securing  an 
inexpensive  and  tasteful  home,  than  are  offered  by 
New  York  city,  and  it  is  easy  to  understand  how 
Brooklyn  has  gathered  within  its  limits  no  inconsider- 
able number  of  those  whose  lives  are  spent  in  literary 
pursuits.  The  growing  value,  also,  of  our  two  prin- 
cipal libraries,  the  Historical  and  the  Brooklyn,  is 
contributing  largely  to  the  resources  which  our  city 
offers  to  both  student  and  writer. 

The  reader  who  consults  our  chapters  uj)on  the 
Medical  Professioii,  the  Bench  and  Bar,  the  Press,  and 
the  brief  biographical  notes  of  the  Clergy  of  the  city 
attached  to  tlie  History  of  Church  Organizations, 
will  see  that  we  have  a  goodly  number  of  professional 
gentlemen  among  us,  whose  lives  and  whose  works  go 
to  make  up  the  literary  history  of  the  county  and  city; 
and  whose  efforts,  whether  in  the  pulpit,  at  the  bar,  or 
by  the  pen,  have  conferred  upon  Brooklyn  the  reputa- 
tion which  she  so  widely  enjoys,  of  being  a  refined  and 
cultured  communitj'. 

Of  these  we  do  not  intend  to  speak  further;  but 
rather  to  confine  ourselves,  within  the  very  limited 
space  at  our  disposal,  to  a  brief  and  rapid  glance  at  the 
names  and  works  of  those  who  may  be  said  to  form  the 
literary  element  of  Brooklyn  Society,  in  this  year  of 
our  Lord,  1884. 

Directing  our  attention  first,  as  in  duty  bound,  to  the 
ladies,  we  may  note  : 

Miss  Edna  Dean  Pkoctor,  the  poet  and  author  of 
that  charming  book  of  travels,  "  A  Kussian  Journey," 
resides  in  Brooklyn,  a  member  of  the  household  of  her 
relative,  Mr.  Charles  Storrs,  of  23  Monroe  Place.  She 
is  a  native  of  New  Hampshire. 


As  a  writer  Miss  Proctor  has  been  before  the  public 
for  many  years,  and  her  fame  as  a  poet  has  grown 
steadily.  Her  poems  were  collected  in  1867  and  pub- 
lished in  a  small  volume;  a  new  and  enlarged  edition 
will  contain  her  later  productions.  She  has  written 
some  of  the  most  beautiful  poems  in  the  language. 
They  are  distinguished  alike  for  lofty  imagery  and 
pure  sentiment,  and  have  a  permanent  place  in  English 
literature.  Her  "  Heaven,  O  Lord,  I  cannot  lose,"  has 
been  spoken  of  by  critics  as  "  one  of  the  finest  poems 
of  its  kind  to  be  found  in  any  language;  and  as  the 
most  magnificent  hymn  in  the  language."  Another  of 
her  poems,  "  Holy  Russia,"  published  some  years  ago, 
during  the  life  of  the  Czar  Alexander  made  her  many 
warm  friends  in  Russia,  where  she  had  traveled  exten- 
sively. Her  "  Russian  Journey,"  was  the  outcome  of  a 
memorable  tour  made  in  1867  and  it  has  no  superior  as 
a  narrative  of  travels,  for  its  pictures  of  domestic  life  and 
character.  Miss  Proctor  is  more  a  child  of  the  Orient 
than  a  daughter  of  New  England,  and  hence  was  pre- 
eminently fitted  to  appreciate  the  peculiar  features  of 
the  Russian  people,  who  are  Greek  in  religion,  and  are 
possessed  of  widely  varied  characteristics  as  a  nation. 
But  if  she  is  in  appearance  Oriental,  with  her  lustrous 
eyes,  dark  hair,  and  marked  repose  of  manner,  she  is  an 
American  patriot,  passionate  in  her  admiration  of  her 
country  and  its  institutions.  Her  war  lyrics  will  stir 
the  hearts  of  yet  unborn  generations  and  move  to 
sympathetic  loyalty  the  descendants  of  the  "  boys  in 
blue."  Intuitional  and  sympathetic,  she  touches  the 
finest  chords  of  the  heart,  and  her  poems  have  a  flavor 
and  a  beauty  that  linger  with  the  reader  long  after  the 
perfect  lines  are  unremembered.  Her  genius  makes  her 
akin  to  the  finest  aspirations  of  her  kind,  and  she  rarely 
is  unmindful  of  great  events  or  the  leaders  who  create 
them.  Recently,  she  has  published  a  poem,  "El 
Mahdi,  to  the  Tribes  of  Soudan,"  which  has  aroused  in 
all  classes  of  her  countrymen  a  strong  sympathy  for 
the  hero  of  the  desert.  Catholic  and  tolerant  in  her  own 
nature,  she  recognizes  the  finer  qualities  of  her  fellow- 
beings  and  she  makes  them  what  her  fancy  sees  they 
can  be. 

As  a  writer,  she  is  painstaking  and  conscientious  to 
a  degree,  and  her  polished  sentences  need  no  retouches 
when  once  they  have  passed  from  her  hands. 

In  her  character.  Miss  Proctor  is  strong  and  beauti- 
ful. Hers  is  a  sympathetic  and  loyal  nature,  actively 
helpful  and  beneficent,  and  kind  to  the  core  of  her 
being.  To  few  women  are  given  the  friendships  which 
she  possesses;  to  not  all  are  given  such  a  friend  as  she. 
In  the  zenith  of  her  powers,  with  aspiration  and  strength 
renewed,  her  future  stretches  out  before  her  a  long 
season  of  work  and  reward,  of  recognition  and  fruition, 
even  to  the  morn  of  the  perfect  day. 

Upon  the  editorial  staff  of  the  Eagle,  there  was,  un- 
til lately,  a  lady,  Mrs.  Laura  C.  Holloway,  widely 
known  as  the  author   of  "  The   Ladies  of  the  White 


LITERATURE  AND   SCIENCE. 


1315 


House,"  a  work  which  has  had  a  phenomenal  success  in 
this  country  and  England.  Mrs.  Holloway  is  a  daugh- 
ter of  the  South  and  became  acquainted  with  the  editor 
of  the  Eagle,  Mr.  Kinsella,  through  a  letter  of  intro- 
duction from  ex-President  Andrew  Johnson.  Mr. 
Kinsella's  friendly  interest,  aroused  then  in  her,  con- 
tinued unabated  through  life,  and  she  remained  a  trusted 
co-worker  with  him  until  his  death.  Mrs.  Holloway 
had  fairly  won  her  way  in  journalism  when  she  became 
a  member  of  the  Eagle  staff,  and  has  likewise  been 
successful  in  other  fields.  As  a  lecturer,  she  has 
charmed  the  intelligence  and  culture  of  Brooklyn  in  its 
crowded  Academy  of  Music,  and  in  a  western  lecture 
tour  received  solid  recognition  of  her  ability  and 
popularity.  Mrs.  Holloway  is  the  author  of  several 
popular  subscription  works,  and  is  a  frequent  contribu- 
tor to  magazines.  After  the  death  of  ]Mr.  Kinsella,  she 
resigned  her  position  on  the  Eagle,  to  devote  herself 
exclusively  to  writing  books,  among  which  may  be 
mentioned  "An  Hour  with  Charlotte  Brontd;"  and 
"  American  Fortunes,  and  the  Men  who  have  Made 
Them,"  from  the  advance  sheets  of  which  we  have 
been  permitted  to  glean,  in  condensed  form,  our 
sketch  of  Charles  Storrs,  on  page  1158. 

Mrs.  Emily  C.  Fork,  wife  of  Gordon  L.  Ford,  P^sq., 
and  granddaughter  of  Noah  Webster,  the  lexico- 
grapher, is  the  centre  of  a  charming  litirary  circle,  and 
draws  about  her,  by  her  talent  and  amiability,  some  of 
the  most  brilliant  minds  of  the  city.  Slight  in  person, 
her  pale  features  are  the  embodiment  of  intellect  and 
refinement.  Her  publications  consist  of  "  My  Recrea- 
tions" (1872),  a  volume  of  poems,  and  numerous  essays, 
critical  articles,  stories,  etc.,  in  The  New  Englander, 
The  International,  The  Galaxy,  Harper's  Bazar  and 
"Weekly,  the  Atlantic,  the  Century,  the  Brooklyn 
Advance,  and  other  magazines;  also,  in  the  Evening 
Post,  Brooklyn  Union,  and  Independent. 

Mrs.  J.  H.  Cutter  is  the  principal  stockholder  in, 
and  contributor  to,  the  Manhattan,  over  the  signature 
of  "  J.  Heard."  She  has  written  several  serials,  be- 
sides numerous  fugitive  pieces. 

Mrs.  Helen  S.  Conant,  wife  of  S.  S.  Conant,  writes 
most  of  the  Book-Notices  for  Harper's  magazines;  she 
has  written,  also,  the  "  Princes  of  German  and  Spanish 
Literature "  in  Harper''s  Half-Hoar  Series ;  the 
"Butterfly  Hunters;"  and  is  a  large  contributor  to 
various  periodicals. 

Mrs.  Kate  Ui'son  Clark,  of  575  Quincy  street,  is 
the  editress  of  Good  Cheer,  a  handsome  weekly,  pub- 
lished at  Greenfield,  Mass.,  with  the  especial  mission  of 
supplanting  bad  and  weak  literature  among  the  poor, 
and  which  has  already  attained  a  circulation  of  100,000 
copies.  She  also  edits  the  Woman's  department  (called 
"the  Helping  hand")  of  the  PhiladelphiaWeekly  Press, 
and  is  a  fre(juent  contributor  to  Harper'' s  various  publi- 
cations, to  LippincotC s  Magazine,  the  Indeptendent, 
Christian  Union,  Congregationolist,  Wide  Awake,  Our 


Little  Ones,  Outing,  etc.,  etc.  Mrs.  Clark  was  born  in 
Camden,  Ala.,  in  1851;  her  mother  was  Priscilla  Max- 
well, for  many  years  principal  of  a  large  female  semi- 
nary in  Alabama.  Her  father,  Edward  Upson,  a  native 
of  Connecticut,  was  one  of  the  book-selling  firm  of 
Strickland  &  Co.,  of  Mobile.  In  1856,  the  members  of 
this  firm  were  warned  to  leave  the  state,  and  a  reward 
offered  for  their  bodies,  "  dead  or  alive,"  because  they 
had  sold  Uticle  Tom's  Cabin,  and  The  Life  of  Fred 
Bonglass.  This  affair  created  much  excitement  at  the 
time,  and  was  one  of  the  most  important  forerunners  of 
the  war.  Mr.  Upson  fled  to  Milwaukee,  where  his 
daughter  continued  (at  the  Female  College)  the  educa- 
tion which  had  previously  been  begun  in  Massachusetts, 
and  graduated  in  1869  from  Wheaton  Seminary,  Norton, 
Mass.,  and  in  1870  from  the  Normal  School,  Westfield, 
Mass.  Then  followed  a  year  and  a  half  of  teaching  at 
the  Central  High  School,  at  Cleveland,  Ohio;  and  in 
January,  1874,  she  became  the  wife  of  Mr.  Edward  P. 
Clark,  at  that  time  managing  editor  of  the  Spi-ing- 
field  Pepitblican,  but  at  present  connected  with  the 
Brooklyn  Union. 

Mrs.  Clark  did  not  begin  her  authorial  career  until 
1878,  when  the  commendations  bestowed  by  competent 
editorial  critics,  upon  a  contribution  to  Harper''s  Bazar, 
incited  her  to  devote  her  time  chiefly  to  the  writing  of 
fiction.  This  she  began  to  do  in  the  autumn  of  1880; 
and  though  the  subsequent  editorial  duties  which  she 
assumed,  together  with  her  duties  as  wife,  housekeeper, 
and  the  mother  of  three  healthy  boys,  do  not  afford  that 
leisure  requisite  for  the  higher  classes  of  literary  work, 
yet  they  have  not  quenched  her  enthusiasm,  nor  hin- 
dered her  in  the  careful  and  conscientious  doing  well  of 
whatever  she  takes  in  hand. 

Mrs.  Olive  Thorne  Miller  writes  for  children 
mostly,  contributing  to  various  juvenile  publications, 
and  issuing  books  on  Natural  History  for  the  young. 
She  was  born  in  Auburn,  New  York,  in  1831;  married 
in  Illinois  in  1854;  removed  to  Brooklyn  in  1877.  She 
began  writing — for  children's  publications — in  1870. 
In  1874,  her  scattered  papers  were  collected  to  form 
her  first  book.  Little  Folks  in  Feather  and  Fur.  Her 
second  book,  Nimjjo's  Troubles,  after  running  as  a 
serial  in  St.  Nicholas,  was  published  in  1880,  by  E.  P. 
Dutton  &  Co.,  New  York.  In  1881,  the  same  house 
issued  her  Queer  Pets  at  Marcyh,  and  in  1883,  Little 
People  of  Asia. 

Mrs.  Mary  E.  Van  Dyne  is  the  editor  of  Harper's 
Young  Peop>le,  writing  much  and  well  lor  its  columns. 
Mrs.  Alice  Wellington  Rollins  is  a  writer  of 
poems,  and  a  regular  contributor  to  Hurj>er's.  Miss 
Alice  Fenn,  daughter  of  Harry  Fenn,  has  written  a 
number  of  articles  for  different  magazines,  which  her 
father  has  illustrated;  one,  on  "Surrey,"  appeared  in 
IIarper''s  Magazine;  while  others  have  been  printed  in 
the  Century  and  in  other  publications.  Mrs.  Helen 
Campbell  edits  a   department  in  Our  Continent;  and 


1.316 


HISTOR  Y  OF  KINGS  CO  UNTT. 


INIrs.  Kate  Hilliard  has  written  several  admirable 
fugitive  poems. 

In  the  Social  Sistori/  of  Flatbush,  1882,  by  Ger- 
trude Lkfferts  Vanderbilt,  and  which  has  already 
passed  to  a  second  edition,  we  have  a  most  valuable 
local  history,  executed  with .  that  fidelity  and  indefin- 
able charm  which  only  a  woman's  mind  and  pen  could 
weave  around  such  a  subject. 

Margaret  Elizabeth  Sangster,  nee  Munson,  was 
born  February  22d,  1838,  in  New  Rochelle,  N.  Y.,  and 
has  been  a  frequent  contributor  to  current  religious 
literature  for  the  past  fifteen  years.  Most  of  her  life 
has  been  passed  in  Brooklyn,  though  part  of  her  child- 
hood was  spent  in  Paterson,  N.  Y.  She  is  associate 
editor  of  the  Christian  Intelligencer,  and  writes,  with 
more  or  less  regularity,  for  Harper's  Bazar  and  Young 
People,  The  Congregationalist,  Sunday  School  Tiiaes, 
and  the  publications  of  the  American  Tract  Society. 
Her  published  works  are  Poems  of  the  Household, 
Hours  With  Girls,  May  Stanhope  and  Her  Friends, 
Miss  Deioberry\'i  Scholars,  Home  and  Heaven,  Five 
Happy  Weeks,  and  Splendid  Times.  She  also  edited 
and  compiled  a  Manual  of  the  Missions  of  the  Re- 
formed Church  in  America,  of  which  she  is  a  member, 
and  in  whose  Foreign  Mission  Work  she  takes  a  deep 
interest. 


Turning  now  to  the  gentlemen  of  the  Guild  of  Let- 
ters, we  find : 

Mr.  George  W.  Bungay,  author  of  the  well-known 
lyrics  i)ublished  in  the  Evening  Post,  Home  Journal, 
and  leading  magazines.  He  is,  also,  a  strong  supporter 
of  the  cause  of  temperance,  and  wields  a  forcible  pen 
in  its  behalf. 

Mr.  Daviu  M.  Stone,  editor  of  the  Journal  of  Com- 
merce, has  also  done  some  excellent  literary  work,  aside 
from  his  paper,  but  his  interests  are  more  particularly 
Identified  with  New  York.  This  is  also  the  case  with 
Mr.  S.  S.  Conant,  literary  editor  of  Hurper''s  Weekly, 
whose  high  standard  of  excellence  is  due  not  only  to 
his  perfect  taste,  but  to  his  facile  pen  as  well.  He  has 
conducted  for  the  Harpers  all  their  copyright  con- 
troversies for  a  number  of  years. 

Rev.  T.  P.  Conant  is  well  known  as  a  Hebrew 
scholar  and  Bible  translator. 

Frederick  Saunders,  author  of  Salad  for  the 
Solitary,  and  librarian  of  Astor  Library,  New  York, 
and  Oliver  B.  Bunce,  author  of  Bachelor  Butterfly, 
are  also  residents  of  Brooklyn. 

The  genial  and  humorous  poet,  John  G.  Saxe,  has 
been,  for  many  years,  a  resident  of  Brooklyn,  as  is, 
also.  Will  Carleton,  the  author  of  "  Farm  Ballads  " 
and  other  home  poems  which  have  struck  so  responsive 
a  cord  in  the  hearts  of  the  American  people. 

Allan  Forman  is  the  editor  of  the  Brooklyn  Ad- 
vance, which  is  devoted  exclusively  to  Brooklyn,  and 
has  become  a  decided  success.  He  also  writes  children's 


stories  for  Harper's  and  the  Appletons,  besides  doing 
daily  journalistic  work.  A  young  man  yet,  he  has  al- 
ready won  an  enviable  reputation,  which  his  brilliancy 
and  industry  will  augment. 

By  his  dramatization  of  Hawthorne's  "  Scarlet  Let- 
ter;" his  "Biography  of  John  Howard  Payne,"  now 
in  press;  and,  last  but  not  least,  the  very  elegant  and 
complete  "  History  of  the  Drama,  Music  and  Art  in 
Brooklyn,"  contributed  to  this  volume,  Mr.  Gabriel 
Harrison,  long  a  resident  of  this  city,  has  fairly  "  won 
his  spurs "  as  an  author  of  whom  Brooklyn  may  well 
be  proud. 

Stephen  M.  Ostrander,  Esq.,  a  lawyer  by  profes- 
sion, and  a  local  historian  by  instinct,  has  been  a  fre- 
quent contributor  of  Kings  county  historical  material 
to  the  pages  of  the  Advatice. 

P.  L.  ScHENCK,  M.  D.,  has  issued  the  Historical 
Sketch  of  the  Zabriskie  House,  Flathush,  1881;  and  a 
Genealogy  of  the  Schenck  Family  of  L.  I;  both  exceed- 
ingly interesting  and  valuable  little  works. 

Homer  L.  Bartlett,  M.  D.,  of  Flatbush,  though  he 
has  given  the  world  no  written  volume,  has,  by  his 
frequent  and  valuable  historical  and  semi-legendary 
essays  in  the  public  press,  proved  his  ability  to  enrich 
our  county  literature,  as  we  trust  he  will  do  at  no  dis- 
tant day.  His  accomplished  wife  also  wields  a  trained 
and  facile  pen,  in  occasional  ephemeral  papers  and 
essays. 

James  Clancy,  of  the  Star,  who  published  an  inter- 
esting book  on  the  "  Tombs  "  in  New  York,  is  a  resi- 
dent of  Brooklyn. 

Some  of  our  most  notable  hymn-hook  compilers  and 
music  corn230sers  are  or  were  Brooklynites. 

Among  the  compilers  are  Rev.  Chas.  S.  Robinson 
(First  Presbyterian),  editor  of  "Songs  for  the  Sanctu- 
ary" and  many  others;  Rev.  Chas.  Cutiibert  Hall 
(Dr.  Robinson's  successor  in  First  Presbyterian), 
"Evangelical  Hymnal;"  Rev.  Henry  Ward  Beecher, 
"Plymouth  Collection;"  Rev.  Drs.  A.  R.  Thompson 
and  Zachary  Eddy,  "  Hymns  of  the  Church ;"  Rev. 
Dr.  Chas.  H.  Hall  and  S.  B.  Whitely  (Trinity),  Pro- 
testant Episcopal  "Hymnal  With  Tunes;"  Rev.  Geo. 
E.  Thrall,  "  Episcopal  Common  Praise;"  Dr.  Thrall 
also  edited  the  "  Union  Prayer  Book "  for  Reformed 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church. 

Among  compiosers  are  Dr.  Jos.  P.  Holbrook,  "  Wor- 
ship in  Song,"  etc.;  J.  E.  Sweetser,  "Pilgrim  Melo- 
dies;" U.  C.  BuRNAP,  "  The  Polytechnic,"  "Hymns  of 
Prayer  and  Praise,"  etc. ;  Theo.  E.  Perkins,  "  Mount 
Zion  Collection,"  etc. ;  Sigismund  Lasar,  "  Evangelical 
Hymnal;"  S.  B.  Whitely,  "Hymnal  With  Tunes." 

In  the  educational  department  of  literature  we  may 
mention  Prof.  Jas.  H.  Wokman  (late  of  Adelphi 
Academy),  author  of  a  series  of  text-books  in  German, 
French  and  Spanish.  Prof.  A  De  Rangement  (Adel- 
phi), Dr.  Worman's  colleague  in  preparing  French 
books;    Rev.  E.  P.  Thwing,  "Vocal  Culture  ;"    Miss 


LITERATURE  AND   SCIENCE. 


131Y 


Ida  p.  Whitcomb,  "Topical  History  Charts;"  Prof. 
Alphonso  Wood,  a  series  of  Botanical  text  books; 
Rev.  JoHX  Marsh,  D.  D.,  Epitome  of  Ecclesiastical  His- 
tory; Thomas  Monk,  a  series  of  drawing-books.  All 
the  above  musical  and  educational  works  are  from  the 
press  of  Messrs.  A.  S.  Barnes  &  Co.,  well-known 
residents  of  Brooklyn. 

Educational  works  by  Dr.  L.  P.  Beockett,  and 
Dr.  CiiAs.  E.  West,  are  elsewhere  noticed. 

Besides  these,  we  have  D.  W.  Fish's  series  of  Mathe- 
matical books  published  by  Ivison  &  Co.;  Supt.  Calvin 
Patterson's  grammar  and  spelling-book  (Sheldon  & 
Co.);  Professors  Reid  &  Kellogg  (Polytechnic),  a 
grammar  (Clark  &  Maynard);  William  Swinton,  his- 
tories, geographies,  readers,  etc.  (Ivison  &  Co.),  and 
grammars  (Harper);  J.  J.  Anderson,  Histories  (Clark 
&  Maynard) ;  Dr.  J.  C.  Hut«;hison,  Physiology  (Clark  & 
Maynard) ;  Miss  M.  E.  Tualiieimer  (late  of  the  Packer), 
Summary  of  History;  Peter  Rouget,  Prin.  of  one  of 
our  Public  Schools,  an  Arithmetic. 

We  also  have,  in  the  line  of  medical  authorship,  "  The 
Oi)ium  Habit  and  Alcoholism,"  by  F.  H.  Hubbard,  M. 
D.,  and  Dr.  E.  C.  Mann's  exceedingly  valuable  work 
on  "  Psychological  Medicine." 

Nor  must  we  forget,  in  passing,  to  pay  our  meed  of 
remembrance  to  a  distinguished  educational  writer, 
now  deceased: 

James  Bates  Thomson  was  born  in  Springfield,  Vt., 
in  1803.  His  earlier  years  were  spent  on  his  father's 
farm,  with  only  such  advantages  of  education  as  were 
attainable  in  the  district  school  and  the  village  academy; 
but,  at  the  age  of  sixteen  he  had  commenced  life  as  a 
district  school  teacher,  seeking  thus  to  prepare  himself 
for  college.  To  this  purpose  he  clung  unwaveringly, 
and  after  many  hardships  and  some  delay  from  a  pain- 
ful affection  of  the  eyes,  he  entered  Yale  College,  in 
1830,  and  graduated  with  honor  in  1834.  From  1835 
to  1842,  he  taught  an  academy  of  high  grade  in  Nan- 
tucket, Mass.,  and  in  the  latter  year  removed  to  Auburn, 
N.  Y.,  two  years  after  his  marriage.  In  Auburn  he  was 
engaged,  at  the  urgent  request  of  President  Day,  in  the 
preparation  of  an  abridgment  of  his  Algebra,  which 
was  so  well  and  favorably  known  to  the  last  generation 
of  scholars  in  our  academies  as  "  Thomson's  Day's  Al- 
gebra." He  also  engaged  with  great  zeal  and  success 
in  the  organization  and  conducting  of  "Teachers' Insti- 
tutes," which  have  accomplished  so  much  for  improve- 
ment in  the  methods  of  teaching  in  our  public  schools. 
His  remarkable  ability  in  imparting  mathematical  in- 
struction led  to  his  removal  to  New  York  city  in  1846, 
where  he  prepared  a  series  of  mathematical  text-books, 
which  under  the  names  of  "  Thomson's  Series  of  Arith- 
metics, Algebras,  Geometry,"  etc.,  won  for  him  a  great 
fame,  and  which  attained  to  a  very  large  circulation. 
In  1854,  Hamilton  College  conferred  on  him  the  degree 
of  LL.D.,  and  in  1882,  the  same  degree  was  conferred 
again  by  the  University  of  Tennessee.     He  removed  to 


Brooklyn  in  1868,  and  having  changed  his  publishers, 
he  commenced  soon  after  the  preparation  of  a  new 
mathematical  series,  in  which  he  determined  to  embody 
the  latest  and  most  complete  improvements  in  arrange- 
ment, methods  of  instruction,  and  practical  application 
of  mathematical  processes  to  commercial  use.  He  was 
eminently  successful  in  this  attempt;  far  more  so,  it  is 
no  more  than  fair  to  say,  than  any  of  his  numerous 
competitors.  His  careful  and  thorough  investigation, 
and  his  vast  fund  of  mathematical  acquirements,  con- 
stantly increased  by  study,  deserved  and  won  for  him  a 
great  success.  His  industry  and  pluck  were  amazing. 
For  eight  years  he  was  a  great  sufferer  from  a  form  of 
rheumatism  which  rendered  active  locomotion  impos- 
sible; but  though  often  racked  with  pain,  his  eye  was 
not  dimmed,  nor  his  mental  force  abated;  and  his 
daily  limit  of  six  hours'  labor  was  performed  as  regu- 
larly, and  with  as  perfect  expression  of  his  ideas,  as 
if  he  had  never  suffered  a  pain.  His  wife  and 
daughter,  both  excellent  mathematicians,  rendered  him 
great  assistance  in  the  details  of  his  work.  He  also 
prepared  several  other  works,  and  was  a  large  con- 
tributor to  educational  journals.  He  died  June  22, 
1883. 

Our  city  also  claims  as  its  son,  Mr.  John  B.  Mc- 
Master,  whose  History  of  the  People  of  the  United 
States  has  lately  attracted  much  attention.  Mr.  Mc- 
Master  was  born  at  Brooklyn,  L.  I.,  June  29,  1852.  His 
grandfather  was  Robert  Bach,  a  prominent  Brooklyn 
merchant,  in  the  days  when  that  city  numbered  16,000 
souls.  His  father  was  James  McMaster,  a  native  of 
New  York  State,  and,  till  the  war  opened,  a  banker  and 
planter  at  New  Orleans.  Mr,  McMaster's  early  years 
were  spent  in  New  York.  Here  he  was  educated  in  the 
public  schools,  and  graduated  from  the  College  of  the 
City  of  New  York  in  1872.  For  a  year  he  taught 
English  grammar  in  that  institution  as  a  Fellow,  but,  in 
1873  he  set  out  to  become  a  civil  engineer,  spent  some 
time  in  Virginia  and  Chicago,  and  when  the  panic  came 
on,  returned  to  New  York  to  go  on  with  the  history, 
for  which  materials  had  been  collecting  since  1870. 
Some  reviews  have  attributed  to  him  the  works  of  the 
late  John  Richard  Green  as  a  model.  But  the  plan  of 
the  first  volume  of  the  "History  of  the  People  of 
the  United  States"  as  it  now  exists,  was  drawn 
in  1871,  and  much  of  the  material  arranged, 
when,  in  1874,  Mr.  Green's  first  volume  appeared.  As 
the  book  now  stands,  it  has  been  twice  written  entirely 
from  end  to  end,  and  some  of  the  chapters  from  three 
to  eight  times,  as  the  acquisition  of  new  material  seemed 
to  require.  In  1877,  Mr.  McMaster,  was  appointed  In- 
structor in  Civil  Engineering  at  Princeton  College. 

Linus  Pierpont  Brockett,  M.  D.,  the  eldest  son  of 
Rev.  Pierpont  Brockett,  for  fifty  years  a  Baptist  min- 
ister in  New  England,  was  born  in  Canton,  Conn.,  Oct. 
16,  1820;  received  his  early  education  at  Hill's  Acad- 
emy, Essex,  Conn.,  and  the  Conn.  Literary  Institution 


1318 


HISTORY  OF  KIJSTGS  COUNTY. 


at  SufReld;  entered  Brown  University  in  1837,  but, 
owing  to  impaired  health,  did  not  graduate;  obtained 
his  medical  education  at  Washington,  D.  C,  New  Haven, 
Ct.,  and  New  York;  graduated,  M.  D.,  in  1843,  and 
since  1846,  has  devoted  himself  mainly  to  literary  pur- 
suits. In  1857,  he  received  the  honorary  degree  of  M. 
A.  from  Amherst  College.  He  has  published  many 
works  of  large  circulation  among  which  are  the  follow- 
ing: Geoijraphical  History  of  Ne\o  York,  1847;  Me- 
moir of  James  Edioard  Meystre,  1855;  The  Pioneer 
Preacher,  1857;  History  of  Education,  1859;  History 
of  the  Civil  War,  1865;  Life  of  Abraham  Lincoln, 
1865;  Our  Great  Captains,  1865;  Camp,  Battle 
Field  and  Hospital,  1866;  Woman's  Work  in  the 
Civil  War,  1867;  Men  of  oter  Day,  1868,  and 
an  enlarged  edition  in  1872;  Woman/  her  Rif/hts, 
Wrongs,  Privileges  and  Responsibilities,  1869;  The 
Year  of  Battles;  a  History  of  the  IVanco-  German 
War,  1871-'2;  Epidemic  and  Contagious  Diseases, 
1873;  The  Silk  Industry  in  America,  1876;  Tlie  Cross 
and  the  Crescent,  1877,  &c.,  <fec.  He  has  also  edited 
numerous  works;  was  from  1856  to  1862,  on  the  edi- 
torial staff  of  the  New  American  Gyclop<rdia;  from 
1861  to  1875,  one  of  the  editors  of  A2}pleton''s  Atmwd 
Cyclopoidia;  and  from  1872  to  1877,  one  of  the  edi- 
tors of  Johnson^s  Universal  Cyclojymdia.  He  has  writ- 
ten also  numerous  review  and  magazine  articles,  and 
is  now  editing  the  new  geographical  monthly,  De- 
scriptive  America.  He  completed,  in  1879,  a  His- 
tory of  the  Bogomiels,  the  Baptists  of  the  East,  from 
the  5th  to  15th  century,  and  has  in  hand  a  Life  of 
Christ,  on  which  he  has  been  engaged  for  over  eight 
years.    He  has  resided  in  Brooklyn  twenty-five  years. 

We  come  now  to  our  local  historians,  a  class  of 
writers  who,  though  their  works  may  not  gain  the  eclat 
which  attends  other  literary  productions,  still  fill  a 
very  important  place  in  the  history  of  any  community. 
In  the  year  1824,  Gabriel  Fiibman  (see  biography 
page  349),  a  native  of  the  town,  published  a  little 
volume  which  he  modestly  entitled  "  Notes  on  the 
History  of  Brooklyn,"  and  which,  for  that  day,  pos- 
sessed great  merit  as  a  local  history.  He  had  an 
intuitive  and  prophetic  sagacitj'  as  to  the  importance 
of  desoribing,  recording,  and  fixing  the  dates  of  many 
things  which  could  change  with  progress  and  be  for- 
gotten; and  but  for  his  "Notes,"  published  in  1824,  it 
would  now  be  well-nigh  impossible  for  us  to  trace 
the  beginnings  of  our  "goodly-heritage." 

Contemporaneous  with  him,  and  older  in  years,  was 
that  worthy  citizen,  Gen.  Jeremiah  Johnson,  himself 
a  connecting  link  between  Brooklyn's  Past  and  Present, 
all  of  whose  contributions  to  local  history,  however, 
were  ui  the  form  of  articles  in  newsjjapers  and 
magazines.  To  his  excellent  memory  and  writings, 
both  published  and  in'  manuscript,  all  succeeding  his- 
torians have  been  indebted.  His  biography  will  be 
found  on  page  147. 


Benjamin  Thompson,  the  historian  of  Long  Island, 
in  1843,  and  the  Rev.  Nathaniel  S.  Prime,  his  suc- 
cessor in  the  same  historic  field  in  1845,  each  gave 
interesting  but  necessarily  brief  resumh  of  Kings 
County  and  Brooklyn  history;  while  Thos.  P.  Teale's 
somewhat  scanty  "  Chronicles,"  in  Sj)Ooner's  Directory 
for  1848  ;  and  J.  T.  Bailey's  "Historical  Sketch,"  in 
1840;  the  Bush  wick  and  Williamsburgh  sketches,  by 
C.  S.  ScHBOEDER,  in  the  Long  Island  Family  Circle, 
1852;  Samuel  Reynolds'  "History  of  Williams- 
burgh," published  as  an  adjunct  to  the  Williamsburgh 
Directory  of  1852  ;  and  Mr.  F.  G.  Fish's  History  of  St. 
Ann's  P.  E.  Church,  1845,  and  Rev.  Dr.  Strong's 
History  of  Flatbusb,  in  1842,  completes  the  list  of 
our  earlier  local  histories. 

Ten  years  later,  1863,  the  formation  of  the  Long 
Island  Historical  Society  gave  a  new  impetus  to  his- 
torical and  antiquarian  research  in  tiiis  county,  and 
upon  Long  Island.  Among  its  founders,  and  most  ac- 
tive in  the  field  of  authorship,  were  Hon.  Henry  C. 
Murphy,  Alden  J.  Spoonek,  Esq.,  Hon.  Teunis  G. 
Bergen,  Thomas  W.  Field,  and  the  editor  of  this 
history,  who  alone  remains  to  inscribe  upon  its  pages 
the  record  of  that  progress  to  which  his  departed  asso- 
ciates so  much  contributed. 

The  years  1863-'67  were  full  of  literary  and  historic 
enterprises  and  labors.  Spooner  put  forth  a  new  and 
annotated  edition  of  Wood''s  History  of  Long  Island, 
to  which  he  prefaced  a  loving  memoir  of  his  old  friend 
the  author ;  and,  with  Henry  R.  Stiles  (under  the 
guise  of  the  Faust  Club),  he  published,  also,  a  new 
edition  of  Furman''s  Notes,  with  Memoir  and  Notes. 
Field  reprinted  Garden^ s  Anecdotes  of  the  Revolution, 
in  three  stately  volumes,  and  subsequently  his  Histori- 
cal and  Antiquarian  Scenes  in  Brooklyn  and  Vicinity, 
1882  ;  and  his  Battle  of  Long  Island,  for  the  second 
volume  of  the  Historical  Society's  Collections.  Murphy 
translated  and  edited,  for  the  Historical  Society,  the 
Journal  of  the  Labadists,  which  forms  the  first  volume 
of  its  Collections  ;  and  Beegen  put  forth  his  Bergen 
Genealogies,  etc.      (See  page  268). 

In  1865,  Stiles  issued  (limited  edition)  two  volumes 
relating  to  the  sufferings  and  experiences  of  the  Prison- 
Ship  captives  in  Wallabout  Bay,  under  the  title  of  The 
Wallabout  Series ;  and,  in  1867,  he  brought  out  the 
first  volume  of  his  History  of  the  City  of  Brooklyn, 
of  which  two  remaining  volumes  ajipeared  in  1869  and 
1870. 

Hknby  R.  Stiles,  M.  A.,  M.  D.,  was  born  in  New 
York  City,  March  10,  1832;  obtained  his  education  at 
the  Grammar  School  of  the  University  of  the  City  of 
New  York;  was  freshman  at  the  University,  and 
sophomore  at  Williams  College;  ill-health  prevented 
his  graduation  there,  but  in  1876,  he  received  the  de- 
gree of  A.  M.  from  that  college.  He  studied  medicine 
at  the  Medical  Department  of  the  University  of  City 
of  New  York,   graduating   1855;   as,   also,  same  year, 


LITERATURE  AND   SCIENCE. 


from   the   N.  Y.  Ophthalmic   Hospital.     Practised  in 
New    York  City;   Galena,  III.;  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  and 
Woodbridge,  N.  J.     In  1863,  was  one  of  the  originators 
of  the  Long  Island  Historical  Society,  at  Brooklyn,  of 
which  he  was  a  director  and   the  librarian   until   1866. 
In  1868,  was  appointed   Chief  Clerk  in  the  Brooklyn 
Bureau  of  Vital  Statistics,  of  the  Metropolitan  Board 
of  Health;  and  remained  in  that  office  until  the  legisla- 
tive   abolition    of   the    Metropolitan    Commissions    in 
1870.    He  was  then  appointed  Sanitary  Inspector  in  the 
New  York  City  Board  of   Health  (serving  as  such  in 
the  2d,  4th,  and   6th  Wards),  until  the  creation  of  a 
new  board  in  June,  1873;  passed  the  civil  service  ex- 
amination, instituted  by  the  new  board,  with  honor, 
and  was  re-appointed  Sanitary  Inspector,  June  17,  1873; 
in  July,  same  year,  he  was  appointed  Medical  Superin- 
tendent  of   the  State    Homteopathic    Asylum  for  the 
Insane,  located  at  Middletown,  Orange  county,  N.  Y. ; 
he  there  superintended  the  erection   of  the  first  two 
buildings,   organized   the   service  of  the  asylum,   and 
placed   the   institution  on   the  foundation  of    success 
which  is  now  universally  accorded  to  it,  as  the  first  and 
(thus  far)  the  only  homoeopathic  insane  asylum  in  the 
world  under  governmental  control;  resigning  his  posi- 
tion in  1877,  he  removed   with  his  family  to  Dundee, 
Scotland,  where  he  was  appointed  to  the  charge  of  the 
Dundee  Homoeopathic  Dispensary j  and  where,  in  the 
enjoyment   of    a   good    practice,    he    remained    until 
December,  1881,  when   he  felt   obliged  by  his  wife's 
health  and  his  own,  to  return  to  America.     He  is  now 
engaged  in  a  consultation  practice  in  New  York  city. 
He  is  a  member  of  the  N.   Y.  County  Homoeojmthic 
Medical   Society,    and    a  permanent   member   of    the 
N.   Y.  State  Homoeopathic   Medical  Society;  has  also 
belonged  to  the  Kings  and  the  Orange  County  Homoe- 
opathic 3Iedical  Societies;  is  a  member  of  the  Clinical 
Ghib    (medical) ;  the  N.    Y.  Medico-Legal  Society;  a 
founder  and  officer  of  the  Society  for  Promoting  the 
Welfare  of  the  Insane;  was  one  of  the  organizers  and 
first  members  of  the  Public  Health  Association  of  New 
York    City,   in   1872.     He  has  also  been  Lecturer  on 
Hygiene  and  Sanitary  Science,  at  the  N.   Y.  Homoeo- 
pathic Medical  College,  and  is  now  Professor  of  Men- 
tal  and   Nervous   Diseases,    at   the    N.    Y.    Women's 
Medical  College  and  Hospital,  New  York  city. 

In  185  9,  Dr.  Stiles  published  The  History  and 
Genealogies  of  Ancient  Windsor,  Conn,  and  in  1861, 
a.  supplement  to  the  same;  and  also  a  monograph  on 
Bundling  in  America;  in  1863,  he  published  the  (re»e- 
alogy  of  the  Massachusetts  Stiles  Famili/;  in  1 865^  he  was 
(see  page  1318)  an  active  member  of  the  "Faust  Club" 
(publishing),  of  Brooklyn;  in  1865,  issued  two  volumes 
of  the  Wallabout  Series,  and  edited  The  Genealogy 
of  the  Stranahan  and  Josslyn  lamilies;  and  in  1867, 
he  issued  the  first  volume  of  his  History  of  the  City  of 
Brooklyn;  in  1869,  the  second  volume,  and  in  1870, 
the  third;  he  was,  also,  from  1863  to  1870,  a  contributor 


to  the  Round  Table,  and  to  several  works  of  history 
and  biography  edited  by  other  parties.  He  has,  for 
many  years,  been  an  active  member  (and  was  for  eight 
years,  the  Recording  Secretary)  of  the  American 
Ethnological  Society;  and  was  one  of  the  organizers 
and  Recording  Secretary  of  the  (now  defunct)  Ameri- 
can  Anthropological  Institute;  in  1869,  he  was  one  of 
the  seven  founders  of  the  N.  Y.  Genealogical  and 
Biograpihical  Society,  and  its  President  from  1869  to 
1873,  and  still  a  member  of  its  board  of  trustees  and  of 
its  publication  committee.  He  is  honorary  and  corre- 
sponding member  of  various  historical  societies,  among 
which  are  the  New  England  Historic- Genealogical 
Society;  the  Dorchester  (Mass.)  Antiquarian  Society; 
the  Wisconsin  and  the  Arizona  Historical  Societies; 
the  Antiqimrian  and  Numismatical  Society  of  Phila- 
delphia; the  American  Philological  Society,  etc.  He 
is  a  life  member  of  the  Long  Island  Historical  Society. 


PRIVATE    LIBRARIES. 

As  to  pyriv ate  libraries — and,  by  this  we  mean  those 
collections  of  books  which  have  been  gathered  with 
well  defined  purpose,  as  illustrative  of  some  special 
subject,  or  indicative  of  some  peculiar  fancy  or  taste  of 
their  owners — Brooklyn  has  had,  and  still  has,  some 
which  are  well  worthy  of  note. 

Of  such  was  the  princely  library,  now  lately  dispersed, 
of  the  late  Hon.  Henry  C.  Mukphy  (see  page  364), 
a  notable  collection  of  Americana;  especially  of  rare 
volumes  on  early  American  exploration,  navigation  and 
Colonial  Dutch  history.  It  numbered  3,142  titles, 
and  brought,  under  the  auctioneer's  hammer,  nearly 
§52,000.  In  Dr.  Wynne's  "  Private  Libraries  of  New 
York,"  will  be  found  a  full  description  of  the  treasures 
of  this  splendid  collection. 

Dr.  Wynne's  Private  Libraries  of  New  York,  in- 
cludes among  its  descriptions,  that  of  the  library  of 
our  fellow-townsman  J.  Carson  Brevoort.  It  orig- 
inally contained  some  10,000  volumes,  of  which  nearly 
6,000  were  collected  by  the  late  Henry  Brevoort,  father 
of  the  present  owner.  He  began  to  collect,  about  1810, 
while  abroad;  and  the  French  Revolution  of  1830,  as 
well  as  the  numerous  book  sales  which  followed  the 
cholera  visitation  of  1832,  opened  to  him  a  rich  field 
for  the  purchase  of  fine  and  valuable  works,  of  fl  hich 
he  liberally  and  judiciously  availed  himself.  The  orig- 
inal editions  of  "  Smith's  Virginia,"  "  the  Warres  of 
New  England;  "  "  The  Simple  Cobbler  of  Aggawam;  " 
"  Hubbard's  Indian  Wars;"  "  Mather's  Indian  Wars," 
and  a  number  of  other  early  and  rare  American  tracts, 
presented  to  Mr.  Brevoort  by  Sir  Walter  Scott — who 
had  collected  them  with  a  view,  subsequently  aban- 
doned, of  writing  a  novel  of  the  early  New  England 
times— are  among  the  gems  of  this  collection;  which  is 
also  extremely  rich  in  priceless  MSS.,  autograph  let- 
ters, official  and  military  journals,  order-books,  etc.,  etc. 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


To  this  valuable  libraiy,  bequeathed  to  him  in  1848, 
Mr.  Brevoort  made  large  additions,  consisting  of  works 
illustrative  of  the  progress  of  geographical  discovery 
in  America,  such  as  maps,  narrations,  topographical 
memoirs;  his  tastes,  in  this  respect,  running  parallel  to 
those  of  his  friend,  Hon.  Henry  C.  Murphy,  whose 
library  we  have  referred  to  on  page  364.  Peter 
Martyr;  Ramusius  ;  Haklu3't  (ed.  1589,  1599-600,  and 
the  later  quarto) ;  Purchas;  the  Spanish  writers,  Herrera, 
Torquemada,  Clavigero,  De  La  Vega,  and  Charlevoix; 
Kingsborough,  De  Bry,  are  all  represented,  besides 
many  less  known,  but  equally  valuable  and  rare.  In 
charts,  maps,  atlases,  government  and  state  publica- 
tions, geological  and  geographical  reports  and  surveys 
relating  to  the  American  Continent,  and  especially  in 
the  line  of  Arctic  and  Antarctic  exploration  and  Pa- 
cific voyages,  the  collection  is  very  rich.  Next  to 
voyages  and  travels,  the  main  feature  of  this  library  is 
its  works  in  Natural  History,  including  about  2,000 
volumes  on  Zoology.  This  department  is  especially 
strong  in  transactions  of  natural  history  societies,  both 
foreign  and  domestic;  but  its  completest  section  is  that 
of  Ichthyology.  American  history  and  pamphlets  upon 
special  political  topics,  etc.,  have  also  been  extensively 
collected  by  Mr.  Brevoort. 

Wynne's  sketch  of  this  library,  though  written  in 
1860,  described  it  as  it  was  until  1875.  Mr.  Brevoort's 
health  and  eyesight  becoming  seriously  impaired  about 
that  time,  he  has,  since  then,  gradually  bestowed  the 
greater  part  of  his  library,  and  its  accompanying  col- 
lections, upon  those  scientific  bodies  and  societies  to 
which  he  felt  that  they  would  prove  of  most  service, 
such  as  the  Long  Island  Historical  Society  of  this 
city,  the  American  Geographical  Society,  and  the 
Natural  History  Museum  in  the  Central  Park,  New 
York  city,  and  the  Entomological  Society  of  Phila- 
delphia. To  the  Long  Island  Historical  Society,  of 
which  he  was  President  during  its  first  ten  years,  he 
has  been  a  constant  and  liberal  donor,  almost  denuding 
his  own  library  of  his  very  large  accumulation  of 
American  local  history,  biography  and  pamphlets. 

So  generous  and  judicious  a  giver  of  books  to  our 
public  libraries  deserves  some  slight  biographical 
notice  at  our  hands. 

James  Carson  Brevoort,  eldest  son  of  Henry  and 
Laura  (Carson)  Brevoort,  of  New  York  city,  was  born 
July  10,  1818,  and  gained  his  education  in  his  native 
city,  in  France  and  Switzerland.  Upon  leaving  school 
at  Hofwyl,  near  Berne,  he  studied  for  three  years  at 
the  "Ecole  Centrale  des  Arts  et  Manufactures,"  at 
Paris,  and  graduated  with  a  diploma  as  Civil  Engineer. 
Returning  home,  he  was,  for  a  while,  employed  on  the 
Survey  of  the  North-eastern  Boundary,  in  Maine, 
under  his  uncle,  the  late  Prof.  James  Renwick,  who 
was  then  a  Commissioner  on  the  Survey.  In  1838,  he 
accompanied  Washington  Irving,  on  his  appointment 
as  Minister-Plenipotentiary  to  Spain,  and  passed  a  year 


with  him  in  the  capacity  of  private  secretary,  after- 
wards traveling  through  Europe. 

He  returned  to  this  country  again  in  1843,  and,  in 
1845,  married  the  only  daughter  of  the  late  Judge 
Leffert  Lefferts,  of  Bedford.  Since  that  time  he  has 
resided  in  the  LeflPerts  homestead,  engaged  in  manag- 
ing the  estate  of  his  late  father-in-law,  as  well  as  the 
property  which  he  himself  purchased  in  the  neighbor- 
hood, and  modestly  but  honorably  identifying  himself 
with  the  progress  and  institutions  of  his  adopted  city. 
He  served,  for  some  years,  as  a  member  of  the  Board 
of  Education,  and  as  one  of  the  Constructing  Board 
of  Water  Commissioners,  and  is  the  author  of  the 
Preface  to  that  Board's  Report,  published  by  the  city 
authorities.  From  1863  to  1873,  he  was  President  of 
the  Long  Island  Historical  Society;  and,  for  two  years. 
Superintendent  of  the  Astor  Library,  New  York  city, 
of  which  he  had  been  a  Trustee  since  1852.  In  1861, 
he  was  made  a  Regent  of  the  University  of  Ihe  City 
of  New  York,  being  now  the  third  eldest  member  of 
that  distinguished  body  ;  and,  in  1863,  received  the 
diploma  of  LL.  D.  from  Williams  College,  Mass.  Mr. 
Brevoort  is  a  resident-member  of  the  N.  Y.  Historical, 
1845;  the  Acad,  of  Natural  Sciences,  1840;  American 
Geograj^hical  Society ,  1856;  corresponding  member  of 
the  N.  Eng.  Geneal.-Hist.  Society,  1858;  the  Mass. 
Hist.  Society,  1858;  the  Penn.  Hist.  Society,  1859,  and 
the  Entomological  and  Numismatical  Societies  of 
Philadelphia;  honorary  member  of  the  Numismatical 
Society  of  Boston,  1882;  and  of  various  other  learned 
bodies  at  home  and  abroad. 

Mr.  Brevoort  commenced  his  study  and  collections 
in  Entomology  in  1833,  and  in  Ichthyologj  in  1842.  In 
this  latter  department  his  collection  of  books  and 
specimens  have  been  extensive  and  valuable;  and  he 
has  recently  turned  them  over  to  Mr.  Eugene  G.  Black- 
ford, the  N.  Y.  State  Fish  Commissioner,  who  has  in- 
corporated them  in  his  Ichthyological  Museum  in 
Fulton  Market.  Mr.  Brevoort  wrote  the  Ichthyological 
department  of  Commodore  Perry's  Report  of  the  U.  S. 
Expedilion  to  Japan. 

His  collection  of  coins  was  commenced  in  1850.  He 
has  contributed  to  the  Am.  Journal  of  Numismatics, 
a  series  of  (illustrated)  papers  on  "  Early '  Spanish 
and  Portuguese  Coinage  in  America,"  of  great  in- 
terest. 

In  the  Historical  Magazine  he  has  published  a  paper 
upon  the  "  Discovery  of  the  Remains  of  Columbus;"  and 
in  1874,  a  volume  on  "  Verrazano,  the  Navigator,  or 
Notes  on  Giovanni  de  Verrazano,  and  on  a  Plani- 
sphere of  1529,  illustrating  his  American  Voyage  in 
1524,"  this  being  a  revision  of  a  paper  read  by  him  be- 
fore the  American  Geographical  Society,  Nov.  28,  1871. 

Charles  E.  West,  the  well-known  principal  of  the 
Brooklyn  Heights  Seminary,  possesses  literary  and  art 
collections  of  no  mean  value  and  interest.  The  three 
buildings  in  which  the  Seminary  is  located,  are  filled 


LITERATURE  AND    SCIENCE. 


in  every  part  with  that  which  caunot  fail  to  attract,  aud 
mould  the  taste  and  intellect  of  his  pupils.  Every- 
where are  books,  prints,  easts,  statuary,  mineralogical 
and  eonchological  cabinets,  educational  apparatus,  an- 
tiquities, bric-a-brac.  Among  these  collections  we  may 
especially  note  the  Abbott  collection  of  paintings, 
copies  by  the  Chevalier  Chatelain,  of  Rome,  of  some 
of  the  most  celebrated  paintings  in  Italy  ;  a  cabinet  of 
ancient  and  almost  unique  specimens  of  early  Grecian, 
Roman,  Egyptian  and  Peruvian  art;  a  rare  collection 
of  Jewish,  Grecian  and  Roman  coins;  a  very  complete 
collection  of  Anglo-Saxon  works  of  the  15th  and  16th 
centuries,  old  Icelandic  sagas,  etc.;  special  collections 
of  the  Bibliography  of  Art,  etc.,  etc.,  the  scattered 
condition  of  all  which,  however,  scarcely  does  justice 
to  its  great  collective  value,  comprising,  as  it  does, 
nearly  12,000  volumes. 

Prof.  West  has  long  been  a  connoisseur  in  engravings 
and  etchings,  not  alone  for  the  gratification  of  his  own 
tastes,  but  for  educational  uses  ;  and  his  collection  is 
unrivalled  in  this  county.  Among  them  are  Job.  Fred. 
Wm.  Muller's  Raphael's  "  Sistine  Madonna,"  one  of  the 
five  only  impressions  known  to  exist  from  the  first  plate; 
the  "Hundred-Guilder  Piece"  of  Rembrandt,  in  the 
second  state;  the  same  master's  "Crucifixion"  in  its  first 
state;  as  well  as  the  "  Three  Trees  "  and  "  Burgomaster 
Six;"  eight  of  Sir  D.avid  Wilkie's  etchings  (of  which 
only  seven  were  thought  to  exist),  among  them,  in  red 
and  black,  the  exquisite  "  Guess  My  Name  ; "  the 
rarest  of  Seymour  Haden's  etchings,  in  varieties  of  im- 
pression; a  series  of  Fortuny's  and  Whistler's  etchings; 
Hamerton's  also  ;  the  finest  of  Albert  Durer's  works, 
in  wood  and  copper ;  Claude  Lorraine's,  Bartalozzi's, 
Jacquemart's,  Wille's  before  the  letter ;  Edelinck's, 
Nanteuil's,  Brevet's,  Schmidt's  ;  a  grand  collection  of 
Strange's,  Woolett's,  and,  above  all,  of  Sharp's  glorious 
engravings. 

Twin  to  this  collection  of  engravings,  and  equally 
unapproachable  in  variety  and  interest,  is  Prof.  West's 
collection,  in  numerous  pieces,  of  Japanese  art.  Gath- 
ered by  Mr.  Charles  L.  Sanderson,  by  royal  permission 
of  the  Mikado,  and  under  exceptionally  fortunate  cir- 
cumstances, it  is,  without  doubt,  the  oldest,  richest  and 
most  elegant  collection  of  the  ancient  wares  of  Japan, 
ever  brought,  or  which  will  ever  be  brought  out  of  that 
country.  Among  them  are  royal  robes,  satsuma  wares, 
gold  lacquers,  bronzes,  and  works  in  silver  from  the 
Imperial  Palace;  from  the  oldest  and  largest  temple  in 
Japan,  Nishi-Kongwanji  of  Kioto,  are  shrines,  altars, 
holy  mirrors,  the  high-priests'  robe  chest,  bronzes  of 
the  gods,  incense  vases,  a  450-year  old  temple  clock, 
bronze  candle-holders  1,800  years  old,  a  carved  ebony 
table  given  by  the  Emperor  of  China,  over  2,000  years 
ago,  to  the  Mikado  of  Japan,  the  Golden  Picture, 
probably  the  first  which  ever  embellished  a  temple, 
and  a  superb  specimen  of  Sand-Painting,  a  now  "  lost 
art."     Space,  however,  forbids  an  enumeration  of  this 


wonderful  aud  unique  collection.  We  are  glad  to 
know  that  several  of  its  choicest  pieces  have  been 
chosen  to  illustrate  Mr.  G.  A.  Audsley's  elaborate  vol- 
umes, now  in  preparation  in  Paris,  on  "The  Orna- 
mental Arts  of  Japan." 

Although  Prof.  West  writes  freely  and  gracefully 
upon  any  subject  which  he  takes  up,  his  printed  works 
have  been  but  few  and  of  an  occasional  character.  He 
has  edited  an  Analysis  of  Butler's  Analogy,  as  a  text- 
book, which  has  passed  through  several  (amended  and 
enlarged)  editions;  also  several  school-books.  His  ad- 
dress, before  the  first  annual  meeting  of  the  Brooklyn 
New  England  Society,  DiMevabBT,  1880,  on  "the  2l8t 
of  December,  as  the  true  anniversary  day  of  the  land- 
ing of  the  Pilgrims  at  Plymouth,"  is  an  exhaustive 
paper  of  rare  historic  value;  and  his  recently  published 
address  on  the  50lh  anniversary  of  the  Union  College 
Class  of  1832,  entitled,  '''' Fifty  Years  of  Progress,^'' 
is  a  most  thorough,  brilliant  and  permanently  valuable 
record  of  that  wonderful  half  century  in  the  history 
of  science,  literature  and  art,  in  which  he  and  his 
classmates  have  lived,  and  of  which  the  professor  has 
been  so  close  an  observer.  For  more  than  fifty  years 
a  teacher,  his  habits  of  trained  observation,  his  pro- 
gressive spirit  and  intellectual  enthusiasm,  have  kept 
him  en  rap2wrt  with  all  worth  knowing  in  every  de- 
partment of  knowledge. 

Prof.  West  has  the  degree  of  M.  A.  from  Union  and 
from  Columbia  Colleges;  of  M.  D.,  from  the  Univ.  of 
the  City  of  N.  Y.;  of  LL.  D.,  from  Rutgers  College; 
was  elected  Fellow  of  the  Royal  Antiq.  Society,  of 
Denmark,  1849  ;  is  a  member  of  the  Am.  Ethnologi- 
cal, the  Am.  Philological,  the  New  York  Historical,  the 
Long  Island  Historical  Soc.  (of  \vhich  he  was  one  of 
the  founders),  the  N.  Y.  Century  Club,  and  various  other 
scientific,  educational  and  learned  societies. 

The  Indian  collection  of  Thomas  W.  Field,  was 
another  remarkable  Brooklyn  librarj'. 

Thomas  W.  Field  was  born  in  the  village  of  Onon- 
xlaga  Hill  in  1 820.  His  father  was  a  native  of  Connecti- 
cut, a  descendant  of  the  Pilgrim  fathers,  and  connected 
with  Gov.  Bradford.  Mr.  Field  received  a  good 
common-school  education,  and  taught  for  several  years 
in  Onondaga  county.  At  the  age  of  23,  he  became  a 
resident  of  Williamsburgh,  teaching  school  in  New 
York.  Subsequently  he  engaged  in  business  as  a 
florist;  he  also  made  a  specialty  of  the  cultivation  of 
pears,  and  in  his  little  12mo  work  on  Pear  Culture, 
published  in  1858,  was  regarded  as  an  authority.  He 
was  also  a  surveyor,  and  did  much  official  surveying. 
His  connection  with  Williamsburgh's  educational  in- 
terests dates  back  to  1843.  For  some  years  he  was 
Principal  of  a  school  there,  and  was  a  trustee  when  the 
consolidation  took  effect,  becoming  a  member  of  the 
Board  of  Education  of  the  consolidated  city.  In  187.1, 
he  was  appointed  Superintendent  of  Schools,  which 
office  he  held  at  the  time  of  his  death,  Nov.  25,  1881. 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


He  was  four  times  married,  and  left  a  widow  and  four 

children. 

His  first  literary  production  was  a  small  volume  of 
poems;  next  followed  by  the  work  on  Pear  Culture  be- 
fore referred  to.  His  connection  with  the  Long  Island 
Historical  Society,  in  its  earlier  years,  seemed  to  turn 
his  literary  tastes  into  a  new  channel.  From  bio- 
graphical memoirs,  mostly  of  foreign  origin,  he  became 
an  enthusiastic  collector  of  Americana,  at  first,  mostly 
relating  to  Long  Island;  and  he  published  his  History 
of  the  Battle  of  Long  Island,  and  Historic  and  Antiqua- 
rian Scenes  in  Brooklyn  and  Vicinity.  Then  his  studies 
and  collections  took  a  wider  national  scope,  finally,  to 
w\)rks  on  the  Ethnology  of  the  Aboriginal  Americans; 
and,  in  1873,  he  published  An  Essay  towards  an 
Indian  Biblioyraphy,  at  that  time  the  only  extant 
work  on  that  subject.  His  collection  of  works  illus- 
trative of  the  literature,  history  and  archieology  of  the 
aborigines  of  both  Americas,  came  under  the  hammer 
in  May,  1874,  and  was  the  most  extensive  and  complete 
in  that  department  of  research,  which  has  ever  been 
offered  for  sale.  Its  line  of  public  documents  relating 
to  Indian  aifairs  was  unapproachable,  containing  many 
works  which  the  Indian  Department  at  Washington 
had  not  succeeded  in  obtaining.  His  set  of  De  Bry's 
Voyages  was  "  the  most  perfect  ever  sold  in  America;" 
while  his  coj^iy  of  Kingsborough's  Mexican  Antiquities 
was  one  of  the  few  with  colored  plates.  He  had,  also, 
eleven  of  the  very  rare  Eliot  Tracts,  eight  of  the  Las 
Casas  Tracts,  and  about  sixty  of  the  later  Indian  Mis- 
sions and  Tracts,  costing  from  $70  to  $150  each. 
This  collection,  which  comprised  2,663  titles,  as  cata- 
logued by  Mr.  Joseph  Sabin,  brought  about  $10,000. 
Mr.  Field  also  left  a  very  considerable  volume  in 
manuscript,  of  Aphorisms,  both  selected  and  original. 

Mr.  Field  was  a  man  of  positive  convictions  and 
speech;  of  very  philanthropic  disposition,  and  of  untir- 
ing mental  activity.  As  a  historical  writer,  he  be- 
trayed the  lack  of  early  mental  training,  and  his 
imagination  somewhat  unduly  influenced  his  judgment. 
His  humanitarian  tendencies  were  manifested  as  plainly 
in  his  writings  as  in  his  daily  speech;  especially  on  the 
subject  of  our  governmental  relations  with  the  Indians, 
slavery,  and  other  great  topics  involving  the  principles 
of  right  and  wrong — on  all  of  which  he  spoke  and 
wrote  with  a  free  and  scathing  use  of  invectives  and 
adjectives,  which  would  have  been  amusing,  had  it  not 
been  redeemed  by  the  evident  honesty  of  his  convic- 
tions. An  amusing  instance  of  his  graphic  vigor  of 
speech  is  remembered  of  him,  when,  during  the  recent 
Civil  War,  he  introduced  to  Rev.  Dr.  Bellows,  then 
President  of  the  LT.  S.  Sanitary  Commission,  a  man  who 
was  desirous  of  entering  the  active  service  of  that 
Commission  in  the  field  and  hospital  service,  in  these 

words:   "Here  is .     He  wants  to  go  the  front  in 

the  service  of  the  Commission.  He  has  the  heart  of  an 
angel,  and  the  stomach  of  a  horse  !  "     It  is  needless  to 


add  that  the  applicant  with  these  necessary  qualifica- 
tions was  promptly  accepted. 

Daniel  M.  Tredwell,  well  known  to  frequenters 
of  the  County  Clerk's  Oftice,  is  the  author  of  a  most 
charming  little  volume,  entitled  A  Monograph  on 
Privately  Illustrated  Books;  a  Plea  for  Bibliomania, 
1882,  being  the  outcome  of  a  paper  read  by  him,  in 
1880,  before  the  Rembrandt  Club  of  Brooklyn,  of 
which  he  was  one  of  the  founders;  and  in  its  present 
extended  and  annotated  form  possesses  great  value  and 
interest  to  the  book-lover.  Mr.  Tredwell  began, 
nearly  forty  years  ago,  to  offset  the  tedium  of  business 
cares  by  spending  a  portion  of  his  evening  leisure  in 
"the  seductive  art  of  privately  illustrating  books," 
and  this  is  not  only  the  record  of  his  experience,  but  a 
most  important  collection  of  data  in  regard  to  the 
history,  methods,  and  results  of  this  science  in  America. 
When  he  commenced,  private  illustrating  was  almost 
an  unknown  passion  in  this  country.  His  first  work 
was  a  copy  of  Giraud's  "  Birds  of  Long  Island,"  a 
common  octavo,  published  in  1844,  which  he  illus- 
trated with  147  prints  of  great  beauty,  from  other 
sources.  His  last  work.  Stiles'  "  History  of  the  City  of 
Brooklyn,"  in  three  volumes,  he  has  extended  to  nine,  by 
the  addition  of  some  2,300  pages  of  various  kinds  of 
matter  and  decorations,  mostly  portraits  and  prints  of 
old  historic  landmarks;  there  are  780  prints,  260  pages 
of  new  matter  in  manuscript,  60  photographs,  51  old 
maps  (some  quite  unique),  22  original  sketches  and  water- 
colors,  besides  original  letters,  etc.  Since  Mr.  Tred- 
well was  bitten  with  this  rabies,  he  has  thus  illustrated 
about  00  works  in  all,  or  about  120  volumes.  These 
form,  of  course,  the  gems  of  his  fine  library;  although 
he  is  an  omnivorous  reader,  an  industrious  student, 
and  particularly  interested  in  ethnological  and  anti- 
quarian subjects.  He  has,  also,  been  engaged  for  several 
years,  upon  a  work  which,  it  is  hoped,  will  soon  ap- 
pear from  the  press,  and  the  title  of  which  will  pro- 
bably be  A  Sketch  of  the  Life  of  Apollonius  of  Tyana, 
or  A  Literary  History  of  the  First  Ten  Decades  of  Our 
Fjtu.  If  we  can  judge  from  the  taste  of  the  quality  of 
his  authorship  which  Mr.  Tredwell  has  given  us  in  his 
brochure  already  referred  to,  it  cannot  fail  to  be  a  most 
important  addition  to  the  store  of  our  knowledge  of  the 
World's  literary  history.  Mr.  Tredwell  is  a  well-known 
member  of  the  L.  I.  Hist,  and  Am.  Ethnological  Soci- 
eties, and  Rembrandt  Club;  and  was,  for  many  years, 
President  of  the  Philosophical  Club  of  Brooklyn. 
He  resides  in  Flatbush.     (See  also  Addenda,  p.  1332.) 

His  son,  Frederick  Tredwell,  very  naturally  and 
very  successfully  carries  on  the  book  and  print  busi- 
ness, at  the  corner  of  Fulton  avenue  and  Boerum 
place;  a  pleasant  lounging-place  for  Brooklyn's  book- 
men and  artists. 

Among  other  libraries,  of  which  we  can  only  give  a 
passing  mention,  is  that  of  Whitman  W.  Kbnyon, 
President   of  the  Rembrandt  Club,  rich  in  works  on 


LITERATUItE  AND   SCIENCE. 


1323 


Art  and  Art-Culture;  that  of  Mr.  Hatembtee,  which 
is  strong  in  the  department  of  General  History  and  Po- 
litical Economy;  that  of  Hexry  T.  Cox,  Esq.,  another 
member  of  the  Rembrandt.  Mr.  Cox's  privately  illus- 
trated copies  of  "  Walton's  Complete  Angler,"  with  its 
200  water-colors,  130  etchings,  and  700  prints  (proofs, 
and  on  India  paper)  and  titles,  original  designs,  executed 
in  water-colors  by  F.  O.  Darley,  is  a  chef-d'oeuvre  of  the 
illustrator's  art.  His  large  paper  copy  of  "  Madame 
Sevigne's  letters,"  extended  to  fourteen  volumes  by  750 
extra  illustrations,  chiefly  proofs,  and  many  in  three 
stages,  is  a  superb  example  of  the  art  of  illustrating, 
and  his  library  is  otherwise  marked  by  its  splendid  col- 
lection of  art  literature.  William  Matthews,  of 
Brooklyn,  is  also  a  "  bookish  man,"  largely  given  to  il- 
lustrating. 

Nor  can  we  overlook  the  small  but  interesting  collec- 
tion of  dramatic  works,  relics  and  bric-a-hrac,  owned 
by  Gabriel  Harrison;  although  he  some  years  ago 
gave  some  of  his  greatest  treasures  in  this  line  to  the 
Long  Island  Historical  Society.  These  consisted  of 
early  editions  of  many  celebrated  plays,  MS.  "  parts" 
used  by  eminent  actors,  old  play-bills,  etc.,  etc. 

American  book  illustrators  have  mostly  to  call  to 
their  aid  the  professional  "  inlay er,"  of  whom,  as  has  been 
well  said  by  one  who  knows  whereof  he  speaks,  "  there 
are  but  three  in  this  country  worthy  of  mention — 
Messrs.  Trent,  Toedteberg  and  Lawrence,  all  of  Brook- 
lyn. The  work  turned  out  by  these  gentlemen  is  of  the 
first  order,  far  superior  to  that  of  the  best  English  and 
French  inlayers."  Mr.  Trent,  we  believe,  has  been 
longest  engaged  in  this  business. 

Mr.  Toedteberg  is  not  only  a  "  professional,"  but  is 
himself  an  accomplished  scholar,  and  an  illustrator  of 
books  on  his  own  account,  forming  a  collection  which, 
in  many  points,  rivals  those  of  some  of  his  best  patrons. 

"  Among  all  the  private  illustrators  of  American 
literature,"  as  Mr.  Tread  well  justly  observes  in  his 
JBlbliomania,  "  none  are  entitled  to  more  credit  than 
Mr.  Augustus  Toedteberg  (of  No.  333  Bridge 
street).  Born  in  Germany,  in  a  little  village  in  the 
Kingdom  of  Hanover,  in  1824,  he  came  to  New  York  in 
1844,  and  with  all  the  disadvantages  of  foreign  birth 
and  a  foreign  tongue,  he  occupies  the  position  to-day  of 
one  of  the  most  accomplished  illustrators  in  America." 
His  copy  of  that  favorite  of  all  private  book-illustrators, 
Ireland's  "  Records  of  the  New  York  Stage,"  is  prob- 
ably the  finest  extant.  It  contains  over  5,000  portraits, 
views  and  dramatic  drawings,  etc.;  also  about  1,000 
rare  play-bills,  and  is  truly  a  stupendous  as  well  as 
valuable  affair.  His  masterpiece  of  illustrated  treasures, 
however,  is  the  "Narrative  of  Nell  Gwynne,"  with  542 
illustrations  by  contemporaneous  artists,  and  of  which 
22  are  portraits  of  Nell.  It  is  rich  in  rare  proofs  be- 
fore the  letter  and  makes  three  volumes,  large  folio. 
The  feature  of  Mr.  T.'s  collection  is  the  exceedingly 
choice  character  of  his  selections  of  prints,  both  as  re- 


gards their  illustrative  appropriateness  and  historic 
value,  and  their  artistic  merit. 

We  cannot  forbear  adding  that  his  daughter.  Miss 
Emma  Toedteberg,  has  for  the  past  fifteen  years  most 
admirably  filled  the  position  of  First  Assistant  Librarian 
to  the  Long  Island  Historical  Society. 

In  connection  with  books,  etc.,  we  must  not  overlook 
John  Keese,  well  known,  in  years  gone  by,  to  the  older 
book-lovers  of  both  Brooklyn  and  New  York.  His 
genial  humor  and  ready,  sparkling  wit  rendered  the 
book  auctions  of  Messrs.  Cooley  &  Keese  (at  successively 
157,  191  and  377  Broadway,  New  York)  as  entertaining 
as  a  theatrical  performance.  People  attended  their 
sales  frequently  with  no  intention  of  buying,  simply  to 
be  amused.  He  lived  on  Atlantic  street,  Brooklyn, 
and  his  memory  is  well  embalmed  in  a  volume  from  the 
Appletons'  press,  written  by  his  son,  entitled  "  John 
Keese,  Wit  and  Literature"  and  which,  we  believe,  has 
already  passed  to  a  second  edition. 

Joseph  Sabin,  who  resided  in  the  Eastern  District, 
and  for  many  years  kept  an  Americana  book-store  on 
Nassau  street,  which  was  the  resort  of  all  book-lovers,  is 
also  well  deserving  of  more  than  a  passing  notice.  He 
was  born  in  Braunston,  England,  in  1821,  and  when 
fourteen  years  old  was  apprenticed  to  a  promiiieia 
bookseller  in  Oxford,  where  he  soon  developed  such  an 
expertness  and  judgment  in  the  valuation  of  books  and 
prints  that  he  was  intrusted  with  the  buying  as  well  as 
with  the  selling  of  them.  Upon  the  expiration  of  his 
apprenticeship — having  had  considerable  experience  in 
the  cataloguing  of  books  for  sale — he  fancied  he  could 
do  a  good  business  as  a  book  auctioneer;  and,  to  that 
end,  he  formed  a  partnership  with  one  of  the  sons  of  a 
Mr.  Winterborne,  an  architect  and  builder  of  Oxford, 
and  began  business  as  bookseller  and  auctioneer.  The 
business  prospered,  and  in  1844  he  married  the  sister  of 
his  partner,  and  published  his  first  work.  The  Thirty- 
7iine  Articles  of  the  Church  of  England,  with  Scriptxiral 
Proofs  and  References,  which  he  issued  anonymously, 
but  which  soon  attracted  the  attention  of  the  Oxford 
students,  by  the  great  research  of  its  annotations.  In 
1838,  with  his  wife  and  two  sons,  he  came  to  this  coun- 
try and  settled  in  Philadelphia,  buying  a  farm  on 
Chesnut  Hill,  and  himself  becoming  general  assistant 
and  salesman  with  the  well-known  publisher,  Geo.  S. 
Appleton,  who  soon  learned  to  appreciate  him  at  his 
full  value.  In  1850  he  engaged  with  Cooley  &  Keese, 
book-auctioneers,  in  New  York  city,  as  general  assist- 
ant, his  duties  being  principally  to  catalogue  books  to 
be  sold,  in  which  his  experience  as  an  expert  was  very 
valuable;  and,  occasionally,  he  aided  in  the  sales.     In 

1851  he  made  his  first  important  library  catalogue,  that 
of  the  collection  of   Dr.  Samuel   Farmer  Jarvis.     In 

1852  he  entered  the  employ  of  Bangs  Bros.,  in  Park 
Row,  where  he  remained  five  years,  and  where,  among 
others,  he  catalogued  the  E.  B.  Corwin  Library,  the 
sale  of  which  may  be  said  to  have  first  drawn  atten- 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


tion  to  the  subject  of  "  Americana  "  in  this  country,  and 
which  gave  to  Mr.  Sabin  the  idea  of  the  great  work  to 
which  he  subsequently  devoted  so  much  of  his  life.  In 
1856  he  made  a  premature  attempt  at  business  on  his 
own  account,  in  Canal  street,  but  finding  himself 
"  ahead  of  the  times,"  as  far  as  the  rage  for  collection 
of  rare  books  was  concerned  in  New  York,  he  removed 
to  Philadelphia,  and  there  did  a  fine  business  (mostly 
southern)  until  the  Civil  War  broke  out.  He  then 
(1861)  returned  to  New  York,  and  (with  N.  A.  Jennings, 
under  the  firm  name  of  J.  Sabin  &  Co.)  opened  a  book 
auction  store  in  4th  street,  where  one  of  his  first  cus- 
tomers was  Wm.  E.  Burton,  the  celebrated  actor,  whose 
library  of  6,154  volumes  he  catalogued  and  sold.  In 
1863  Mr.  Sabin  retired  from  the  auction  line  and  estab- 
lished himself  in  the  purchase  and  sale  of  rare  books 
and  prints  at  84  (subsequently  removing  to  No.  64) 
Nassau  street;  establishing  a  branch  house  in  London 
(in  charge  of  his  two  eldest  sons),  and  making  annual 
trips  to  Europe  in  search  of  books,  etc.  In  April,  1879, 
he  retired  from  active  business,  in  order  to  give  his  en- 
tire time  to  the  compilation  of  his  great  work,  the  Dio- 
tionary  of  Boohs  Relating  to  America  from  its  Dis- 
covery to  the  Present  Time.  This  stupendous  work 
contains  the  title  of  every  book  or  tract,  in  any 
language,  relating  to,  or  even  slightly  referring  to, 
America,  alphabetically  arranged,  and,  besides  the 
title,  the  number  of  its  pages  and  plates,  its  size,  with 
notes  by  Mr.  Sabin,  and  (if  rare)  a  reference  to  where 
copies  may  be  found.  It  was  begun  in  1856,  but  the 
first  volume  was  not  published  until  1867,  and  he  was 
engaged  upon  the  thirteenth  volume  (which  brings  the 
catalogue  down  to  the  letter  P),  when  death  closed 
his  labors,  June  5,  1881.  We  are  glad  to  learn  that 
this  important  undertaking,  though  delayed,  is  not 
abandoned,  and  that  there  are  hopes  of  its  being  ulti- 
mately completed. 

As  a  cataloguer  of  libraries,  Mr.  Sabin's  name  is 
imperishably  connected  with  the  history  of  our  greatest 
American  collections,  which  have,  from  time  to  time 
during  the  past  thirty  years,  passed  under  the  hammer. 
Among  these  may  be  named  the  "  Waltonian "  li- 
braries of  Rev.  Dr.  Bethune,  and  of  E.  B.  Corwin 
(1856);  of  Andrew  Wight  (1856);  of  John  A.  Rice, 
which  brought  ^44,000;  of  Mr.  Menzies,  which  brought 
$50,000;  of  Thos.  W.  Field,  of  Brooklyn  (1874);  of 
Francis  S.  Hoffman,  of  Philadelphia;  of  John  Allan,  the 
private  illustrator;  of  Edwin  Forrest,  the  tragedian; 
Wm.  E.  Burton,  the  actor,  etc.,  etc.  The  great  Brin- 
ley  sale,  which  brought  over  $100,000,  he  conducted 
(although  he  did  not  catalogue  it),  with  remarkable 
skill.  His  knowledge  of  books,  both  as  to  contents, 
anty  and  market  value,  was  incredibly  accurate;  for 
example,  it  is  said  of  him  that  he  appraised  the  Irving 
Brown  library,  which  sold  for  about  $11,000,  at  within 
$10  of  the  amount  it  brought  at  auction.  At  a  book- 
sale,  Mr.  Sabin  was  invaluable.     He  could  point  out,  in 


a  few  words,  just  what  made  each  book  valuable,  and 
could  give,  from  memory,  a  rapid  synopsis  of  the  con- 
tents of  many  of  the  rarer  works.  He  had  crossed  the 
ocean  twenty-five  times,  and  each  time  had  paid  his 
passage  by  the  profits  made  on  some  stray  bar- 
gains picked  up  at  the  London  book-stalls.  Mr. 
Sabin's  crowning  honor,  however,  as  a  bibliophile 
and  book-dealer,  was  his  honesty.  His  advice  to 
customers  was  always  in  favor  of  buying  "  the 
best  editions;"  and  while  his  judgment  as  to  books 
could  always  be  implicitly  relied  upon,  it  was  not 
influenced  by  considerations  of  self-interest.  Be- 
sides the  great  Bibliography  above  referred  to,  Mr. 
Sabin  published  the  American  liibliophilist  for  several 
years,  and  issued  many  reprints  of  curious  works  on 
American  history. 


The  scientists  of  Brooklyn,  like  the  authors,  are 
identified  with  it  mostly  by  residence  ;  their  material 
interests  being  mainly  in  the  busy  metrojjolis  across 
the  river. 

Among  those  who  deserve  more  than  a  passing  no- 
tice at  our  hands  (did  our  space  permit),  are  certain 
civil  engineers.     Earliest  on  the  roll  is  the  name  of 

Brig.-Gen.  Joseph  G.  Swift,  Chief  Engineer  of  the 
U.  S.  Army,  from  1812  to  1818,  whose  biography  has 
been  well  written  by  Maj.-Gen.  G.  W.  Cullum,  was 
first  identified  with  Brooklyn,  as  having  planned  and 
superintended  the  erection  of  the  extensive  line  of  de- 
fensive works  designed  to  cover  New  York  and  the 
western  end  of  Long  Island  from  naval  attack  by  the 
British  in  1814  (See  page  61).  He  seems  from  this 
time,  to  have  been  a  resident  and  extensive  property- 
holder  in  the  then  village,  until  serious  financial  dis- 
asters in  Wall  street  compelled  him,  in  1826,  to  relin- 
quish all  but  his  honor.  To  him,  also,  Brooklyn  is  much 
indebted  for  the  establishing  of  its  present  water  front. 
He  died,  aged  82  years,  at  Geneva,  N.  Y.,  July  23,  1865, 
after  an  exceedingly  active  and  useful  life.  "  Born  at 
the  close  of  the  American  Revolution,  and  dying  at  the 
termination  of  the  American  Rebellion,  he  lived 
through  a  most  momentous  period  of  history,  and  was 
himself  a  prominent  actor  in  the  proud  drama  of  our 
national  existence.  His  military  career  began  with 
that  of  the  Military  Academy  at  West  Point,  which 
he  fostered  in  its  feeble  infancy;  and  he  lived  to  see, 
in  its  developed  maturity,  the  sons  of  his  cherished 
Alma  Mater  directing  the  high  destinies  of  his  coun- 
try on  victorious  fields  in  Canada,  Florida,  Mexico, 
and  within  the  wide  domain  of  our  Southern  border. 
Amicable  and  sincere,  spotless  in  integrity,  staunch  in 
friendship,  liberal  in  charity.  Gen.  Swift  was.a  model 
gentleman,  a  true  patriot,  and  a  Christian  soldier." 

Maj.  David  B.  Douglass  was  peculiarly  identified  with 
the  city's  growth  and  improvement,  in  its  earlier  civic 
days.  He  was  boru  in  1790,  at  Pompton,  N.  J.;  grad. 
at  Yale  College;  in  1813  entered  the   army  as  Second 


LITERATURE  AND   SCIENCE. 


Lieutenant  of  Engineers,  and  saw  actual  service  in  the 
Battle  of  Niagara,  and  in  the  defence  of  Fort  Erie. 
After  the  war  he  became  Assistant  Professor  at  West 
Point;  in  1819-'20,  served  as  Astronomical  Surveyor 
in  the  Commission  for  settling  the  North-western 
Boundary  of  the  U.  S.,  and  about  the  same  time  was 
appointed  Professor  of  Mathematics  in  the  Military 
Academy. 

In  1823,  he  was  transferred  to  the  chair  of  Civil  and 
Military  Engineering.  To  this  science,  then  compara- 
tively new  among  us,  Major  Douglass  devoted  himself 
with  ardor  and  success.  In  1831,  he  resigned  his  post 
at  West  Point,  removed  to  Brooklyn,  and  became 
Chief  Engineer  of  the  Morris  Canal.  Soon  after,  he 
was  chosen  Professor  of  Civil  Architecture  in  the 
University  of  New  York,  and  made  the  designs  for  its 
college  building. 

In  the  summer  of  1^33,  he  began  his  surveys  for  the 
work  of  supplying  New  York  with  water.  His  iirst 
report  was  submitted  in  the  autumn  of  that  year,  and 
clearly  proved  the  feasibility  of  bringing  a  supply 
from  the  Croton  River.  Acting  on  the  plans  and 
estimates  which  he  furnished,  the  city  government,  in 
1835,  resolved  to  build  the  aqueduct.  Appointed  Chief 
Engineer  by  the  Board  of  Commissioners,  Maj.  Douglass 
proceeded  to  lay  out  the  line  of  the  aqueduct,  and  to 
complete  liis  plans.  He  had  accomplished  the  prelim- 
inary work  when  he  was  superseded.  That  this  was  not 
owing  to  any  want  of  confidence  in  his  judgment  or 
skill,  may  be  inferred  from  the  fact  that  his  plans  were 
adopted  and  carried  out  by  his  successors. 

In  the  autumn  of  183.5,  Maj.  Douglass  gave  a  public 
lecture  in  Brooklyn  on  the  capabilities  and  prospects 
of  the  young  and  rising  city.  Mr.  H.  E.  Pierrepont,  to 
whom  he  applied  for  hints  on  the  occasion,  suggested 
the  idea  of  a  large  rural  cemetery,  with  an  astronomi- 
cal observatory  on  its  grounds.  The  Major  accepted 
the  suggestion,  and  enlarged  upon  it  in  his  lecture. 
This  is  believed  to  have  been  the  first  public  presenta- 
tion that  was  made  of  the  subject.  In  1838,  Major 
Douglass  aided  in  selecting  the  portion  which  seemed 
best  suited  to  the  purpose  of  a  cemetery  ;  and  the 
same  year  an  Act  of  the  Legislature  was  passed  incor- 
porating the  Green-Wood  Cemetery.  From  1838  to 
1840,  IMajor  Douglass  was  much  occupied  with  the 
affairs  of  Green- Wood.  He  made  a  topographical  sur- 
vey of  the  grounds,  and  was  associated  with  Mr. 
Pierrepont  in  the  negotiation  for  the  purchase  of  the 
grounds  from  numerous  owners,  which  was  attended 
with  much  labor  and  trouble. 

In  1841,  Maj.  Douglass  was  appointed  President  of 
Kenyon  College,  at  Gambler,  Ohio,  and  entered  on  his 
duties. 

In  1848,  he  resigned  and  returned  to  New  York. 
During  the  ne.xt  four  years  he  was  employed  as  a  lec- 
turer, and  turned  his  taste  and  skill  to  account  in  de- 
veloping the  landscape  features  of   Staten  Island,  in 


laying  out  the  Albany  Cemetery,  and  also  the  Protes- 
tant Cemetery,  at  Quebec. 

In  1844,  he  was  appointed  Professor  of  Mathematics 
and  Natural  Philosophy  in  the  college  at  Geneva,  N.  Y., 
where  he  died  October  21,  1849,  and  was  buried  at 
Green-Wood.* 

Silas  Ludlam,  the  oldest  surveyor  in  the  citj',  was 
born  in  New  York,  and  came  to  Brooklyn  in  1827.  He 
had  learned  surveying  with  his  father,  Stephen  Ludlam. 
A  map  of  the  village  of  Brooklyn,  published  by  Hooker 
in  1827,  shows  the  settled  portion  of  the  village  in  stip- 
ple, from  which  it  appears  that  a  line  through  Clark 
and  Concord  streets  to  the  Wallabout  pond  comprised 
the  settled  portion,  and  even  this  part  contained  many 
vacant  lots.  Fultoii  street  was  paved  only  to  Middagh; 
above  it  was  a  turnpike  on  which  toll  was  exacted. 
Mr.  Ludlam's  first  work  was  the  laying  out  of  the  Duf- 
field  estate,  between  Fulton  and  what  are  now  Wil- 
loughby  and  Duffield  streets  and  the  Wallabout. 
From  this  beginning,  in  1827,  he  continued  with  the 
Middagh,  the  Remsen,  the  Pierrepont,  the  Jackson, 
and  other  farms  until  he  has  been  over  a  large 
portion  of  the  3d,  4th,  11th,  10th,  9th,  20th,  21st, 
and  23d  Wards.  lie  is  still  actively  engaged  in  his 
profession. 

Of  Wm.  T.  McAlpine,  the  engineer,  who  was  mainly 
connected  with  the  introduction  of  the  Ridgewood 
Water  Supply  to  Brooklyn,  we  have  no  notes ;  or  of 
Gen.  Waed  B.  Buexett  and  Jas.  P.  Kirkwood,  also 
eminently  identified  with  the  same  great  public  under- 
taking. Of  Maj.  Robert  Van  Buren,  the  present  able 
engineer  in  charge,  whose  biography  we  have  given  on 
page  594,  we  present  a  portrait  on  the  following  page. 

The  RoEBLiNGS,  father  and  son,  who  have  so  recently 
linked  their  names  imperishably  with  the  great  bridge 
which  unites  Brooklyn  to  the  metropolis,  have  been 
elsewhere  noticed  (see  pages  458  and  460).  With  this 
same  wonderful  structure,  moreover,  is  linked  (see  page 
447)  the  name  of 

Col.  Julius  W.  Adams,  who  was  born  in  Boston  in 
1812.  His  ancestors  were  among  the  oldest  of  the  New 
England  families  ;  he  has  the  commission  held  by  one 
of  them  in  the  royal  forces  under  George  III,  and  also 
the  commission  under  which  he  fought  in  the  patriot 
army,  at  Bunker  Hill.  Col.  Adams  was  educated  at 
West  Point,  resigning  in  1832  ;  he  acted  as  civil 
engineer  under  Majors  McNeil  and  Whistler.  He  was 
connected  with  the  construction  of  many  railroads,  in- 
cluding the  N.  Y.,  Prov.  &  Boston  R.  R.,  the  Great 
Western  of  Mass.,  the  N.  Y.  Central,  and  the  Erie  Rail- 
roads. He  designed  the  famous  Syracuse  viaduct 
on  the  Erie  road;  also  the  Cascade  bridge,  one  of  the 
longest  single-arch  wooden  bridges  ever  built,  covering 
a  chasm  300  feet  wide  at  a  single  span.  He  was  also 
engineer  of  various  railroads  in  the  West. 

♦Condensed  from  the  History  of  Qreen-Wood,  written  by  N.  Cleveland, 
A.  D.  1866. 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


^^H^U^ 


In  1856  he  returned  to  Brooklyn  to  devise  the  system 
of  sewerage  for  the  city.  During  the  war  he  served  two 
years  as  colonel  of  a  Long  Island  regiment  ;  and  has 
since  been  connected  with  various  important  works  as 
constructing  or  consulting  engineer.  For  nine  years  he 
was  Chief  Engineer  of  the  Department  of  City  Works  of 
Brooklyn,  and  bad  much  to  do  with  the  water  supply  of 
the  city.  Col.  Adams  is  entitled  to  the  honor  of  being 
the  first  to  devise  a  feasible  plan  for  bridging  East 
River,  as  the  following  extract  from  the  report  of  the 
Executive  Committee  of  Bridge  Trustees  shows:  "The 
project  of  building  a  bridge  across  the  East  River,  al- 
though for  many  years  the  subject  of  more  or  less 
public  discussion,  was  not  seriously  taken  up  until  six 
or  seven  years  ago,  when  Col.  Adams,  through  the 
instrumentality  of  Mr.  Kingsley,  projected  a  plan  for  a 
suspension  bridge.  Afterward,  through  the  same 
means,  John  A.  Roebling  submitted  another  plan,  which 
was  the  one  finally  adopted."  (See,  also,  page  448.)  Col. 
Adams'  plan  design  was  of  two  elliptical,  iron  latticed, 
open  tubes,  each  18  feet  and  24  feet  high,  placed  side  by 
side,  connected  by  lattice  trusses  of  the  same  depth  and 
width  of  the  tubes,  on  the  top  and  bottom,  in  the  center 
and  on  the  sides,  giving,  with  trussed  girders,  a  platform 


of  50  feet  at  top,  another  of  28  feet  wide  midway  of  the 
tubes,  and  a  third  of  20  feet  wide  at  the  bottom.  The 
whole  to  be  supported  by  chains,  with  links  of  steel 
plates,  10  or  15  feet  long,  admitting  of  renewal  at  any 
time  without  interrupting  travel.  As  Col.  Adams  had 
never  built  a  suspension  bridge,  while  Col.  Roebling 
had  built  several,  the  latter  received  the  appointment  of 
chief  engineer,  and  the  bridge  was  built  after  his  plans. 
Col.  Adams  is  now  engaged  by  the  city  of  New  York. 

Notices  of  the  able  staff  of  engineers  connected  with 
the  building  of  the  great  East  River  Bridge  will  be 
found  on  page  460. 

Gen.  J.  V.  Meseeole  is  another  civil  engineer  who 
is  widely  and  favorably  known  in  connection  with  sur- 
veys and  maps  in  the  Eastern  District.  Born  in  1834, 
he  studied  civil  engineering  in  the  office  of  Mr.  Betts, 
the  foremost  surveyor  of  his  time  in  that  section.  A 
fellow-student  was  Mr.  G.  R.  Van  Alst;  after  the 
death  of  Mr.  Betts  in  1853,  the  two  students  formed  a 
partnership  to  carry  on  the  business,  which  continued 
for  several  years,  when  Mr.  Van  Alst  removed  to  Long 
Island  City.  Gen.  Meserole  has  done  much  and  im- 
portant work  in  laying  out  streets  in  the  15th  and  16th 
Wards,  establishing  grades,  dividing  estates  into  lots. 


LIIERATURE  AND   SCIENCE. 


1321? 


etc.,  also  in  relation  to  the  docks  and  wharves,  pier 
lines,  etc. 

Among  other  Brooklyn  and  Kings  county  gentlemen 
of  this  profession,  we  may  bo  allowed  to  mention  : 

NoYES  G.  Pal^ibk,  East  New  York,  Civil  Engineer 
and  Surveyor.  Born  in  Madison  Co.,  N.  Y.,  1822;  estab- 
lished since  1849,  in  the  town  of  New  Lots  ;  has  held 
the  office  of  Superintendent  and  Surveyor  of  Cypress 
Hills  Cemetery  for  twenty-six  years.  Mr.  John  Shaw, 
o  216  Skillman  street,  is,  at  present.  Superintendent 
and  Chief  Engineer,  under  the  Boai-dof  Charities  at 
Flatbush. 

Turning  now  to  the  Naturalists  of  our  city,  we  notice, 
first  among  them  : 

Col.  Nicholas  Pike.  A  native  of  Newburyport, 
Mas.s.,  he  comes  of  a  line  of  ancestors  ever  prominent 
in  the  military,  clerical  and  civic  annals  of  the  United 
States.  Settling  at  an  early  age  in  Brooklyn,  he  has 
married  and  grown  up  with  the  place,  identifying 
himself  strongly  with  all  its  interests;  especially  with 
those  of  a  scientific  nature.  In  1849,  he  contributed 
largely  to  Prof.  Harvey's  great  work  on  American 
Alga3 — the  Nereis  Borealis  Americana — and  was  Presi- 
dent of  the  Natural  History  Society  of  Brooklyn. 
Actively  engaged  in  mercantile  pursuits,  he  has  al- 
ways pursued  scientific  researches  with  unremitting 
industry.  In  1852,  he  was  appointed  U.  S.  Consul- 
General  to  Portugal  ;  and,  amid  his  well-performed 
official  duties,  he  yet  found  time  to  enrich  his  native 
land  with  the  results  of  his  scientific  observations.  He 
sent  home  cuttings  of  a  species  of  olive,  quick  of 
growth  and  easily  adapted  to  our  climate,  and  reported 
elaborately  on  the  methods  of  its  growth,  etc. ;  he  inves- 
tigated (at  the  request  of  the  Portuguese  Government) 
the  grape  disease,  then  largely  affecting  the  wine-crop 
of  that  and  other  European  countries;  and  his  official 
report  thereon,  published  by  the  United  States  Govern- 
ment, attracted  universal  attention  and  commendation 
in  the  various  official  and  scientific  circles  of  the  con- 
tinent. 

In  1856,  he  was  elected  a  corresponding  mem- 
ber of  the  London  Zoological  Society;  and,  also, 
Honorary  Vice-President  of  the  "  Societe  Univereslle 
}iour  Veucouragement  des  Arts  et  de  rindustrie."  In 
1859,  he  was  api)ointed  by  the  Portuguese  Government 
as  one  of  the  Jurors  of  the  Universal  Exposition  of 
that  country,  being  the  only  foreigner  on  the  Board; 
and  was  afterwards  chosen  President  of  the  Board  for 
the  distribution  of  the  prizes.  During  his  residence  in 
Portugal,  he  opened  correspondence  and  exchanges 
with  many  of  the  leading  naturalists  of  Europe,  and 
added  largely  to  his  collections  of  Algie,  ferns,  etc. 
In  1858,  he  was  made  an  honorary  member  of  the  Mil- 
ton Club,  London;  and,  in  1860,  returned  home,  ac- 
companied by  the  best  wishes  of  all  with  whom  he  had 
been  associated,  and,  also,  a  handsome  service  of  silver 
from  the  merchants  of  Oporto. 


Shortly  after  his  return,  the  war  of  the  Rebellion  broke 
out,  and  true  to  the  military  instincts  of  his  family,  his 
services  were  at  once  tendered  to  and  accepted  by  the 
Government.  Recruiting  troops,  conducting  a  camp  of 
instruction  at  Williamsburgh,  addressing  public  meet- 
ings, etc.,  he  labored  with  might  and  main,  and  was 
commissioned  Lieut.-Colonel  of  the  96th  N.  Y.  He 
was  also  elected  Captain  of  the  "  Light  Guard,"  a:, 
old  crack  corps  of  Brooklyn,  and  assisted  actively  in 
the  organization  of  the  13th,  and  in  the  securing  of  the 
old  City  Hall  (cor.  Henry  and  Cranberry  sts.),  as  an 
armory  for  the  military — the  first  in  Brooklyn.  lie  is 
also  one  of  the  oldest  members  of  the  Old  Guard  of 
New  York. 

In  1863  he  was  elected  president  of  the  New  York 
and  subsequently  of  the  Brooklyn  Photographic  Soci- 
ety, gave  letters  on  photograj)hy  .and  the  chemistry  of 
the  arts,  and  instructed  a  school  of  young  officers  about 
proceeding  to  the  front  on  staff  service,  in  the  pro- 
cesses of  photographing  battle  scenes,  forts,  earth- 
works of  the  enemy,  etc.;  and,  in  1865,  he  addressed 
the  Long  Island  Natural  History  Society  on  the  influ- 
ence of  light  upon  vegetation  when  reflected  through  a 
colored  medium,  showing  experiments  made  on  the 
growth  of  different  cereals  under  fi^we-glass,  which, 
years  later,  created  such  a  furor.  In  Nov.,  1865,  he 
donated  to  the  Long  Island  Historical  Society  his 
splendid  collection  of  Algaj,  in  10  or  12  portfolio.s — the 
labor  of  25  years — representing  the  marine  flora  of  a 
coast-line  of  20,000  miles  ;  a  costly  herbarium  of  the 
ferns  of  Long  Island  and  of  Portug.al ;  also  a  collection  of 
zoophytes  and  a  nearly  complete  collection  of  the  birds 
of  Long  Island,  and  a  number  of  works  on  n.atural  his- 
tory. 

In  1866,  he  declined  the  U.  S.  Consulship  to  Amoy, 
China;  but,  shortly  after,  his  wife  having  died,  accepted 
the  consulship  for  Mauritius  and  its  dependencies.  He 
arrived  there  June,  1867,  at  the  very  time  when  a 
terrible  epidemic  fever  was  r.aging  throughout  the 
Island.  His  prompt  and  arduous  labors  in  behalf  of 
his  sick  countrymen  were  followed  by  a  severe  and 
almost  fatal  attack  of  the  fever,  but,  on  recovery,  he 
forwarded  to  the  Government,  at  Washington,  an 
exhaustive  and  valuable  scientific  report  on  the  epi- 
demic, published  in  the  Annual  Meport  of  the  Depart- 
ment  of  foreign  Belations,  for  1868.  He  also  for- 
warded collections  of  the  alga^  of  Mauritius  to  Prof. 
Dickie,  of  Aberdeen,  and  that  eminent  savant's  report 
ujjon  them  was  published  in  the  2'ransactions  of  the 
Ziinnman  Society,  of  London.  He  also  collected  over  one 
thousand  fishes  of  the  Indian  ocean,  among  which 
have  been  discovered  27  new  species  and  several  new 
genera.  Over  400  of  these  fish  were  sketched  and 
mostly  colored  from  life  by  him.  While  at  Mauritius 
he  published  a  volume  entitled  Sub- IVopical  Rambles 
in  the  Land  of  the  Aphanapteryx,  and  another  volume 
on  its  fauna  and  flora.     His  abilities  as  a  naturalist 


1328 


HIST  OR  Y  OF  KINGS  CO  UNTY 


were  recognized  by  his  election  as  Vice-President  of 
the  Royal  Society  of  Arts  and  Sciences,  of  Port  Louis, 
he  being  the  only  foreigner  ever  elected  to  that  office. 

In  1870,  there  being  many  things  in  the  dependen- 
cies, especially  relative  to  American  sailors,  requiring 
supervision  at  the  Deschelles  islands,  he  took  advan- 
tage of  the  kind  invitations  of  the  then  Governor,  Sir 
Arthur  Gordon  and  Admiral  Sir  Alex.  Cockburn  to 
accompany  them  in  H.  M.  S.  frigate  Forte,  about  to 
jiroceed  thither.  The  result  was  a  series  of  letters  on 
these  interesting  islands.  He  left  Mauritius  in  1873 
and  settled  again  in  Brooklyn,  where,  in  1874,  he 
married  again,  to  an  English  lady  who,  possessing 
congenial  tastes  for  natural  science,  is  a  cordial  assist- 
ant in  his  studies. 

Since  his  return  he  has  been  actively  engaged,  first, 
in  collecting,  preparing  notes,  making  drawings,  etc.,  of 
the  arachnoids  q/'Long  Island,  and  the  large  collec- 
tion, in  alcohol,  is  now  in  the  hands  of  one  of  the  ablest 
arachnologists  of  the  day.  While  this  is  being  worked 
up,  he  is  collecting  and  figuring  all  the  reptiles  of  Long 
Island,  and  has  a  work  on  them  nearly  ready  for  the 
press.  This  is  part  of  a  history  of  the  fauna  of  the 
island,  which  he  hopes  to  live  to  complete.  A  check- 
list is  already  nearly  completed  of  his  collections  on 
the  island,  from  1830  to  the  present  day. 

Of  the  earlier  votaries  of  Natural  Science  in  Brook- 
Ij'n,  and  of  the  names,  lucubrations  and  doings  of  the 
members  of  the  old  Rrooklyn  Lyceum  of  Natural 
History,  formed  in  1838,  once  located  in  the  Brooklyn 
Institute  in  Washington  street,  we  have  no  definite 
information.  We  trust  some  survivor  will  yet  be  able 
to  preserve  a  few  of  its  memorials — taking,  as  his  text, 
our  slight  mention  of  the  Lyceum,  on  page  1302. 

In  1864,  soon  after  the  inception  of  the  Long  Island 
Historical  Society,  and  especially  through  the  personal 
efforts  of  Ei.iAS  Lewis,  Jr.  (now  President  of  the 
Brooklyn  Bank),  one  of  the  Society's  earliest  members 
and  directors,  the  foundation  was  laid  in  that  institute 
of  a  3Iuseum  of  Long  Island  History  and  Ethnology. 
Mr.  Lewis  was  cordially  seconded  by  Chakles  Cong- 
don,  J.  Carson  Beevoobt,  Prof.  Chas.  E.  West, 
Henry  E.  Pierrepont,  Wm.  Gould  Leveson,  C.  H. 
Baxter,  John  Akhurst,  Alfred  Young  and  others 
of  the  Society's  members.  A  "  Department  of  the 
Natural  History  of  Long  Island  "  was  established,  and 
special  meetings  held;  and  the  result  is  now  seen  in  the 
splendid  and  very  complete  collection  of  the  fauna, 
fiora,  geology,  etc.,  of  the  Island,  so  thoroughly  arranged 
in  the  galleries  of  the  Society's  new  building.  Where 
all  have  contributed  so  much,  it  seems  invidious  to  name 
any  particular  person;  yet  it  is  doubtless  to  Mr.  Elias 
Lewis'  persistent  interest,  his  wide  accjuaintance  and 
influence  on  the  Island,  and  his  excellent  judgment  and 
power  of  systematization  that  this  collection  is  now  so 
perfect,  and  that  it  forms  so  valuable  a  portion  of  the 
Society's  collection. 


Geology,  mineralogy,  paleology,  metallurgy,  etc., 
engage  the  attention  of  Chas.  H.  Chapman;  Prof.  D. 
G.  Eaton,  Ph.  D.,  of  the  Packer  Institute;  D.  W.  Fer- 
guson; G.  D.  Hiscox;  A.  W.  Humphreys;  Dr.  R.  R. 
Raymond;  Prof.  G.  S.  Roberts,  E.  M.,  C.  E.;  Col.  W. 
A.  Roebling,  C.  E.;  G.  Scarborough;  T.  B.  Stearns. 

Astronomical  Science  (besides  those  mentioned  in 
our  notice  of  the  American  Astronomical  Society  of 
Brooklyn,  p.  1307)  employs  the  leisure  of  G.  D.  His- 
cox and  Henry  M.  Parkhurst. 

Among  the  chetnists,  we  may  mention  especially 
Elias  H.  Bartley,  B.  S.,  M.  D.,  Lecturer  on  Chemistry 
at  the  Long  Island  College  Hospital,  Chemist  to  the 
Board  of  Health,  who  also  devotes  much  attention  to 
microscopy  and  electrical  science;  P.  Casamajor,  the 
Cor.  Secretary  of  the  American  Chemical  Society;  Dr. 
N.  B.  De  S.  Sizer  (also  histology) ;  P.  H.  Van  Der 
Weyde,  M.  D.  (also  electricity  and  microscopy) ;  Prof. 
Cochran  of  the  Polytechnic,  and  Prof.  A.  K.  Eaton. 

Among  the  botanists,  we  find  Maj.  Wm.  S.  Beebe, 
U.  S.  A.  (anthropology,  also) ;  Rev.  Dr.  E.  Foster; 
Rev.  Dr.  Chas.  H.  Hall;  Dr.  Fred.  A.  Jewett;  W.  C. 
Peckham;  G.  Scarborough;  Theo.  Schuster;  Rev.  Wm. 
Short,  and  Alfred  R.  Young.  The  marine  florists,  i.  e., 
collectors  of  alga',  are  Jos.  S.  Brown,  Gardiner  D. 
Hiscox;  Nicholas  Pike  and  A.  R.  Young. 

The  ornithologists  comprise  John  Akhurst;  John  N. 
Blair;  Dr.  Wm.  H.  Gregg;  S.  D.  Obsorne;  T.  B. 
Stearns. 

The  ejitomolo gists  (besides  those  mentioned  under 
the  head  of  Brooklyn  Entomological  Society,  p,  1307), 
are  John  Akhurst  (taxidermist,  also);  A.  W.  Asquith; 
J.  Carson  Brevoort;  A.  E.  Brunn;  Jacob  Dole;  Robert 
W.  Chambers;  Edw.  L.  Graef ;  Rev.  Wm.  Short;  Prof. 
F.  G.  Schaupp. 

Among  the  ichthyologists,  Mr.  J.  Carson  Brevoort 
led  the  van,  until  declining  health,  some  ten  years 
since,  obliged  him  to  relinquish  its  active  pursuit; 
Nicholas  Pike  (see  p.  1327),  and  Eugene  G.  Blackford 
(see  p.  966),  now  bear  his  mantle  worthily;  also 
Dr.  Wm.  H.  Gregg. 

Prof.  Asahel  K.  Eaton,  M.  D.,  practical  and  ana- 
lytical chemist,  65  Henry  street,  has  been  a  resident  of 
this  city  since  1861.  He  was  born  at  East  Windsor, 
Conn.,  in  1822;  graduated  at  Hamilton  College,  N. 
Y. ;  was  for  some  years  Principal  of  the  Academies  at 
Little  Falls  and  Fredonia,  N.  Y.,  and  afterwards 
Professor  of  Chemistry  at  the  Eclectic  Medical  College, 
at  Rochester,  N.  Y.  He  then  settled  in  New  York 
city,  as  an  analytical  chemist;  discovered  and  patented 
a  process  for  making  steel  directly  from  the  iron  ore, 
and  also  a  quick  process  of  tanning  leather.  His  atten- 
tion was  then  directed  to  the  gold  mines  in  North 
Carolina,  and  he  invented  and  patented  several  im- 
proved processes  of  amalgamation  and  separation;  and 
shortly  after,  in  connection  with  Charles  C.  Spencer,  of 
Canastota,  N.    Y.,    entered   into  the   manufacture   of 


LITERATURE  AND  SCIENCE. 


1329 


optical  instruments,  microscopes,  telescopes,  etc.,  at  that 
place;  and  constructed  for  the  Litchfield  Observatory, 
Hamilton  College,  the  large  telescope,  then  one  of  the 
largest  ever  manufactured  in  this  country.  In  1856,  he 
was  engaged  in  New  York  city,  in  the  refining  of 
kerosene  from  the  coals  of  Western  Pennsylvania  and 
Eastern  Ohio — this  being  before  the  discovery  of 
petroleum.  During  the  early  part  of  the  Civil  War, 
Prof.  Eaton  was  largely  engaged  in  the  pi'eparation 
(by  processes  of  his  own  invention)  of  the  peculiar 
green  and  other  colored  inks  required  by  the  Bank 
Note  Companies  in  the  printing  of  the  Government 
"greenbacks."  In  18G4,  he  went  to  Montana  Territory, 
where  he  was  engaged  in  gold  and  silver  mining,  per- 
fecting several  new  processes  and  machinery  for  that 
work.  Returning,  in  1877,  to  Brooklyn,  he  invented 
a  new  kind  of  prism,  using  bi-sulphide  of  carbon,  and 
also,  a  direct-vision  spectroscope.  When  the  telephone 
was  brought  intQ  public  notice,  he  made  and  patented 
several  valuable  improvements,  and  organized  a  tele- 
phone manufacturing  company,  which,  however,  was 
ultimately  forced  to  succumb  to  the  superior  financial 
strength  of  the  Bell  Telephone  Co.  Prof.  Eaton  has 
since  been  actively  engaged  in  forwarding  the  interests 
of  a  new  form  of  storage-batteries  for  electricity, 
invented  by  himself.  He  published,  several  years 
ago,  a  small  elementary  text-book  on  Agricultural 
Chemistry.  Prof.  Eaton  is  thoroughly  versed  in  his 
chosen  science  of  chemistry,  as  well  as  in  Gleology, 
Mineralogy,  Metallurgy  and  Optics;  few  men  have  read 
more  extensively,  or  have  enjoyed  so  wide  a  range  of 
practical  observation  and  experience;  and,  as  an  expert 
in  matters  of  medical  jurisprudence,  he  has  also  done 
the  State  some  service. 

Oology  claims  among  its  votaries,  S.  D.  Osborne; 
John  N.  Blair;  T.  O.  Callender;  R.  M.  Mitchell,  and 
T.  B.  Stearns.  Histology,  Pathology,  Comparative 
Anatomy  and  Physiology  are  the  favorite  pursuits  of 
Dr.  Geo.  R.  Cutter;  Dr.  Wm.  Bates;  Franklin  W. 
Hooper,  Professor  of  Natural  Science  at  the  Adelphi 
Academy;  and  W.  Le  Conte  Stevens,  also  Professor  at 
the  Adelphi,  has  a  specialty  of  Acoustics  and  Physical 
Optics.  Dr.  S.  Edward  Stiles  gives  particular  atten- 
tion to  Pathological  Microscop>y,  Infusoria,  and  En- 
tomology. 

Herpetology,  Jos.  S.  Brown;  Crustacea,  3.  H.  Droge; 
Articulates,  Invertebrates,  Carl  F.  Geisler,  Ph.  D. 


Nelson  Sizkr,  Phrenologist  and  Author. —  Bio- 
graphy is  the  cream  of  history,  and  man's  real  character 
the  soul  of  biography.  One  person  with  but  medium 
talent,  bravery  and  patriotism,  may,  through  favoring 
conditions,  win  a  battle  for  liberty;  while  another,  a  real 
hero  and  patriot,  suffers  nominal  defeat  in  checking  the 
advance  of  the  enemy  which  threatens  the  common  cause_ 

In  a  country  like  ours,  riches  and  culture  in  a  family 
can  not  confer  continued  prominence  and  influence,  or 


shed  luster  on  a  race  willing  to  sit  idly  in  the  waning 
light  of  departed  greatness;  for  nations  and  families 
find  their  strength  in  the  worth,  talent  and  deeds  of  their 
living  sons.  The  death  of  some  men  of  mark  is  as 
disastrous  to  their  heirs,  as  the  sinking  of  a  tow-boat 
would  be  to  its  score  of  helpless  but  richly  laden 
barges. 

It  has  been  facetiously  said,  that  in  Philadelphia, 
public  sentiment  asks  of  a  stranger,  "  Who  are  you  ?  " 
in  Boston,  "  What  do  you  knoio  ? "  in  New  York, 
"  What  can  you  do  ?  "  Though  these  qualities  are  all 
desirable,  their  order  of  precedence  should  be  reversed, 
since  the  ability  to  do  is  the  basis  of  both  knowledge 
and  reputation.  Who  asks  if  Horace  Mann  came  from 
a  rich  and  distinguished  family  ?  He  is  known  as  the 
promoter  of  the  public  school  system  of  Massachusetts 
and  America,  and  his  work  will  live  in  the  culture  of 
coming  generations,  and  keep  his  name  fragrant  for- 
ever. Every  man  ought  to  do  worthy  work  of  some 
sort,  and  the  reputation  he  wins  should  depend  on  his 
motive,  on  the  talent  employed,  and  on  the  quality  of 
the  result. 

Nelson  Size  it,  the  subject  of  the  present  sketch, 
has  been  so  many  years  in  the  field  as  an  author 
and  practitioner  in  Phrenology,  that  the  mention 
of  his  name  is  suttioient  to  awaken  a  lively  interest  in 
thousands  who  have  profited  by  his  professional  coun- 
sels. The  newness  of  his  theme  and  its  vital  import- 
ance to  those  who  seek  its  aid  in  rightly  shaping  their 
lives  for  success,  health  and  harmony  of  character,  has 
given  him  unequalled  opportunity  to  make  the  public 
his  debtor  for  the  eminent  services  he  has  been  able  to 
render. 

His  portrait  indicates  strong  elements  of  character, 
at  the  basis  of  which  is  an  excellent  physiology.  His 
brain  measures  about  twenty-three  inches  in  circum- 
ference, and  his  weight  being  nearly  two-hundred 
pounds,  his  nervous  system  is  fully  supplied  with  nutri- 
tion. Having  been  thoroughly  temperate  and  orderly 
in  his  habits,  he  has  confirmed  in  its  integrity  a 
constitution  robust  by  inheritance,  which  enables  him 
to  accomplish  a  lage  amount  of  work.  The  head  is 
relatively  high,  showing  fullness  in  the  moral  organs, 
while  the  intellectual  developments  are  particularly 
large  in  the  perceptive  region.  He  has  a  capital 
memory  of  whatever  he  has  experienced,  and  with  his 
large  comparison  he  is  able  in  conversation,  or  while 
addressing  an  audience,  or  describing  a  character,  to 
employ  illustrations  drawn  from  every  side  of  nature 
and  experience,  which  are  both  rich  and  vivid.  Indeed 
he  seems  to  think  pictorially. 

Nelson  Sizer,  for  more  than  thirty  years  a  well-known 
citizen  of  Brooklyn,  was  born  in  Chester,  Hampden 
county,  Mass.,  May  21st,  1812.  On  his  father's  side  he 
is  of  Portuguese  extraction,  his  great-grandfather 
having  emigrated  to  America  from  the  Island  of  Ter- 
ceira,  one  of  the  Azores,  in  1726.     He  settled,  married 


T330 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


and  spent  his  life  in  Middletown,  Conn.  His  neighbors 
desired  to  make  the  colony  seem  to  be  Englisli,  and 
persuaded  those  having  a  foreign  prefix  to  their  names 
to  drop  it.  His  name  being  Antonio  De  Souza,  when 
spoken  quickly,  sounded  like  Sizer,  so  the  astute  town 
clerk  invented  and  put  on  record  the  name  as  Anthony 
Sizer.  All  who  bear  the  name  in  this  country  trace  their 
origin  to  this  man.  Anthony  married  a  lady  of  Scotch 
descent;  hence  our  subject  unites  Portuguese  and  Scotch 
elements  in  his  character,  liveliness  and  sociability  on 
one  side,  with  prudence  and  integrity  on  the  other.  His 
father,  Fletcher  Sizer,  the  fourth  of  a  family  of  sixteen 
children,  married  Lydia  Bassett,  of  Westfield,  Mass., 
whose  father  was  an  Englishman.  In  this  way  Nelson 
Sizer  attained  an  English  impression  in  the  direction  of 
stability  and  personal  dignity.  His  father  being  a  car- 
penter, he  early  became  familiar  with  tools,  and  also 
practically  acquainted  with  all  the  work  of  a  farm.  At 
fourteen  he  was  engaged  in  the  wool  mill,  at  Bland- 
ford,  Mass.;  at  seventeen  he  commenced,  in  association 
with  an  elder  brother,  the  manufacture  of  cloth;  from 
eighteen   to   nineteen   he  worked   at    the  carpenter's 


bench;  from  nineteen  to  twenty-two  was  again  en- 
gaged in  the  woolen  business.  He  was  then  offered 
inducements  to  take  a  position  in  a  new  paper-mill  in 
the  place,  and  in  two  years  he  became  a  partner  and 
had  charge.  In  this  business  he  continued  five  years, 
doing  eighteen  hours  work  a  day.  While  attending 
the  paper  mill  at  night  he  read  extensvely  in  the  litera- 
ture of  Phrenology,  and  wrote  articles  for  the  local 
press. 

In  1839,  his  wife  having  died,  he  gave  up  the  paper 
business,  which  was  becoming  very  profitable,  to  enter 
the  practical  work  of  a  phrenologist.  Ten  years  he 
travelled  and  lectured,  mainly  in  New  England.  In  1840 
he  joined  Mr.  P.  L.  Buell  in  a  phrenological  partnership, 
and  they  gave  extended  courses  of  lectures  in  Wash- 
ington, and  in  leading  towns  in  Maryland,  Virginia, 
New  York,  Massachusetts,  Connecticut,  New  Hamp- 
shire and  Vermont.  In  1843  a  joint  work,  entitled 
"  A  Guide  to  Phrenology,"  was  published  by  the  asso- 
ciates and  used  as  a  chart  in  making  examinations. 

Mr.  Sizer  aimed  from  the  beginning  to  give  Phrenol- 
ogy an  elevated  place  in  the  estimation   of  the  public, 


LITERATURE  AND   SCIENCE. 


and  not  to  make  the  new  science  a  mere  instrumental- 
ity of  gain,  and  tlius  won  the  respect  of  his  audiences 
and  patrons.  He  usually  obtained  the  use  of  churches 
for  his  lecture-rooms,  and  was  commended  by  letter 
from  one  clergyman  to  another.  Believing  that  man's 
moral  nature  is  the  strongest  and  liighest  element,  and 
that  the  best  success  must  come  from  addressing  him- 
self to  this  element,  he  aimed  to  develop  clearly  in  his 
teachings  the  moral  and  religious  aspects  of  phreno- 
logical science. 

While  lecturing  he  was  a  frequent  contributor  to  the 
Phrenological  Journal,  and  also  its  agent.  In  1843  he 
married  Mrs.  Sarah  Hale,  of  Siiffield,  Conn.,  and  resided 
there  for  a  year,  then  removed  to  Avon,  Conn.,  still 
continuing  to  lecture.  Here  was  born  to  them,  in  1846, 
a  son,  Nelson  Buell  Sizer,  who  became  an  alumnus  of 
the  "  University  of  the  City  of  New  York,"  and  a 
physician,  now  settled  in  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.  By  the 
former  marriage  there  were  two  children,  George  W., 
settled  in  the  West,  and  Julia  E.,  the  wife  of  Francis 
Wood  of  Brooklyn. 

In  1849  he  was  invited  to  take  the  position  of  Phre- 
nological Examiner  in  the  office  of  Fowler  &  Wells, 
in  New  York,  and  from  that  time  has  remained  thus 
related,  and  a  resident  of  Brooklyn.  Meanwhile  he  has 
contributed  largely  to  the  Journal,  his  diverse  expe- 
riences and  extended  observations  rendering  him  a  val- 
ued writer  on  topics  connected  with  human  nature. 
In  1859,  '60,  '62,  and  '63  he  had  sole  editorial  charge 
of  the  Journal,  the  proprietors  being  absent  on  a  pro- 
fessional tour  in  America  and  Europe.  Since  1864  he 
has  been  associate  editor,  besides  being  Vice-President 
of,  and  principal  teacher  in,  the  "  American  Institute 
of  Phrenology,"  incorporated  in  1866.  He  has  made 
more  than  250,000  professional  examinations,  and  many 
thousands  confess  that  his  advice  guided  them  to  right 
pursuits,  or  saved  them  from  mental  and  moral  wreck. 
He  has  published  several  books  of  great  value;  one  en- 
titled "  Choice  of  Pursuits,  or  What  to  Do  and  Why;" 
another,  "  How  to  Teach,  or  Phrenology  in  the  School 
Room  and  the  Family,"  and,  "  Forty  years  in  Phrenol- 
ogy, embracing  History,  Anecdote  and  Experience." 
These  works,  more  than  any  other,  serve  to  bring  the 
science  of  human  nature  home  to  practical  use  in  every 
relation  of  life. 

As  a  phrenological  examiner  no  man  in  any  country 
has  a  higher  and  purer  reputation  for  usefulness,  his 
merits  being  warmly  acknowledged  by  thousands  who 
have  received  the  benefit  of  his  professional  skill.  As  a 
lecturer  he  is  well  known  in  New  York,  Brooklyn,  and 
vicinity,  his  services  being  in  frequent  demand  for  as- 
sociations, lyceunis,  and  churches.  He  speaks  extem- 
poraneously, is  animated,  direct,  earnest,  highly  in- 
structive, abounding  in  illustration,  and  is  often  in  a 
high  degree  amusing.  His  most  telling  lectures  are 
those  which  treat  of  temperance  and  moral  reform, 
based  on  Phrenology  and  Physiology. 


ADDENDA. 

While  these  pages  were  passing  through  the  press, 
there  occurred  (May  30,  1884)  the  death  of  another 
Brooklyn  literary  man: 

Augustus  Ely  Sii.liman.    He  was  born  in  Newport, 
R.  I.,  about  seventy  years  since,  but  came  to  this  city 
when  a  small  boy,  and  has  resided  here  ever  since.    He 
retired  from  business  in  1868,  and  spent  the  remaining 
years  of  his  life  at  home  engaged  principally  in  literary 
pursuits.     He  was  never  married.     He  was  a  brother 
of  Benjamin  D.  Silliman,  the  well-known  lawyer,  with 
whom  he  lived.     Mr.  Silliman  for  a  long  period  was 
prominently  known  in  financial  and  social  circles.     He 
was  for  many  years  connected   with   the  Merchants' 
Bank  in  Wall  street.  New  York,  as  its  president.     He 
resigned  from  the  position  sixteen  years  ago,  in  conse- 
quence of  ill  health,  leaving  the  bank  in  a  prosperous 
condition  as  proof  of  his  financial  ability.    It  was  said  of 
him  at  the  time  that  he  was  "  a  sound  political  econo- 
mist, thoroughly  conversant  with  the  true  principles  as 
well  as  the  best  practice  of  banking,  and  having  a  char- 
acter for  truth,  uprightness  and  integrity  which  is  per- 
fectly unsullied."     Mr.   Silliman    co-operated   actively 
and  efficiently  in  establishing  the  Clearing  House.     At 
a  meeting  of  bank  officers  August,  13,  1853,  a  commit- 
tee, consisting  of  Messrs.  Edmonds,  of  Mechanics'  Bank; 
Silliman,  of   Merchants'  Bank;   Punnett,  of  Bank  of 
America;  Berry,  of  Tradesmen's  Bank;  and  Everett,  of 
Broadway  Bank,  was   appointed   to  devise  a  plan  for 
simplifying  the  method  of  making   exchanges  and  set- 
tling the  daily  balances.    These  gentlemen  founded  the 
great  establishment,  and  remained  as  the  regular  Clear- 
ing House  Committee  for  six  years.     When  Mr.  Silli- 
man went  out  of  business  the  presidents  of  the  banks 
in  the  Clearing    House  passed   resolutions  expressing 
their  good  wishes  and  attesting  to  the  uniform  courtesy 
and  kindness  which  had  characterized  his  intercourse 
with  them  and  the  zeal  and  consistency  with  which  he 
had  always  supported  sound  and  conservative  measures, 
and  the  influence  which  he  had  exerted  in  establishing 
and  giving  character  and  dignity  to  the   association. 
Mr.  Silliman  was  a  man  of  fine  literary  ability.     He 
read  much  and  also  wrote  freely.     He  was  author  of 
"A  Gallop  Among  American  Scenery,"  principally  con- 
sisting of  military  sketches  of  the  war  of  1812.    It  had 
a  large  sale  and  was  very  popular  with  the  cadets  at 
West  Point.     He  was  a  member  of  the  Century  Club 
and  of  the  Long  Island  Historical  Society.     He  was 
independent  and  self-reliant  in  his  opinions;  his  truth 
and  sincerity  were  absolute  and  unvarying,  alike  in 
matters  of  importance  and  in  the  smallest  affairs  and 
conventionalities  of  life.     He  was  a  gentleman  of  pol- 
ished manners,  of  warm  affections,  of  great  refinement 
and  of  large  mental  culture. 

In  a  very  interesting  and   appreciative  article  in  the 
Brooklyn   Eagle,  Z una  1,  1884,  "Clericus"  gives   an 


1332 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


account  of  Rev.  Henkt  Wakd  Bekcher's  library,  art- 
collections,  literary  habits  and  tastes.  Although  Mr. 
Beecber's  library  does  not  strictly  come  within  the 
scope  of  our  definition  on  page  1319,  yet  we  can- 
not forbear  quoting  somewhat  from  the  article  in 
question. 

"  The  library  comprises  perhaps  six  thousand  volumes.  It 
is  miscellaneous  in  character  and  without  special  precision  of 
arrangement.  It  lacks  the  completeness  of  a  collection,  but 
covers  with  reasonable  fullness  almost  every  department  of 
thought.  The  religious  department  of  course  predominates, 
the  varied  phases  of  modern  religious  thought  being  espe- 
cially full.  Physiological  books  are  numerous,  while  law, 
science,  philosophy,  history,  political  economy  are  represented 
largely  upon  the  slielves.  Tlie  iutellectual  hospitality  of  Mr. 
Beecber's  mind  is  seen  in  the  fact  that  on  controverted  topics 
both  sides  are  almost  equally  well  represented.  *  *  *  * 
Mr.  Beecber's  intense  love  for  living  things,  animals,  plants, 
fishes,  and  especially  birds,  would  be  noticed  by  the  casual 
visitor,  even  if  he  was  without  previous  knowledge  of  his 
tastes  in  these  directions.  "Everything  that  has  life,"  he 
(juaintly  remarked,  "is  related  to  me.  I  am  its  Dutch  uncle." 
The  books  on  fishes  and  birds  were  everywhere;  crowded  in 
among  the  mustiest  folios  of  the  Fathers  were  books  curiously 
illuminated,  describing  the  habits  of  the  birds,  while  the 
flowers  and  ferns,  trees  and  fruit,  kept  company  with  the 
dreariest  quartos  and  the  moth-eaten  relics  of  medieeval  days. 
In  the  earlier  years  of  Mr.  Beecber's  ministry  he  was  an 
enthusiast  in  botanical  studies,  doing  some  of  his  earliest 
writing  on  the  subject  of  floral  culture,  and  from  the  evidence 
given  by  his  books,  the  love  of  his  youth  has  not  passed  away, 
for,  side  by  side  with  the  old  floral  books  of  his  earlier  life, 
are  the  recent  publications  of  the  press,  telling  the  story  of 
the  flowers. 

"The  library  is  especially  rich  in  the  literature  of  art,  and 
the  number  of  illustrated  books  is  very  large.  *  *  *  Jn 
looking  over  the  library  of  Mr.  Beecher  one  could  easily  im- 
agine that  he  liad  determined,  like  Bacon,  to  '  take  all  know- 
ledge for  his  province.'  A  young  lawyer  could  from  his 
shelves  select  a  law  library  of  reasonable  completeness;  the 
young  medical  graduate  would  feel  rich  with  the  professional 
outfit  be  might  obtain,  and  the  student  in  science,  philosophy, 
natural  histor}',  botany,  fishes,  buds  and  insects  could  revel 
here.  The  key  to  the  vast  fund  of  illustration  possessed  by 
Mr.  Beecher  is  foimd  by  even  a  cursory  glance  at  this  strangely 
diversified  collection.  *  *  *  Mr.  Beecher  has  never  been 
in  any  sense  a  collector.  Though  a  man  of  hobbies,  he  has 
rarely  had  any  of  the  bibliographical  crazes  that  have  unset- 
tled so  many  men  of  literary  promise.  Perhaps  the  nearest 
he  has  ever  come  to  the  dangerous  amusement  of  collecting 
has  been  in  the  direction  of  art.  *  *  *  Another  singular 
fact  which  has  been  but  seldom  noticed  by  the  press  is  his 


peculiar  love  of  gems.  He  delights  in  finely  polished  stones, 
finding  rest,  when  weary,  in  looking  at  these  things.  During 
his  memorable  war  addresses  in  England,  when  beset  on 
every  side,  with  every  faculty  strained  to  its  utmost  tension, 
he  found  peculiar  usefulness  m  two  rich  opals,  which  had 
been  loaned  him,  for  the  purpose  of  making  a  selection,  by  a 
Glasgow  jeweller.  In  the  days  of  his  more  active  ministry, 
he  used  to  have  a  little  box  filled  with  unmounted  brilliants 
of  every  kind,  and  when  at  his  work  he  felt  the  need  of  some 
calming  influence,  he  was  wont  to  spread  his  treasures  before 
him,  and  in  their  eternal  fires  find  calm  and  rest.  He  used 
laughingly  to  deride  this  strange  love  as  a  peculiar  and  sense- 
loss  whim,  but  it  is  not  difficult  to  trace  its  origin  to  his 
peculiarly  sensitive  love  of  beauty,  which  finds  satisfaction 
in  that  which  of  all  things  beautiful  has  most  of  beauty. 
Among  other  singular  hobbies  is  a  love  of  rugs.  *  *  *  j^ 
case  of  lottery  gives  even  now  significant  hint  that  ceramics 
may  yet  be  the  coming  bee  in  the  parson's  bonnet.  Unlike 
most  men,  Mr.  Beecher  rarely  outgrows  his  old  loves.  The 
new  hobby  is  added  to  the  others,  but  it  does  not  displace 
them;  as  he  quaintly  puts  it,  'his  recreations  are  like  an 
irrigating  stream,  to  be  cut  off  in  one  direction  for  a  time, 
that  it  may  be  turned  on  in  another.'  *  *  *  As  an  author, 
Mr.  Beecher  may, by  the  number  of  his  works  published,  justly 
rank  among  the  most  prolific  writers.  He  is  the  literary 
father  of  thirty-five  volumes,  and  if  the  writings  published 
without  his  sanction  should  be  added  to  the  list,  the  number 
would  increase  to  over  fifty.  Tlie  stress  of  his  times,  his 
intense  sympathy  with  the  living  (juestions  of  the  hour,  have 
been,  perhaps,  an  inevitable  hindrance  to  literary  finish  and 
completeness.  His  work  has  been  largely  fragiiientarv,  yet 
be  cherishes  the  hope,  not  without  reason,  that  some  of  his 
sermons,  which  have  touched  the  unchanging  spiritual  needs 
of  men,  may  have  a  permanence  beyond  his  own  personal 
life  and  fame.  *  *  *  The  variety  of  his  writings,  liis 
mental  vigor  and  originality,  his  unquestioned  spiritual 
vision,  together  with  his  complete  command  of  all  the  re- 
sources of  the  English  language,  cannot  fail  to  give  him  a 
lasting  place  among  the  foremost  literary  workers  of  this 
period  of  American  history." 

Daniel  M.  Teedwell. — In  our  sketch  of  this  gen- 
tleman's library  and  writings,  on  page  1322,  we  should 
have  stated  that  he  is  a  native  of  Long  Island;  and  that 
he  also  published,  in  1874,  a  work  entitled  Literature 
of  the  Civil  War  between  the  North  and  South.  He  has 
been  a  large  contributor  of  literary  and  scientific  mat- 
ter to  the  local  press  and  magazines,  and  for  ten  years 
past  has  devoted  much  time  to  preparing  and  delivering 
lectures  on  popularized  scientific  matters,  in  Brooklyn, 
New  York,  Boston  and  Philadelphia. 


BIOGRAPHIES. 


JULIUS     E.     MEYER. 


Julius  E.  Meyer,  the  distinguished  voice-builder  of 
New  York  and  Brooklyn,  was  born  at  Altenburg,  Ger- 
man}', on  the  15th  oi  September,  1832.  He  comes  of  a 
musical  family,  his  father  being  then  the  city  organist 
of  the  largest  churches  in  that  city. 

Of  seven  children  he  was  the  third  son,  and  began 
his  musical  studies  at  nine  years  of  age,  becoming  a 
meniber  of  the  church  choir  where  the  music  of  Handel, 
Haydn,  Beethoven  and  the  other  great  masters  was  in- 
terpreted by  a  picked  chorus  and  carefully  selected 
orchestra.  Notwitlistanding  his  surroundings,  keen  per- 
ception and  ijuick  appreciation,  Julius  did  not  intend 
to  become  a  musician.  Music  had  upon  him,  strange  to 
say,  a  depressing  and  melancholy  effect,  and  when  well 
rendered  completely  overcame  him  at  times.  Yielding, 
however,  to  the  force  of  circumstances,  he  finally 
changed  his  mind,  and  set  about  his  studies  with  tli" 
zeal  and  earnestness  of  purpose  wliich  have  ever  siii' 
characterized  him  in  his  brilliant  career.  He  maste]fi 
several  instruments,  including  the  bassoon,  trombom 
and  trumpet,  but  the  violin  being  more  to  his  taste,  hf 
took  it  up  under  its  then  acknowledged  master,  Ferdi- 
nand David. 

When  the  great  Conservatory  was  founded  by  Men- 
delssohn, at  Leipsic,  Julius  was  one  of  its  first  pupd-, 
and  among  his  fellow-students  were  Tausch,  who  suc- 
ceeded Schumann  as  Chapelmeister  at  Dusseldorf,  K.il- 
liwoda.  Otto  Goldschmidt,  who  subsequently  marrifl 
Jenny  Lind,  and  others  of  merit  and  renown.  On  i  ln' 
death  of  Mendelssohn,  Juhus  was  chosen  among  iln- 
twelve  most  distinguished  scholars  to  bear  the  laurt  K- 
wreaths  which  were  laid  at  the  feet  of  the  illustrious 
dead.  For  seven  years  Meyer  played  first  violin  in  the 
celebrated  Geweudhaus  Concerts,  which  correoi)ond  to 
our  own  Philharmonic  Society,  and  sustained  both  vocal 
and  instrumental  solos,  for  which,  in  the  meantime,  he 
had  been  fitting  himself.  His  voice  was  a  clear,  high, 
i-inging  baritone,  of  great  compass,  flexibility  and  vol- 
ume, and  much  admired. 

He  became  an  intimate  friend  of  Mendelssohn,  and 
spent  much  of  his  time  at  the  house  of  the  great  composer, 
singing  his  songs  and  playing  his  music  from  manuscript,  as 
did  also  Julius'  sister,  whom  Mendelssohn  likewise  held  in 
high  esteem  for  her  musical  proficiency  and  rare  attainments. 

All  of  Julius'  l)rothors  and  sisters  were  more  or  less  distin- 
guished musically,  his  eldest  brother  having  been  for  25  j-ears 
past  the  Chapelmeister  at  Munich,  a  position  he  still  holds. 
Last  year  the  Gold  Medal  of  Arts  and  Sciences  was  bestowed 
upon  him  by  the  King  of  Bavaria.  Mendelssohn's  recogni- 
tion of  Julius'  genius  was  most  marked.  On  one  occasion 
lie  took  him  from  the  orchestra  in  St.  Paul's  Church,  in 
Leipsic,  to  sing  the  baritone  solos  in  the  oratorio,  without  re- 
hearsal, before  a  large  and  exceedingly  critical  audience,  and 
the  result  more  than  justified  the  high  appreciation  and  con- 
fidence thus  manifested. 

Mendelssohn  brought  to  his  aid  in  his  Conservatory  the 
ablest  talent  of  continental  Europe;  and  we  find  Julius'  stu- 
dies prosecuted  under  the  immediate  and  personal  direction 
and  supervision  of  Moscheles,  Hauptmann,  David  and  Schu- 
mann, under  the  last  of  whom  he  studied  musiral  composi- 
tion and  string  iiuartet  instrumentation. 

It  was  Mendelssohn  himself  who  first  suggested  to  Julius 
that  he  should  become  a  teacher  of  the  voice.     After  hearing 


one  of  his  own  exquisite  songs  interpreted  jby  Meyer,  he 
turned  to  him  and  said,  "You  are  a  born  singing  teacher; 
you  have  the  finest  ear  I  ever  came  across."  He  acted  upon 
the  suggestion,  and  commenced  his  vocal  instruction  at 
Leipsic,  where  a  musician  had  to  stand  or  fall  solely  and 
entirely  by  his  own  merit,  and  only  the  most  skillful  and 
most  talented  musician  could  obtain  position.  He  was 
signally  successful  from  the  outset,  and  remained  in  Leipsic 
eleven  years,  where  he  was  married  to  Miss  Emma  Teeg,  the 
daughter  of  the  organist  of  a  neighboring  city,  in  St.  Thomas' 
Church,  where  Sebastian  Bach  played.  Among  others  sent 
to  him  for  vocal  culture  was  a  niece  of  Hauptmann. 

From  Leipsic,  Julius  went  to  Frankfort-on-the-Main  to 
teach,  and  met  with  renewed  success,  bringing  out  Ida  Vogt 
as  a  prima  donna  (after  she  had  been  discharged  from  the 
chorus  of  the  opera)  in  the  course  of  a  year  and  a  half,  at  one 
of  his  celebrated  concerts,  which  were  attended  by  the 
wealth  and  nobility  of  Frankfort,  among  them  the  Roths- 
childs. In  consequence  of  this  signal  triumph,  the  Baroness 
Rothschild  sought  Mr.  Meyer's  personal  instruction  for  her- 
self, and  had  but  just  completed  arrangements  therefor  at 
the  time  of  her  death,  when  she  left  him  a  handsome  present 
in  gold  in  recognition  of  his  distinguished  services  to  art. 


HISTORY  OF  KINO S  COUNTY. 


Mr.  Meyer  then  came  to  America,  where  he  has  since  remained 
and  built  up  a  great  reputation  as  a  vocal  instructor.  He  has 
twice  declined  the  chair  of  vocal  culture  in  the  Conservatory 
at  Leipsic,  preferring,  for  the  present,  to  remain  in  America. 

As  a  teacher  of  the  voice,  he  has  no  superiors,  and  few,  if 
any,  equals  in  this  country,  while,  as  a  composer,  he  towers 
aliove  his  fellows.  To  him.  Miss  Thursby  owes  all  she  is,  or 
has  been,  or  ever  can  be,  having  studied  with  him  five  years; 
and  to  him,  likewise,  are  many  of  our  best  churches  in- 
debted for  their  finest  soloists.  Taught  by  a  natural  and  ra- 
tional method,  his  pupils  sing  with  ease  what  speedily 
fatigues  an  improi)erly-cultivated  voice,  and  he  gives  them  a 
depth,  fullness  and  clearness  of  tone,  and  compass  of  voice, 
which  is  impossible  by  any  other  method. 

Mr.  Meyer  has  5  sons  and  4  daughters,  who  all  inherit  un- 
mistakable musical  and  artistic  talents.  His  sons,  Paul  and 
Walter,  are  in  Para,  Brazil.  Paul  is  the  foremost  photo- 
grapher in  that  country.  Walter  put  the  first  steamboat  on 
the  Rio  Sinu  river,  U.  S.  of  Columbia;  and  is  acting  U.  S. 
Consul  at  Para.  Arnold  has  his  father's  love  for  music;  has 
made  it  the  pursuit  and  profession  of  his  life.  He  studied  in 
Lieii)sic,  Germany,  under  two  of  his  father's  old  teachers  of 
the  piano-forte  and  organ  practice  and  theory.  He  has  a  de- 
servedly high  reputation  as  a  concert  pianist,  and  as  a  church 
organist  and  teacher.  Has  recently  been  recalled  as  organist 
of  the  New  Grace  M.  E.  Church,  corner  7th  avenue  and  St. 
John's  Place.  He  devotes  all  available  time  to  musical  com- 
position and  the  study  of  vocal  culture. 


The  oldest  daughter,  Emmie,  returned  in  June,  1883,  from 
a  year  in  Germany,  where  she  went  for  rest  after  several 
years'  constant  labor  in  the  cultivation  and  development  of 
her  voice  under  her  father's  tuition;  while  in  Berlin  her 
friends  insisted  on  hearing  her  in  public.  She  sang  at  the 
Singakademy  of  Berlin,  and  on  other  occasions,  with  remark- 
able success.  The  critics  agreed  that  "  she  Burjirised  the 
audience  by  the  great  range  and  flexibility  of  her  beautiful 
voice.  The  ease  and  grace  and  exquisite  quality  of  her  head 
tones  were  especially  admired.  The  opinion  was  unanimous 
that  her  training  had  l)een  faultless,  and  that  her  powers  and 
performances  assured  her  a  glorious  future."'  At  a  soiree  at 
the  house  of  Frau  Dr.  Breiderhoff,  in  Berlin,  which  was  ar- 
ranged for  the  purjxise,  she  met  her  father's  old  friend  Prof. 
Joseph  Joachim,  at  present  the  greatest  of  living  violinists. 
The  same  evening  the  celebrated  string  quartette,  Joachim. 
De  Alena,  Wirth  and  Hansmann,  were  present.  Miss  Meyer 
was  heard,  for  the  first  time  since  her  return,  at  the  Mozart 
Musical  Union  in  Chickering  Hall,  New  York,  in  the  ever 
popular  "  Shadow  Dance "  from  Dinorah,  and  the  "Casta 
Diva'' from  Norma,  two  selections  widely  difl'erent  in  style 
and  seldom  attempted  by  one  singer.  Miss  Meyer's  excep- 
tionally fine  training,  resembling  more  that  given  to  the 
lamented  race  of  great  singers  whose  names  and  methods  are 
only  a  tradition,  enables  her  to  attempt  this  difficult  feat  with 
imimnity.  Her  accomplishments  fully  justify  the  predictions 
for  a  brilliant  future  made  l)y  some  of  Berlin's  most  cele- 
brated musicians. 


ALBERT     DAGGETT. 


In  the  list  of  distinguished  citizens  who  have  represented  the 
County  of  Kings  in  the  State  Senate  is  the  name  of  Albert 
Daggett,  present  Senator  from  the  Third  District  of  the  State. 
There  have  been  few  among  his  predecessorw  more  naturally 
capacitated  for  a  servant  of  the  people  in  that  body  than  he.  If 
he  is  strong  with  the  masses  it  is  because  he  is  conspicuously 
one  of  the  people;  moved  by  their  impulses,  imbued  with  their 
sense,  inspired  by  their  rights,  and  sharing  their  convictions. 
He  brings  these  endowments  largely  into  politics  ;  for,  aside 
from  being  an  accomplished  business  man,  he  is  a  politician, 
well  versed  in  politics.  But  he  is  uncompromising  in  his  fealty 
to  his  party;  acting  on  the  principle  that  a  man  who  is  not  a 
partisan  is  without  convictions,  or,  if  he  has  convictions,  he  is 
false  to  them. 

Mr.  Daggett  is  a  Republican,  believing  in  those  principles 
upon  which  that  party  was  founded,  and  which  now  constitute 
the  cohesive  power  which  forms  it.  His  clear  view  of  politics 
causes  him  to  regard  the  principles  of  the  Republican  party  as 
essential  to  the  best  results  in  government,  whether  local,  state 
or  federal. 

He  is  a  man  of  thought  and  action,  of  firm  convictions  versed 
in  the  logic  of  common  sense,  with  a  mind  of  much  quickness 
and  energy.  Although  Mr.  Daggett  is  an  ardent  partisan,  with 
the  faults  which  attach  to  such  men,  he  has  corresponding 
redeeming  traits  that  cause  him  to  stand  well  as  a  politician 
and  a  citizen.  In  the  collisions  of  party  strife  Mr.  Daggett's  in- 
dependence of  thought  and  action,  his  skill  and  success  as  a 
party  manager,  have  stimulated  envious  rivalry  among  his  own 
fellow-partisans,  and  occasionally  brought  upon  him  their  acri- 
monious attacks.  But  all  this  is  the  natural  result  of  a  suc- 
cessful political  career,  for  such  has  been  the  career  of  Mr. 
Daggett,  and  such,  it  is  apparent,  will  be  his  career  in  the 
future. 


Albert  Daggett  was  born  at  Troy,  N.  Y.,  March  19,  1845. 
He  comes  from  one  of  the  most  distinguished  families  in  the 
country,  of  English  descent,  whose  ancestry  extend  back  into 
the  earliest  days  of  Colonial  history.  His  father  was  Dr.  Joseph 
Daggett,  of  Troy,  a  man  of  refined  taste,  a  gentleman  and  a 
scholar,  whose  natural  love  of  study  was  a  dominant  feature  of 
his  character.  He  was,  in  a  measure,  dependent  upon  his  own 
exertions  for  attaining  an  education;  but  these  were  sufficient. 
Before  his  indomitable  energy  and  perseverance  every  obstacle 
gave  way,  and  the  treasures  of  classic  lore,  in  their  plenitude, 
were  open  to  him.  Like  many  other  young  men  of  limited 
means,  the  young  student  supported  himself  by  teaching.  After 
a  thorough  preparatory  course,  he  entered  Middlebury  College, 
Vt.  From  this  institution  he,  in  due  time,  graduated,  with 
highly  respectable  scholarly  standing. 

He  was  accomplished  in  Latin,  Greek,  Hebrew,  French,  Spanish 
and  Italian.  There  was  that  in  his  nature  which  gravitated  directly 
towards  the  medical  profession,  and  immediately  after  graduat- 
ing he  began  the  studies  of  a  physician  and  surgeon,  and  in  due 
time  took  his  degree  as  an  M.  D.  But  failing  health  prevented 
his  practicing  in  the  profession.  Utilizing  his  knowledge  of 
chemistry  and  of  medicine,  he  adopted  the  calling  of  a  druggist 
and  opened  a  drug  store  at  Troy.  Success  in  this  occupation 
was  assured  to  him  from  the  beginning.  His  scholarly  attain- 
ments, his  accomiilishments  as  a  gentleman,  his  undoubted  in- 
tegrity and  honor,  as  a  citizen  and  a  man  of  business,  gave  him 
many  friends  and  an  extended  reputation. 

From  a  druggist  he  became  a  whole.sale  dealer  in  drugs,  oils, 
turpentine  and  glass,  extending  his  trade  throughout  the  northern 
section  of  the  State  and  Vermont.  His  devotion  to  his  business 
and  his  integrity  in  conducting  it,  was  rewarded  by  a  large 
fortune,  much  of  which  was  invested  in  real  estate  in  and  about 
Troy.     Few  men  were  better  acquainted  with  the  value  of  real 


£n^  ^by  A  H.  FuZofV£  ■ 


BIOGRAPHIES. 


1335 


estate  than  Dr.  Daggett.     Although  he  was  a  Democrat,  he  was 

for  several  successive  years  -owing  to  his  practical  knowledge  of 
real  estate — elected  an  assessor  of  the  City  of  Troy,  without  op- 
position. A  constitution,  always  delicate,  at  length  broke  entirely 
down,  never  to  rally  again;  and,  in  1852  Dr.  Daggett  died,  leaving 
his  son,  the  present  Senator,  at  the  ago  of  seven,  without  a 
father's  guidance,  but  with  the  memory  of  a  father's  teachings 
and  a  father's  virtues. 

Senator  Daggett's  first,  and  perhaps  his  best  tutor,  was  his 
father,  who  taught  him  the  rudiments  of  an  English  education; 
taught  him  French  with  such  success  that  the  boy  was  re- 
garded as  a  better  French  than  English  scholar.  Soon  after  his 
father's  death,  young  Daggett  was  sent  to  a  celebrated  school  for 
boys,  taught  by  Rev.  Dr.  John  Ireland  Tucker,  an  Episcopal 
clergyman,  a  man  possessing  few  equals  as  a  teacher.  Dr.  Tucker 
was  young  Daggett's  godfather  in  baptism,  and  between  this 
eminent  clergyman  and  Christian  gentleman,  and  Senator 
Daggett,  there  has  always  existed  the  warmest  friendship.  Dr. 
Tucker  is  still  preaching  in  Troy.  It  was  the  intention  of  Mr. 
Daggett  to  enter  Union  College,  and  he  prepared  to  enter 
the  Sophomore  class  of  that  institution,  but  he  received  such 
injuries  from  a  fall  in  the  gymnasium  that  he  was  unable  to  con- 
fine himself  to  study  for  a  long  time,  and  on  his  recovery  he 
decided  not  to  enter  upon  a  collegiate  course.  This  was  in 
1861. 

The  war  for  the  Union  was  then  summoning  not  only  the 
middle-aged,  but  the  youth,  to  the  defense  of  the  country.  None 
entered  more  enthusiastically  into  the  cause  of  his  country  than 
young  Daggett,  although  he  was  only  in  his  seventeenth  year.  It 
was  his  ambition  by  day,  and  his  dream  at  night,  to  become  a 
soldier  in  the  army  of  the  Republic.  But  being  an  only  son,  and 
as  he  could  not  gain  his  mother's  consent,  he  could  not  be  ac- 
cepted as  a  soldier  by  the  recruiting  oflicers.  He  endeavored  in 
vain  to  join  the  '2d  N.  Y.  Volunteers,  under  General  Curr,  which 
was  the  first  regiment  that  moved  from  this  State  to  the  seat 
of  war.  Still  determined  to  enter  the  service  of  his  country, 
he  made  an  effort  to  enlist  under  General  Gildersleeve,  and 
General  Ketchum,  but  with  no  better  success.  Finally,  he 
reluctantly  abandoned  all  thoughts  of  becoming  a  soldier.  In 
1864,  he  received  an  appointment  as  confidential  clerk  in  the 
Department  of  State  at  Washington.  At  this  time  the  illus- 
trious Seward  was  Secretary  of  State,  and  Mr.  Daggett  soon  won 
the  confidence  and  esteem  of  that  great  man.  He  remained  in 
this  department  until  the  latter  part  of  1869,  when  he  was  ap- 
pointed Deputy  Collector  of  Internal  Revenue,  under  Collector 
Bailey.  A  few  months  elapsed,  and  this  gentleman  was  suc- 
ceeded by  General  Pleasanton.  Mr.  Daggett  continued  to  dis- 
charge the  duties  of  deputy  collector  for  eleven  months,  when 
Mr.  Harlow  succeeded  to  the  coUectorship.  During  his  term  of 
office  Mr.  Daggett  handled  stamps,  for  liquors  and  tobacco,  to  the 
amoiint  of  more  than  $11,000,000.  When  Mr.  Harlow  entered 
upon  his  duties,  the  young  deputy's  books  were  subjected  to 
the  closest  inspection,  but  as  they  were  found  to  be  correct  to  a 
cent,  he  was  retained  in  the  position  which  he  had  filled  so 
acceptably.     Mr.  Harlow's  successor  was    Mr.    Treadwell,  who 


retained  Mr.  Daggett  as  his  deputy  until  May,  1873,  when  the 
departments  were  consolidated  and  Daggett  retired. 

In  July,  1873,  Mr.  Daggett  was  appointed  Under-Sheriff  of 
Kings  County  by  Sheriff  Williams,  serving  in  that  capacity  dur- 
ing the  years  1873-4  and  '5.  In  the  autumn  of  1875,  Mr.  Dag- 
gett was  promoted  to  the  office  of  Sheriff  by  the  electors  of  Kings 
County,  retiring  from  the  office  at  the  expiration  of  his  term, 
January  1,  1879.  During  the  year  1880,  he  was  awarded  the 
weighing  contract  in  the  Customs  Department,  New  York,  which 
he  retained  till  June,  1882,  when  the  contract  system  was 
abolished. 

We  have  already  spoken  of  Mr.  Daggett's  connection  with  the 
Republican  party.  It  is  proper  to  say  that  he  occupies  a  pro- 
minent position  in  the  Republican  party  of  the  State,  one  of  its 
acknowledged  leaders,  whose  counsel  and  influence  is  justly  and 
widely  appreciated.  He  has  been  present  at  every  Republican 
State  Convention  since  1868  ;  his  presence  and  wholesome  in- 
fluence there  is  indicated  by  the  warm  greetings  he  receives, 
and  by  the  deference  which  is  always  paid  to  his  advice  and 
counsel. 

Though  not  always  successful  in  the  advocacy  of  his  own 
measures  or  policy,  in  regard  to  his  party,  he  accepts  the 
decision  of  the  majority  as  the  only  rule  in  politics.  No  man 
understands  the  vicissitudes  of  success  and  defeat  that  await 
all  politicians  better  than  he. 

In  the  autumn  of  1883,  he  received  the  nomination  from  the 
Republicans  of  the  Third  Senatorial  District  for  State  Senator, 
and  he  was  elected  over  his  opponent—a  highly  popular  man — 
by  a  very  flattering  majority.  He  took  his  seat  in  the  Senate 
on  January  1,  1884,  and  was  honored  by  the  chairmanship  of 
the  Committee  on  Engrossed  Bills,  Insurance,  Cities,  Militia, 
Roads  and  Bridges. 

-Uthough  Senator  Daggett  makes  no  effort  at  distinction,  and 
is  unassuming  in  his  manners,  yet  he  is  regarded  as  one  of  the 
ablest  members  of  the  State  Senate.  He  is  a  practical,  useful, 
profound,  rather  than  a  brilliant  legislator. 

The  differences  in  men  are  rarely  to  be  measured  by  difference 
in  natural  and  purely  intellectual  endowments  ;  they  exist  more 
commonly  in  the  dift'erences  in  zeal,  energy— physical  energy — 
perseverance,  devotion  to  duty,  to  friends  and  country,  integrity, 
love  of  honor,  and  self-respect.  Senator  Daggett  possesses  most, 
if  not  all,  of  these  endowments  to  a  degree  that  happily  balances 
whatever  faults  enter  into  his  character.  He  does  not  often  ad- 
dress the  Senate,  but  when  he  does  he  speaks  boldly  and 
plainly  up  to  his  convictions,  and  he  is  always  listened  to  with 
respect  and  consideration. 

Senator  Daggett  was  united  by  marriage  to  Miss  Tremere,  of 
Brooklyn,  October  25,  1866.  His  family  consists  of  one  son,  born 
in  1869,  and  a  daughter,  born  in  1877. 

As  the  Senator  is  now  in  the  prime  of  life,  ripe  in  experience, 
possessing  those  courtesies  and  those  amenities  which  form  the 
character  of  a  gentleman  and  give  large  scope  to  abilities  and 
acquirements,  as  he  ranks  favorably  with  the  legislators  and  poli- 
ticians of  the  State,  it  is  no  exaggeration  to  say  that  a  bright  and 
successful  future,  opening  to  still  higher  honors,  is  before  him. 


THE 


SPORTING    AND    ATHLETIC    CLUBS 

OF 

KINGS    COUNTY. 


SPORTING  CLUBS.* 
The  Long  Island  Shooting  Club  was  the  pioneer  oiganiza- 
tiou  of  the  gun  clubs  of  this  country.  Originally  it  was 
simply  an  association  of  gentlemen  who  had  enjoyed  trap 
shooting  in  England,  their  mother  country,  and  wished  to 
perpetuate  a  pastime  which  furnished  them  the  practice  of 
wing  shooting  at  comparatively  small  expenditure  of  time 
and  money. 

It  was  in  existence  prior  to  1843.  Robert  Carter  was  its 
Secretary  as  early  as  1847,  when  its  roll  consisted  of  about  25 
members,  including  such  "old  time  sportsmen"  as  Harry 
Russell,  Samuel  Parker,  John  Thompson,  John  Maitland, 
Frank  Palmer,  Humphrey  Hartshorn  and  Robert  RoI)inson. 
Their  place  of  meeting  was  "  The  Woodcock,"  then  kept  by 
Harry  Russell  and  afterwards  by  Palmer,  in  Adams  st.,  near 
Willoughby,  on  about  the  site  of  the  present  iron  works  of 
Howell  &  Saxtan.  All  business  meetings  were  at  the  call  of 
the  President,  and  were  held  about  three  or  four  times  a  year, 
to  arrange  for  a  trap  shoot  which  depended  upon  the  possi- 
bility of  obtaining  a  sufiicient  supply  of  wild  pigeons,  which 
were  generally  used  for  that  purpose.  They  had  no  regular 
club  ground  but  held  contests  in  the  vicinity  of  the  old  Oil 
Cloth  factory,  near  the  present  Sackett  st.  boulevard,  which 
was  then  in  commons,  and  also  at  Sutton's  Prospect  Hill 
Hotel,  then  known  as  "Sam  Vunk's,"  and  located  on  about 
the  site  of  the  Distributing  Reservoir,  at  the  entrance  to 
Prospect  Park.  The  novelty  of  these  "shoots"  attracted 
such  a  crowd  of  spectators  that  the  members  ceased  to  hold 
them  in  the  old  places,  and  adopted  the  system  of  chartering 
a  tug-boat  and  sailing  to  some  of  the  islands  near  the  city, 
where  they  could  enjoy  themselves  without  interruption. 

Their  last  excursion  of  this  character  was  to  Riker's  Island, 
in  1850,  when  700  birds  were  killed.  At  that  time  no  reg- 
ular trap  rules  had  been  adopted,  except  such  as  had  been 
in  vogue  in  England  for  at  least  a  century.  One  ground 
trap  only  was  used,  which  the  club  imported  from  England. 
All  disputes  were  settled  by  submission  to  Bell's  Life,  and 
frequently  large  sums  were  wagered  on  the  result  of  the 
decision,  which  would  remain  undetermined  pending  the  six 
weeks'  delay  necessary  to  receipt  of  the  paper  from  London 
containing  the  "  answer."  The  amount  of  shot  allowed  was 
one  and  a  half  ounce.  Soon  after  the  Riker's  Island  meeting 
the  club  moved  its  headquarters  to  the  tavern  comer  of  Main 
and  York  sts.,  kept  by  Russell  &  Stainsby,  and  stiU  later  it 
followed  Harry  Russell  to  his  place,  then  in  Fulton  st.,  about 


*We  are  indebted  for  this    very  complete  history  of  the  Sporting 
Clubs  of  the  city,  to  Mr.  Abel  Chooh,  of  the  Fountain  Gua  Club, 


opposite  York  st.  In  1855  the  club  was  re-organized  and  its 
membership  was  limited  to  24  members,  and  applicants  for 
membership  were  required  to  await  a  vacancy. 

About  1868  a  further  re-organization  was  effected,  and  the 
limit  of  membership  increased  to  fifty,  and,  for  the  lirst  time, 
a  formal  constitution  and  by-laws  and  shooting  rules  were 
adopted.  Its  Officers,  then  elected,  were:  William  M.  Parks, 
Pres.;  Robert  Robinson,  Fhst  Vice-Pres.;  Charles  W.  Rod- 
man, Second  Vice-Pres.;  Captain  Sealy,  Tteas.;  J.  Foulke,  Jr., 
Sec.  ItB Executive  Committee-were:  Frank  H.  Palmer,  Benja- 
min L.  DeForest,  Robert  Robinson,  Dr.  S.  W.  Bridges  and 
Geo.  8.  Lanphear. 

Shooting  grounds  were  selected  at  John  I.  Snediker's,  on 
the  old  Jamaica  plank  road.  The  club  then  included 
among  its  members  Benjamin  W.  West,  George  Lorillard, 
Howard  Jaffray,  and  many  other  men  of  means  and  sporting 
tastes,  who  united  in  rendering  each  meeting  at  the  trap 
peculiarly  festive. 

A  dimier  on  the  grounds  was  a  feature  of  those  days,  and 
was  served  frequently  at  the  expense  of  the  losing  team  of 
those  selected  at  the  commencement  of  the  contest.  In  1874 
another  re-organization  was  had.  Again,  in  1876,  an  ineffect- 
ual attempt  was  made  to  incorporate  the  club  under  the  club 
act  of  1875.  A  certificate  was  filed  in  Queens  county,  which 
stated  its  object  to  be  "  The  enforcement  of  all  laws  and  ordi- 
nances against  the  killing  and  sale  of  game  out  of  season  and 
the  encouragement  of  a  genuine  sportsmanlike  spirit  among 
its  members."  The  limit  on  membership  was  removed, 
but  a  unanimous  vote  was  required  to  elect  a  member. 

Finally,  on  June  3,  1876,  the  club  filed  with  the  Secretary 
of  State  a  copy  of  a  further  certificate  of  incorporation,  which 
had  been  filed  in  Kings  County  Clerk's  oflSce  on  May  24, 1876. 
and  the  incorporation  became  complete.  This  final  certifi- 
cate states  as  the  "object''  of  the  organization,  "Protection 
and  i)reservation  of  game  and  the  shooting  of  pigeons  from 
traps;  to  practice  and  improve  in  the  use  of  the  gun  in  shoot- 
ing birds  on  the  wing,  for  wliich  suitable  grounds  have  been 
provided  in  the  county  of  Queens." 

The  number  of  the  directors  was  certified  to  be  seven, 
"  who,  with  the  President,  Vice-President,  Secretary  and 
Treasurer,  shall  form  an  Executive  Committee."  It  has  about 
50  members.  Officers:  Theodore  Linington,  Pivs.;  John 
Ak hurst,  Vice-Pres.;  John  H.  Chasmar,  Sec;  Robert  Robin- 
son, Treas. 

The  Phoenix  Gun  Club. — As  its  name  denotes,  the 
Pho3nix  sprung  from  the  ashes  of  its  original  Association, 
the  Blue  Rock  Pigeon  Club  which  was  organized  February 
4,  1866. 


SPORTING  AND  ATHLETIC  CLUBS. 


1337 


The  "Blue  Rock"  founders  were:  A.  H.  Glahn,  Adam 
Glahn,  M.  JIcMahon,  Owen  Larkin,  Austin  Appleyard, 
Samuel  Mc(raw  anil  John  H.  Cliasmar.  Its  first  meeting  was 
at  the  residence  of  A.  H.  Glahn,  Flushing  ave.,  near  Classon 
ave.,  Brooklyn;  but  subsequently  the  meetings  were  at  the 
residence  of  Austin  Appleyard,  at  the  corner  of  High  and 
Bridge  sts.  It  was  limited  to  fourteen  members.  The  offi- 
cers were  held  peculiarly  to  the  performance  of  their  duties 
by  the  imposition  of  a  fine  of  one  dollar  for  any  neglect.  Non- 
attendance  at  a  business  meeting  subjected  a  member  to  a 
thie  of  twenty-five  cents:  and  if  not  present  at  roll  call,  ten 
cents  was  imposed  as  a  penalty.  Profanity  and  personalities 
were  especially  abhorred  and  jiayment  of  fifty  cents  for  such 
indulgence  was  exacted.  The  trap  contests  were  monthly, 
and  the  trophy  for  the  winner  was  a  sterling  silver  cup, 
thirteen  inches  in  height,  in  a  glass  case;  which  was  retained 
until  won  by  some  other  member  at  a  subsequent  contest. 

In  May,  1871,  the  "Blue  Rocks"  dissolved,  leaving  the 
cup  with  its  then  holder,  Austin  Appleyard.  On  June  7, 
1873,  it  was  re-organized  under  its  present  name  at  a  meet- 
ing in  the  "Abbey,"  on  Fulton  st.,  nearly  opposite  Flatbush 
ave.,  with  Austin  Appleyard,  Edward  H.  Madison,  Warren 
Birdseye,  John  H.  Chasmar,  Daniel  McGaw  and  John 
Akhurst  as  its  members.     Its  limit  of  membership  is  ten. 

The  rigid  official  and  individual  discipline  has  been  retained. 
Each  member  contributes  iil. 50  monthly  until  a  sufficient  sum 
has  been  i-eceived  to  ])rovide  the  birds  necessary  for  a  shooting 
contest  and  for  refreshments  upon  the  ground.  About  four 
"  shoots  "  are  held  each  year.  All  shooting  is  by  teams  of 
equal  numbers,  one  side  being  captained  by  the  President 
and  the  other  by  the  Vice-President:  the  shooters  being 
selected  by  lot  and  all  being  experts.  Each  contestant  shoots 
at  fifteen  birds.  Sometimes  a  single  trap,  with  use  of  one 
barrel  of  the  gun,  is  provided,  but  usually  the  contest  is  with 
five  traps  and  both  barrels  may  be  used.  The  losing  side 
furnishes  a  supper  for  the  participants  upon  the  close  of  the 
day's  sport.  The  club  gold  badge  is  awarded  to  the  indi- 
vidual making  the  best  score  of  the  day;  but  is  returnable  to 
the  club  at  the  next  contest.  The  conservative  but  social 
character  thus  maintained  has  rendered  membership  so 
desirable  that  vacancies  seldom  occur.  Its  present  Officers 
and  members  are:  Samuel  McGaw,  Pres.;  Reuben  Midmer, 
V'lce-Prefi.;  John  H.  Chasmar,  See.;  John  Akhurst,  Treas.; 
William  Baulsir,  James  Smith,  Moses  Chichester,  D.  H. 
Freligh,  (ieorge  Jamer,  Austin  Appleyard. 

The  Brooklyn  Gun  Club. — This  voluntary  organization 
dates  from  July  24,  1872,  and  was  re-organized  July  31,  1877. 
As  a  pigeon-shooting  club,  it  has  had  on  its  roster  the 
names  of  many  well-known  citizens  of  the  city  whose  name 
it  bears,  (iradually  its  members  have  deserted  the  ranks  and 
sought  enrollment  in  more  active  bodies.  At  one  time,  some 
years  since,  it  secured  a  victory  over  the  Riverton  Gun  Club, 
then  known  as  the  Social  Gun  and  Rifle  Club  of  Philadelphia. 
Its  policy  has  been  exceedingly  conservative. 

At  its  annual  meeting,  in  January,  1884,  it  was  decided 
that  the  club  should  devote  its  energies  and  funds  to  stock- 
ing with  quail  certain  farms  iu  the  vicinity  of  Smithtown, 
Long  Island,  for  the  purpose  of  affording  its  members  facili- 
ties for  field  sports,  and  that  trap  shooting  should  be  aban- 
doned by  it.  Last  year,  the  Club  tried  the  experiment  of 
re-stocking,  with  gratifying  results.  Its  membership  is 
about  25.  Its  Officers  are:  Henry  F.  Aten,  Pre.s.;  John  L. 
Logan;  Vice-Prex.;  John  E.  McEwen,  See.;  Isaac  C.  Monroe, 
Treas. 

The  Fountain  Gun  Club. — The  Fountain  Gun  Club  has  ap- 
propriately been  styled  the  "banner  club,"  It  was  the 
creation  of  necessity.     Prior  to   1876,   membership  of  gun 


clubs  was  practically  limited  to  expert  manipulators  of  fowl- 
ing pieces;  and  trap  shooting  was  confined  chiefly  to  sweep- 
stakes or  contests  for  cups,  which  represented  the  aggregate 
amounts  paid  by  the  contestants  as  entrance  money.  Skillful 
shots  formed  "combinations,"  whereby  they  agreed  to  divide 
winnings  and  share  expenses.  Novices  soon  became  dis- 
couraged. 

In  May,  1876,  a  few  of  these  tyros  met  at  "  Browns,"  on  the 
old  Coney  Island  road,  and  inaugurated  a  shoot  in  an  adjoin- 
ing potato  patch.  The  surroundings  were  "  truly  rooral." 
Refreshments  were  at  hand  on  a  table,  composed  of  a  board 
supported  by  two  barrels.  One  ground  trap  was  provided, 
and  as  each  i>articipant  "  toed  the  mark,"  the  others  formed 
a  line  beside  him  ami  the  luckless  bird  became  the  target  for 
their  united  efforts.  If  killed,  it  was  scored  to  the  shooter 
who  had  been  called  to  the  front.  Many  "goose  eggs" 
appear  on  these  original  records. 

Soon  those  pastimes  occurred  at  regular  intervals  of  one 
month  and  the  "  lunch  "  gave  way  to  a  regular  dinner  which 
each  member  attended;  and  toasts  and  responses,  having 
special  reference  to  the  incident  of  the  day,  were  intermingled 
with  songs  and  chorus.  Under  such  fostering  influences,  the 
members  became  closely  united,  and  an  esprit  du  eorps 
prevailed  to  an  extent  far  greater  than  in  any  of  the  rival 
clubs.  Members  of  the  older  organizations  applied  for  ad- 
mission to  the  young  society;  and,  having  outgrown  its  swad- 
dling clothes,  it  was  incoiiiorated  May  10,  1877.  Its  objects 
are  specified  in  the  articles  of  incorporation  to  be  as  follows  : 
"The  particular  business  and  object  of  such  society  shall  be 
the  enforcement  of  all  laws  and  ordinances  against  killing 
and  sale  of  game  out  of  season;  the  prevention  of  unlawful 
and  inhumane  destruction  of  game;  the  improvement  in  the 
use  of  the  gun  and  the  fostering  of  a  genuine  social  and  sports- 
manlike spirit  among  its  members. 

Commodious  club-rooms  were  secured  at  the  well-known 
hostelry  of  Mr.  Harry  Miller  (more  familiarly  called 
"Harry's").  Nos.  449  and  451  Flatbush  avenue.  Brooklyn. 
This  is  still  the  head-quarters  of  the  Club,  and  the  judicious 
counsels,  the  deliberations,  and  the  sallies  of  wit  "that 
set  the  table  in  a  roar,"  all  these,  occurring  within  the  walls 
of  the  club-rooms,  would,  if  recorded,  form  a  volume  both 
instructive  and  entertaining. 

From  the  time  of  organization  the  membership  has  steadily 
increased :  and  the  club-rooms  have  been  admirably  fitted  up, 
and  adorned  with  picturesque  scenes,  mounted  game  birds, 
&c.,  rendering  them  an  attractive  rendezvous  for  the  sijorts- 
men.  The  apartments  are  tour  in  number,  consisting  of  the 
club-room,  committee,  billiard  and  card  rooms. 

In  the  club-room  proper,  numerous  trophies  and  scenes  of 
the  field  greet  the  eye  at  every  turn.  Prominent  among 
these  may  be  mentioned  a  handsomely  mounted  group  of 
game  birds;  a  pair  each  of  California  quail;  rufi'ed  grouse; 
mallard  ducks;  snow-white  egrets  and  blue  rock  pigeons;  a 
large  fox  in  life-like  posture;  a  handsome  crested  wood  duck, 
and  many  others. 

Numerous  pictures  adorn  the  walls,  notably  a  life-size 
painting  representing  a  bunch  of  pigeons,  presented  by  Mr.  C. 
A.  Lester;  a  fine  painting  of  various  game  birds,  presented 
to  the  club  by  Mr.  F.  C.  Chamberlain;  and  a  large  photo- 
graph of  the  Long  Island  Delegation  to  the  State  Sportmen's 
Association  at  Seneca  Falls,  in  1880. 

Several  neat  silver  trophies  are  also  displayed  in  convenient 
niches.  One  of  these,  a  large  oxydized  trophy,  is  thus  in- 
scribed: "  Shot  for  on  the  grounds  of  the  Long  Branch  Gun 
Club,  Tuesday,  July  5,  1881,  by  teams  of  five  members  each, 
15  birds  per  man  (of  the  Brooklyn  Fountain,  Jersey  City 
Heights,  Long  Branch,  Long  Island  and  Midway  Gun  Clubs); 


1338 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS    COUNTY. 


won  by  the  FomsTAiN  Gun  Club  of  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  with 
a  total  score  of  62;  S.  A.  Tucker,  14;  Charles  W.  Wingert,  13; 
M.  V.  Baylis,  12;  E.  H.  Madison,  12;  Dr.  B.  Talbot,  11." 
Another  chaste  silver  trophy,  won  in  competition  with  the 
Coney  Island  Rod  and  Gun  Club,  is  emblematic  of  the  skill 
attained  in  wing  shooting  by  members  of  the  Fountain  Gun 
Club. 

At  the  annual  tournament  of  the  New  York  State  Sports- 
men's Association,  Seneca  Falls,  in  1880,  the  three  principal 
prizes,  viz..  Dean  Richmond  Cup,  Wadsworth  Cup  and  Dia- 
mond Badge  were  won  by  the  Fountain  Club,  making  "a 
clean  sweep,"  which  is  typified  by  a  handsome  gilt-embossed 
broom,  borne  from  the  scene  of  victory,  and  conspicuously 
placed  on  the  wall  of  the  club-room. 

The  card  and  billiard  rooms  also  contain  several  game 
birds,  mounted  in  artistic  style  by  Mr.  J.  H.  Batty,  the  well- 
known  taxidermist  and  author.  A  number  of  fine  pictures 
of  game  and  fish,  from  the  original  paintings  by  Kilbourn, 
grace  these  rooms. 

These  rooms  have  been  the  resort  of  several  noted  chess 
and  draught  players,  among  whom  maj-  be  mentioned  Dr. 
Robert  Yates  and  Professor  Perrin;  and  many  of  these  inter- 
esting and  scientific  games  have  attracted  thither  the 
members.  Stereopticon  exhil)itions,  lectures  and  musical 
performances,  both  classical  and  popular,  have  also  been 
furnished  freely. 

The  policy  of  the  club  has  led  it  to  investigate  and  (on  ap- 
proval) initiate  reforms  and  changes  in  the  systems  of  trajj 
shooting.  It  claims  to  have  introduced  the  prevailing  sys- 
stem  of  handicapping  shooters,  according  to  skill,  in  lieu  of 
the  old  method  of  gauging  the  handicap  by  the  weight  or 
bore  of  the  gun.  No  betting  is  allowed  at  the  contests.  The 
handicap  ranges  from  21  yards  to  30  yards  from  \k\e  trap, 
and  according  to  their  respective  handicaps,  the  members 
are  classed  as  "Amateurs,"  "Middle  Class,"  and  "Cham- 
pions." Each  of  these  three  classes  has  its  resi)ective  prizes, 
and  ambition  and  practice  enable  the  "Freshman"  who 
previously  "  never  shot  a  gun  "  to  graduate  in  due  time  with 
credit.  It  has  had  but  three  presidents:  James  White,  who, 
in  1878,  was  succeeded  liy  Charles  E.  Fiske,  who  in  1879  was 
followed  by  Abel  Crook,  the  present  incumbent.  During 
his  successive  terms  of  office,  througli  his  energy,  assisted  by 
the  other  ofiicers  and  members,  the  general  prosjjerity  of  the 
clulj  and  its  standard  of  membership  has  steadilj-  advanced. 
The  membership  is  about  160.  The  Officers  and  Trustees 
are:  Abel  Crook,  Pres.;  Frank  C.  Chamberlain,  Vire-Pres.; 
Henry  Thorpe,  Sec;  Henry  G.  Miller,  Treas.;  Additional 
Trustees:  Theodore  Linington,  Charles  W.  Wingert,  Nathan- 
iel B.  Cooke,  Oliver  K.  Buckley,  Jr.,  Robert  Wells. 

The  Washington  Gun  Club. — For  the  purpose  of  forming 
a  society  to  represent  the  sportsmen  of  the  Eastern  District 
of  Brooklyn,  a  number  of  zealous  gunners  and  anglers  gath- 
ered in  convention.  May  17,  1880,  and  organized  this  club, 
with  a  membership  of  30.  The  Officers  were:  Mr.  Henry 
Altenbrand,  Pres.;  Mr.  Charles Cmtis,  Vice-Pres.;  Mr.  E.  C. 
Haw  ley.  Sec;  and  Mr.  H.  Hedeman,  Treas. 

The  objects  of  the  club,  as  indicated  by  the  rules  and  by- 
laws, included  the  preservation  of  fish  and  game,  the  promo- 
tion of  sportsmanship  and  the  cultivation  of  good-fellowship 
and  unity  of  action  among  sportsmen. 

The  membership  increased  lapidly,  and  in  little  more  than 
one  year  about  120  were  enrolled,  but  owing  to  lack  of  ac- 
commodations at  the  club-room  the  number  gradually  de- 
creased, and  now  consists  of  some  seventy  active  members. 

At  the  State  Sportsmen's  Convention  of  1881,  the  President 
of  the  Washington  Gun  Club  was  one  of  the  prime  movers  in 
fa^'oring  the  game  law  which  had  there  its  inception,  and  a 


strong  delegation  was  sent  to  Albany  in  the  interest  of  the 
enactment.  In  addition  to  the  large  delegation  sent  to  the 
State  Convention  at  Seneca  Falls  in  1880,  and  Coney  Island 
in  1881,  the  Club  was  well  represented  at  Niagara  Falls  last 
June,  and  the  active  interest  manifested  in  behalf  of  the 
State  Sportsmen's  Association  has  been  both  felt  and  appre- 
ciated bj'  that  organization. 

A  special  feature  of  the  Washington  Gun  Club  has  been  the 
annual  excursion,  for  tbe  purpose  of  social  intercourse  and 
the  enjo3'ment  of  such  manly  out-door  sports  as  rowing, 
shooting  and  the  like.  New  Jersey  has  usually  been  the 
chosen  ground  for  these  memorable  events,  in  which  many 
of  the  most  distinguished  gentlemen  of  Brooklyn,  and  not  a 
few  from  Gotham,  have  participated.  This  pleasing  feature, 
which  has  done  much  to  promote  a  fraternal  feeling,  not 
only  among  club  members,  but  their  friends  and  guests,  is  due 
to  a  suggestion  made  by  the  President,  Mr.  Henry  Altenbrand, 
and  by  him  put  into  effect. 

The  club-rooms  are  situated  at  the  corner  of  Division  ave- 
nue and  Sixth  street,  and  are  neatly  furnished.  The  Club 
occupies  the  parlor  floor,  and  numerous  water-color  sketches 
of  game-birds,  dogs,  sporting  scenes,  &c.,  are  tastefully  dis- 
played upon  the  walls.  A  fine  upright  piano  and  well-se- 
lected library  of  sporting  works  also  add  to  the  attraction  of 
the  club-rooms. 

A  monthly  shoot  is  held  at  Ridge  wood  Park,  and  in  ad- 
dition to  the  usual  Club  badge,  an  amateur  trophy  is  also 
offered  for  the  novices. 

The  present  Officers  and  members  of  the  club  are:  Mr. 
Henry  Altenbrand,  Pres.;  Mr.  Samuel  Guthrie.  }''ice-Pre8.; 
Mr.  W.  E.  Trott,  Sec;  and  H.  Koniahaens,  Treas.  The 
Trustees  are:  Messrs.  J.  Evans,  J.  Moller,  Jr.,  and  W.  H. 
Weeks. 

Coney  Island  Rod  and  Gun  Club. — This  popular  and  influen- 
tial club  was  organized  Nov.  11, 1880,  at  Van  Sicklen's  Station, 
Long  Island,  with  a  membership  of  twenty-eight  devoted 
gunners  and  anglers.  The  Officers  were:  Wm.  L.  B.  Stears, 
Pres.;  L.  P.  Van  Pelt,  \'ice-Pres.;  L.  J.  Fagan,  Treas.;  George 
L.  Ayres,  Rec  Sec:  W.  H.  Barber,  Cor.  Sec  Trustees:  H.  P. 
Bostwick  and  C.  W.  Wingert.  The  objects  of  this  club,  as 
described  in  the  constitution  and  by-laws,  may  be  briefly 
summed  up  in  the  promotion  of  manly  field  sports,  imjirove- 
ment  in  handling  the  rod,  efficiency  in  the  use  of  the  gun,  and 
protection  of  the  fishing  interests  in  (Jravesend  Bay  and  Coney 
Island  (Jreek.  Prizes  are  given  at  the  close  of  each  fishing 
season  for  the  largest  bass  caught  with  rod  and  line  in  Graves- 
end  Bay. 

The  monthly  shoots  are  held  at  King's  Highway,  the  club 
being  divided  into  three  classes.  A,  B  and  C,  shooting  at  20 
to  27  yards'  rise,  regular  handicap  rules.  Monthly  prizes  are 
awarded,  and  an  elegant  badge  is  given  the  shooter  win- 
ning the  greatest  number  of  times  at  the  traps  during  the 
year. 

The  regular  monthly  meetings  are  held  in  the  club  rooms, 
48  Willoughby  street,  Brooklyn,  and  the  annual  meeting  and 
election  of  officers  occur  in  May  of  each  year.  The  preseiit 
Officers  are:  Mr.  Hugh  McLauglilin,  Pres.;  T.  J.  Fagan, 
Vice-Pres.;  Ed.  Bushnell,  Treas.;  George  L.  Ayi-es,  Rec  Sec; 
Robert  Furey,  Cor.  Sec  Trustees:  H.  Goodwin  and  J.  C.  de 
Fraine. 

The  Audubon  Gun  Club. — In  September,  1880,  a  party  of 
young  men  residing  in  the  extreme  portion  of  the  Eastern 
District,  met  at  the  house  of  one  of  their  number,  and  organ- 
ized the  Audubon  Rod  and  Gun  Club,  in  honor  of  that  emi- 
nent naturalist,  John  J.  Audubon.  The  name  was  afterwards 
abridged  to  the  Audubon  Gun  Club,  by  which  title  it  is  still 
known. 


SPORTING  A]Srn  ATHLETIC  CimS. 


The  Officers  elected  at  that  time  were:  Robert  F.  Sabin, 
Pres.;  Chas.  "W.  Field,  Vice-Pres.;  James  Hemming,  Sec;  and 
Frank  X.  Gehrling,  Treas. 

The  members  of  the  club  then  were:  Robert  L.  Sabin,  James 
Hemming,  Chas.  W.  Field,  Frank  X.  Gehrliag,  Fred  C.  Hem- 
ming, Edward  Blackwell,  Cornelius  Twing,  Samuel  Knight, 
Fred.  J.  Scharfenberg  and  Louis  B.  Field. 

The  club  soon  after  secured  rooms  at  39  Moffat  street, 
Brooklyn,  wliere  it  still  continues  to  meet.  Tlie  rooms  are 
tastefully  fitted  up  with  sporting  pictures  and  stuffed  birds. 
The  meeting  nights  are  the  first  and  third  Mondays  of  eacli 
month.  Shoots  take  place  once  a  month,  atDexter's  Shooting 
Grounds,  Jamaica,  each  member  shooting  at  ten  clay-pigeons. 

The  club  lias  had  three  medals,  all  of  which  have  been  won 
by  Mr.  Piiilii)  Post. 

The  following  are  the  present  Officers  and  members: 
Pliilip  Post,  Pres.;  Louis  B.  Field,  Vice-Pres.;  Joseph  Betz, 
Sec;  Henry  Eger,  Fin.  Sec;  Wm.  J.  Schilling,  Treas. 

The  members  number  about  twenty  persons.  The  club  has 
recently  donated  $50,  to  be  invested  in  purchasing  a  breech- 
loader shot-gun,  or  anything  that  may  suit  the  winner's  taste. 

The  club  is  steadily  growing  in  influence  and  member- 
ship, and  bids  fair  to  rank  among  the  prominent  gun  clubs 
of  Brooklyn. 

The  Glenmore  Rod  and  Gun  Club  of  Long  Island,  was 
organized  June  34,  18S1,  tlie  primary  objects  of  the  society 
being  to  improve  its  members  in  the  art  of  wing  shooting 
and  the  handling  of  the  rod,  as  also  to  enforce  the  game  and 
fish  laws  of  New  York,  especially  in  the  localities  most  fre- 
quented by  club  members.  Articles  of  incorpoi'ation  were  duly 
filed  with  the  Secretary  of  State,  and  soon  after  its  organiza- 
tion tlie  club  joined  the  Long  Island  Sportsmen's  Association. 

At  the  corner  of  Vermont  ave.  and  Broadway,  East  New 
York,  the  club  has  ample  (juarters  in  the  shape  of  large  and 
neatly  arranged  club-rooms,  the  walls  being  adorned  with 
pictures  of  shooting  scenes,  etc.  Tlie  grounds  on  which  the 
monthly  shoots  take  jilace  are  also  well  kept  and  conveniently 
arranged.     The  cluli  lias  a  membership  of  about  30. 

The  original  Officers,  who  still  hold  their  respective  posi- 
tions, are  as  follows:  Bernard  Midas,  Pres.;  William  Wright, 
Vice-Pres.;  H.  J.  Cookman,  Fin.  Sec;  J.  K.  Powell,  Pec.  Sec; 
Samuel  A.  Livingston,  Treas.,  and  Joseph  Ochs,  Steward. 
Executive  Committee:  Messrs.  Peter  Sutton,  George  Forbell, 
J.  P.  Friedmann,  S.  G.  Conover  and  H.  H.  Adams. 

The  Robin's  Island  Club. — This  organization  of  Brooklyn 
gentlemen  own  a  game  preserve  of  500  acres  in  Peconic  Bay, 
which  they  have  stocked  with  quail.  Wm.  B.  Kendall,  Pres. 
Directors:  W.  B.  Dickerman,  Alden  S.  Swan,  S.  Fleet  Speir, 
H.  J.  Cullen,  Jr  ,  H.  D.  Polhemus,  A.  T.  Plummer.  Auditing 
Com.:  Wm.  H.  Force,  Wm.  Hester. 

Long  Island  Forester  Club  was  organized  August,  1878. 
Its  object  is  to  aid  in  the  preservation  of  fish  and  game,  as 
well  as  to  enjoy  privileges  of  conference  and  social  intercourse 
among  sportsmen.  The  first  Officers  were:  W.  W.  Walsh, 
Pres.;  C.  W.  Field,  Vice-Pres.;  R.  F.  Sabin,  Sec;  Henry 
Thorpe,  Treas.  The  present  membership  is  33.  Officers: 
Henry  Thorpe,  Charles  M.  Edwards,  Thad.  C.  Banks  and 
Wilbur  F.  Hawks.  This  club  was  elected  to  membership  in 
the  Long  Island  Sportsmen's  Association  and  Tlie  New  York 
State  Sportsmen's  Association,  in  1880,  and  occupy  rooms  at 
Cleaver's  Old  Stag's  Head  Inn,  on  Putnam  ave.,  corner  of 
Downing  st.    Meetings  on  the  second  Tuesday  of  each  month. 


YACHTING  CLUBS. 

The   Williamsburg   'V^acht   Club.     This  organization  was 
suggested  during  the  winter  of  1869-'70,  in  the  Boatmen's 


Head-quarters,  at  the  old  Penny  Bridge,  where  a  number  of 
yachts  were  laid  up  for  the  season. 

The  club  was  incorporated  in  1870.  The  first  Commodore 
was  Fred.  M.  W.  Meyrichs:  the  first  boats,  the  Bertha,  Poca- 
hontas, Lurline,  Kate  Bulger,  Eveline  Allen.  Velocipede, 
Excelsior  and  Jeannette.  The  club-house  which  tliey  now 
occupy,  at  tlie  foot  of  Dupont  st.,  Greenpoint,  is  of  generous 
proportions,  is  well  kept,  and  combines  all  necessary  con- 
veniences. 

East  River  Yacht  Club  was  organized  at  Greenpoint,  Jan. 
19,  1880,  and  is  incorporated  under  New  York  State  laws,  and 
chartered  in  March,  1883.  This  club  is  thoroughly  social  and 
entirely  devoted  to  yachts  and  yachting.  The  first  Officers 
were:  Wm.  Sware,  Commodore;  M.  J.  Charde,  Viee-Comm..; 
Jno.  B.  Gerard,  Sec;  Edw.  Grissim,  Treas.  The  present 
membership  is  80,  headed  by  the  following  oflScers,  in  above 
order:  J.  F.  Sullivan,  Jas.  Schusselle,  Harvey  T.  Lewis,  Edw. 
Grissim.  The  club  built,  in  1883,  a  floating  boat-house,  off 
Pottery  Beach,  Franklin  st.,  Greenpoint,  for  the  better 
accommodation  of  the  members,  whose  number  was  rapidly 
increasing.  In  1880.  11  yachts  carried  the  club  signal.  22 
boats  are  in  the  fleet  at  pre.sent. 

Brooklyn  Yacht  Club  was  organized  in  the  Wheeler  Build- 
ing, No.  438  Fulton  street,  in  18.57,  and  was  incorporated 
with  20  membei  s  in  1864.  Thep'rst  Officers  were:  Henry  W. 
Turner,  Pres.;  W.  R.  Wadsworth,  Sec;  Henry  S.  Wood, 
Treas.  The  first  Commodore  was  Elias  Pitcher,  Esq.,  closely 
identified  with  the  early  history  of  small  boats  in  South 
Brooklyn.  After  Commodore  Pitcher,  the  honor  has  succes- 
sively fallen  upon  Gilbert  L.  Haight,  John  Jones,  R.  M. 
Whiting,  Geo.  W.  Kidd,  Jacob  Voorhis,  Jr.,  John  S.  Dicker- 
son  and  Lester  Wallack.  Tlie  club-house  of  this  organiza- 
tion was,  until  1879,  at  the  foot  of  Court  street,  when  the 
club  sold  out  their  iirojieity  and  suspended  sitie  die.  The 
withdrawal  of  this  club  from  yachting  circles  has  excited  but 
little  comment,  owing  to  the  fact  that  dissolution  has  been 
pending  for  some  time.  The  social  as  well  as  financial  tone 
of  the  club  became  impaiied  years  ago,  when  a  number  of 
the  more  prominent  members,  because  of  lack  of  discipline 
among  them,  saw  fit  to  withdraw  themselves  from  the  Mother 
Club  and  found  the  Atlantic  Yacht  Club. 

The  Atlantic  Yacht  Club  was  organized  in  Lennox's  Hotel, 
at  the  foot  of  Court  street,  in  August,  1866.  This  club  was 
instituted  '•  to  protect  the  rights  of  the  owners  of  small  boats 
and  the  more  retiring  members;"  it  was  originally  composed 
of  gentlemen  from  the  Brooklyn  Yacht  Club.  The  Atlantic 
Yacht  Club  is  to-day  the  representative  boating  organiza- 
tion in  the  country;  its  object  i-ather  to  cultivate  men  than 
money;  it  has  founded  the  Atlantic  Harbor  Company, 
Limited,  and  has  caused  to  be  built  out  into  the  Bay  a  hol- 
low square  of  docks,  sufficiently  large  to  secure  a  sheltered 
anchorage  for  the  club's  fleet  of  76  yachts.  The  club  house 
is  one  of  the  old  Bergen  homesteads,  remodelled  to  suit  the 
requirements  of  modern  yachtsmen;  it  stands  at  the  foot  of 
55th  street,  on  the  bluff  overlooking  the  bay,  surrounded  by 
well  kept  lawns  and  flower  beds;  during  the  j-achting  season 
the  rising  and  setting  of  the  sun  is  acknowledged  by  the 
howitzer,  which  occupies  a  conspicuous  place  in  the  fore- 
ground, and  responded  to  by  the  club  signal,  according  to  the 
nautical  code,  by  wliich  this  club  is  governed.  Officers  for 
1884:  H.  H.  Hogins,  Commodore;  Geo.  B.  Moffat,  Vice-Pres.; 
H.  C.  Wintringham,  Rear  Commodore;  F.  C.  Swan,  Rec  Sec; 
J.  L.  Slarcellus,  Cor.  Sec;  Richard  C.  Field,  Treas. 

The  Long  Island  Yacht  Club  was  organized  in  1873, 
chiefly  through  the  efforts  of  Frank  P.  Bates,  a  well-known 
boat  biulder,  whose  yard  is  at  the  foot  of  37tli  street,  South 
Brooklyn,  where  the  club  is  located.    The  first  Officers 


1340 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  GOV  NTT. 


were:  James  Sweeney,  Commodore;  Geo.  Farley,  Vice-Corn.; 
A.  P.  Boliver.  Pra^.;  Frank  P.  Bates,  Treas.,  and  John  G. 
Wliite,  See.  The  memliership  of  this  club  at  present  is  about 
60;  the  number  of  yaclits  in  the  fleet,  30. 


BOAT  CLUBS. 

The  Pioneer  Boat  Club  was  organized  March  17,  1869,  by 
R.  S.  Bowden,  C.  Golling,  J.  M.  Leach,  J.  A.  Williams  and 
W.  C.  Bush.  One  year  later,  others  were  admitted,  and  an 
unpretentious  boat-house  was  built.  The  organization  grew 
rapidly,  and  in  1875  was  incorporated.  During  the  same  year, 
a  more  commodious  club-house  was  built  at  Bay  Ridge. 
This  club  has  50  active  members,  50  honorary  members  and 
nearly  50  boats. 

The  Columbia  Boat  Club  was  organized  May  29, 1872,  with 
9  members  on  the  roll,  which  number  was  augmented  shortly 
to  23.  A  floating  boat  was  built  and  anchored  off  the  foot  of 
Court  St.,  where  it  remained  until  1878,  when  an  elegant 
house  was  erected  at  the  foot  of  49th  st.,  with  accommoda- 
tions for  60  members.  This  club  is  not  a  racing  club; 
although  its  reputation  for  fast  rowing  was  well  earned, 
when,  in  1879,  it  won  the  prize  in  the  National  Amateur 
Association's  Regatta. 

The  Varuna  Boat  Club  is  an  association  of  amateur  oars- 
men who  organized  under  the  above  name,  in  1875.  The  club 
at  present  number  fifty  active  members,  own  twenty-five 
boats,  and  a  commodious  house  at  the  foot  of  59th  street, 
furnished  with  all  improvements,  including  billiard  and 
pof>l  tables,  gjmnasium,  rowing  apjiaratus,  etc.  Present 
Officers  are:  J.  G.  Tighe,  Prcs.;  A.  Walton,  Vice-Prefi.;  J.  W. 
Reid,  Treas.;  W.  L.  Byrne,  Sec.  The  Varuna  is  a  thoroughly 
social  organization;  their  entertainments  are  largely  attended 
and  are  considered  events  in  boating  circles. 

The  Seawanhaka  Boat  Club  was  organized  in  April, 
1874,  by  several  prominent  gentlemen  in  the  Eastern  Dis- 
trict. The  club-house,  a  building  30x75  feet,  is  built  on  a 
large  scow,  is  two  stories  high,  and  furnished  with  number- 
less conveniences  and  luxuries;  and,  although  situated  in 
Newtown  Creek,  is  largely  composed  of  Eastern  District  mem- 
bers. The  club  has  rowed  in  many  regattas,  always  holding 
an  honoral)Ie  place.  Additions  are  being  made  constanth'  to 
the  fleet,  which  now  numbers  twenty-five  boats.  The  club 
membership  is  170  at  present. 

The  Nereid  Boat  Club  was  organized  in  1867  by  T.  B. 
Atkins,  Pres.;  A.  Vanderbilt,  Capt.;  A.  C.  Kyte,  .S'ec;  F. 
M.  Wheeler,  C.  C.  Brown,  G.  Kyte,  and  G.  G.  Knaebel.  At 
the  foot  of  Smith  st.  the  first  boat-house  of  the  club  was  lo- 
cated, in  1869  ;  a  disabled  canal  boat  was  bought,  fitted  uj) 
and  used  for  club  purposes  for  a  year,  when  it  was  demol- 
ished by  collision  with  a  schooner.  In  1870,  the  club  was  in- 
corporated, its  membership  increased  to  fifty,  and  a  club- 
house built  at  the  foot  of  Gowanus  creek.  Three  years 
later,  the  house  was  rebuilt  and  considerably  enlarged  ;  and 
again,  in  1876,  improvements  were  added.  This  location 
was,  in  some  respects,  undesiral^le,  in  view  of  which  fact  the 
club,  in  1880,  secured  ground  at  Sheejishead  bay,  near  the 
Oriental  Hotel,  where  a  boat-house  was  built  at  a  cost  of 
.f  13,000.  Tlie  boats  used  by  this  clul),  fifty  in  number,  are 
made  of  paper;  the  .aggregate  value  of  the  fleet  is  .$8,000. 
The  present  membership,  200. 

The  Alcyone  Boat  Club  is  the  oldest  association  of  its 
kind  in  Kings  county,  having  been  organized  in  1854,  by  W. 
H.  Beebe,  W.  B.  Tupper,  M.  Bridgman,  and  five  other  gen- 
tlemen. The  club  then  owned  but  one  barge.  In  1857,  a 
small  boat-house  was  built  at  the  foot  of  Court  St.,  which 
the  club  occupied  for  thirteen  years,  when  an  active  mem- 


bership of  fifty  necessitated  the  addition  of  a  second  story 
to  the  house.  Ten  years  later,  a  handsome  club-house  was 
erected  at  Bay  Ridge,  which  the  seventy-five  active  and 
fifty  honorary  members  occupy  at  the  present  time.  Thirty- 
five  boats  are  owned  by  this  club  ;  two  regattas  are  rowed 
annually;  and.  since  its  organization,  thirty  years  ago,  its 
object,  the  combination  of  physical  culture  and  development 
with  social  cii.jovment,  has  been  secured. 

The  Long  Island  Life  Saving  Association  was  organized 
March  13,  1879,  for  the  purpose  of  encouraging  meritorious 
conduct  in  the  saving  of  life,  to  grant  rewards,  donations, 
and  premiums  in  money  and  medals,  and  to  perform  any 
similar  service  of  benevolence  and  charity.  The  Managers 
are  :  G.  B.  McGrath,  G.  L.  Fox,  Jas.  C.  Eadie,  Rev.  M.  May- 
nard,  A.  Hencken,  Rev.  J.  Hyatt  Smith,  A.  C.  Hockemeyer, 
W.  E.  Horwill,  and  James  Rodwell.  This  association  has 
thus  far  presented  18  gold  or  silver  medals  in  recognition  of 
bravery.  The  head-quarters  are  at  45  Broadway,  Brooklyn, 
E.  D.  The  original  Board  of  Officers  have  been  continued 
to  the  present  time':  Geo.  B.  McGrath,  Pres.;  G.  L.  Fox,  Vice- 
Pres.;  Jas.  C!.  Eadie,   Treas-,  and  A.  C.  Hockemeyer,  Sec. 


BICYCLING  CLUBS. 

The  Kings  County  Wheelmen.— This  club  was  organized 
at  the  residence  of  Geo.  T.  Brown,  144  Wilson  St..  Brooklyn, 
E.  D  ,  on  March  17,  1881.  Its  object  is  to  further  the  interests 
of  Bicycling  and  Tricycling,  and  to  protect  the  rights  of 
wheelmen.  The  original  membership  was  six  :  the  present 
number,  40  active,  16  veteran,  and  10  honorary.  Officers  : 
R.  F.  Hibson,  Pres.;  A.  C.  D.  Loucks,  Sec.;  J.  M.  Sorzano, 
Treas.  Th'is  club  is  recognized  throughout  the  country  as 
one  of  the  most  enterprising  of  the  fraternity.  Three  race 
meetings  are  given  annually,  which,  together  with  the 
yearly  Ball  and  Reception,  held  at  the  Brooklyn  Bicycle 
Company's  rooms,  at  161  and  163  Clymer  st. ,  entitle  this  or- 
ganization to  the  social  prominence  which  it  has  secured. 

The  Heights  Wheelmen  of  Brooklyn  was  organized  April 
18,  1883,  by  eight  amateur  bicyclists.  The  first  Officers 
were  :  E.  J.  Milhau,  Pres.;  F.  E.  Dunnell,  Sec.  and  Treas.; 
J.  C.  King,  Capt.  The  present  membership  is  24,  officered 
by  E.  J.  Milhau,  Pres.;  F.  L.  Dunnell,  Sec.;  Jacob  W.  Dun- 
nell, Treas.,  and  T.  G.  Condon,  Capt.  The  club-rooms,  which 
are  in  the  Hamilton  Building,  are  handsomely  fitted  up  to  meet 
the  requirements  of  the  members  of  this  growing  organiza- 
tion, which  stands  to-day  second  to  none  of  its  kind. 


ATHLETIC  CLUBS. 

Turn  Vereins  von  Brooklyn,  E.  D.,  was  organized  in  1853, 
at  08  Meserole  St.,  with  about  20  members.  The /('/'si  Offi- 
cers were  :  Henry  Garms,  Pres.;  Adolph  Stehlin,  Treas.; 
Herman  Law,  .S'ec.  The  object  of  this  organization,  which 
numbers  at  present  nearly  200,  is  physical  development. 
Officers  are  :  Robt.  Sneider,  Pres.;  Louis  Kroder,  Vice- 
Pres.;  Wm.  Baum,  Sec,  and  F.  Walters,  Treas.  The  society 
still  occupy  the  original  quarters,  which  have  been  largely 
improved  lately,  and  now  offer  exceptional  accommodations 
for  physical  training  and  develojiment. 

Williamsburgh  Athletic  Club,  organized  Jan.  21st,  1879; 
incorporated  Nov.  17th,  1879.  The  business  and  object  of 
this  club  is  the  establishment  and  maintenance  of  athletic 
grounds,  and  of  a  gymnasium ;  the  general  conduct  of  athletic 
games,  sports  and  exercises;  and  in  every  lawful  and  proper 
way  to  improve  and  develop  the  social,  physical  and  moral 
condition  of  its  members.  The  membership  is  limited  to 
male  persons,  who  shall  be  amateurs,  at  least  sixteen  years 
old  at  the  time  of  their  election  to  membership. 


SPORTING    AND    ATHLETIC  CLUBS. 


"  An  amateur  is  any  person  who  has  never  competed  in  an 
open  competition,  or  for  a  stake,  or  for  public  money,  or  for 
gate  mone}',  or  under  a  false  name;  or  with  a  professional 
for  a  prize,  or  where  gate  money  is  charged;  nor  has  ever,  at 
any  period  of  his  life,  taught  or  pursued  athletic  exercises  as 
a  means  of  livelihood." 

The  club  has  occupied  grounds  on  Penn  st.,  near  Wythe 
ave.,  but,  in  the  spring  of  1884,  an  extensive  enclosure,  be- 
tween DeKalb  and  Classon  aves.  and  Graham  st.,  was  fitted 
up  with  a  Club  House,  gymnasivim  and  track,  and  formally 
opened  on  Decoi-ation  Day.  Officers,  1884  :  Gilbert  H. 
Badeau,  Pres.;  Frank  M.  Price,  Vioe-Pres.;  Walter  G.  Hege- 
man.  Sec;  Jos.  G.  Liddle,  Treas.;  George  R.  Smith,  Capt.; 
Ed.  Brown,  Jr.,  First  Lieut.;  Samuel  L.  Sweezy,  Second 
Lieut.  Board  op  Trustees  :  Gilbert  H.  Badeau,  Frank  M. 
Pi-ice,  Walter  liegeman,  Jos.  G.  Liddle,  George  R.  Smith, 
Wm.  C.  Bryant,  William  Gaetz,  E.  P.  Murray,  D.  C.  Morrell, 
W.  T.  Pelletier,  B.  H.  Tobey,  B.  W.  Wilson,  Jr.  Club  House, 
Gymnasium,  Track  and  Grounds,  DeKalb  ave.,  Classon  ave. 
and  Graham  sts.,  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 


BASE    BALL   ASSOCIATIONS. 

During  the  period  from  the  year  1850  to  the  break- 
ing out  of  the  War  of  tlie  Rebellion,  out-door  sports 
and  athletic  games  had  in  this  country  a  wonderful  re- 
vival and  development.  Ball-playing,  boat-racing  and 
horse-trotting  were  the  more  prominent  forms  assumed 
by  this  growing  desire  for  trained  and  skilled  competi- 
tion in  open-air  exercise.  Base  ball  was  the  favorite, 
rapidly  t.aking  the  lead  after  the  modern  regulations 
were  adopted.  Pitching  originated  in  1852.  The  first 
swift  pitcher  was  Crayton  of  the  Excelsiors,  in  1859. 
Just  where  the  old-fashioned  game  of  base  ball  origin- 
ated" it  is  difficult  to  tell.  The  oldest  club  in  the 
LTnited  States  is  the  Knickerb<3cker,  of  New  York, 
which  was  organized  about  fifty  years  ago,  and  has 
kept  up  a  series  of  annual  games  ever  since.  The  next 
clubs,  in  date  of  organization,  were  the  Empire, 
Gothams  and  Eagles  of  New  York,  and  the  Atlantics, 
Excelsiors,  Putnams,  Continentals,  Eckfords  and  Stars 
of  Brooklyn.  It  was  not  long  before  every  city,  vil- 
lasre,  college,  and  almost  every  school  district  had  one 
or  more  base  ball  clubs. 

The  benefits  derived,  especially  by  the  sedentary 
classes,  from  this  special  training  in  severe  and  contin- 
ued physical  exercise,  are,  and  were,  undoubtedly,  of 
high  value  to  the  general  health.  Competent  observers 
have  attributed  much  of  the  extraordinary  average  of 
endurance  and  good  health  of  our  young  men  as  sol- 
diers, through  the  fatigues  and  hardships  of  the  late 
war,  to  the  excellent  preparation  they  received  while 
active  members  of  gymnasiums,  base  ball  and  rowing 
clubs. 

Base  ball  clubs  were  organized  as  follows  : 

Knickerbocker,  (N.  Y.),  organized  September  3,  1845. 

Gotham  (N.  Y.),  organized  1853. 

Eagle  (N.  Y.),  organized  April,  1853. 

Empires  (N.  Y.),  organized  October  13,  1854. 

Excelsior  (Brooklyn),  organized  December  8,  1854. 

Newrark  (N.  J.),  organized  May  1,  1855. 

Eckford  (Brooklyn),  organized  June  37,  1855. 


Union  (N.  Y.),  organized  July  17,  1855. 

Atlantic  (Brooklyn),  organized  April  14,  1855. 

Star  (Brooklyn),  organized  October  18,  1856. 

Mutual  (N.  Y.),  organized  June  34.  1857. 

Hudson  River  (N.  Y.),  organized  May  1,  18.59. 

Eureka  (N.  J.),  organized  January  3,  1860. 

Athletic  (Phila.),  organized  April  7,  1860. 

New  York  (N.  Y.),  organized  November  3,  1860. 

The  first  fonvenlioa  of  base  ball  players  was  held  in  New 
York  city  in  May,  1857.  The  following  clubs  were  represented, 
each  by  three  delegates:  Knickerbocker,  Gotham,  Eagle, 
Empire,  Putnam,  Baltic,  Excelsior,  Atlantic,  Harmony,  Har- 
lem, Eckford,  Bedford,  Nassau,  Continental,  Union,  Olympic. 

The  second  convention  was  held  10th  March,  1858.  At  the 
ninth  convention,  held  at  Clinton  Hall,  Astor  Place,  New 
York,  December  14,  1864,  the  "  Hy  "  game  was  adopted  by  a 
vote  of  thirty-two  to  nineteen. 

Atlantics* — Up  to  1857,  the  old  game  called  "twenty-one 
up,"  was  played;  "  twenty-one  up  "  meaning  that  the  club 
first  securing  twenty-one  runs  after  even  innings  was  winner. 
In  the  winter  of  1857  the  present  nine-inning  rule  was 
adoi)ted. 

The  Atlantic  Club  was  practically  the  club  to  first  popu- 
larize base  ball  in  America.  Among  its  origmal  members 
were  Caleb  Sniifen,  3d  B. ;  Thomas  Powers,  1st  B. ;  —  Whit- 
son,  C. ;  Isaac  Loper,  C.  F.;  Wm.  Babcock,  P.;  Tiee  Hamil- 
ton, fdfi.;  Wm.  Bliss,  L.  F.;  John  Holder,  C.  F.;  A.  Gilder- 
sleeve,  R.  F.  Its  games  were  many  and  its  ratio  of  success 
very  high.  They  own  a  case  containing  two  hundred  and 
twenty-two  balls,  trophies  of  part  of  their  victories. 

Over  half  of  the  original  members  (then  numbering  fifty) 
are  now  dead. 

The  struggles  of  the  old  Atlantic  Club  with  such  rivals  as 
the  Empires,  Mutuals,  Excelsiors  and  Gothams  are  yet  a 
plf  asant  reminiscence  of  the  old  base-ballites. 

In  1868  the  Allantics  practically  ceased  playing,  although 
the  organization  as  a  club  has  never  been  disbanded,  and 
their  yearly  meetings  are  attended  by  all  the  old  members 
yet  living. 

The  Atlantic  Club  used  to  play  in  the  old  lots  on  York 
street,  where  the  station  house  now  stands. 

Introduction  of  the  game  in  California. — In  1858,  Wm. 
Babcock,  of  Brooklyn,  went  to  California.  With  him  he  had 
two  balls,  and  a  copy  of  the  by-laws.  He  took  these  to  the 
editor  of  the  California  Clipper,  explaining  the  game  to  him, 
and  in  October  of  that  year  the  first  game  of  base  ball 
on  the  Pacific  coast  was  played  at  San  Francisco.  Each 
side  played  two  men  short,  the  players  being:  H.  Henry,  C; 
J.  G.  Clauson,  1st  B.:  S.  J  .Clair,  C.  F.:  Mr.  Saunders,  3d 
B. ;  Mr.  Williams,  Sd  B. ;  Mr.  Gillard,  3d  B. ;  John  Foote,  P. : 
vs.  Wm.  Babcock,  C ;  John  Baulsir,  1st  B.;  H.  Cossius,  Sd 
B.;  Nimrod  Baulsir,  3d  B.;  Mr.  Pettit,  C.  F;  Robert 
Brower,  R.  F.;  A.  G.  Babcock,  P.  Owing  to  darkness,  but 
five  innings  were  played,  the  first  club  winning  by  a  score  of 
19  to  18. 

Recent  History.— The  American  Association  of  base  ball 
clubs  is  composed  of  the  following:  Toledo,  Washington, 
Baltimore,  Athletic  (Phila.),  Brooklyn,  Louisville,  St.  Louis, 
Cincinnati,  Indianapolis,  Metropolitan  (N.  Y.),  Allegany 
(Pa.),  Columbus  (Ohio). 

Ten  games  are  played  by  each  club,  making  one  hundred 
and  twenty  the  total  number  of  championship  games. 

The  League  Clubs  are  as  follows:  Buffalo,  Chicago,  Phila- 
delpliia,  Boston,  New  York,  Providence,  Detroit,  Cleveland; 
fourteen  games  played  by  each  club. 
All  championship  games  commence  the  first  of  May. 

*  Facts  furnished  by  Win.  Babcock. 


1342 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


In  1883,  the  Brooklyn  Amateur  B.  B.  Association  was 
organized,  six  clubs  bein?  members.  Each  member  pays 
an  initiation  fee.  and  is  subject  to  an  assessment  for  ex- 
penses. Tlie  names  of  the  clubs  are  as  follows:  Prospects 
(won  the  cliampionship  in  1883),  Rcsolutes,  La  Fayette,  Ver- 
non, Ivanhoe,  Atlas.  They  play  schedule  games  for  the 
championship  of  Kings  Co.,  the  prize  being  a  silver  ball; 
games  are  played  on  Saturday  of  each  week.  The  grounds 
are  on  Prospect  Park.  The  Officers  of  the  Association  are: 
Edward  Cook,  Pres.;  N.  A.  Tapscott,  Sec;  Edw.  Brand, 
Treas.  The  yearly  outlay  will  not  exceed  fil,500. 

The  clubs  not  named  in  the  preceding  pages,  now  in  exis- 
tence, are  the  Dauntless,  Commercials  and  Waverly.  These 
clul)3  liave  no  chartered  existence. 

Brooklyn  Base  Ball  Association  was  started  in  Feb.,  1883, 
to  supply  a  long-felt  want  of  the  city.     The  association  was 


started  by  Messrs.  F.  A.  Abell,  Joseph  J.  Doyle,  C.  H.  Byrne, 
and  Geo.  J.  Taylor,  who  expended  |30,000  in  fitting  up  the 
grounds,  wliich  are  acknowledged  to  be  the  finest  in  tlie  coun- 
try. They  leased  the  Litchfield  property,  between  4th  and 
5th  avps.  and  3d  and  5th  sts.,  celebrated  in  historj- as  the 
scene  of  the  battle  of  Long  Island,  and  having  in  the  north-east 
corner  the  old  Dutch  farm  house,  known  as  the  "  Vechte- 
Cortclyou'"  House.  The  Officers  of  the  club  are:  C.  H. 
Byrne,  Pros,  and  Treas. ;  Geo.  J.  Taylor,  Sec.  and  Manager; 
F.  A.  Abell  and  Joseph  T.  Doyle,  Directors.  The  club 
is  a  member  of  one  of  the  leading  associations  of  the 
country— the  American  Association — and  will  compete  with 
the  other  clubs  of  that  association  for  its  championship 
honors  and  also  with  the  National  League  clubs.  The  club  is 
incorporated  under  the  laws  of  the  State  of  New  York.  In 
1883  it  won  the  Inter-State  Association  championship. 


JOHN    A.    VOORHEES. 


Mk.  John  a.  Voorhees.  —One  of  tlie  oldest  and  best 
preserved  men,  in  mind  and  in  body,  in  the  town  of  Flat- 
lands,  is  John  A.  Vooehees.  The  writer  of  this  ap- 
plied to  Garret  Bergen,  another  old  and  exceedingly 
well  posted  townsman,  for  information  concerning  early 
settlers  and  their  families.  In  the  course  of  the  conver- 
sation he  said:  "  Have  you  seen  John  A.  Voorhees.  He 
has  always  been  an  active,  observing  man,  intimately 
familiar  with  the  people  and  events  of  his  times,  and  he 
has  an  exact  memory  of  everything  he  has  ever  known." 
A  visit  to  the  old  Voorhees  homestead,  gave  evidence 
to  the  correctness  of  this  estimate.  The  door  bell  was 
answered  by  a  thin  spare  man,  apparently  about 
seventy-five  years  of  age,  a  little  lame  in  one  leg,  but 
moving  with  a  noticeable  quickness  and  ease.  His  gray 
eyes  were  clear,  and  his  rather  sharp  features  which 
wore  an  inviting  animation,  belonged  to  an  elastic  frame, 
a  little  under  the  average  size.  His  face  beamed  with 
intellect  and  that  brightness  that  denotes  in  an  elderly 
countenance  an  active,  well-spent  life.  With  great 
readiness  he  furnished  the  following  leading  occurrences 
of  his  history.  He  was  born  in  the  house  in  which  we 
were  sitting  in  the  year  1'798,  September  2'7th;  one  of 
the  few  living  men  in  Kings  county,  who  were  born  in 
the  18th  century.  His  father's  name  was  Abraham,  and 
he  was  born  July  3,  1703.  His  grandfather  was  also 
named  Abraham,  born  June  8, 1725,  died  Nov.  16, 1807, 
aged  82  years,  G  months.  His  great-grandfather  was 
John  Lucas,  and  his  great-great-grandfather,  was  Lucas 
Stephenson  Voorhees.  His  brothers  and  sisters  were: 
Abraham,  born  October  14,  1790,  died  when  4  months 
old;  Abraham,  born  November  15,  1792,  died  Decem- 
ber 25,  1833;  he  was  a  fur  merchant  in  New  York, 
and  spent  several  years  in  the  far  west,  buying  furs  for 


John  Jacob  Astor;  Adriana,  born  June  27,  lso.3;  Peter, 
born  June  14,  180G,  farmer.  John  A.  enjoyed  the  ad- 
vantages of  the  average  farmer's  son,  who  minds  the 
cows  and  horses,  milks,  does  chores,  light  farm  work, 
and  attends  the  common  school.  At  the  age  of  14, 
he  went  as  clerk  in  the  country  store  of  his  uncle 
John  Lott,  Jr.,  at  Flatbush.  Here  he  staid  five  years; 
then  in  1817  went  to  New  York  for  six  months.  At 
this  juncture,  his  uncle  Lott  failed  in  trade,  and  his 
father  bought  the  stock,  and  put  his  son  back  as  sole 
manager  of  the  business  he  had  thoroughly  learned 
as  clerk.  This  arrangement  took  effect  December  10, 
1817,  and  lasted  8  years.  In  the  meantime  he  had 
taken  a  wife,  Phebe,  daughter  of  Jaeoba  and  Johanna 
Rider,  the  event  being  celebrated  February  11,  1823. 
In  1825,  he  quit  the  store  and  they  went  to  New 
York,  where  they  kept  a  victualing  and  lodging  house, 
including  a  bar  with  liquors;  first,  a  year  at  Dry 
Dock,  and  then  at  82  West  street,  till  1833.  During 
this  period  his  father  had  died  in  1826,  and  his  mother, 
in  1831.  The  old  farm  possessed  attractions  that  drew 
him  at  this  period  back  to  it  at  the  age  of  35.  He 
had  successfully  completed  several  terms,  and  won 
several  prizes,  in  the  sharp  competitions  of  the  fierce 
school  of  life,  for  which  all  other  schools  and  univer- 
sities are  but  the  preparation. 

Between  that  day  and  this,  the  most  important  half 
century  the  world  every  saw  has  rolled  its  great  events 
into  the  history  of  the  ages,  during  all  of  which  John 
A.  Voorhees  has  stuck  to  the  quiet  home  of  his  fore- 
fathers. But  his  fellow  men  have,  through  all  these 
years,  been  making  demands  on  his  time  and  services. 
In  1823  he  was  appointed  Captain  in  the  New  York 
State  Militia,  receiving  his  commission  from  Governor 


BIOGRAPHIES. 


1343 


Joseph  C.  Yates.  This  he  held  four  years.  He  was 
elected  Coroner  next  year,  after  the  Constitutional 
Convention  of  1821,  the  only  citizen  of  Flatlauds  who 
has  ever  held  this  office.  After  serving  in  the  various 
positions  of  Road  Commissioner,  Assessor  and  School 
Trustee,  he  was,  in  1844,  elected  Supervisor  of  his 
town,  and  annually  thereafter  for  nine  consecutive 
terms.  In  1845  he  was  elected  to  the  State  Assembly, 
taking  his  scat  in  1846,  when  that  magnificent  pillar  of 
the  Democratic  party,  Silas  Wright,  was  Governor. 
This  was  the  last  year  in  which  Kings  county  was  rep- 
resented in  the  State  Assembly  by  but  two  members. 
These  were  primitive  days  in  modes  of  conveyance. 
Winter  had  come,  the  boats  on  the  Hudson  had  stopped 
running,  and  there  were  no  railroads  along  its  banks, 
nor  free  passes  by  any  route.  Mr.  Voorhees  had  to 
take  the  Sound  boat  to  Bridgeport,  Conn.,  and  the 
Housatonic  Railroad  from  there  to  Albany.  The  pay 
was  the  old  rate  of  three  dollars  per  day,  and  a  traveling 
fee  of  ten  cents  per  mile  for  one  trip  each  session.  But 
board  was  in   proportion  to  even  this   small  compensa 


tion.  The  member  from  Kings  county  says  he  had 
good  accommodations  for  a  dollar  a  day.  In  1857,  he 
was  again  elected  to  the  same  office,  serving  in  1858. 
The  last  Census  had  entitled  Kings  county  to  seven 
members,  and  railroads  and  free  passes  were  in  full 
blast.  Mr.  Voorhees  has  always  been  an  unswerving 
Democrat  of  the  true  Jeffersonian  type.  For  nineteen 
years  he  has  taken  the  daily  New  York  World.  In 
1834  he  joined  the  Reformed  Church,  in  which  he  has 
served  repeatedly  as  deacon  and  elder,  and  as  treasurer 
forty  consecutive  years,  from  1838  to  1878,  when  he 
resigned. 

The  children  of  John  and  Phebe  Voorhees  have  been: 
James,  born  July  2,  1824;  died  May  14,  1863.  Abra- 
ham, born  May  30,  1826;  died  when  one  year  old. 
Joana  K.,  born  July  7,  1828;  married  Ditmas  Jewell, 
now  Supervisor  of  New  Lots.  Abraham,  born  August 
31,  1831,  now  farmer  at  old  home.  Phebe  Maria,  born 
August  10,  1834;  died  at  the  age  of  seven.  Harriet, 
born  May  29,  1836;  died  when  three  years  old.  Wil- 
liam K.,  born  May  10,  1838,  now  flour  and  feed  dealer 


1344 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


in  Flatbush  avenue  and  Raymond  street,  Brooklyn. 
Adriana,  bora  May  27,  1840;  married  David  Doxey,  of 
Brooklyn.  Hannah  M.,  born  July  8,  1843;  married 
John  J.  Hageman,  of  Flatlands.  Peter,  born  January 
11,  1847;  died  seven  months  old.  The  mother  of  this 
lar^e  familv  is  still  blessed  with  unusual   alert  powers 


of  body  and  mind,  moving  about  the  house  with  almost 
the  ease  and  speed  of  girlhood.  Old  in  years,  but  still 
young  in  spirit,  this  interesting  and  worthy  couple  are 
nearing  the  sunset  of  life,  under  brightest  skies, 
and  amid  pleasantest  surroundings  of  family  and 
friends. 


JAMES    SCHENCK. 


James  Schenck,  of  Canarsic,  is  believed  to  be  the 
oldest  representative  of  that  name  in  Kings  county. 
He  was  born  on  the  old  home  farm  April  19,  1800, 
where  several  generations  of  his  forefathers  had  lived 
and  died.  His  father  and  his  grandfather  were  both 
named  Nicholas;  his  great-grandfather's  name  was 
Stephen,  and  he  was  the  son  of  John,  the  original 
Schenck  on  Long  Island,  who,  with  his  brother  Roeloff, 
settled  in  the  town  of  Amersfort,  now  Flatlands,  in 
1650. 

John  Schenck  bought  land,  on  which  he  built  a  resi- 
dence and  a  mill,  the  former  of  which  is  still  standing, 
in  that  locality  known  as  "  Crook's  Mill."  This  house 
was  built  over  230  years  ago,  and  has  been  continu- 
ousl}'  occupied  as  a  residence  ever  since.  It  still  re- 
tains many  of  the  Dutch  characteristics  of  architecture. 
Around  the  fire-place  are  the  old-fashioned  pictorial 
tiles,  then  in  common  use.  The  immense  beams,  with 
their  side  braces,  are  a  curiosity,  evidently  hewn  from 
the  then  plentiful  big  trees  of  the  forest.  Its  existence 
to-day  is  ample  proof  of  the  excellent  quality  of  material 
and  construction. 

"Uncle  Jimmie,"  as  he  is  familiarly  known,  has 
passed  a  quiet  fanner's  life,  living  in  the  house,  still  in 
a  good  state  of  preservation,  built  by  the  first  Nicholas 
in  1772,  who  was  a  man  of  weight  and  position  in  his 
time,  being  a  surveyor,  and  serving  his  town  as  super- 
visor. Some  years  ago,  the  Canarsie  Railroad  took  a 
strip  of  land  from  one  side  of  the  old  farm,  on  a  part 
of  which  the  hotel  at  the  landing  now  stands.  Mr. 
Schenck,  who  has  never  married,  has  one  brother  living 
in  Brooklyn — Abraham,  two  years  his  junior — and  they 
are  the  last  of  the  family.  "Uncle  Jnnmie's  "  place,  at 
present,  contains  about  70  acres. 

The  first  inhabitant  of  Canarsie  Point,  tradition  says, 
was  Fisherman  Horn,  who  had  a  cabin  on  the  present 
Schenck  farm  about  1600,  and  the  locality  was  called 
Fisher's  Hook. 

We  append  as  much  of  his  genealogy  as  can  be 
obtained  by  the  careful  i-esearches  of  Garret  Bergen, 
who  is  excellent  authority  in  such  matters,  as  follows: 
John  Schenck  emigrated,  in  1650,  from  the  Nether- 
lands, and  settled  in  Flatlands.  (His  father's  name 
was  Martin  Schenck.)  Married  Jannetje  (Jane),  the 
daughter  of  Stevense  Van  Voorhees;  (supposed)   died 


in  1689.  Bought,  December  29,  1657,  of  Elberte 
Elbertse  Stoothoff,  the  one-half  of  the  mill,  and  the 
island  on  which  the  mill  is  located  in  Flatlands,  near 
Bergen's  Island,  lately  known  as  Crook's  Mill.  August 
20,  1060,  he  obtained  a  patent  of  10  morgans  (20  acres) 
in  New  Amersfort  (Flatlands),  and  in  1687  took  the 
oath  of  allegiance  in  said  town.  January  28,  1688-'9, 
he  made  a  will,  in  which  he  devised  to  his  son  Martin 
the  old  land  and  small  island  and  mill  and  dependencies 
thereof;  to  his  son  Stephen,  the  lot  at  Canarsie,  with 
the  meadow  at  Hogg's  Neck,  etc.,  as  per  page  140  of 
liber  1  of  conveyances. 

jsg,(e._Jane,  born  about  1673,  married,  May  30,  1692,  Gar- 
rett, the  son  of  John  Dorlant;  Martin,  horn  1675;  Wellemtje 
Janse,  born  about  1077,  married  Pieter  Wyckoff,  of  Mon- 
mouth county,  New  Jersey;  Stephen,  born  October  3,  1681, 
died  young;  Johannas,  baptized  November  5,  1683,  died 
young;  Neeltje,  baptized  November  33,  1683,  married,  Octo- 
ber 5,  1713,  John  Wyckoflf,  of  the  Raritan,  New  Jersey; 
Steven,  born  February  3,  1685 ;  Aaltje  (or  Alletta) ;  Antje 
(Anna)  Schenck. 

Steven  Schenck  was  born  (on  the  farm  of  his 
father,  commonly  called  "  the  Mill  Farm,"  in  the  south- 
east part  of  Flatlands),  February  2,  1685;  died  Novem- 
ber 6,  1767.  He  married  Ann,  daughter  of  Nicholas 
Wyckoff,  October  23,  1712,  who  was  born  August  29, 
1693;  she  died  July  15,  1706.  Steven  Schenck  built 
the  first  house  in  Canarsie. 

Issue.— Jane,  born  June  37,  1715;  died  March  20,  1778;  mar- 
ried Folgert  Sprong,  who  was  born  January  18,  1718,  and 
died  October  25,  1807;  resided  in  Flatlands.  John,  born  May 
33,  1718;  died  December  15,  1775;  resided  at  Oyster  Bay, 
Queens  county;  had  children.  Sarah,  born  November  34, 
1720;  died  December  3,  1797;  married  Abraham  Emmons; 
residence,  Gravesend.  Ann,  born  June  1,  1733;  died"  August 
1,  1803;  married  Abraham  Duryee,  who  was  born  April  5, 
1730,  and  died  September  7,  1785;  resided  at  Fishkill  Plains, 
Dutchess  county.  Wilhelmina,  born  October  15,  1726;  died 
December  18,  1803;  married  Peter  Ammerman,  of  Flatlands. 
Nelly,  born  April  28,  1730;  died  October  9,  1784;  married 
Nicholas  Williamson,  of  Jamaica,  L.  I. ;  no  issue.  Nicholas, 
born  September  4,  1733;  died  April  3,  1810.  Margaret,  born 
January  17,  1786;  died  April  8,  1814;  married  Peter  I.  Mon- 
fort,  of  Fishkill  PJains,  Dutchess  county,  N.  Y.;  he  was  born 
March  13,  1731;  died  September  20,  1791.  Maria,  born  March 
28,  1739;  died  May  13,  1813;  married  Samuel  Stryker,  who 
was  born  October  19,  1736;  died  February  7,  1838;  resided  in 
Gravesend. 


BIOGRAPHIES. 


1345 


JAMES    SCIIENCK. 


Nicholas  (second  son  of  Stephen  and  Ann)  Schenck, 
married,  March  11,  1767,  Willemtie  (Wilhelmina) 
Wyckoff,  who  was  born  December  23,  1736,  and  died 
September  12,  1779;  resided  at  Canarsie  Point. 

Their  children  loere  :  Stephen,  born  July  18,  1758;  died  De- 
cember 14,  1787.  John,  born  October  7,  1760;  died  March  28, 
1833.  Anna,  born  March  19,  1763.  Nicholas,  born  February 
23, 1765;  died  September  10,  1836.  Willielmus,  born  February 
19,  1767;  died  September  28,  1767.  Adriana,  born  August  22, 
1768;  died  September  1,  1830.  Wellemtie,  born  June  3,  1771 ; 
died  August  2,  1776.  Nelly,  born  February  13,  1776;  died 
August  8,  1776. 


Nicholas  (son  of  Nicholas  Schenck  and  Wilhelmina 
Wyckoff),  married,  April  20,  1788,  Alletta  Remsen, 
who  was  born  December  3,  1768,  and  died  May  6, 
1855. 

Tlieir  children  were :  Anthony  Remsen,  born  February  7, 
1790;  died  September  15,  1871.  Jane,  born  Marcli  19.  1792 
died  May  28,  1843.  Jane  Schenck  married  Ralph  Malbone. 
Wilhelmina,  born  December  30,  1794;  died  January  18,  1816 
Willielmus,  born  August  20,  1797;  died  March  16,  1832 
James,  born  April  19,  1800.  Abraham,  born  September  12, 
1802.  Maria,  born  May  31,  1805;  died  December  27,  1814 
Stephen,  born  June  30,  1808;  died  May  15,  1843. 


Col.    ANDREW    HARRISON. 


Mr.  Andrew  Hakrison,  a  veteran  of  six  wars,  was 
born  in  New  York  city,  in  1824.  He  was  a  soldier 
from  pure  love  of  military  excitement  and  adventure. 
His  first  experience  was,  at  the  age  of  sixteen  years, 
in  the  Florida  war;  next,  in  Texas,  under  Gen.  Sam 
Houston,  against  Santa  Anna;  then  he  served  in  the 
Mexican  war;  next,  in  the  campaign  against  the  In- 
dians, in  Oregon;  then  he  accompanied  Col.  Walker,  the 
"  grey-eyed  man  of  destiny,"  in  his  Nicaraguan  cam- 
paign; and,  lastly,  was  in  service  in  the  war  of  the 
Civil  Rebellion,  first  in  the  Department  of  the  Potomac, 


and  later  in  the  Department  of  the  Gulf.  Col.  Har- 
rison has  testimonials  from  Gen.  Wool  (the  last  letter 
he  ever  -scrota),  and  from  many  well-known  military 
men  under  whom  he  has  served  in  the  United  States 
army.  He  is  the  last  survivor  of  the  old  guides  across 
the  plains. 

Returning  to  Brooklyn,  in  1 870,  he  is  now  engaged 
in  law  and  the  real  estate  business;  and  has  delivered 
many  public  lectures  upon  his  military  life  and  ad- 
ventures, in  which  he  has  wrecked  his  health  and 
strength. 


HISTORY 

OF    THE 


Beneficent  und  Socihl  Orgsnizstions 


Brooklyn    and    Kings   County. 


FREE  AND  ACCEPTED  MASONS. 

FREEMASONRY  IN  KINGS  COUNTY.— The 
early  history  of  Freemasonry  in  Kings  county 
is  involved  in  great  obscurity ;  the  scanty  records 
that  are  left  to  us  are  little  more  than  traditions. 
We  know,  however,  through  colonial  newspapers,  that 
during  the  War  of  the  Revolution,  military  lodges 
existed  in  both  the  American  and  British  armies  with 
the  approval,  and  indeed  the  co-operation  of  the  authori- 
ties on  either  side.  So  far  as  known,  the  earliest 
Masonic  organization  in  Kings  county,  was  the  Union 
Lodge,  which  was  instituted  by  the  colonial  troops 
stationed  on  Long  Island,  in  nVG,  for  the  defense  of 
New  York.  Many  of  the  members  of  this  informal 
lodge  were  killed  in  the  disastrous  battle  of  Long 
Island,  August  27,  1776;  and  on  the  13th  of  September 
of  that  year,  the  Master,  together  with  many  of  the 
members,  were  taken  prisoners  by  the  British.  The 
Lodge  was  thus,  through  the  chances  of  war,  disbanded, 
never  to  reorganize. 

In  1729,  the  Duke  of  Norfolk  issued  a  deputation  to 
Samuel  Coxe,  of  New  Jersey,  as  Grand  Master  of  New 
York,  New  Jersey  and  Pennsylvania.  That  was  the 
first  notice  of  Masonry  in  this  country,  and  was  pub- 
lished in  the  Gazette  by  B.  Franklin. 

The  Grand  Lodge  of  New  York  was  first  organized  in 
1781.  On  February  4,  1784,  the  petition  of  James  Gar- 
diner, John  Leverel  Hudson  and  Joseph  Corwin,  for  a 
warrant  to  establish  a  Lodge  on  Long  Island,  was  granted 
by  the  Grand  Lodge.  Thus  was  instituted  the  Jamaica 
Lodge,  which  surrendered  its  warrant  on  January  16, 
1793;  a  little  later  in  the  same  year,  the  Mechanics' 
Lodge  was  organized  in  Kings  county;  it  languished 
awhile  and  passed  away.  On  December  7,  1796,  a 
petition  was  presented  and  filed  for  a  Lodge  to  be  called 
the  tiuffolk  Lodge;  this  effort  bore  no  fruit,  and  not 
until  1797  was  a  Masonic  Lodge  permanently  estab- 
lished in  Kings  county.  On  June  7th  of  that  year, 
a  petition  was  granted  for  a  Lodge  in  the  "  Town  of 
Brooklyn,"   to  be   named    >%.  Albans^   No.    62.     This 


Lodge,  until  June  5,  1799,  exerted  the  beneficent  influ- 
ence which  characterizes  all  similar  organizations;  when, 
because  of  internal  dissensions,  its  charter  was  revoked 
by  the  Grand  Lodge.  On  September  10  of  that  year, 
George  A.  Clansman,  Martin  Boerum,  Daniel  Rhodes, 
Fred.  Cleveland,  Henry  Eckford,  rhomas  Thomas, 
Nathaniel  Hempstead,  John  McKinny,  John  Martin, 
and  Samuel  Thomas,  mostly  members  of  the  disor- 
ganized St.  Albans  I^odge,  met  at  Martin  Boerum's 
house,  near  Fulton  Ferry,  and  petitioned  for  a  warrant 
to  establish  Fortitude  Lodge,  No.  84,  which  was  granted 
December  4,  1799.  The  Lodge  commenced  its  existence 
with  George  A.  Clansman,  Master,  and  84  members. 
Its  first  meetings  were  held  at  Martin  Boerum's,  near 
Fulton  Ferry.  In  1813,  moved  to  Main  street,  corner  of 
James;  in  1817,  moved  back  to  Boerum's,  then  called 
Hunter's  Hotel;  then  to  Fulton  street,  above  Sands; 
then  to  Military  Garden,  in  Fulton  street,  near  Boerum 
street;  in  1842,  the  Lodge  moved  to  No.  3  Front 
street,  and  united  with  the  Hohenlinden  and  Nassau 
Chapter;  on  May  5,  1859,  these  Lodges  removed  to  the 
corner  of  Court  and  Joralemon  streets. 

BLUE  LODGES,   F.   and  A.    M. 

Acanthus,  No.  719,  Bedford  and  Fulton  aves.,  was  insti- 
tuted Jauuary  30.  1872,  and  meets  in  Styles'  Hall,  corner 
Bedford  ave.  and  Fulton  St.,  Brooklyn.  Officers,  1882-'83  : 
A.  W.  Peters,  W.  M.;  Azariah  Seiple,  S.  W.;  M.  F.  Van 
Vrancken,  J.  W.;  C.  Ackerman,  J.  D.;  J.  W.  K.  Oakley, 
S.  M.  C:  W.  H.  Hoole,  J.  M.  C;  George  Grant,  Chap.;  J. 
C.  Cortis,  Sec;  C.  F.  Bloom,  Treas.;  M.  Grimes,  .S'.  D.;  T.  B. 
Limb,  Tiler.     Present  roll  of  members,  90. 

Adytum,  No.  640,  was  instituted  June  14,  1867,  with  a 
membership  of  14.  First  Officees  :  J  no.  W.  Simons,  Wm. 
M.  Doe,  Chas.  A.  Hodges,  John  C.  Hill.  Present  member- 
ship, 50,  officered  by  Chas.  K.  Myers,  Rudolph  Guuzenhauser, 
James  L.  Farley,  and  Arthur  C.  Jacobsou. 

Allemania,  No.  740,  317  Washington  st. 

Altair,  No.  601,  40  Court  St.,  was  organized  Dec.  23,  1865, 
with  41  members,  officered  by  Peter  M.  Borland,  Wm.  E. 
Pearse,  John  A.  Elmendorf,  Jr.,  Thomas  H.  Morrison,  and 
Chas.  F.  Rogers.   Present  membership  is  over  200;  Officers: 


BENEFICENT  AND   SOCIAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1347 


Starks  Edson,  Warren  C.  Hubbard,  Horace  H.  Stevens,  L. 
V.  D.  Hardenbergh,  and  Charles  S.  Carter. 

Anglo-Saxon,  No.  137,  40  Court  St.,  was  instituted  March 
13,  1848,  and  was  regularly  organized  July  22  of  that  year, 
with  10  meiubors  and  the  following  Officers:  John  E.  Good- 
child,  M.;  James  She  ward,  S.  W.;  Henry  Jessup,  J.  W.;  B. 
H.  Downing,  Ser. ;  M.  Mottram,  Treas.  The  present  member- 
ship of  this  Lodge  is  120,  officered  by  Fitz  R.  Vermeule,  M.; 
Samuel  E.  Weaver,  S.  W.;  Phil.  H.  Bowne,  J.  W.;  Robt.  B. 
Atterburj-,  Sec,  and  William  Conklin,  Treas. 

Anthon,  No.  769,  413  Bedford  ave. 

Aurora  Grata,  No.  756,  306  Fulton  st. 

Baltic,  No.  354,  So.  2d  and  4tli  sts.,  was  organized  in  1853. 
Officers  (1882-83)  are:  James  E.  Hand,  Master ;  L.  F.  Tice, 
S.  W.;  Chas.  P.  Lloyd,  J.  W.;  Chas.  W.  Hayes,  Treas.;  John 
Doherty,  Sec.;  Benj.  F.  Briggs,  S.  D.;  A.  F.  Upson,  J.  D.;  T. 
F.  Randall,  Chap.;  Wm.  J.  Lepine,  Tiler. 

Bedford,  No.  574,  317  Washington  st. 

Brooklyn,  No.  288,  306  Fulton  st. 

Cambridge,  No.  663,  Court  and  Joralemon  sts. 

Cassia,  Nu.  415,  89  Broadway. 

Central,  No.  odl,  Fulton  and  Flatbush  aves. 

Commonwealth,  No.  409,  instituted  in  1856  or  '57,  has 
never  been  incorporated.  The  original  membership  was  less 
than  50.  First  Officers:  R.  McChesney,  W.  M.;  Benj.  Price, 
L.  W.;  Jas.  M.  Fuller,  J,  W.  Present  membership,  379, 
officered  by  (in  above  order)  G.  F.  E.  Pearsall,  J.  W.  Evans, 
E.  F.  Jordan. 

Corner  Stone,  No.  367,  Grand  and  7th  sts. 

Clinton,  No.  453,  was  instituted  Oct.  3,  1806,  with  twenty 
charter  members,  officered  by  Hon.  S.  L.  Mitchell,  Sam'l 
Torbert,  John  D.  Miller.  C.  M.  Slocum,  and  Thos.  M.  Vail. 
The  present  membership  is  over  100;  the  Officers  :  Francis 
E.  Sherwood,  W.  31.;  Francis  W.  Clyde,  S.  W.;  Geo.  G. 
Kendrick,  J.  W.;  Chas.  F.  Grim,  Treas.,  and  Chas  B.  Valen- 
tine, Sec.  This  venerable  Lodge  meets  at  No.  89  Broadway. 
E.  D.,  on  the  1st,  3d  and  5th  Wednesday  of  each  month. 

Cosmopolitan,  No.  585,  Court  and  Montague  sts.,  was  or- 
ganized in  1865,  and  meets  at  Montague  place,  corner  Court 
St.,  Brooklyn.  The  Officers  for  1882-'83  are  :  George  W. 
Cummlngs,  Jlfaster ;  Albert  W.  Dougherty,  .S'.  11^;  Thomas 
Penney,  J.  W.;  Joseph  S.  Myers,  Treas.;  Edward  Sloggatt, 
Sec;  Joseph  W.  Irwin,  S.  D.;  Malilon  B.  Adams,  J.  D.;  Jo- 
seph W.  Riell,  S.  M.  of  C;  James  B.  Quinn,  J.  M.  of  C; 
Edwin  F.  Lindridge,  Chap.;  J.  H.  Von  Nardroff,  Organist; 
P.  C.  Wilson,  Tila: 

Covenant,  317  Washington  st.,  was  organized  Dec.  3,  1874, 
Mrsf  Officers  were:  L.  W.  Beasley,  il/as^ejV  Geo.  B.  Elmore, 
S.  W.;  Monroe  B.  Washburn,  J.  W.  Original  membership, 
77.  Present  u\embership,  118,  headed  by  following  officers: 
Geo.  B.  Klmore,  C.  H.  K.  Smith,  Chas.  N.  EUiott. 

Crystal  Wave,  No.  038,  317  Washington  street,  was  insti- 
tuted February  13,  1867,  with  21  members.  The  Officers 
were :  H.  E.  Day,  Henry  L.  Foote,  Jas.  A.  Beardsley, 
Wm.  McBride,  and  B.  Cromwell.  The  present  membership 
is  162,  officered  by  N.  W.  Kendall,  W.  M.;  R.  H.  Dumbleton, 
S.  W.;  Jos.  R.  Brown,  J.  W.;  Jno.  F.  Tandy  and  Jno.  S. 
Davenport,  .S>cs. 

Copernicus,  No.  545,  98  Broadway. 

Delta,  No.  451,  Court  and  Joralemon  sts. 

Euclid,  No.  656,  413  Bedford  ave.,  was  instituted  March  14, 
1867,  at  the  corner  of  Myrtle  and  Kent  aves.,  with  96  mem- 
bers. First  Officers  :  W.  A.  Kelsey,  P.  A.  Hall,  J.  T.  Bur- 
dick,  M.  Chichester,  and  Wm.  Barwick.  The  present  mem- 
bership is  06,  officered  by  J.  Pritchard,  J.  J.  Herold,  Bernard 
Reid,  Fred'k  Heeg,  and  F.  S.  Brooks. 

Ezel,  No.  732,  165  Clermont  ave. 


Fortitude,  No.  19,  Court  and  Joralemon  sts.,  was  organized 
Dec.  4, 1799,  at  old  Fulton  Ferry,  and  was  incorporated  under 
New  York  State  laws  in  1879.  The  original  membership  of 
this  masonic  branch  was  15  ;  the  present,  204.  The  State 
Officers  at  time  of  organization  were  :  Robert  R.  Living- 
ston, O.  M.;  Jacob  Morton,  ,S'.  W.;  Martin  Hoffman,  J.  W. 
The  Lodge  Officers:  Geo.  A.  Clansman,  Master;  D.  Rhodes, 
S.  W.;  Henry  Eckford,  J.  W.  This  Lodge,  though  old  in 
years,  is  young  in  vigor,  and  holds  its  honorable  place  among 
the  brotherhood  because  of  its  good  works  as  well  as  age. 
Present  Officers  are,  in  order  as  above,  Wm.  McDonald, 
Geo.  C.  Gill,  Sam'l  L.  Harris;  Henry  Block,  Treas.;  A.  J. 
Hicks,  Sec. 

Greenpoint,  No.  403,  was  instituted  in  Greenpoint,  March 
14,  1856,  and  was  chartered  July  4th  of  the  same  year.  The 
original  membership  was  25.  First  Master,  Henry  Schroeder; 
Fiist  Secretary,  John  T.  Mearns.  The  present  membership  is 
205,  officered  by  Wm.  T.  Giles,  Jno.  F.  Valentine,  Jas.  H. 
Whitehorne  and  Michael  Smith. 

Greenwood,  No.  569,  22d  st.  and  3d  ave. 

Hill  Grove,  No.  540,  Kent  and  Myrtle  aves.,  was  instituted 
June  9,  1864,  with  thirty  members.  First  Officers  :  Jos.  D. 
Evans,  Gerrard  Willett,  Wm.  J.  Munn  and  Wm.  A.  Evans. 
The  present  membership  is  159.  Officers  :  C.  N.  Silliman, 
Jas.  McCullough,  Wm.  Holland  and  Jas.  L.  Murphy. 

Herder,  No.  698,  was  instituted  at  Greenpoint,  in  Novem- 
ber, 1869,  with  sixteen  charter  members,  officered  by  Jacob 
Leoboldti,  Henry  Vogt,  Geo.  BuUwincle,  John  Bowers.  The 
present  membership  is  137.  The  Officers  :  Fred.  Zimmer, 
F.  Lotterle,  S.  Lambert  and  Henry  Vogt. 

Hohenlinden,  No.  56,  306  Fulton  St.,  was  instituted  June  21, 
1821,  and  is  not  incorporated.  The  original  membership  was 
323.  The  first  Officers  :  Erastus  Worthington,  Master; 
George  Worthington  Rodgers,  Setiior  Warden,  and  Raljih 
Malbone,  Junior  Warden.  The  present  membership  of  this 
veteran  Lodge  is  180.  The  Officers  :  WiUiam  V.  Babcock; 
Henry  J.  T warts;  Loftin  Love;  Samuel  Love,  Sec.,  and  Ira  L. 
Brackett,  Treas.  This  Lodge  meets  at  Masonic  Hall,  304  and 
306  Fulton  st. 

Hyatt,  No.  205,  89  Broadway. 

Joppa,  No.  201,  Court  and  Joralemon  sts. — The  first  com- 
munication of  this  Lodge  was  held  at  the  corner  of  Fulton 
and  Orange  sts.,  July  10,  1850.  The  original  membershiii  was 
forty-eight,  which  has  increased  to  two  hundred  and  nineteen. 
The  first  Officers  were  :  Geo.  Leeds,  blaster;  N.  L.  Pettitt, 
Senior  Warden;  S.  B.  Rea,  Junior  Warden;  Geo.  W.  Gerace, 
Treas.  The  Officers  at  present  are:  Benj.  F.  Adams,  W. 
Burton,  C.  R.  Randall,  J.  H.  Griffith.  This  Lodge  was  char- 
tered Dec.  37,  1850. 

La  Universal,  Court  and  Joralemon  sts.,  was  instituted 
in  Brooklyn  in  1874.  The  membership  is  distinctively 
Spanish,  and  numbered  originally  80  members;  the _^rs<  Offi- 
cers were  :  Antonio  Gonzalez,  Serafin  Sanchez,  Felix  Garcia 
and  Jose  G.  Garcia.  The  jiresent  membership  is  150,  officered 
by  Manuel  Rodriguez,  Alvano  Garcia,  Enrique  Guerra  and 
Lisardo  Caras. 

Lessing,  No.  608,  Court  and  Montague  sts. 

Lexington,  No.  310,  cor.  Court  and  Montague  sts. 

Long  Island,  No.  383,  Court  and  Montague  sts. 

Manual,  No.  636,  Grand  and  Seventh  sts.,  E.  D.,  was  insti- 
tuted Jan.  39,  1867,  with  30  charter  members,  and  the  follow- 
ing Officers  :  John  Gibbs,  G.  L.  Judson,  H.  C.  Lanius  and 
Jeremiah  Brown.  The  present  membership  is  135,  headed  by 
Wm.  Miller,  N.  T.  Travis,  L.  A.  Blendermann  and  J.  H. 
Bartley. 

Marsh,  No.  188,  South  Second  and  Fourth  sts. 

Mistletoe,,  No.  647,  317  Washington  st. 


1348 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Montauk,  No.  286,  40  Court  st.,  was  instituted  April  7, 
1853,  with  17  members.  The  first  Officers  were  :  Richard 
L.  Delisser,  Robt.  W.  Sage  and  Wm.  N.  Puffer.  The  preent 
niembersliip  is  131,  officered  by  Geo.  D.  Bascome,  David 
Barnett,  P.  L.  Schenck.  Nevin  W.  Butler,  Secretary,  and 
Thos.  J.  Northall,  Trea^. 

Nassau,  No.  536,  Court  and  Joralemon  sts. 

Oltmans,  No.  446,  Broadway  and  B^erum  sts. 

Orion,  No.  717,  264  Flatbush  ave. 

Progressive,  No.  354,  Grand  and  7th  sts. 

Reliance,  No.  776,  Greenpoint.  was  instituted  in  Bro()kl3'n 
June  19,  1877.  with  33  members.  Ihe  first  Officers  were  : 
Thos.  Anderson,  W.  M. :  Geo.  Wygant,  .S'.  W. ;  Moses  Engle, 
J.  W.;  Geo.  H.  Rhodes,  Treai.,  and  John  R  Conner,  .Sec. 
The  present  membership  is  78.  Officers:  James  Camp- 
bell, W.  H.  Godfrey,  Seba  Brinkerhoff,  E.  R.  Smith  an<l 
Geo.  AVygant. 

Ridgewood,  No.  710,  Broadway  and  Rali)h  aves. 

Sanctorum,  No.  747,  Court  and  Union  sts. 

Schiller,  No.  304,  Broadway  and  Boei-um  st.,  was  instituted 
in  Brooklyn,  E.  D.,  in  1853,  with  144  memlters.  The  first 
Officers  were:  B.  Bombard,  J.  Engelhaupt,  .J.  .J.  Wolf,  and 
B.  Redenback.  The  present  membership  is  268.  The  Officers: 
Chas.  Alphey,  Rudolph  Fischer,  H.  W.  Miller  and  Theo. 
Tiekmann.  This  Lodge  meets  at  the  German  Savings  Bank 
Building,  corner  of  Broadway  and  Boerum  st. 

Seawanhaka,  No.  678,  Greenpoint. 

Star  of  Bethlehem,  No.  333,  Court  and  Joralemon  sts. 

Star  of  Hope,  No.  430,  Broadway  and  Boerum  place.  The 
first  regular  communication  was  held  at  Metropolitan  Hall, 
in  Myrtle  avenue,  E.  D.,  April  9,  1857.  The  Officers  for 
1882-83  are:  Wm.  E.  Esperson,  W.  M.:  Andrew  Peck,  S.M\: 
Joseph  Wolf,  J.W.;  Peter  Reitner,  Treas.;  Edward  M.  Wun- 
der,  Sec. 

Stella,  No.  485,  40  Court  street. 

Tuscan,  No.  704,  was  instituted  June  30,  1870,  and  meets 
at  Lexington  Hall,  corner  of  Gates  and  Reid  avenues.  The 
Officers  (1883-3):  Thomas  Isted,  Blaster;  Henry  Ohlandt,  S. 
W.;  William  H.  Rob  its,  J.  W.:  James  Cornelius  (P.  M.), 
Treasurer:  Charles  E.  Burgess,  Secretary;  Robert  Hull  (P. 
M.),  Chaplain. 

Yew  Tree,  No.  406,  South  Second  and  Fourth  streets; 
was  organized  June  20,  1859.  Its  Officers  for  1882-83  are 
as  follows:  Henry  H.  Cook,  W.  M.;  M.  C.  Carswell,  S.  W.; 
W.  H.  Pinder,  J.  W.;  Harvey  W.  Peace,  Treas.;  William  G. 
Halsey,  .S'ec. 

Zeredatha,  No.  438,  306  Fulton  street;  was  instituted  in 
June,  1860,  with  25  charter  members  and  the  following 
officers:  Benjamin  Price,  Edward  A.  Hodgson,  and  Charles  P. 
Marrat.  The  present  membership  is  313,  officered  by 
James  A.  Cassidy,  Joseph  E  Pattison,  George  W.  Downes. 
P.  F.  Lenhart,  Treas,  and  Edward  Payne,  Sec. 

ROYAL  ARCH  CHAPTERS. 

Altair,  No.  237,  Meserole  avenue  and  Orchard  street,  E.  D. 

Banner,  No.  214,  Vernon  and  Third  streets,  L.  I.  City. 

Brooklyn,  No.  148,  Court  and  Joralemon  streets. 

Constellation,  No.  309,  Fulton  and  Flatbush  avenues. 

De  Witt  Clinton  No.  143,  89  BVlway,  E.  D.;  was  instituted 
E.  D.,  January  19,  1853,  with  13  charter  members.  The 
Officers:  T.  J.  Hendrickson,  Hicjh  Priest;  Chas.  Cobb,  King; 
Brewster  Jarvis,  Treas.;  and  F.  Englehaupt,  Sec.  The  present 
membership  is  175,  officered  by  Thomas  C.  Adams,  H.  W. 
Bryant,  Theo.  E.  Green,  and  George  B.  Claflin. 

Evening  Star,  No.  225;  Myrtle  and  Kent  avenues;  was 
organized  April  23,  1868,  under  dispensation,  with  24  mem- 
bers.   First  Officers  were:  Geo.  N.  Wilbur,  A.  H.  Davidson, 


Elijah  Pratt  and  W.  A.  Kelsey.  The  present  membership 
is  78,  officered  by  Francis  Nolan,  Austin  Appleyard,  James 
Pritchard  and  W.  K.  Todd. 

Greenwood,  No.  205,  476  Fifth  avenue. 

Gate  of  the  Temple,  No.  208,  Myrtle  avenue  and  Adelphi 
street,  was  instituted  May  Ifi,  1867,  at  the  corner  of  Myrtle 
and  Kent  avenues,  with  18  members.  The  first  Officers  were: 
Robert  H.  Wilber,  High  Priest;  Judson  Curtis,  King;  John 
H.  Clickner,  Scribe;  J.  Box,  Treas.;  J.  W.  Johnson,  See. 
The  present  membership  is  87.  The  Officers:  Robert  Har- 
per, Wm.  M.  Post,  Cliarles  G.  Suydam,  Robert  Jones  and 
Theodore  Thieler.  This  chapter  was  chartered  February,  1868, 
and  meets  in  the  Hall,  corner  Myrtle  avenue  and  Adelphi 
street. 

Nassau,  No.  109,  304  Fulton  street. 

Orient,  No.  138,  P.  O.  Building;  instituted  in  1847;  meets  at 
317  Washington  street.  The  Officers  for  1882-3  are  as  fol- 
lows: Chas.  M  Truman,  High  Priest;  Henry  Drisler,  Jr., 
King;  Geo.  W.  Van  Buskirk,  Scribe;  James  B.  Goldey,  Treas.; 
E.  J.  Campbell,  Sec;  Jasper  N.  Sims,  C.  of  H.;  M.-.  E.-.  S.  S. 
Conant,  P.  8.;  Geo.  W.  French,  R.  A.  C;  U.\  E.-.  F.  H. 
Down,  31.  3d  V.;  J.  J.  Duff,  31.  2d  V.;  F.  H.  Boehne,  M.  1st 
1'..-  Rev.  T.  S.  Pycott,  Chaplain;  S.  H.  Ackerman,  Organist; 
J.  E.  Cook,  Ass't  Organist;  George  Reock,  T'iler. 

Progressive,  No.  198,  Grand  and  Seventh  streets. 

Pentalpha,  No.  206,  Flushing. 

Ridgewood,  No.  36:^,  Lexington  and  Ralph  avenues. 

KNIGHT   TEMPLAR   COMMANDERIES. 

Clinton,  No.  14,  306  Fulton  street. 

De  Witt  Clinton,  No.  37,  89  Broadway. 

Greenwood,  No.  58,  Twenty-second  street  and  Third  ave. 

St.  Elmo,  No.  57,  was  organized  at  Greenpoint,  November 
14, 1873,  and  received  charter  August  14,1874.  First  Officers 
were:  Geo.  C.  Bradley,  Eminent  Commander;  Wm.  Bridges, 
General issimo;  J.  H.  Whitehorn,  Treas.;  J.  R.  Laws,  Re- 
corder. The  original  membership  was  18:  the  jiresent,  93. 
Present  Officers  are,  in  the  order  above,  John  H.  Bonning- 
ton,  Henry  Vogt,  Sylvester  Gray,  James  H.  Whitehorn. 

EASTERN  STAR. 

Esther,  No.  3,  306  Fulton  street. 

Stella,  No.  39,  315  Washington  street. 

Harmonia,  No.  34,  South  Second  and  Fourth  streets,  E.  D. 

Radiant,  No.  35,  Masonic  Hall,  Meserole  St.,  Greenpoint. 

Mizpah,  Mo.  40,  306  Fulton  street. 

Alma,  No.  41,  South  Second  and  Fourth  streets,  E.  D. 

Zipporah,  No.  45,  Corner  Court  and  State  streets. 

Evangeline,  No.  51,  Greenwood  Hall,  Twenty-second  street 
and  Third  avenue,  Brooklyn. 

Crescent,  No.  55,  Masonic  Temjde,  Seventh  and  Grand 
streets,  E.  D. 

Masonic  Mutual  Relief  Association  was  organized  in 
Brooklyn,  March  9,  1867,  and  incorporated  April  3d  of  that 
year.  Its  object:  the  relief  of  widows  and  children  of  de- 
ceased members.  The  original  membership  was  1,225.  The 
first  Officers:  James  M.  Fuller,  John  M.  Weeks,  Henry  W. 
Karn  and  Harvey  Farrington.  The  present  membership  is 
1,090.  The  Officers:  Joseph  Short,  Jr.,  William  Parker, 
Geo.  M.  Anderson  and  George  W.  French. 

ANCIENT    AND    ACCEPTED    (SCOTTISH)    RITE 
OF    MASONRY. 
This  Rite  has  for  many  years   been  established   in 
"  The  Valley  of  Brooklyn,"  under  the  title  of  Aurora 
Grata.     Its   highest   body,    the   Aurora   Grata   Con- 
sistory (19th  to   32d  degree),  was,   a  few  years  since, 


BENEFICENT  AND   SOCIAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1349 


merged  in  the  New  York  City  Consistory,  but  the 
otlier  bodies  remain,  and  are  in  very  efficient  order, 
viz.: 

Aurora  Grata  Lodge  of  Perfection  (4th  to  Utli  degree,  in- 
clusive). 

Aurora  Grata  Council,  Princes  of  Jerusalem  (1.5th  and  16th 
degrees),  org.  April  19,  1866,  with  14  members;  present  mem- 
bership, 134.  First  Officers:  E.  Gates,  M.  E.  S.  P.  O.  M.; 
R.  C.  Gurney,  G.  H.  P.;  M.  Bridgman,  M.  E.  S.  G.  W.;  J. 
Armstrong,  M.  E.  J.  G.  W.;  J.  N.  Wickoff,  Jr.,  G.  K.  of  S.; 
C.'H.  Pelletreau,  Jr.,  G.  T.  Present  Officers:  J.  P.  Abel, 
M.  E.  S.  P.  G.  M.;  E.  B.  Jordan,  G.  H.  P.;  H.  H.  Stevens! 
M.  E.  S.  G.  W.;  C.  F.  Graves.  M.  E.  S.  J.  G.  W.:  J.  Jay,  C. 
Daughters  G.  K.  of  S.;  Edwin  Gates,  G.  T. 

Aurora  Grata  Chapter,  Knights  of  Rose-Croix  (16th  and 
17th  degrees). 


INDEPENDENT  ORDER  OF  ODD  FELLOWS. 
LODGES. 
Odd  Fellowsliip  received  its  start  in  Brooklyn,  from 
the  action  of  certain  brethren  of  the  order,  resident  in 
the  city,  but  holding  membership  in  New  York  city 
lodges.  Several  meetings  and  consultations  were  held 
in  the  year  1839,  at  the  house  of  Brother  James  W. 
White;  and  finally  application  was  made  to  the  Grand 
Lodge  for  a  charter.  This  application,  signed  by  Bros. 
Geo.  P.  Bancroft,  Garret  B.  Black,  Lemuel  B.  llawx- 
hurst,  John  Van  Pelt,  William  G.  Hynard,  James  W. 
White,  John  lligbie,  ,Abram  Campbell,  Charles  and 
John  Pelletreau,  was  favorably  received  by  the  G.  L., 
and  a  charter  granted,  to  be  known  as 

Brooklyn  Lodhe,  No.  26, 1.  O.  O.  F.,  which  was  fully  or- 
ganized Nov.  13,  1839,  in  Hall's  Building,  corner  Fulton  and 
Orange  streets,  by  John  A.  Kennedy,  at  that  time  G.  M.  of 
the  Order  in  the  States,  assisted  by  the  officers  of  the  G.  L. 
The  Officers  then  chosen  and  installed  were:  L.  B.  Hawx- 
hurst,  N.  G.;  James  W.  White,  V.  G.;  Wm.  G.  Hynard,  Sec; 
John  W.  Van  Pelt,  Treas.  At  the  next  meeting,  Nov.  19th, 
Messrs.  John  C.  Roach,  Thaddeus  Davids,  Rich.  Hallam, 
Henry  Rohring,  Jarvis  Rogers,  Thos  H.  Redi'ing,  Geo. 
Bloomfield,  William  M.  Johnson,  John  Povie,  David  M. 
Smith,  Henry  S.  Smith,  Peter  L.  Taylor  and  Philip  Adams 
were  initiated  members.  By  1847,  the  membershi])  num- 
bered 500,  and  I^assau  39;  Principle,  48;  Atlantic,  50;  Ivanhoe, 
137;  and  Magnolia.  166,  had  been  colonized  from  it.  From  its 
organization  in  1839  to  January,  1844,  this  Lodge  has  enrolled 
1,070  members.     Present  active  membership,  117. 

This  lodge  at  an  early  day  purchased  ten  lots  in  Green- 
wood cemetery  in  which  to  furnish  a  place  of  decent  se- 
pulture for  its  members,  and  for  strange  Odd  Fellows  dying 
here,  away  from  home  and  friends.  Present  Officers:  H. 
H.  Boyles,  N.  G. ;  Wm.  Donelly,  V.  G. ;  E.  M.  Osborne,  Per- 
manent Sec;  S.  H.  Merry  weather.  Sec.;  John  Stevenson, 
TVeas.  (to  whom  we  are  indebted  for  this  account  of  the 
lodge). 

List  of  the  Noble  Grands  of  this  Lodge: — 1839, 
L.  B.  Havvxhurst;  1840,  J.  W.  White,  John  Higbie, 
John  Pelletreau,  Peter  L.  Taylor;  1841,  S.  A.  Smith,  John  C. 
Roach,  James  Jordan,  John  F.  Solomon ;  1842,  James 
McChesney,  Richard  Sharp,  Thomas  H.  Redding,  S.  A.  House; 
1843,  Thomas  Jones,  James  De  Revere,  G.  W.  Niles,  Obed.  H. 
Joy;  1844,  D.  A.  Taylor,  Henry  R.  Oxwith,  D.  P.  Barnard, 
Solomon  Skinner;  1845,  J.  J.  Ryan,  Thomas  Leslie,  William 
Lane,  Frederick  Blair;  1846,  John  B.  Pitt,  Daniel  Chauncey, 


George  Bennett,  John  Tassie;  1847,  Daniel  Ay  res,  Jr.,  Joseph 
Davis;  1848,  John  Tassie,  Jr.,  James  K.  Apgar;  1849,  R.  H. 
Curtis,  John  Stevenson;  1850,  Andrew  Bates,  Charles  Wads- 
worth;  1851,  M.  A.  Briggs,  Jasper  Du  Flon;  1853,  John  Ellis, 
James  H.  Stevenson,  1853,  William  Pearce,  James  Youmie: 
18.54,  Joseph  Harvey,  James  Milligan;  1855,  Matthew  Patti- 
son,  John  Donnell;  1856,  John  Arthur,  Jabez  W.  Goodwin; 
1857,  G.  W.  Reed,  Alexander  Petrie;  1858,  M.  A.  Briggs,  G. 
W.  Reed;  1859,  M.  A.  Briggs,  Job  Field;  1860,  Henry  Smith, 
John  Donnell;  1861,  .James  Milligan,  Jabez  W.  Goodwin; 
1802,  John  Arthur,  Archibald  Conn;  1S63,  M.  A.  Briggs,  Mat- 
thew L.  White;  1864,  George  Sohaper,  John  Williamson;  1865, 
Robert  Stevenson,  John  P.  Nehmans;  1860,  Joseph  A.  Gough, 
Albert  E.  Summers;  1867,  James  Williamson;  1868,  John 
Waller;  1869,  D.aniel  Gilbert,  James  Williamson;  1870,  David 
E.  Syme,  James  W.  Dean;  1871,  William  G.  Sims,  John  B. 
Pitt;  1S72,  William  C.  Noble,  B.  C.  Hollingsworth;  1873,  Wil- 
liam Iremonger,  James  H.  Salisbury;  1874,  Samuel  G. 
Fletcher,  James  C.  Fletcher;  1875,  James  Drain,  Samuel  G. 
Fletcher;  1876,  E.  M.  Osborn.  John  A.  Munro;  1877,  Daniel 
W.  Gilbert,  Geo.  R.  Dietrick:  1878,  Charles  Werner,  Daniel 
W.  Gilbert;  1879,  William  Kirkpatrick,  P.  H.  Jeanott;  1880, 
John  J.  Gannon,  James  C.  Fletcher;  1881,  Charles  M.  Drain, 
Saniuel  M.  Bennett;  1882,  John  Payne,  William  Ryley;  1883, 
William  Kirkpatrick,  Theodore  Thieler;  1884.  H.  H.  Boyles. 

James  L.  Ridgely,  No.  287,  was  instituted  August  8,  1871, 
in  Latham  Hall,  corner  of  Hope  and  Ninth  sts.,  Brooklyn,  E. 
D.  The./i/-.s<  Officers  were:  Wm.  H.  Diamond,  R.  G.  Wilkin- 
son, H.  Parker  and  J.  A.  Terhune.  This  lodge  is  not  incor- 
porated. The  original  membership  was  21 ;  the  jireseut  102, 
officered  by  John  W.  McCoy,  O.  B.  Merrill,  Wm.  H.  Miller 
and  John  Peterkin. 

Lexington,  No.  4112,  was  instituted  August  32,  1881,  with  56 
members.  The  Jir.'it  Officers  were:  A.  R.  Stagg,  Wm.  Durst, 
Henry  Meyer  and  James  Ijahy.  The  present  membership  is 
89,  officered  by  Edwin  L.  Castano,  Jno.  H.  Conselyea,  Jesse 
B.  Wharry  and  John  Horning. 

Magnolia,  No.  100,  was  instituted  June  30,  1845,  by  D.  D. 
Grand  blaster,  Rob't  G.  Story,  on  the  corner  of  Court  and 
Montague  sts.,  in  the  building  then  known  as  Burrill  Build- 
ing, now  called  Mechanics'  Bank  Building.  The  original  mem- 
bership was  5.5.  The  _/[(•«<  Officers  were:  .John  J.  Spowera, 
Chas  T.  Barnard,  Geo.  W.  Boyd  and  Issachar  G.  Reed.  The 
present  membership  is  225;  the  officers,  John  L.  Fagan,  John 
N.  Brockway,  Thomas  Phillips  and  John  Smith. 

Wallenstein,  No.  428,  was  organized  May  30,  1875,  at 
present  rooms.  No.  104  Boerum  Place.  The  original  mem- 
bershij)  was  32;  the  present  number,  146.  The /)•»<  Officers 
were  H,  Ritzheimer,  Noble  Grand;  J.  Kalb,  Vice  Grand;  A, 
Duster,  Rec.  See. ;  I.  Eubel,  Treas.  Two  years  ago  a  Finan- 
cial Sec.  was  added  to  the  board  of  officers,  whose  names  for 
present  year,  in  the  order  as  above,  are  F.  Diuze,  P.  Barden- 
werber,  D.  Frey,  J.  Paap  and  B.  Justus,  Fin.  Sec. 

Blucher,  No.  430,  was  instituted  April  17,  1875,  at  331  Navy 
St.,  with  18  members.  The  officers  were  Louis  Stal,  Carl 
Reber,  Wm.  Lorenz  and  Fred.  Finkeldey.  The  present 
membership  is  84,  officered  by  John  Volkman,  Fried  Fi'oase, 
Peter  Hansen  and  Wm.  Kopp.  This  lodge  is  distinctively 
German. 

Purity,  No.  337,  was  instituted  in  Brooklyn,  Oct.  31,  1873, 
with  38  charter  members.  The  first  Officers  were:  Wm.  P. 
Holley,  Uriah  Ellis  and  Saml.  W.  Keymer.  The  present 
membership  is  130;  the  Officers:  E.  T.  Baker,  E,  G.  Blumen- 
stein  and  Henry  Smith. 

Atlantic,  No.  50,  was  instituted  in  Hall's  Building,  corner 
of  Fulton  and  Cranberry  sts.,  on  March  32,  1841,  with  15 
members.    Thejus^  Officers  were:  James  MoB^arlane,  James 


1350 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS   COUNTY. 


"W.  Peck,  David  W.  Smith  and  John  Willins.  The  present 
membership  is  196,  officered  by  Reed  Midmer,  Wm.  Stevens, 
Barnabas  R.  Carter  and  Melbourn  B.  Lovejoy. 

Joppa,  No.  38(5,  was  instituted  in  Brooklyn,  April  7,  1874, 
with  23  charter  members.  The  first  Officees  were:  Henry 
T.  McClay,  Jno.  H.  Norwood,  Henry  Atcheson  and  Wm. 
Schroeder.  The  present  membership  is  183,  officered  by 
Charles  Grote.  Wm.  O'Neill,  Chas.  Archele  and  John  Jones. 

Cornelia  Lodge  was  instituted  at  136  Graham  ave.,  Brook- 
lyn. E.  D.,  Oct.  26,  1873.  28  sisters  and  8  brothers  were 
the  original  members,  officered  by  Charity  Kiehl,  Anna 
Lunish,  Rosina  Hollinger  and  Ella  Pope.  The  present  num- 
ber is  88  sisters  and  4S)  brothers.  The  Officers  are:  Ada 
Schwet,  Christine  Gottloeb,  Rosina  Hollinger  and  Eliza  Fruh. 

Crystal  Wave,  No.  425,  was  instituted  April  27,  1875,  at 
Armory  Hall,  on  Clermont  ave.  The  original  membership  of 
this  lodge  was  20;  the  Officers,  Chas.  Rhodes,  H.  H.  Scheele 
and  J.  D.  McCutchen.  The  present  membership  112,  officered 
by  J.  D.  McCutchen,  J.  G.  Green  and  A.  Rupprecht.  The 
financial  condition  of  this  lodge  is  excellent,  and  its  social 
standing  high. 

Progressive,  No.  339,  was  instituted  in  Brooklyn,  Oct.  21, 

1872,  with  25  members.  T\ie  first  OFFICERS  were:  Jas.  Webb, 
Geo.  J.  Barratt,  Geo.  Lages  and  Wm.  Pendle.  The  present 
membership  is  100,  officered  by  Wm.  Watts,  Geo.  Yard, 
Victor  Monnefield  and  Wm.  Pendle. 

Charles  T.  Schmitt,  No.  348,  was  organized  in  Brooklyn  in 

1873,  and  is  not  incorporated.  23  members  were  originally 
enrolled.  The  membership  at  present  is  118.  F/rii  Officers 
were:  Charles  Buhron,  N.  G.;  J.  D.  Mahlstedt,  V.  G.;  A. 
Blohme,  Sec;  H.  Tiedemann,  Treas.  Present  board,  in  same 
order  are,  viz. :  Aug.  Hartuiann,  C.  Steinhof ,  Jno.  Denda,  H. 
Bostelman.     This  lodge  is  distinctively  German. 

Steuben,  No.  133,  was  organized  in  Brooklyn  on  Christmas 
day,  1844;  is  not  incorporated.  22  members  were  originally 
enrolled.  Present  membership  is  175.  Fm-s«  Officers  were : 
O.  Vollmer,  X.  G.;  C.  B.  Schmidt,  V.  G.;  H.  Lubeck,  Sec; 
C.  Foost,  Treas.  The  present  board  is  F.  Teale,  JV.  G.;  H. 
Schutt,  V.  G.;  H.  Paris,  Sec;  N.  Boger,  Treas.  This  lodge, 
too,  is  distinctively  German,  and  is  in  a  very  flourishing 
condition. 

Ivy,  No.  472,  was  instituted  June  31,  1878,  at  Stella  Hall, 
with  57  members.  The  first  Officers  were:  W.  Elias,  John 
Fanel,  James  TurnbuU  and  P.  Ernst.  The  present  member- 
ship of  this  lodge  is  162,  officered  by  J.  P.  Bortzner,  J.  L. 
Wainright,  C.  N.  Wood  and  Jolm  Bennett. 

Justitia,  No.  370,  org.  Oct.  10,  1873,  at  103  Bush  wick  ave., 
E.  D. ;  incorp.  October  10,  1873,  N.  Y.  State;  original  mem- 
bership, 21;  present  membership,  163.  First  Officers:  John 
Eschenbacher,  N.  G.;  Henry  Weitzel,  W.  G.;  Valentin  Bruch- 
hauser,  R.  S.;  Andreas  Bopp,  P.  S.;  Christ.  Schmitt,  Treas. 
First  Officers  of  each  succeeding  board  to  the  present  time: 
John  Eschenbacher,  Henry  Weitzel,  Valentin  Bruchhauser, 
Theodor  Hellstern,  Joseph  Merz,  Martin  Hoffman,  Gebliard 
Kraus,  Henry  Hieronimus,  Fritz Krichelsdorf,  August  Nicol, 
August  Enk,  Charles  Vogel,  Joseph  Goetz,  Balthaser  Hein- 
rich,  Ernst  Luders  Herrmaim.  Present  Officers  :  Henry 
WeidenmuUer,  N.  G.;  Jacob  Ahlbach,  W.  G.;  Charles  Vogel, 
Rec.  Sec;  David  Loeser,  Perm.  Sec;  Hermann  Mayer,  Treas. 
Nassau,  No.  39.  Olive  Leaf,  No.  233. 

Principle,  No.  48.  Lyceum,  No.  333. 

Montauk,  No.  114.  Nor.  A.  Manning,  No.  415. 

The  Woods,  No.  121.  Stella,  No.  300. 

Ivanhoe,  No.  137.  Ceres,  No.  225. 

Union,  No.  169.  Prospect,  No.  290. 

Franklin,  No.  182.  Fort  Greene,  No.  354. 

Gowanus,  No.  23!).  Eagle,  No.  368. 


William  Tell,  No.  135. 
Socrates,  No.  223. 
Diogenes,  No.  298. 
Chase,  No.  367. 
Harmonia,  No.  394. 


Woodbine,  No,  378. 
Myrtle,  No.  323. 
Arbor  Vitae,  No.  384. 
Crusaders,  No.  61. 
Mount  Ararat,  No.  144. 
Rainbow,  Nn.  409. 
Franklin  Degree,  No,  13. 
Olive  Branch  Rebekah  Degree,  No.  19. 
Vereinigte  Schwestern  Degree,  No.  59. 
Silver  Spray  Degree,  No.  63. 
Mayflower  Rebekah  Degree,  No.  77. 
Kings  County  Degree,  No.  38. 
Cornelia  Rebekah  Degree,  No.  38. 

Olive  Leaf,  No.  233,  was  instituted  in  Greenpoint,  April 
14,  1870,  with  27  charter  members.  The  first  Officers 
were:  S.  F.  Bartlett,  E.  E.  Griffiths,  W.  H.  Holmes,  Wm. 
Chester.  The  present  membership  is  201,  officered  by  W.  W. 
Taft,  J.  M.  Farrington,  John  Johnson  and  John  Howe. 
ENCAMPMENTS. 
The  Odd  Fellows'  Lodges  in  the  County  of  Kings  are 
divided  into  four  districts.  District  No.  1  comprises  16 
lodges,  1  Degree  lodge,  and  3  lodges  of  Daughters  of  Rebe- 
kah, under  the  command  of  William  M.  Dupree,  of  Montauk 
Lodge.  District  No.  2  comprises  7  lodges,  under  Daniel 
W.  Hitchcock,  of  Mt.  Ararat  Lodge.  District  No.  3  com- 
prises 9  lodges  and  one  lodge  of  Daughters  of  Rebekah,  under 
Isaac  N.  Luce,  of  Purity  Lodge.  District  No.  4  comprises 
10  lodges,  1  Degree  lodge  and  1  lodge  of  Daughters  of  Rebe- 
kah, and  3  Encampments  in  the  E.  D.,  and  3  in  the  W.  D.  of 
the  City,  under  John  H.  V.  Breuer,  Blucher  Lodge.  The 
Mutual,  and  Provident  Benefit  Associations  of  the  Order 
have  been  in  existence  for  many  years,  and  have  effected  a 
great  amount  of  good,  in  the  aiding  of  the  widows  and 
orphans  of  deceased  members  of  the  order.  In  those  two 
institutions  alone,  upwards  of  $160,000  have  been  contributed 
and  disbursed. 

Roland  Encampment  was  instituted  in  Brooklyn,  Septem- 
ber 29,  1876,  with  22  members.  The  first  OFFICERS  were: 
John  Bulwinkel,  H.  Siedenburg,  F,  Schulz,  T.  H.  Siebach  and 
Thos.  Amliug.  The  present  membership  is  60,  officered  by 
Chas.  Sharbacher,  E.  Meyer,  L.  R.  Sliller,  A.  Hector  and  A. 
H.  Bruhe. 

Beacon  Light  Encampment  was  instituted  January  9,  1878, 
with  39  memliers.  officered  by  C.  S.  Smith,  A.  G.  Iffla,  Geo. 
W.  Thwaites,  Geo.  Renshaw  and  W.  H.  Jenne.  The  present 
membership  is  over  100.  The  OFFICERS:  R.  R.  Latourette, 
Theo.  Yost,  S.  W.  Welch,  W.  J.  Fowler  and  Jos.  Bedell. 

Bethlehem  Encampment  was  instituted  in  Brooklyn,  Jan., 
1846,  with  40  charter  memliers,  officered  by  W.  H.  Arthur, 
S.  Skinner,  J.  P.  Scott,  J.  C.  Jacques  and  W.  R.  Robinson. 
The  present  membership  is  120.  The  Officers:  J.  W.  Gard- 
ner, C.  Braunsworth,  E.  F.  Leanny,  P.  Wiggins  and  J.  A. 
Carlin. 

Odd  Fellows'  Provident  Association  of  Brooklyn  was 
instituted  June  18,  1875.  Is  not  incorporated,  secret  or  sec- 
tarian; its  object  is  beneficent  insurance  to  any  "Odd  Fel- 
low "  whose  lodge  is  located  in  Kings  or  New  York  counties. 
The  original  membership  was  9,  the  present  800,  officered  by 
S.  L.  Rowland,  Pres.;  L.  Beasley,  Vice-Pres.:  E.  Jacobs,  .Sec; 
Wm.  McGurn,  Treas.  Insurance  in  this  association  is  effected 
by  an  assessment  of  one  dollar  per  capita  from  each  member, 
upon  satisfactory  proof  of  a  death  in  their  ranks. 

THE  AMERICAN  LEGION  OF  HONOR. 
The  American  Legion  of  Honor  is  a  co-operative 
society,  formed  under  the  State  Laws  of  Massachusetts, 


BENEFICENT  AND  SOCIAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


for  the  purpose  of  furnishing  its  memhers  Life  Insur- 
ance at  cost.  It  has  a  rapidly  increasing  membership 
of  over  50,000,  and  is  paying  out  over  $1,250,000 
annually  to  the  dependents  of  its  deceased  members,  at 
an  average  of  fifteen  assessments  yearly.  No  high 
salaries  are  paid  by  this  society,  no  agents  used  ;  and 
all  are  acceptable  who  are  of  sound  bodily  health,  and 
good  moral  character,  between  the  age  of  eighteen  and 
fifty-five. 

COUNCILS. 

Acme,  No.  359,  was  instituted  Dec.  14,  1880.  Present 
Officers  :  John  P.  Dallimore,  Smith  S.  Merritt,  Richard  R. 
Franklin,  Augustus  H.  Marinus. 

Active,  No.  1073,  was  instituted  Jan.  30,  1883.  Present 
Officers  :  John  D.  Broderick,  Isaac  Herman,  C.  A.  J.  Hert- 
man,  I.  G.  Hagenbacker. 

Amaranth,  No.  284,  was  instituted  Sept.  15,  1880.  Present 
Officers:  Wm.  O.  Hammond,  Edward  Sohnalbach,  Jr., 
Jolin  H.  Waite,  Wm.  H.  Ray. 

Amphion,  No.  877,  was  instit\ited  April  9,  1883.  Present 
Officers  :  Wm.  B.  Stover,  Wm.  B.  Potter,  Alfred  Stover, 
Josejih  Wertlieimer. 

Atlas,  No.  447,  was  instituted  Nov.  25,  1881.  Present 
Officers  :  Fred.  H.  Nolte,  Terrence  Nugent,  Rubens  Stot- 
hard,  Simon  Schleicher. 

Bedford,  No.  639,  was  instituted  at  Styles'  Hall,  Bedford 
avenue,  corner  of  Fulton  street,  June  29,  1881,  where  the 
Order  still  meet.  The  original  membersliii)  was  85,  with  the 
following  Officers  :  Thos.  T.  Evans,  Commander ;  Wm. 
Berri,  Vice-Corn.;  M.  F.  H.  Smith,  Sec'y;  Caleb  Barker,  Trcas. 
Present  membership,  148.  Present  Officers  :  J.  Woolsey 
Shepard,  Horace  E.  Merrill,  M.  F.  H.  Smith,  Fred'k  Eckel. 

Brooklyn,  No.  SOO,  organized  Dec.  19,  1881,  in  Brooklyn. 
Original  membership,  26.  Present  membership,  63.  The 
first  Officers  were :  G.  M.  Brown,  Commander ;  George 
Kenneth,  Jr.,  Vice-C.  ;  W.  F.  Bedell,  Past  C. ;  Alex.  Pallas, 
Sec'y ;  E.  B.  Van  Deusen,  Collector ;  James  Armstrong, 
Orator ;  W.  F.  Scantleburg,  Treas.  ;  Charles  Bradshaw, 
Chaplain;  Guy  Loomis,  Guide;  Chas.  Maw,  Warden;  A. 
Grendal,  Sentry.  Present  Officers,  in  order  as  above : 
Henry  C.  Bull,  Jr.,  D.  M.  Madden,  E.  B.  Van  Deusen,  G.  M. 
Brown.  M.  W.  Stoughton,  Tlios.  Sealy,  W.  F.  Scantleburg, 
J.  W.  Stewart,  James  Brown,  Geo.  W.  Kopf,  J.  A.  Shannon. 

Cecilia,  No,  1064,  was  instituted  December  29,  1882. 
Present  Officers:  G.  K.  Ackerman,  J.  W.  Scott,  W.  P. 
Burnham,  F.  S.  Edminster. 

Columbia,  No.  239,  was  instituted  July  15,  1880,  with  49 
members.  Piesent  Officers:  John  Thomas,  T.  M.  K.  Mills, 
John  SchuUer,  George  S.  Bishop.     Present  membership,  132. 

Continental,  No.  308  (E.  D.),  was  instituted  October  7, 1880. 
Present  Officers:  Bigelow  Meeker,  Geo.  H.  Cun-an,  Almond 
W.  Barnes,  James  Folliart. 

Court  Union,  No.  769,  was  in.stituted  November  8,  1881. 
Present  Officers:  Louis  Fisher,  Adolph  Rothchild,  Henry  A. 
WeU,  Gottlob  Engel. 

Daniel  Webster,  No.  516,  was  instituted  April  14,  1881. 
Present  Officers:  Bernard  Faber,  Ernst  Fisher,  Henry 
Knopf,  Andrew  Schnerzelsen. 

Ethan  Allen,  No.  609,  was  instituted  May  26, 1881.  Present 
Officers:  George  H.  Bii-dsall,  M.  R.  Allen,  Thos.  H.  Birdsall, 
Thos.  H.  Williams. 

Frederich  Von  Schiller,  No.  1115  (E.  D.),  was  instituted 
April  21,  1883,  with  44  members.  Present  Officers:  Henry 
Ruppel,  Michael  Schwarz,  Frank  W.  Koch,  Jacob  Klein. 
Jlembership  distinctively  German. 


Germania,  No.  579,  was  instituted  May  1,  1881.  Present 
Officers:  John  Lummerman,  Carrie  Weinberg,  E.  L.  Wenz, 
C.  J.  Frank. 

Graham,  No.  572,  was  instituted  June  32,  1883.  Present 
Officers:  John  B.  Mezick,  Edw.  H.  Forder,  Jas.  D.  Cochrane, 
Jas.  W.  Tooker. 

Hermann,  No.  634,  was  instituted  June  37,  1881.  Present 
Officers:  Elbe  H.  Iljen,  J.  August  Rath,  Joseph  Bayer,  D. 
Deterling. 

Independent,  No.  1143,  was  instituted  July  10,  1883.  Pres- 
ent Officers:  J.  F.  Bisbee,  F.  E.  Kingden,  Wm.  C.  MuUer, 
•Henry  J.  Wills. 

Kemble,  No.  1009,  was  instituted  July  28,  1882.  Present 
Officers:  M.  D.  Messinger,  J.  H.  Hedenberg,  E.  Hendrick- 
son,  C.  Pritchard. 

Knox.  No.  1003,  was  instituted  July  25,  1882.  Present 
Officers:  John  C.  Valentine,  Geo.  A.  Ward,  A.  H.  Frost, 
John  Heydinger. 

Lafayette,  No.  460,  was  instituted  March  16,  1881.  Present 
Officers:  Arthur  F.  Curtis,  Robert  Gillies,  Chas.  Merrick, 
M.  J.  Connolly. 

Lincoln,  No.  367,  was  instituted  December  17,  1880.  Pres- 
ent Officers:  H.  E.  Dubois,  Wm.  H.  Riley,  C.  F.  A.  Salter, 
Olaf  F.  Anderson. 

Lipsia,  No.  1098,  was  instituted  March  13,  1883.  Present 
Officers:  Wm.  F.  Dechent,  Frank  P.  Cooper,  Charles  Fisher, 
Heinrich  Schelling. 

Long  Island,  No.  661,  was  instituted  July  22,  1881.  Pres- 
ent Officers:  John  H.  Roonej-,  Alfred  Lanchartin,  Adolph 
Plaettner,  Geo.  R.  Kuhn. 

Monroe,  No.  663,  was  instituted  July  19,  1881.  Present 
Offic^ers:  Stephen  M.  Maxon,  J.  Orlando  Harrison,  Madison 
M.  Cannon,  William  W.  Stone. 

Nassau,  No.  440,  was  instituted  February  28, 1881.  Present 
Officers:  Joseph  Stevens,  B.  F.  Hardenbergh.G.  H.  Stevens, 
E.  B.  Wood. 

Obelisk,  No.  336,  was  instituted  November  12,  1880.  Pres- 
ent Officers:  Cornelius  Grinnell,  Lewis  Walker,  Jacob 
Ritschy,  Wm.  W.  Starr. 

Old  Bushwick,  No.  1104,  was  instituted  April  20,  1883. 
Present  Officers:  Jesse  W.  Hursh,  Geo.  W.  Farrell,  Edwin 
R.  Lake,  Meyer  Richard. 

Progressive,  No.  433,  was  instituted  February  14,  1881. 
First  Officers  were:  Samuel  R.  Tuomey,  W.  Stannard, 
Samuel  V.  Owen,  Charles  Hinckley. 

Prospect,  No.  401,  was  instituted  January  31,  1881.  Pres- 
ent Officers:  H.  P.  Pierce,  H.  H.  Morgan,  W.  H.  French, 
W.  Sherman. 

Rainbow,  No.  134,  was  instituted  March  24,  1880.  Present 
Officers:  H.  C.  MelvUle,  S.  Benjamin,  Charles  W.  Smith, 
A.  Davidson. 

Roebling,  No.  1137,  was  instituted  June  22,  1883.  Present 
Officers:  William  H.  Whitlock,  William  M.  Rome,  Clarence 
Moore,  Robert  B.  Valentine. 

St.  John's,  No.  391,  was  instituted  January  20,  1881. 
Present  Officers:  A.  K.  Jones,  E.  H.  Wheeler,  Thomas  A. 
Wroten,  George  E.  Barrett. 

Security,  No.  536,  was  instituted  April  22,  1881.  Present 
Officers:  R.  Gilbertson,  J.  D.  Billard,  WiUiam  P.  Jones, 
William  Boyd. 

Standard,  No.  467,  was  instituted  March  22,  1881.  Present 
Officers:  Frank  H.  Bellows,  George  Gray,  George  C.  Dar- 
ling. Samuel  S.  Martin. 

Stella,  No.  40,  was  instituted  January  28,  1881.  Present 
Officers:  Nevin  H.  Butler,  John  H.  Sutter,  Justin  F,  Price, 
Henry  H.  Gordon, 


1352 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Steuben,  No.  952,  was  instituted  May  18,  1882.  Present 
Officers:  Thomas  Kane,  Henry  Metz,  J.  G.  Obenauer,  John 
Fisher. 

Tompkins,  No.  1133,  was  instituted  June  15, 1883.  Present 
Officer-S  :  R.  H.  Heasman,  Robert  F.  Rhodes,  G.  E.  Melius, 
"William  E.  Fitt. 

Unique,  No.  3,  was  instituted  November  9,  1883.  Present 
Officf.rs:  Henry  Needham,  W.  H.  Snyder,  William  Cor- 
selyea.  Julius  Sauer. 

Winona,  No.  905,  was  instituted  November  If,  1882. 
Present  Officers:  T.  Jeff.  Stevens,  F.  H.  Sloan,  Charles  J. 
Goff,  Edward  W.  Hale. 

ROYAL  ARCANUM. 
COUNCILS  IN  BROOKLYN. 
The  object  of  this  order,  which  now  numbers  lifty 
thousand  members,  is  Mutual  Benefit  Insurance;  it  is 
secret,  non-sectarian  and  social;  the  superior  body  is 
incorporated,  the  subordinate  councils  are  not;  since  its 
organization,  June  23d,  1877,  810  councils  have  been 
instituted,  with  a  total  membership  of  50,000,  and 
dunng  these  seven  years  there  have  been  but  53  assess- 
ments levied. 

Acme,  No.  594,  was  instituted  Nov.  2d,  1882,  witli  2~>  Cliar- 
ter  members,  officered  by  T.  Lindsay,  Henry  Dodson,  J.  A. 
Williams  and  E.  F.  Krantz.  The  present  membership  is  67; 
the  Officers  are:  T.  G.  Holmes,  C.  P.  Steyert,  J.  A.Williams 
and  E.  F.  Krantz. 

Amaranth,  No.  461,  was  instituted  by  Deputy  Grand  Re- 
gent Charles  Young,  of  Brooklyn  Council,  on  March  23, 
1880,  and  is  regularly  incorporated.  The  oi-iginal  membership 
is  25;  the  fii:it  Officers:  J.  L.  Knox,  H.  Shatford,  F.  J. 
Oakes  and  J.  W.  Scott.  The  present  membership  is  155,  offi- 
cered by  J.  W.  Creswell,  D.  E.  Christie,  J.  Heydinger  and  J. 
W.  Scott. 

Bedford,  No.  655.  J.  H.  Burtis.  Regent ;  C.  H.  Pine,  Secre- 
tary. 

Brooklyn,  No.  72,  was  instituted  at  Everett  Hall,  Fulton 
street,  Ai^ril  10,  1878,  with  22  members.  The  first  Officers 
were:  E.  D.  Hall,  W.  J.  Dickie,  H.  H.  Gordon  and  J.  M. 
Lodewick,  Jr.  The  present  membership  is  247;  the  Officers: 
O.  H.  Dolbeare,  E.  S.  Riggs,  L.  B.  Hanks  and  J.  A.  E. 
Speir. 

Burnside,  No.  625,  J.  F.  Hamilton,  Regent;  Albert  H.  Frost, 
Secretary. 

Carroll  Park,  No.  630,  was  organized  Dec.  22,  1881,  and 
meets  at  Lincoln  Hall,  Court  street,  corner  Sackett ;  the 
original  membership  was  29;  the  present,  69.  Firtit  Officers 
were:  Henry  E.  DuBois,  Regent;  Wm.  H.  Moquin,  Vice-R.; 
M.  J.  Hanna,  Sec;  O.  F.  Anderson,  Treas.  Present  Officers: 
Fred  Wilke,  D.  B.  Martin,  Robt.  S.  Neeley,  O.  F.  Anderson. 
Commonwealth,  No.  542,  Lewis  H.  Smith,  Regent;  Oswald 
Weber,  Jr.,  Secretary. 

DeWitt  Clinton,   No.  419,  was  instituted  at  Styles'  Hall, 

Dec.   5,   1879,   and  is  regularly  incorporated.     The  original 

membership  was  50;  the  first  Officers:  James  Pennoyer, 

Franklin  B.  Van  Wart,  D.  S.  Unckles  and  Joseph  E.  Palmer, 

Jr.  The  present  membership  is  366,  officered  by  Jno.  A.  Quin- 

tard,   Geo.    R.   Clark,   M.   F.   Van  Vranken  and    M.   F.    H. 

Smith. 

De  Long,  No.  725.   J.  A.  Moody,  Regent;  M.  E.  Doyle,  Sec, 

Fern,  No.  774.  Josephus  L.Wood,  Regent;  W.  B.  Davis,  Sec, 

Franklin,    No.   253,   was  instituted  Feb.   15,  1879,  with  13 

charter  members.  The  first  Officers  were:  Thos.  C.  Thorne, 

Thos.  W.  Ridsdale  and  Chas.  Stikemau.     The  pi'eseut  mem- 


bership is  120,  officered  by  Chas.  Stikeman,  Geo.  C.  Eggles- 
ton,  H.  E.  Esterbrook  and  C.  B.  Davenport.  This  council 
meets  in  Prospect  Hall,  cor.  of  DeKalb  and  Marcy  avenues. 

Fraternity,  No.  504.  P.  Springer,  Regent;  F.  B.  Gardiner, 
Sec. 

Fulton,  No.  299.  Will  H.  Johnston,  Regent;  C.  B.  C.  Fow- 
ler, Sec. 

lolanthe,  No.  318.  C.  Pritchard,  Ucgiewi;  Lewis  Collins,  See. 
Kings   County,   No.   459,  Alex.  Thompson,  Regent;  Edw. 
Nash,  .Sec. 

Long  Island,  No.  173,  was  instituted  in  Armory  Hall,  on 
Clermont  avenue,  September  27,  1878,  with  18  charter  mem- 
bers; the  first  Officers  were:  James  Macbeth,  S.  W.  Tate,  D. 
R.  Ferrett  and  E.  W.  Jacobson.  The  present  membership  is 
512,  officered  by  Munson  S.  Brown,  Wm.  L.  Howard,  Theo. 
W.  Curtis  and  W.  A.  Merritt.  This  Council  is  the  largest  in 
the  Order,  and  numbers  in  its  membership  many  prominent 
men  of  our  cit}^ 

Montauk,  No.  651,  Everett  Hall,  398  Fulton  street.,  org. 
Feb.  24,  1883,  with  18  members.  Present  membership,  99. 
First  Officers:  G.  Selig,  Regent;  A.  D.  Newman, T«<-_R. :  W- 
Silverberg,  Treas.;  A.  Louis,  See.  Present  Officers:  A.  D. 
Newman,  J.  H.  Convin,  M.  Hirsch,  Treas.;  A.  Louis,  See. 

Morning  Star,  No.  680.  Jos.  H.  McMullan,  Regent;  W.  R. 
Kerr,  Sec. 

Nassau,  No.  822.  G.  E.  Moore,  Regent;  Hamilton  A.  Gill, 
Sec. 

Osceola,  No.  759,  Greenpoint.  Chas.  G.  Colton,  Regent;  J. 
D.  Billard,  Jr.,  Sec. 

Oxford,  No.  6.50,  was  organized  Feb.  21,  1882;  the  original 
membership  was  17.  The  first  Officers:  J.  W.  Lincoln,  Re- 
gent; E.  F.  Ludridge,  Mce-R.:  E.  C.  Leckey,  Sec;  Jno.  C. 
Valentine,  Treas.  The  present  membership  is  33,  officered 
by  F.  L.  Degener,  Wm.  Bishop,  Wm.  H.  Riley.  Jno.  C. 
Valentine. 

Peter  Cooper,  No.  831.  Jesse  Wilkinson,  Regent.  J.  A. 
Gradachos,  Ser. 

Peconic,  No.  631;  org.  Dec.  23,  1881;incorp. ;  original  mem- 
bers, 29;  present  No.  81.  First  Officers:  Geo.  V.  Brower, 
Regent;  Wm.  L.  Harris,  V.  J?.;  Wilson  Godfrey,  Orator;  Wm. 
F.  Bedell,  P.  R.;  John  Y.  Van  Wieklin,  Sec;  Ed.  W.  Hirsch, 
Coll.;  R.  D.  Vanderhoef,  Treas.;  J.  C.  Brownell,  Chaplain; 
Chas.  W.  Smith,  Guide;  J.  Whaley,  Warden;  P.  C.  Wilson, 
Sentry;  W.  F.  Bedell,  Med.  Exam.  Present  Officers:  Ward 
C.  Pardee,  M.  D.,  Regent;  S.  T.  White,  V.  R.;  Thos.  E.  Pear- 
sail,  Oi-ator;  George  V.  Brower,  P.  R.;  Walter  S.  Hicks,  Sec; 
Edward  W.  Hirsh,  Coll.;  R.  D.  Vanderhoef,  Treas.;  James 
M.  Parker.  Chap.;  Jos.  Whaley,  Ouide;  Geo.  T.  Brown, 
Warden;  P.  C.  Wilson,  Sentry;  James  H.  Pittinger,  Warren 
S.  Silcocks,  John  M.  Tompkins,  Trustees;  W.  F.  Bedell, 
M.  D.,  Geo.  McNaughton,  M.  D.,  Med.  Exrs. 

Philadelphos,  No.  562,  was  instituted  in  Prospect  Hall,  cor- 
ner of  Marcy  and  DeKalb  aves.,  February  7,  1881,  with  25 
charter  members.  The  _/? rsi  Officers  were  :  Henry  E.  Tomp- 
kins, Regent;  Geo.  Woodruff,  Vice-Reg.;  A.  S.  Ivirkman, 
Treas.;  Thos.  C.  Brush,  Sec.  Present  membership  is  98, 
officered  by  Wm.  A.  Nash,  David  A.  Baldwin.  Wm.  E.  At- 
kins and  Oliver  Hull.  Council  meetings  are  held  in  Styles' 
Hall. 

Ridgewood,  No.  678,  was  instituted  in  Lexington  Hall, 
No.  854  Gates  ave.,  on  April  26,  1882,  with  34  members.  The 
first  Officers  :  Fi-ancis  M.  Edgerton,  William  Masten,  Geo. 
Iremonger,  Ira  Goddard.  The  present  membership  is  100. 
The  Officers  :  William  Masten,  Wm.  Iremonger,  Geo.  Ire- 
monger,  and  C.  H.  Fanoher. 

Stuyvesant,  No.  690.  Isaac  B.  Crane,  Regent;  Elmer  E 
Winckler,  Sec. 


BENEFICENT  AND   SOCIAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


Welcome,  No.  703.  F.  S.  Grenelle,  Regent;  Geo.  L.  P. 
Chambers,  Sec. 

THE  KNIGHTS  OF  HONOR.* 

Similar  in   its  general  aims  and  forms  of  organiza- 
tion, to  the  Lei/ion  of  Honor,  Royal  Arcanum,  etc.  It 
embraces  over  130,000  members,  and  has  distributed,  at 
an  average  of  §8,000  per  day,  to  widows  and  orphans. 
LODGES. 

Those  Lodges  thus  marked  (t)  work  in  the  German  language. 
No.  03,  Kings  County  Pioneer,  instituted  April  1,  1875, 
with  13  memliers.  First  Officers:  Levi  E.  Hart,  J.  W. 
Lake,  A.  D.  Hartye,  and  S.  M.  Smith.  Present  membership 
is  18.  Officers:  A.  Fitzroy,  E.  F.  Dennis,  W.  S.  Bennett, 
and  A.  H.  Griswold. 

No.  420,  Sweden,  instituted  December  30,  1876. 
No.  570,  Brooklyn  City,  instituted  March  30,  1877. 
No.  1443,  Onward,  instituted  February  28,  1879. 
No.  1610,  Williamsburgh,  instituted  March  20,  1879,  at 
Masonic  Temple,  corner  Seventh  and  Grand  streets,  Brooklyn, 
E.  D.  Incorporated  under  the  laws  of  the  State  of  Keutuck}-, 
Present  meml)ership,  98.  Fii-nt  Officers:  William  H.  Bryan, 
Diet.:  G.  W.  Ketcham,  Vin-D.:  J.  S.  Bryan,  Ans't  D.; 
William  C.  Allen,  I'aftt  D.;  N.  Callan,  Jr.,  Reporter;  J.  M. 
Smith,  Financial  Reporter;  Hon.  William  H.  Ray,  Trcan.; 
George  S.  Eaton,  Chupdain:  J.  Hughes,  Guide;  D.  Stewart, 
Guardian;  A.  Van  Alst,  Sentinel:  Moses  R.  Allen,  Reprexen- 
tiitive;  J.  B.  Overton,  Medieal  Examiner.  Succeeding  First 
Officers:  John  M.  Smith,  N.  Callan,  Jr.,  G.  S.  Eaton,  John 
Schuller,  William  C.  Parr.  John  Thomas,  F.  W,  Pollock. 
Present  Officers:  F.  W,  Pollock,  P.  Diet.:  John  Vanderzee, 
Diet.:  J.  L.  Wilsey,  Vice-D.;  S.  C.  Hendrickson,  Ass't  D.; 
William  A.  Bishop,  Repiorter;  John  H.  Waite,  Financial 
Reporter:  Hon.  William  H.  Ray,  Treas.;  William  H.  Mooney, 
Chaplain:  D.  C.  Eeilly,  Guide:  H.  C.  Wills,  Guardian:  Geo. 
S.  Brewster,  Sentiiiel:  William  H,  Bryan,  Representative. 
Trustees:  E.  Andrews,  J   D.  Walsh,  S.  C.  Hendrickson. 

No.  1641,  Moltke,  f  instituted  June  13,  1879,  and  incorp. 
Original  membership,  33.  Officers:  Martin  Schneider,  Olto 
Range,  Henry  Roseland  and  W.  Haedrich.  Present  mem- 
bership, 133.  Officers:  JohnF.  Cordes,  August  F.  Schmulz, 
Henry  Roseland,  and  Charles  Meyer. 

No.  1663,  Arcanum,  instituted  June  16,  1879,  by  Deputy- 
Grand  Dictator  John  L.  Knox,  of  Columbia  Lodge,  No.  800, 
of  New  York  City.  Original  membership,  40.  First  Offi- 
cers: C.  Young,  C.  Davis,  E.  Longbothani,  and  J.  W.  Scott. 
The  present  membership  is  76;  Officers:  D.  E.  Christie,  G. 
Graff,  W.  W.  Lambert,  and  J.  W.  Scott. 

No.  169'J,  Crescent,  instituted  at  Greenpoint,  July  11,  1879. 
Original  membership,  40;  present  membership,  113.  First 
Officers:  W.  W.  Silkworth,  Diet.;  E.  D.  Church,  Vice-D.; 
E.  M.  Sanders,  Reporter:  D.  A.  Manson,  Treas.  Present 
Officers:  E.  B.  Ackerley,  W.  J.  Anderson,  E.  G.  Tucker- 
man,  D.  A.  Manson. 

No.  1739,  United  States,  instituted  August  18,  1879. 
No.  1881,  Montgomery,  instituted  November  30,  1879. 
No.  1921,  Bedford,  instituted  in  Brooklyn,  E.  D.,  with  40 
members.    First  Officers:  C.  P.  Read,  G.  W.  Baker,  C.  A. 

*  Tlie  Kniyhlx  (if  Hiinnr  and  Tlie  American  Leginn  nf  Hnnnr  owe  much 
of  their  vitality  and  rapid  extension  to  Moses  P.  Allen,  a  native  of 
New  York  city,  and  a  veteran  of  the  1st  Regiment,  Rhode  Island 
Cavalry,  in  the  late  war.  Originally  a  member  of  Providence  (K.  I.) 
Lodge  of  K.  H.,  hr  foiiiuled  a  lodge  in  that  State,  and  also  one  of  the 
K.  and  Ladies  of  II.  In  lironklyn  he  has  been  the  active  organizer  of 
iri;i(<i»iK/)i(n//i .  I 'nscnu.  I  'nitfd  .•itatex,  Clinton,  and  Irii  Ijodges  of  the 
Knights  of  IIunoii;  nf  Mizpah  and  Fern  Lodges  of  K.  and  Ladies  op 
HoNOK-  nt  I'lihuiiliin.  CiiHtiicnlid.eilielisk,  Ethan  Alien.  Monroe.  Court 
ruion.'.imiiliiiin,  and  'riiuipl.iiis  Councils  of  the  American  Legion  of 
HoNOii.  In  all  these  ordirs  he  has  held  various  of  the  highest  and 
most  important  working  offices. 


Olcott,  and  J.  Warren  Tway.  The  present  membership  is  93. 
Officers:  C.  S.  Young,  F.  B.  Gardner,  Wm.  Vincent,  and 
J.  Warren  Tway. 

No.  2022,  De  Witt  Clinton,  instituted  February  7,  1880. 
The  original  membership  was  40,  the  present,  160.  First 
Officers:  E.  H.  Dickey,  James  Emery,  Jr.,  Richard  H. 
Harding,  Theodore  E.  Green.  Present  Officers:  Thomas 
Connor,  Jas.  W.  Anderson,  Richard  H.  Harding,  John  H. 
Brennen. 

No.  3060,  Clinton,  instituted  Feb.  18,  1880,  with  the  follow- 
ing Officers  :  Wm.  H.  Hall,  P.  D.;  C.  H.  Gallagher,  D.;  J. 
C.  Hinneman,  V.  D.;  D.  A.  Nevins,  A.  D.;  Thos.  Paine,  R.: 
R.  H.  Browne,  F.  R.;  Wm.  Doggrell,  T.;  Rev.  G.  T.  Stans- 
bury,  C;  C.  D.  Robinson,  Ge.;  J.  H.  Harrison,  G.;  Thos. 
Terry,  S.;  W.  F.  Crutchley,  M.  D.,  Med.  Ex.;  W.  F.  Crutch- 
ley,  C.  G.  Hall,  and  G.  E.  Henderson,  Trustees  ;  W.  H.  Hall, 
Rep.  to  G.  L'.;  C.  H.  Gallagher,  Alt.  Rep. 

No.  2114,  Allemanie,  f  instituted  Feb.  30,  1880,  at  No.  131 
Franklin  st.,  Brooklyn,  E.  D.,  and  was  incorporated  under 
Kentucky  State  laws.  Original  membership,  40;  the  number 
at  present,  95.  First  Officers  :  John  Scluoeder,  Dictator; 
John  H.  Diercks,  Vice;  H.  Behrmann,  Asst.  Mce.  Present 
officers,  in  order  as  above,  J.  D.  Benken,  H.  Moritz,  H.  C. 
Meyer. 

No.  2098,  Goethe,!  instituted  March  16,  1880. 

No.  3102,  Enterprise,  instituted  March  18,  1880. 

No.  3138,  Fritz  Renter,)  instituted  March  30,  1880. 

No.  2133,  Senate,  instituted  March  30,  1880. 

No.  3140,  Fulton,  instituted  April  3,  1880,  with  34  mem- 
bers. First  Officers  were:  Wm.  W.  Arnold,  D.  A.  Gillespie, 
Wm.  Borling,  and  Charles  Ramsden.  The  present  mem- 
bership is  60,  otEcered  by  Wm.  W.  Arnold,  F.  H.  Muller, 
Jno.  Magill,  and  Dan'l  Weston. 

No.  3147,  Franklin,  instituted  April  7,  1880,  with  a  mem- 
bership of  40,  officered  by  C.  W.  Morton,  Geo.  W.  Van 
Mater,  E.  R.  Johnson,  Wm.  W.  Silver.  The  jjresent  mem- 
bership is  100,  officered  by  Wm.  P.  Phillips,  Jere.  Costello, 

B.  G.  Conkling,  and  A.  H.  Frout. 

No.  2154,  Harvard,  instituted  April  9,  1880. 

No.  2156,  Bayard  Taylor,t  instituted  April  10,  1880. 

No.  3157,  Ivy,  instituted  April  10,  1880,  in  Styles'  Hall, 
cor.  Bedford  and  Fulton  aves. ;  incorp.  under  Kentucky  State 
laws;  original  membership,  37.  First  Officers  were  :  H.  S. 
Willis,  Diet.;  Jno.  L.  Kendall,  Vice-D.;  G.  E.  Blake,  Rep.; 
J.  M.  Nash,  Treas.     Present  Officers  :    J.  D.  Kendall,  D.; 

C.  W.  Blake,  V.  D.;  S.  A.  Glier,  A.  D.;  J.  A.  Grudchos,  Rep.; 
C.  A.  Horn,  F.  Rep.;  J,  M.  Nash,  Treas.;  G.  E.  Blake,  Chap.; 
C.  Weed,  Ge.;  E,  Horn,  Guar.;  F.  A.  Blake,  Sen.;  H.  S. 
Willis,  P.  D.  Present  membership,  330;  meetings  at  Lex- 
ington Hall,  854  Gates  ave. 

No.  2193,  Prospect. 

No.  2319,  Long  Island,  instituted  Nov.  19,  1880. 

Crystal  Lodge. 

No.  2830,  Fern,  organized  Sept.  8,  1883,  in  Armory  Hall, 
Clermont  ave.,  near  Myrtle.  Original  membership,  32.  First 
Officers:  Herbert  Fearne,  Diet.;  Jno.  H.  Hancock,  Vice-D.; 
Robt.  Harper,  Reporter ;  Chas.  Van  Daren,  Treas.  The 
present  membership  is  69,  officered  by  A.  E.  Overton,  B.  R, 
Western,  T.  B.  Richter,  J.  H.  Van  Thun. 

Protective  Lodge. 


KNIGHTS  AND   LADIES    OF   HONOR.* 
A  secret,  benevolent  association,  composed  of  both 
sexes,  and  organized  into  Supreme,  Grand,  and  Subor- 

*  By  Moses  K.  Allen,  (.'.  I'.  P.  Brooklyn  is  represented  in  the  N.  Y. 
State  Grand  Lodge  of  the  order  by  Mr.  Allen,  as  Grand  Vice  Protector 
and  JoBN  A.  Kinqholm,  as  Grand  Sentinel. 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


dinate  Lodges.  Its  purposes  are  humane.  It  seeks  to 
protect,  aid  and  benefit  its  members  while  living;  and 
when  dead,  to  provide  for  their  dependents,  the  child- 
ren, the  parents,  the  brothers,  the  sisters,  the  family. 

This  latter  protection  it  affords  through  the  machin- 
ery of  a  co-o])erative  Mutual  Benefit  Society. 

The  Knights  and  Ladies  were  chartered  in  1878  by 
the  State  of  Kentucky.  Its  original  qualifications  for 
membership  confined  it  to  the  members  of  the  Knights 
of  Honor  and  their  lady  relatives,  until  a  very  recent 
date.  It  now  offers  its  advantages  to  all  of  "  repu- 
table profession,  business,  or  occupation."  SHU  it  en- 
courages and  solicits  the  institution  of  lodges,  where  the 
metnhersfiip  shall  he  restricted  to  tJie  Knights  of  Honor 
and  their  ladies,  thus  making  itself  an  ally  to  that  great 
fraternal  Order. 

It  now  numbers  28,000  members,  700  subordinate 
lodges  and  \Z  grand  lodges.  Its  membership  is  about 
equally  divided  between  the  two  sexes. 

This  organization  is  believed  to  be  the  first  society 
of  its  kind  to  admit  female  members.  Its  growth  at 
first  was  retarded  by  the  popular  prejudice  that  female 
risks  were  greater  than  male.  Such  a  prejudice  was 
founded  upon  ignorance  of  the  comparative  mortality 
of  the  two  sexes.  Its  experience  has  verified  the  testi- 
mony of  experts  upon  this  subject.  Its  female  risks 
hare  constantly  proved  better  than  its  male. 

LODGES. 

Jenny  Lind,  No.  9-1,  organized  Dec.  0,  1878. 

Mizpah,  No.  205,  organized  Nov.  19,  1879.  First  Officers: 
Moses  R.  Allen,  P.;  Mrs.  Mary  A.  Bragdon,  V.  P.;  Mrs.  Emily 
Doughty,  C/iop.;  Wm.  H.  Hall,  P.  P.;  E.  O.  Bragdon,  See.; 
Geo.  S.  Eaton,  F.  Sei:;  Geo.  S.  Bishop,  Treas.;  Mrs.  Mary  A. 
Burchell,  Oe.;  Mrs.  H.  Marietta  Homan,  Oiiar.;  R.  W.  Ho- 
man,  Sent.;  M.  R.  Allen,  Rep.  to  G.  H.     Present  Officers  : 

Mrs.  Mary  A.  Burchell,  P.; V.  P.;  Chap.;  Geo. 

S.  Eaton.  P.  P.;  Geo.  H.  Maynard,  See.;  Robert  C.  Living- 
ston, F.  Sec.;  Mrs.  Homan,  Treas. 

Fern,  No.  270,  organized  March  18,  1880.  First  Officers  : 
S.  M.  Lyon,  P.;  Mrs.  Mary  D.  Godfrey,  V.  P.;  Mrs.  Mary  A. 
Baker,  Chap.;  Wm.  H.  Godfrey,  P.  P.;  Mrs.  E.  H.  Gerard 
Sec;  Mrs.  Mary  J.  Sanders,  F.  Sec;  D.  I.  Monson,  Treas.;  J. 
H.  Downey,  Ge.;  Mrs.  S.  J.  Lyon,  Guar.;  E.  B.  Sanders, 
Sent. 

Eastern  Star,  No.  419,  East  New  York,  organized  March 
28,  1880. 

Goethe,  No.  350,  organized  July  21,  1880. 

Morning  Star,  No.  404,  organized  Feb.  28,  1881. 

Evening  Star,  No.  412,  organized  March  15,  1881. 

Teutonia,  organized  March  7,  1884. 


KNIGHTS    OF    PYTHIAS. 

This  organization,  founded  in  1864,  with  25  mem- 
bers, had  less  than  80,000  in  1875,  and  now  numbers 
120,000.  It  is  non-sectarian;  its  object,  to  bind, 
through  Friendship,  Charity  and  Benevolence,  men  of 
all  classes  and  all  opinions. 

Stella  Lodge,  No.  176,  instituted  at  Stella  HaU,  413  Bed- 
ford ave.,  October  6,  1881  ;   is  incorporated  by  virtue  of  its 


subordination  to  the  Grand  Lodge,  which  was  incorporated 

May  25,  1880,  Chapter  376.  The  original  membership  of  this 
Lodge  was  38.  PHrst  Officers  :  S.  L.  Rowland,  W.  C. 
O'Donnell,  George  Zanes,  and  W.  II.  P.  Hopkins.  Present 
membership  Ls  94,  officered  by  H.  S.  Latimer,  W.  H.  Hoyt, 
M.  Van  Duzen,  and  F.  Hubbs. 

Grand  Union  Lodge,  No.  182,  instituted  at  Temperance 
Hall,  112  Court  st.,  on  March  25,  1882,  with  43  members. 
First  Officers  were  :  Alfred  Rowlands,  Chancellor  Comm.; 
W.  Taylor,  Vice-C.  C;  G.  T.  Hilton,  Keeper  of  Records;  H, 
Baily,  Master  of  Finance.  The  present  membership  is  85, 
officered  by  W.  H.  Grainger,  Edwin  Rowlands,  Alfred  Row- 
lands, and  H.  Baily. 


THE  HOME  CIRCLE. 

This  is  a  secret  benevolent  order,  organized  in 
Boston,  Sept.  22d,  1879,  and  incorp.  under  the  laws 
of  Mass.,  Jan.  13th,  1880.  Its  purpose  is  to  organize 
and  unite  in  fraternal  union  all  persons  over  eighteen 
years  of  age,  who  are  of  good  moral  character  and 
socially  acceptable,  to  aid  and  assist  its  members,  and 
educate  them,  socially,  morally,  and  intellectually.  To 
establish  a  benefit  fund  from  which,  on  the  satisfactory 
evidence  of  the  death  of  a  member  who  has  complied 
with  all  its  requirements,  a  sum  not  exceedino-  five 
thousand  dollars  shall  be  paid  to  the  family,  orphans, 
or  dependents,  as  the  member  shall  have  directed. 

Keystone  Council,  No.  48,  org.  June  23,  1882,  with  33  char- 
ter members.  Present  membership  47.  First  Officers: 
Chas.  Davis,  Leader;  J.  F.  Atwood,  Past  Leader  and  Med. 
Ex.;  C.  H.  Req\ia,,Vice-Leader;  Mrs.  J.  F.  Atwood,  Instructor; 
F.  P.  Slade,  Sec;  J.  P.  Holland,  Financier;  G.  L.  Ogilvie, 
Treas. ;  J.  C.  Springsteen,  Guide;  Mrs.  G.  L.  Ogilvie,  Warden, 
andW.  Thayer,  SeiiHiicl;  first  officer,  1883,  Chas.  H.  Requa. 
Present  Officers:  C.  A.  Thayer,  Leader;  R.  M.  Whiting, 
Vice-Leader;  Mrs.  J.  P.  Holland,  Instructor:  J.  P.  Holland, 
Financier;  G.  L.  Ogilvie,  Treas.;  Mrs.  G.  L.  Ogilvie,  ,S'ec.; 
F.  H.  Sloane,  Guide;  Mrs.  C.  A.  Thayer,  Warden;  B.  E. 
Wood,  Sentinel. 

SONS    OF  ST.  GEORGE. 
LODGES. 

Anglo-Saxon  No.  48,  was  instituted  at  Greenwood  Hall, 
Fifth  ave.,  corner  of  Ninth  St.,  Brooklyn,  Sep.  22,  1879,  and 
is  not  incorporated.  The  object  of  this  society,  which  is 
secret  and  non-sectarian,  is  insurance  against  death,  and 
medical  attendance  when  sick  or  disabled.  The  original 
membership  was  46,  the  present  120.  The  first  Officers 
were:  T.  S.  Rippier,  Past  Pres.;  R.  F.  Field,  Pres.;  F.  E. 
Stevens,  V.-Prcs.;  C.  Cole,  Treas.;  A.  Rowlands,  Sec.  pres- 
ent Officers  are:  John  Harper,  Pres.,-  Wm.  Reed,  V.-Pi-es.; 
Henry  Maginness,  Sec;  James  Hartley,  Treas. 

Commonwealth,  No.  59,  was  organized  May  4,  1881,  and 
incorporated  under  act  of  May  12,  1875,  chapter  267.  The 
original  membership  was  59.  The  first  Officers:  James 
Alexander,  Chas.  M.  Gater,  Joseph  Metcalf,  Ernest  H.  Row- 
den  and  Jonathan  Jones.  The  present  membership  is  190, 
officered  by  Thos.  C.  Hale,  Jonathan  Jones,  Henry  Long  and 
Wm.  Foskett. 

Holly  Lodge  was  instituted  at  Ceres  Hall,  1630  Fulton  st., 
June  9,  1881,  with  18  charter  members.  The  first  Officers 
were:  Chas.  Mason,  Pres.;  Joseph  Carter,  Vice-Prcs.;  John 


BENEFICENT  AND   SOCIAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1355 


Lister,  Treas. ,  and  G.  P.  Tapling,  Sec.  Present  membership, 
47,  officered  by  John  Lister,  Frank  B.  Trent,  G.  P.  Tapling 
and  Chas.  Mason. 

Mistletoe  Lodge,  org.  August  9,  1879,  at  Ridgewood  Hall, 
Broadway  and  Ralph  ave.  Not  incorporated.  Original 
membership,  183;  present  membership,  130.  First  OFFICERS: 
W.  Doggrell.  A.  T.  Tall,  J.  J.  Stephenson,  J.  R.  White,  G.  J. 
Culmer,  Fred.  Dyer,  .John  White.  Present  Offickrs:  I.  W. 
Croger,  R.  H.  Heasman,  J.  T.  Black,  H.  W.  Paine,  Wm. 
Twiddes,  E.  E.  Mills. 

Magna  Charta  Lodge,  org.  Oct.,  1879,  in  E.  D.,  with  47 
members;  present  number,  105.  First  Officers:  B.  Morgan, 
Prcs.;  J.  A.  Wood,  Viee-Pres.:  N.  H.  Wood,  Sec;  A.  Dues, 
Treas.;  H.  G.  Wright,  First  Messenger.  Present  Officers: 
Isaac  Filce,  Pres.:  Wm.  Willdigg,  Vice-Pres.;  Saml.  Oakes, 
Sec.;  Wm.  Williams,  Treas.;  Alfred  Rogers,  First  Messenger. 


THE    BROOKLYN    ORDER   OF   ELKS. 

April  6,  1883,  a  meeting  was  held  at  559  Atlantic 
avenue,  to  perfect  the  organization  of  the  Brooklyn 
branch  of  the 

Benevolent  and  Protective  Order  of  Elks. — The  charter 
members  were:  W.  L.  Sinn,  W.  J.  Lamb,  J.  A.  De  la  Harpe, 
H.  C.  Foster,  J.  J.  Mackey,  T.  3.  Hayden,  H.  W.  Stevens,  G. 
W.  McCarthy,  R.  Stewart,  J.  H.  Smitli,  J.  H.  Thompson,  D. 
T.  Lynch,  E.  Brown,  T.  H.  Troy,  H.  Meyer,  W.  W.  Dunleavy. 
D.  Bandwin,  H.  H.  Adams,  and  W.  A.  McConnel.  The  lodge 
was  organized  September  15tb,  and  is  known  as  Brooklyn 
Loige,  Nil.  22.  The  following  Officers  were  elected:  Exalted 
Killer,  D.  T.  Lynch;  E.  landing  K.,  W.  L.  Smn;  E.  Loijal  K., 
T.  H.  Troy;  E.  Lecturing  K.,  James  H.  Thompson;  .SVc, 
Thomas  W.  Hayden;  Treas.,  W.  H.  Dunleavy;  Tiler,  R. 
Stewart ;  Trustees,  H.  W.  Stevens,  J.  A.  De  la  Harpe  and 
Emory  Brown. 

UNITED  ANCIENT  ORDER  OF  DRUIDS. 
Brooklyn  Circle,  No.  1,  was  organized  at  Nos.  134  and  136 
Graham  avenue,  E.  D.,  June  9th,  1879,  with  58  charter  mem- 
bers. Officers:  Ferdinand  Richter,  Elise  Wagner,  Katha- 
rina  Haug,  Fi'ancis  Martin  and  Charles  Eeinhardt.  This 
circle  is  not  incorporated;  it  is  non-sectarian,  secret,  social 
and  beneficent.  Present  membership,  120.  Officers:  Elise 
Wagner,  Barbara  Schmidt,  Anna  Pfizenmeyer,  Francis  Mar- 
tin and  Charles  Reinhardt.  The  circle  is  essentially  German 
in  its  membership. 


IMPROVED  ORDER  OF  RED  MEN. 

This  Order  is  purely  American,  employing  the 
imagery,  names,  types  and  symbols  taken  from  Indian 
life  and  history.  Its  emblems  are  drawn  from  nature, 
and  it  is  a  confraternity  for  the  promulgation  of  the 
principles  of  true  Benevolence  and  Charity,  and  for 
the  establishment  of  friendly  bonds  among  men. 

Black  Hawk  Tribe,  No.  18,  was  instituted  at  cor.  Clermont 
avenue  and  Fulton  street,  October  8,  1873,  and  incorporated 
under  New  York  State  Laws  May  12,  1875.  Objects,  benevo- 
lent and  non-sectarian;  their  motto,  "Freedom,  Friendship 
and  Charity."  The  original  membership  was  32.  Officers: 
Daniel  W.  Hallock,  Sachem;  A.  L.  Titus,  Senior  Sagamore; 
D.  S.  Bookstaver,  Junior  Sagamore;  Geo.  D.  Williams,  Chief 
of  Records;  R.  B.  Kelley,  Keeper  of  Wampum;  William 
B.  Marsh,  Prophet.  The  present  membership  is  82  ;  the 
Officers  in  same  order  as  above  :   George  W.  Cann,   Frank 


Morris,   William  N.  Columbine,  John  D.   Haight,  Thomas 
Kinkaid  and  Abel  Krum. 

Narragansett  Tribe.— Org.  Brooklyn,  E.  D.,  May  22,  1874, 
under  State  Laws  of  Penn.  Original  members,  48  ;  present 
members,  97  ;  first  Officers  :  A.  B.  Davis,  Sachem ;  Wm. 
Van  Wart,  Senior  Sagamore ;  Qeo.  S.  Mosely,  Junior  Saga- 
more; A.  Townley,  Prophet;  E.  Y.  Bellows,  Chief  of  Records; 
R.  Shafts,  Keeper  of  Wamjnun.  Fii-st  Officer  of  each  suc- 
ceeding Board  :  Wm.  Van  Wart,  Geo.  S.  Mosely,  Safety 
Layton,  Peter  J.  Dobbs,  Edw.  Sanger,  Jas.  B.  Collins,  F.  F. 
Brennan,  D.  A.  Parr,  W.  H.  Rhodes,  W.  W.  Vanderhoof, 
Chas.  T.  Wilson,  W.  L.  Osborn,  G.  H.  Jones,  S.  Layton  (3d 
time),  Chas.  Valentine,  Jas.  McKigney,  W.  H.  Wilson, 
R.  C.  Seymour.  Present  Officers  :  J.  Kemp,  Sachem ;  F. 
F.  Gassman,  Sen.  Sag.;  J.  W.  Still  well,  Jun.  Sag.;  R.  C.  Sey- 
mour, Prophet;  W.  H.  Rhodes,  C.  of  R.;  C.  F.  Gruber,  Asst. 
C.ofR.;  W.  W.  Vanderhoof,  K.  of  W.;  Geo.  Taylor,  1st 
San.;  C.  T.  Wilson,  2d  San.;  W.  Snow,  G.  of  W.;  T.  Barker, 
G.ofF. 

ANCIENT  ORDER  OF  FORESTERS. 

This  order  was  instituted  in  1745,  and  now  embraces 
the  whole  world  ;  over  $2,000,000  are  distributed  an- 
nually by  this  organization. 

Myrtle  Court,  No.  6843,  was  instituted  .January  25,  1882, 
with  30  charter  members.  The  first  Officers  were:  F.  J. 
King,  C.  M.  Gaber,  J.  White  and  T.  D.  Wilkins.  Present 
membership,  175.  Officers:  E.  H.  Rowden,  Jos.  W.  Pearce, 
A.  H.  Greer  and  Samuel  H.  Andrews. 

Linden  Grove  Court  was  instituted  April  3,  1882,  with  28 
members.  First  Officers:  J.  M.  Hayes,  P.  S.  Fletcher,  R. 
S.  Moss  and  H.  Levy.  Present  membership,  194.  Officers: 
C.  C.  Ryder,  R.  Hill,  A.  S.  Hunkele  and  J.  Jones. 

Court  of  Brooklyn,  No.  4421,  was  instituted  May  24,  1864, 
and  is  incorporated.  The  original  membership,  34;  the 
present,  176.  Fir.<it  Officers:  S.  W.  Lambert,  Chief  Ranger; 
Jos.  Ward,  Sub  C.  R.;  W.  J.  Bryan,  Sec.  Present  Officers 
(in  same  order):  Robinson  Ramsden,  David  Bryan,  Fi'ed  Dick- 
inson, and  G.  Pape,  Treas. 

Court  Fort  Green,  No.  6978,  was  instituted  May  7,  1883; 
not  incorporated.  Original  members,  56,  officered  by  C.  E. 
Burgess,  C.  E.  Lane,  D.  H.  Cobb  and  T.  Shedd.  Present 
membership,  79.  Officers  (in  the  order  above):  C.  E.  Lane, 
J.  W.  Ross,  R.  Anderson  and  T.  Shedd. 


TEMPERANCE  SOCIETIES. 
INDEPENDENT  ORDER  OF  GOOD  TEMPLARS. 

Sylvan  Spray  Lodge,  No.  IS,  organized  at  Everett  Hall, 
May  16,  1881,  is  not  incorporated.  The  object  of  this  order, 
which  is  Protestant  and  secret,  is  total  alistinence  for  the 
individual  and  prohibition  for  the  State.  Original  member- 
ship was  21;  present  number,  24.  First  Officers  were  : 
David  B.  Martin,  Chief  Templar;  Maria  L.  Martin,  Worthy 
Vice;  Jos.  H.  Downing,  Sec. ;  Robt.  G.  Souter,  Treas.  Present 
Officers  (same  order  as  above):  David  B.  Martin,  Amanda 
Kinney,  Jacoli  E.  Isele,  Maria  L.  Martin. 

Guiding  Star  Lodge  was  organized  May  1,  1876.  The 
original  membership  was  120.  Mrst  Officers  :  SamT  Lor- 
ing,  Mary  Lanyon,  and  Peter  Chisholm.  The  present  mem- 
bership is  50.  Officers  :  Francis  Cmnon,  Thos.  O'Connell 
and  Edward  Lanyon. 

SONS  OF  TEMPERANCE. 

Grand  Union  Division,  No.  6,  was  instituted  at  Grand  Union 
Hall,  Brooklyn,  Jan.  6,  1881.  Its  membership  is  entu-ely  male; 


135fi 


HISTORY  OF  KIKGS  COUNTY. 


its  object,  the  suppression  of  intemperance;  assistance  to  mem- 
bers when  sick  or  disabled,  and  to  tlieir  families  after  death. 
The  original  membership  was  42.  Officers  :  Alfred  Row- 
lands, Worthy  Patriarch:  AV.  U.  Devins,  Hceordiiig  Scribe:  N. 
A.  Swan,  Treos.  The  present  membership  is  214.  Officers: 
A.  Bennett,  W.  E.  Swan  and  N.  A.  Swan. 

Olive  Branch  Division  was  organized  Feb.  24,  1881,  at 
Grand  Union  Hall,  and  is  composed  entirely  of  female  mem- 
bers, who  originally  numbered  24,  officered  by  Jane  Edwards, 
Mary  Watson,  Mary  Myles  and  Maria  Rowlands.  The  present 
membership  is  94.  Officf.rs:  Mary  Tool,  Emma  Meserole,  A. 
M.  Stauslmry,  and  M.aria  Rowlands. 

International  Lodge  was  instituted  Feb.  22d,  ISTl,  in  Old 
Continental  Hall,  cor.  South  !tth  and  4th  sts.,  with  38  mem- 
bers. The /i/'sf  Officers  were  :  W.  H.  Curtis,  Jose])h  Todd 
and  John  HoUis.  Tlie  present  membership  is  84,  officered  by 
Arthur  F.  Curtis.  Isaac  M.  Holly,  Robert  Towart  and  Henry 
Arnzen. 


UNITED  STATES  BENEVOLENT 

FRATERNITY. 

Standard  Council  was  instituted  in  Brooklyn,  August  9, 
1882,  and  is  subordinate  to  the  Uirited  States  Benevolent 
Fraternity,  which  was  organized  in  Baltimore,  Feb.  24,  1881, 
and  incorporated  under  the  State  Laws  of  Maryland.  This 
order  is  secret,  monotheistic  and  beneflceut;  and  claims  a 
total  membership  of  2,000.  The  Standard  Council  numbered 
originally  eleven  members.  The  flrxt  Officers  were  :  G.  G. 
Little,  Pres.:  G.  B.  Wilson,  Vicc-Prrs.,  and  R.  Cibulsky,  Sec. 
The  present  membership  is  thirty-two.  Officers  :  W.  C. 
Rose,  G.  B.  Wilson  and  R.  Cibulsky. 

THE  CATHOLIC  BENEVOLENT  LEGION. 

The  Catholic  Benevolent  Legion  was  organized  Septem- 
ber 5,  1881.  The  admission  fees  and  quarterly  dues  are  low 
enough  to  be  within  the  means  of  every  sober,  industrious 
man,  and  the  grades  of  benefit  vary  from  $500  to  $5,000, 
with  proportionate  rates  of  assessment.  All  members  ad- 
mitted are  upon  the  equal  footing  of  being  in  good  health, 
and  the  rates  of  assessment  vary  according  to  the  age  of  each 
at  the  time  of  admission,  and  the  amount  of  benefit  he  may 
desire  paid  to  his  family  at  his  death. 

The  Catholic  Benevolent  Legion  is  composed  of  the  Su- 
preme Council  and  numerous  Subordinate  Councils. 

The  Supreme  Council  is  incorporated  and  authorized  to 
issue  certificates  as  a  beneficiary  association.  It  has  authority 
to  make  laws  for  the  government  of  the  entire  Legion.  It  is 
composed  of  the  charter  members,  and  will  be  increased  by 
representatives  from  State  Councils. 

A  State  Council  may  be  instituted  in  any  State  where  five 
or  more  Subordinate  Councils  are  in  good  standing  with  a 
membershiii  of  five  hundred. 

A  Subordinate  Council  is  composed  of  a  number  of  Roman 
Catholics,  not  less  than  seven,  who  receive  from  the  Supreme 
CouncU  a  charter  and  all  account  books,  supplies,  etc.,  re- 
quired. 

Each  applicant  must  pass  a  careful  examination  by  a 
physician  selected  b}-  the  Council  and  approved  by  the  Su- 
preme Council,  and  is  required  to  be  personally  acceptable  to 
the  members,  and  able  to  earn  a  living  for  himself  and  his 
family. 

COUNCILS. 

St.  John's  Chapel,  No.  1,  instituted  Oct.  12,  1881,  with  8 
charter  members.  Meets  in  Hall  in  new  Cathedral,  corner 
of  Greene  and  Vanderbilt  aves.  James  P.  Cunningham, 
Sec;  C.  H.  Johnson,  M.  D.     115  members. 


Sacred  Heart,  No.  2,  instituted  Oct.  14,  1881,  with  13 
charter  members.  In  Armory  Hall,  Clermont  ave.,  near 
Myrtle.  Eugene  J.  Cunningham,  Jr.,  Sec:  Thomas  P.  Norris, 
M.  D.     189  members. 

Our  Lady  of  Mercy,  No.  3,  instituted  Nov.  20,  1881,  with 
14  cliarter  members.  In  school-room  opjjosite  the  church, 
Debevoise  place,  near  DeKalb  ave.  John  T.  Breen,  Sec;  Jos. 
A.  Kene,  M.  D.     64  members. 

Madison,  No.  4,  instituted  Nov.  10,  1881,  with  17  charter 
members.  In  Hall  adjoining  Church  of  the  Nativity,  Madi- 
son St.,  near  Classon  ave.  P.  J.  Donnelly,  Sec;  Joseph  M. 
Everett,  M.  D.     90  members. 

St.  Joseph's,  No.  5,  instituted  Nov.  30,  1881,  with  22  char- 
ter members.  School-room,  677  Dean  st.  William  J.  Kelly, 
Sec:  Jno.  J.  McLaughlin,  M.  D.     118  members. 

Transfiguration,  No.  6,  instituted  Jan.  22,  1882,  with  21 
charter  members.  Hall,  No.  136  Broadway,  E.  D.  Daniel  J. 
Scully,  Sec;  Jos.  E.  Smith,  M.  D.     137  members. 

St.  Patrick's,  No.  7,  instituted  Jan.  26,  1882,  with  14 
charter  members.  In  St.  Patrick's  Academy,  Kent  ave., 
near  Willoughby.  Jno.  T.  Sullivan,  Sec;  C.  H.  Johnson,  M.  D. 
79  members. 

St.  John  the  Baptist,  No.  8,  instituted  Feb.  10,  1882,  with 
13  charter  members.  In  College  Hall,  cor.  Willoughby  and 
Lewis  aves.  Walter  P.  Walsh,  Sec  ;  Wm.  H.  Harlin,  M.  D. 
57  members. 

Concord,  No.  9,  instituted  April  13,  1882,  with  25  charter 
members.  Granada  Hall,  Myrtle  ave.,  near  Bridge  st.  John 
F.  Frost,  ,S'('C. :  John  Griffin,  M.  D.     89  members. 

Bedford,  No.  10,  in.stituted  April  16,  1882,  with  11  charter 
members.  Hall  of  St.  Teresa's  Church,  cor.  Classon  ave.  and 
Butler  St.  Patrick  <.juinn,  Sec.;  John  J.  McLaughlin,  M.  D. 
51  members. 

Union,  No.  11,  instituted  May  16,  1882,  with  18  charter 
members.  St.  Boniface  Hall.  John  E.  Bailly,  Sec;  Jos.  M. 
Everett,  M.  D.     88  members. 

South  Brooklyn,  No.  15,  instituted  August  8,  1882,  with  18 
charter  members.  Hall,  cor.  Carroll  and  Columbia  sts. 
Amiis  Hague,  Sec;  Thos.  P.  Corbally,  M.  D.     65  members. 

St.  Boniface,  No.  23,  instituted  Jan.  7,  188.3,  with  19  char- 
ter members.  Hall,  Willoughby  St.,  near  Duffield.  George 
C.  Hessel,  Sec;  John  J.  McLaughlin,  M.  D.     57  ]uembers. 

Leonard,  No.  26,  instituted  Jan.  28,  1883,  with  25  charter 
members.  National  Hall,  Grand  st. ,  bet.  10th  and  11th  sts. 
William  A.  Doran,  Sec:  Henry  J.  Hesse,  M.  D.     94  members. 

St.  Michael's,  No.  28,  instituted  Feb.  11,  1883,  with  11 
charter  memliers.  Vestry  of  church,  4th  ave.  and  42d  st. 
James  McDevitt,  Sec. ;  Jeremiah  Phelan,  M.  D.  36  mem- 
bers. 

St.  Vincent  de  Paul,  No.  30,  instituted  March  18,  1888, 
with  17  charter  members.  Hall  of  church.  North  6th  st., 
near  5th  st.  John  W.  Kelly,  Sec;  Charles  F.  Newman, 
M.  D.     31  members. 

Central,  No.  37,  instituted  July  13,  1883,  with  9  charter 
members.  St.  Boniface  Hall,  Willoughby  st.,  near  Duffield. 
Thomas  F.  Reilly,  Sec;  Joseph  F.  O'Connell,  M.  D. 

St.  Mary's,  No.  49,  instituted  Nov.  25,  1883,  with  11  char- 
ter members.  378  Hamilton  ave.  Simon  H.  Smith,  Prc.s'.; 
Jos.  V.  Scully,  Sec;  C.  F.  McGuire,  M.  D. 

Sylvester,  No.  56,  organized  Jan.  13,  1884,  with  15  charter 
meml)ers.  Meetings  at  Hall  of  Sts.  Peter  aud  Paul's  Church, 
Brooklyn,  E.  D.     Charles  W.  Goulding,  Sec. 

The  Loyola  Union  was  organized  in  May,  1882,  with  a 
membership  of  50,  which  has  increased  to  100.  For  the  first 
year  the  Union  had  no  permanent  place  of  abode,  but  in  May, 
1883,   it  secured  a  tine  building  at  144  South  Fourth  street. 


BENEFICENT  AND   SOCIAL    ORGANIZATIONS. 


1357 


The  new  home  is  a  large  and  roomy  3-story  brick  building, 
35  by  60  feet.  The  building  was  renovated  and  improved  at 
considerable  ex])en8e.  The  basements  are  used  as  billiard- 
rooms,  and  the  parlors  for  receptions.  The  by-laws  prohibit 
the  sale  or  use  of  intoxicating  liquors  on  the  premises.  The 
President  is  Mr.  John  C.  Kelly,  and  the  Spiritual  Director  is 
Rev.  S.  Malone. 


THE  CATHOLIC  KNIGHTS  OF  AMERICA. 

Brooklyn  Branch,  No.  186,  was  org.  April  1,  1880,  and  in- 
corp.  under  Kentucky  State  Laws;  the  object  of  this  frater- 
nity is  to  unite  CathoHcs  and  give  them  moral  as  well  as 
material  assistance  in  case  of  need.  The  original  membership 
of  this  Branch  was  9;  the  present  97.  The  original  Officers 
were:  R.  A.  Davis,  Pres.;  Wm.  T.  McKnight,  Vice-Pres.;  Jno. 
F.  Murtagh,  Sec. :  Jno.  Devany,  Treas.  The  present  Officers 
are:  Jos.  P.  Clarke,  Pres.;  Jas.  M.  Judge,  Vice-Pres. ;  Thos.  J. 
Power,  Sec.;  Fi-ancis  Hunt,  Treas.  .f  2,000  is  paid  at  the  death 
of  each  member  to  his  heirs. 

St.  Anthony's  Branch  was  instituted  in  November,  1882. 
The  original  membership  was  18;  the  Officers:  P.  W.  Bra- 
zill,  J.  Hynes,  John  Lamb  and  Thos.  Dolan.  The  present 
membership  is  75;  officered  by  the  original  Board. 

St.  James'  Branch,  instituted  June  22,  1882,  under  State 
Laws  of  Kentucky,  with  10  members;  present  No.,  25.  First 
Officers:  James  Smith,  Pres.;  John  Reid,  X^ice-Pres.;  Chas. 
J.  Curran,  Sec;  John  J.  Casey,  Treas.;  James  Smith,  Pres., 
1883.  Present  Officers:  John  Reid,  Pres.;  John  Donlan, 
Vice-Pres.;  John  J.  Casey,  Sec;  Patrick  Brady,  Treas. 

United  Order  Golden  Cross,  G.  T.— Social  and  beneficent, 
org.  Jan.  12,  1881;  incorp.  under  State  Laws  of  Tenn.,  with 
33  members;  present  No.,  65.  First  Officers:  Jas.  MoElhin- 
ney,  Pres.;  Isaac  Ammerman,  Sec;  Danl.  W.  Holmes,  Fin. 
Sec;  W.  R.  Clayton,  Treas.  First  officer  of  each  succeeding 
Board  up  to  the  present  time:  Jas.  McElhinney,  Jas.  H.  Pol- 
hemus,  Jos.  McKinney,  C.  J.  Prehn,  Jas.  McElhinney  and  J. 
J.  Daily.  Present  Officers:  J.  J.  Daily,  Pres.;  E.  Malmar, 
Rec  Sec;  E.  E.  Malmar,  Fin.  Sec;  Wesley  Sherman,  Treas. 


JEWISH. 

INDEPENDENT  ORDER  B'NAI  B'RITH. 

This  is  a  secret  Jewish  order,  under  the  jurisdiction 
of  the  Grand  Lodge.  Its  cliief  object  is  beneficent,  pay- 
ing to  the  heirs  or  widow  of  a  member  deceased,  $1,000, 
inside  of  30  days,  and  $5.00  weekly  to  any  member, 
rich  or  poor,  if  sick  or  unable  to  attend  his  business. 

Beni  Scholum  Society,  was  instituted  in  Brooklyn,  Maj'SO, 
1875.  The  original  membership  was  40;  First  Officers:  L. 
Hofheimer,  Pres.;  Geo.  Falk,  Vice-Pres.;  S.  Salomon,  Sec;  L. 
Hirschfeld,  Treas.  The  present  membership  is  108,  officered 
by  B.  Crones,  I.  Dietz,  S.  Salomon,  N.  Hess. 


Hillel  Lodge,  No.  28,  was  instituted  in  Brooklyn,  E.'d., 
January  8d,  1864,  and  is  a  branch  of  the  Grand  Lodge  of 
B'nai  B'rith.  The  endowment  i)aid  by  this  Lodge  on  the 
death  of  a  member  is  .$1,000,  and  .|5.00  weekly  during  sickness. 
The  original  membership  was  30;  the  Officers:  Ernst 
Nathan,  Pres.;  Morris  Adler,  Vice-Pres.;  Louis  Long,  Sec; 
Abraham  Strauss,  Treas.  The  present  membership  is  173, 
officered  by  Abraham  Strauss,  S.  Dresdner,  I.  Blum  and  Her- 
man Nevs'man. 

Samuel,  No.  63,  was  organized  March  5,  1865.  Tlie  first 
Officers:  David  Koehler,  Pres.;  George  Falk,  Vice-Pres.; 
M.  Katzenberg,  Cor.  Sec;  Julius  Glogan,  Fin.  Sec;  Morris 
Adler,  I'reas.;  W.  Schellenberg,  Inside  auardian;  J.  Morris, 
Outside  Guardian.  The  original  membership  was  18,  the 
number  at  present,  179.  The  Society  meets  at  rooms  which 
they  have  occupied  for  fourteen  years  in  the  Halsey  Build- 
ing, 371  Fulton  street.  Present  Officers  are :  Emanuel 
Cohen,  P?-es.;  David  Engel,  Vice-Pres.;  Rudolph  Heineman, 
Cor.  Sec;  Simon  Wolf,  Fin.  Sec;  David  Stern,  Treas.;  S. 
Gunzberger,  Inside  Guardian;  Raphael  Strauss,  Outside 
Guardian.  This  Lodge  stands  very  high,  socially  and  finan- 
cially, having  a  cash  balance  in  the  treasury,  to-day  of 
17,500. 

The  Bushwick  German  Mutual  Independent  Sick  Benefit 
Society  was  incorporated  January  7,  1884,  by  the  following: 
J.  Steger,  George  Leykun,  Joseph  Lindauer,  George  Lampert, 
George  Sehlitz,  George  H.  Hammer,  Carl  Bertenheider,  John 
Nuetzel,  Jacob  Bungert,  Peter  Braby,  and  John  Bleymueller. 
Officers:  J.  Steger,  Pres.;  George  Leykun,  Vice-Pres.; 
Jacob  Heibs,  Treas.;  J.  Fettinger,  Fin.  Sec;  J.  Lindauer, 
Rec  Sec;  and  Julius  Dewall,  George  H.  Hammer,  and 
Nicholas  Braby,  Trustees.  There  are  about  sixty  members  in 
the  organization,  and  the  meeting-place  is  at  the  corner  of 
Central  avenue  and  Troutmann  street. 

The  Erin  Fraternal  Beneficial  Association,  chartered  in 
1855,  and  having  an  exclusively  Irish  membership,  is  designed 
to  unite  all  classes  of  Irishmen  in  one  common  bond  of  amity 
and  peace,  burying  forever  in  the  feeling  of  kindness  and 
charity,  all  sectional  and  traditional  enmities,  lending  mutual 
support  to  each  other,  as  sojourners  in  a  strange  land.  The 
Shamrock  Benevolent  Society,  organized  in  1841,  and  char- 
tered May  5,  1848,  was  composed  of  Irishmen,  associated  for 
the  purpose  of  mutual  assistance  and  relief.  The  Emmett 
Benevolent  Society,  organized  1847,  chartered  May  8,  1848, 
had  for  its  object  the  relief  of  its  sick  or  infirm,  and  the 
burial  of  its  deceased  members,  and  the  wives  of  its  mem- 
bers. Connected  with  this  society,  was  a  Widows'  and 
Orphans'  Fund,  accruing  from  an  annual  festival,  and  a 
small  monthly  tax  upon  each  member,  the  proceeds  of  which 
were  especially  appropriated  to  the  relief  of  the  widows  and 
orjihans  of  deceased  members  of  the  society. 


HOTELS  UND  BSTHING  ESTABLISHMENTS 


KINGS     COUNTY 


HOTELS,  OLD  AND  NEW. 

HOSPITALITY  among  the  early  settlers  of  Brook- 
lyn was  so  general  and  travelers  so  few,  that  no 
hotels  were  ei-ected  until  more  than  one  hundred 
years  after  the  first  settlement.  In  1746  the 
corporation  of  New  York  city  erected  a  ferry  house  on 
the  "old  ferry  road,"  partly  on  the  site  of  the  present 
Nos.  19,  21  and  23  Fulton  street,  which  was  burned  in 
1748.  Its  successor  was  the  "ferry  tavern"  at  the  foot 
of,  and  on  the  northerly  side  of  the  "old  road,"  (now 
Fulton  street,  near  Front,  to  which  point  the  East 
river  then  rose  at  high  water).  It  was  a  large  and 
glpomj^  stone  building,  about  sixty  feet  square,  two 
stories  high,  standing  in  such  a  way,  cornerwise,  as  to 
leave  only  thirty-five  and  a  half  feet  for  the  width  of 
the  street  at  that  point.  Being  owned  by  the  corpora- 
tion of  New  York,  it  was  known  as  the  "  Corporation 
House;"  also  as  the  "Coffin  House,"  from  the  circum- 
stance of  having  a  coffin  hoisted  upon  its  flag-staff  at 
one  time.  It  had  been  noted  as  a  tavern  for  thirty 
years  before  the  Revolution.  Its  last  incumbent,  be- 
fore the  Battle  of  Brooklyn,  was  Captain  Adolph 
Waldron,  who  was  also  the  "  ferry  master." 

Being  an  active  patriot,  he  was,  of  course,  compelled 
to  leave  during  the  British  occupation.  He  was 
succeeded  by  Charles  Loosely  and  Thomas  Elms, 
thorough  loyalists,  who  named  the  old  tavern  "  The 
King's  Head,"  fitted  it  up  anew,  and  catered  so  suc- 
cessfully to  the  taste  of  their  military  and  royalist  pa- 
trons that  it  became  a  popular  resort  for  army  officers 
and  the  fashionables  of  the  day.  Lieut.  Anbury,  in  a 
letter  to  a  friend  in  England,  dated  New  York,  Oct. 
30,  1781,  refers  to  it  thus:  "On  crossing  the  East 
River  from  New  York,  yo\i  land  at  Brooklyn,  which  is 
a  scattered  village,  consisting  of  a  few  houses.  At 
this  place  is  an  excellent  tavern,  where  parties  are 
made  to  go  and  eat  fish;  the  landlord  of  which  has 
saved  an  immense  fortune  during  the  war."  This 
head-quarters  of  royalists  and  tories  was  subsequently 
known  by  the  name  "  Brooklyn  Hall."     Other  hostel- 


ries  were  established  in  time.  In  the  JV.  Y.  Mercury 
of  May  9,  1774,  John  Cornell  announces  that  "he  has 
opened  a  tavern  on  Tower  Hill,  Brooklyn,  near  the 
new  ferry,  called  '  St.  George's.'  Companies  will  be 
entertained  if  they  bring  their  own  liquor,  and  may 
dress  turtle,  etc.,  on  the  very  lowest  terms."  Tower 
Hill  was  a  slight  eminence  on  what  is  now  Columbia 
Heights,  between  Middagh  and  Cranberry  streets. 

Benjamin  Smith's  Inn  was  a  large  stone  building  on 
the  east  side  of  the  road,  opposite  the  old  "Corpora- 
tion House."  It  was  a  two-story  stone  building,  with 
bar  and  sitting  room  in  the  corner,  and  a  swinging 
sign  before  the  door.  It  was  a  noted  stopping-place 
for  Long  Island  Quakers;  was  also  the  place  of  deposit 
for  the  New  York  papers,  which  were  here  delivered 
to  subscribers. 

In  1782  John  Ross  opened  a  tavern  next  to  Loosely's, 
and  "  laid  in  an  assortment  of  the  best  Liquors."  On 
the  coi'ner  of  Elizabeth  street  stood  a  very  old  brick 
building,  occupied  by  Daniel  Mott  as  a  tavern,  which 
was  burned  in  1814.  Next  above  Smith's  Inn  was 
Martin  Boerum's  tavern,  afterward  kept  by  John  Hun- 
ter, a  rough,  jovial  man,  whose  stand  became  head- 
quarters for  his  comrades  and  military  acquaintances. 
Nearly  opposite  Front  street,  stood  Selah  Smith's  tav- 
ern, a  double  frame  building,  built  in  1780.  On  the 
corner  near  the  ferry,  now  occupied  by  Marston's  coal 
yard,  was  originally  Richard  Mott's  tavern,  afterwards 
kept  by  Townsend  &  Cox,  Joel  Conklin,  and  Daniel 
Wright  successively,  and  was  a  general  stopping-place 
for  the  habitues  of  the  ferry.  On  the  corner  of  Fulton 
and  Water  streets  stood  a  tavern  kept  by  Capt.  King, 
then  by  Mr.  Barnum,  afterwards  by  A.  Yung  and  G. 
C.  Langdon.  It  was  succeeded  by  the  present  Frank- 
lin House,  No.  1  Fulton  street.  In  the  upper  part  of 
the  old  hotel  was  a  large  ball-room,  which  was  also 
used  by  Elias  Hicks,  the  Quaker,  for  preaching.  Next 
above  was  Coe  S.  Downing's  tavern  and  stage-house, 
who  was  as  large  in  proportion  as  his  immense  sign, 
that  projected  over  the  sidewalk.      The  second  door 


HOTELS  AND   BATHINi^^   ESTABLISHMENTS. 


1359 


above  stood  Samuel  Carman's  tavern,  who  was  re- 
garded as  an  oracle,  especially  on  "horse"  matters.  A 
little  above  Orange  street,  in  1816,  was  "Biddy" 
Stephenson's  liquor  saloon  and  "  Ice  Cream  Garden." 
After  the  death  of  her  husband,  William,  who  had 
kept  the  "  Auld  Lang  Syne,"  or  Washington  Inn,  on 
the  opposite  side  of  the  way,  she  removed  the  business 
and  the  sign  to  the  west  side  of  the  street;  there  town, 
village  and  public  meetings  were  often  held.  A  little 
distance  south  of  Love  Lane  was  Lawrence  Brower's 
tavern,  called  "  Mount  Pleasant  Garden,"  which  was 
also  resorted  to  for  popular  gathei'ings.  The  elections 
were  then  held  for  three  successive  days,  either  at 
Devoe's  "  Black  Horse  "  tavern  on  Fulton  street,  or  at 
Duflon's  Military  Garden.  A  little  north  of  the  pres- 
ent Mechanics'  Bank,  on  the  corner  of  Montague  street, 
stood  Mrs.  Well's  "  Bee  Hive."  Near  Washington 
and  Johnson  streets  was  Dempsey's  hotel,  "  The  Vil- 
lage Ganlen,"  whore  the  young  fellows  used  to  "  shoot 
turkey."  Whitehead  Howard's  tavern  was  on  the 
southwest  corner  of  Water  and  Main  streets;  and  on 
the  opposite  corner  Van  Winkle's  tavern  and  grocery. 
On  a  high  hill  near  the  present  Bridge  street,  was 
"  Mount  Prospect  Tavern,"  where  the  New  York  row- 
dies used  to  hold  high  carnival.  On  the  southwest 
corner  of  Water  and  Little  street  was  Scott's  tavern, 
kept  by  his  widow  for  many  years  after  his  death. 
John  Little  built  a  small  tavern  close  to  the  Navy 
Yard  entrance.  In  1831,  when  the  number  of  families 
in  Brooklyn  was  estimated  at  1,780,  there  was  one 
tavern  for  every  ten  families,  110  licensed  taverns  and 
68  unlicensed.  The  famous  restaurant  kept  by  John 
Joseph,  on  the  northeast  corner  of  Prospect  street  and 
Stuart's  alley,  might  appropriately  be  mentioned  in 
this  connection.  He  kept  the  best  Heidsieck,  and  fried 
oysters  in  unequalled  style.  On  what  is  now  Furman 
street,  was  a  tavern  kept  by  an  Englishman,  with  this 
inscription: 

"  This  sign  hangs  high;  it  hinders  none; 
Come,  take  a  nip,  and  travel  on." 

But  the  most  celebrated  resort  for  many  years  was 
the  Military  Garden,  on  the  site  of  the  present  Court- 
house ;  it  was  originally  occupied  by  Thomas  Coe,  a 
blacksmith,  but  in  1810,  passed  into  the  hands  of  Col. 
Greene,  by  whom  it  was  named;  it  reached  its  greatest  ex- 
cellence while  under  the  control  of  Mons.  John  Francois 
Louis  Du  Flon.  There  was  a  large  and  fine  hall,  for 
balls,  concerts,  and  traveling  shows,  with  a  pleasant 
garden  adjoining,  tastefully  adorned  with  flowers  and 
shrubbery.  Du  Flon  died  in  1853,  and  the  garden  fell 
into  decay;  all  traces  were  removed  in  1862  to  make 
way  for  the  County  Court-house. 

With  the  progress  of  years  and  the  growth  of  the 
city,  saloons  for  the  retailing  of  liquor  came  into  ex- 
istence, and  supplanted  the  old  taverns,  which  fast 
disappeared.  The  hotels  now  existing  in  the  city  are 
as  follows: 


The  Mansion  House,  on  Hicks  street,  near  Pierre- 
pont,  was  built  in  1833  or  '34,  by  one  of  the  Cornells, 
for  a  Female  Seminary.  It  then  comprised  the  old 
portion  of  the  building  which  stands  back  from  the 
street.  In  1838  or '40,  it  was  opened  as  a  hotel  by 
Edward  R.  Yale,  who  conducted  it  successfully  for  a 
great  many  years.  In  1872,  Daniel  Buhler  rented  it, 
and  remained  until  1874.  Since  that  time  it  has  been 
in  the  hands  of  various  lessees;  Messrs.  Peed  and  Van 
Cleef  having  been  the  owners  of  the  lease  since  1882. 
It  is  owned  by  one  of  the  heirs  of  Mr.  Yale.  The 
large  addition  containing  the  dining-room  was  erected 
in  1855. 

The  Clinton  Hoxjsk,  Fulton  street,  near  Clinton,  was 
built  in  1846,  and  has  been  continuously  occupied  as  a 
hotel  since  that  time,  having  passed  through  many 
vicissitudes  under  many  owners. 


-III    IT  ^  > 


II 

il 

tj 


THE   PIBEEEPONT   HOUSE. 

The  PiERREPONT  House,  corner  of  Montague  and 
Hicks  streets,  was  erected  in  1853  by  Litchfield  and 
Ketcham,  and  was  opened  by  Russell  and  Chase,  in 
1854.  It  is  a  brick  structure,  about  75  by  90  feet,  six 
stories  in  height.  In  1857,  Chase  and  Whitney  fol- 
lowed, succeeded  by  Mr.  Burns,  in  1865,  and  by  D.  P. 
Peters  until  1868.  Wm.  J.  Ackerman  bought  it  in 
1868,  and  four  years  later,  C.  N.  Peed,  the  present 
proprietor,  purchased  and  now  conducts  it. 

The  Clarendon,  corner  of  Washington  and  John- 
son streets,  was  opened  as  a  restaurant  in  1873,  being 
connected  with  the  Brooklyn  Theatre,  and  was  con- 
ducted by  Hubel  for  a  number  of  years.  In  1883,  it 
passed  into  the  hands  of  its  present  proprietor,  and 
was  re-named.  Brooklyn  is  so  largely  a  city  of  homes, 
and  has  so  few  transient  visitors,  that  there  is  less 
need  of  large  hotels  than  in  other  cities,  as  New  York, 
the  principal  sojourning  point  for  strangers,  is  so  well 


1360 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


8upi)lied.  Measures  are  under  consideration  for  the 
erection  of  a  large  hotel  in  the  future,  but  no  definite 
location  has  been  selected  as  yet. 

The  Waldo  House,  est.  1877,  by  Waldo  E.  Fuller, 
at  corner  of  Hamilton  avenue  and  Union  street,  is  six 
stories  high,  with  basement,  with  accommodations  for 
100  guests,  and  is  the  only  hotel  m  this  part  of  the  city. 
Mr.  Fuller  was  born  in  Jersey  City  in  1856,  and  has 
been  a  resident  of  Brooklyn  for  fifteen  years. 


Charles  N.  Peed  is,  in  ovary  sense  of  the  word,  a  Brook- 
lynite,  for  Brooklyn  is  liis  birthplace,  and  here  he  was  edu- 
cated, and  here  he  has  spent  his  life.  He  began  his  educa- 
tion in  the  schools  of  Brooklyn,  the  one  principally  presided 
over  by  Mr.  Adrian  Hegeiiian.  whose  school  was  kept  in  the 
old  building,  more  recently  known  as  "  Gothic  Hall."  Here 
young  Peed  attended  school  until  he  was  fourteen  years. of 
age,  attaining  a  good  practical  education.  In  1844,  he  en- 
tered the  office  of  the  Brooklyn  Daily  Advertiser,  as  an  office 
boy.  This  paper  was  started  in  January  of  that  year  to  ad- 
vocate the  election  of  Henry  Clay  as  President.  In  this  it 
did  good  service.  In  this  office  young  Peed  passed  through 
all  the  stages  of  oflBce-work — as  compositor,  pressman,  fore- 
man of  job  office,  police  and  city  reporter,  and  then  in 
charge  of  the  office  as  cashier  and  book-keeper. 


His  connection  with  the  Advertiser  continued  till  1851, 
when  its  senior  proprietor  and  editor,  H.  A.  Lees,  died.  Close 
application  and  undeviatiug  attention  to  his  business  having 
impaired  Mr.  Peed's  health,  he  severed  his  connection  with 
that  journal.  During  his  engagement  with  it,  he  success- 
fully effected  a  plan  to  send  boys  to  the  ferries  for  the  sale  of 
newspapers.  He  was  the  originator  of  this  plan.  He  also 
was  the  first  person  who  introduced  and  operated  a  Card 
Press  on  Long  Island.  He  purchased  a  "  Yankee "  Press, 
with  a  platen  (ixS,  from  the  inventor  of  the  Gordon  Press. 
This  purchase  was  made  for  doing  the  small  work  of  the 
office,  all  of  which  had  pre\iously  been  done  in  New  York. 
Mr.  Peed's  employers  having  refused  to  purchase  this  press, 
he  assumed  the  responsibility  and  i)urchased  it  with  his  own 
means,  with  the  understanding  that  he  was  to  operate  it  on 
his  own  account,  after  regular  working  hours.  This  invest- 
ment and  venture  proved  eminently  successful,  so  much  so, 
that  Mr.  Peed  has  always  deemed  it  the  starting  point  or 
entering  wedge  of  his  financial  life. 

On  leaving  the  office  of  the  Advertiser,  Mr.  Peed  entered 
into  the  real  estate  business,  as  a  partner  in  the  old  and 
well-known  firms  of  Stone  &  Sothen,  and  Bage  &  Sothen, 
where  he  continued  until  1855,  when  his  relations  with  them 
terminated,  and  the  firm  of  Peed  and  Cole,  real  estate  and 
general  auctioneers,  was  formed.  Mr.  Peed  continued  this 
business  relation  till  1872,  when  it  was  dissolved,  and  he 
purchased  the  interest  of  W.  J.  Anderson  in  the  Pierrepont 


HOTELS  AND   BATHING  ESTABLISHMENTS. 


1361 


House,  now,  in  every  sense,  a  flrst-class  hotel,  and  as  such, 
widely  and  favorably  known  to  the  public.  But,  when  Mr. 
Feed's  connection  with  the  house  commenced,  it  was  very 
much  run  down.  It  was  not  long,  however,  before  the  exe- 
cutive a)>ility,  the  forecast,  energy,  and  popular  manner  of 
Mr.  Peed  began  to  effect  a  most  salutary  change  in  its  every 
department,  placing  it  on  a  remunerative  basis,  and  finally 
bringing  it  up  to  the  high  standard  we  have  described — the 
leading  hotel  of  Brooklyn. 

In  1883,  Mr.  Peed  leased  the  Mansion  House,  in  Brooklyn, 
favorably  known  to  the  travelling  public,  which  he  is  con- 
ducting in  connection  with  Mr.  John  C.  Van  Cleaf,  the 
former  gentlemanly  clerk  of  the  Pierrepont  House. 

Mr.  Peed,  in  all  the  vicissitudes  of  his  business  career,  has 
been  guided  by  a  high  sense  of  honor,  by  a  business  sagacity 
which  has  given  him  a  very  high  rank  in  the  business  circles 
of  Brooklyn,  and  an  honorable  position  among  its  citizens. 

BATHS. 

To  Charles  H.  Shepakd,  M.  D.,  is  due  the  honor 

of  first  introducing  into  Brooklyn  the  Turkish  Batli, 

in    October,    1863.      The   first   month    only   50  baths 


were  given,  but  during  the  first  year  the  number 
reached  2,000,  and  the  fifth  year  it  had  grown  to 
15,000.  Dr.  Shepard  still  conducts  his  establishment 
at  81  and  83  Cohnnbia  Heights,  where  the  several 
forms  of  Turkish,  Russian,  Roman  and  Electric  baths 
are  given,  including  massage,  according  to  the  most 
approved  and  enjoyable  methods. 

Turkish,  Russian  and  Electric  Baths,  est.  at 
34  Clinton  street,  April  IV,  1880.  A.  L.  Wood,  M.  D., 
the  projector,  designer  and  physician  of  the  institution, 
has  had  the  most  extended  and  extensive  experience  in 
the  administration  of  the  Turkish  Bath  of  any  man  in 
America.  In  the  year  1861,  he  was  connected  with  the 
first  Turkish  Bath  ever  built  in  this  country,  in  Boston. 
He  afterwards  visited  and  studied  the  best  establish- 
ments in  Europe;  erected  baths  in  Providence,  Mon- 
treal and  other  cities;  and,  in  1864,  built  the  first,  and 
for  four  years  the  only  Turkish  Bath  in  New  York 
city. 


THE    COUNTY    JAIL    IN    RAYMOND    STREET.* 

Addenda  to  Bench  and  Bar  of  Kings  Countij  (%mge  341). 


The  Jail  in  Raymond  street  having  been  repeatedly 
condemned  as  unsafe  by  the  Grand  Jury,  the  Super- 
visors were  urged  to  erect  a  new  one  in  its  place.  At 
a  meeting  of  the  Board  of  Supervisors,  August  22,  1877, 
a  resolution  was  passed  appropriating  |25,000  for  a 
site  for  the  Jail.  With  the  money  so  appropriated 
they  purchased  from  the  Brooklyn  City  Hospital  the 
land  on  which  the  new  Jail  stands.  On  the  30th  of 
December,  1878,  the  County  Treasurer  was  authorized 
to  borrow  $245,000,  and  to  advertise  for  proposals. 
The  Committee  on  Jail,  consisting  of  A.  Gubner,  Peter 
Van  Cott,  James  Hyde,  Daniel  Ryan  and  Alexander 
Walker,  at  the  same  meeting,  reported  on  proposals 
for  finishing  one  wing  to  the  proposed  new  Jail  under 
the  plans  of  William  A.  Mundell,  architect;  the  mason 
and  plumbing  work  was  given- to  Freel  &  McNamee 
for  1200,000;  heating  to  W.  N.  Abbott,  for  $16,500; 
H.  L.  Wilson,  for  concrete  work,  $15,076.50,  and  the 
Yale  Lock  Company,  for  locks,  $7,125.  A  contract 
was  directed  to  be  made  in  accordance  with  these  bids. 


*  Condensed  from  article  on  Court-Houses  and  Jails  of  Kings  County, 
in  Advance  for  January,  IHSi,  by  Steplien  M.  Ostrander,  Esq. 


On  March  20,  1879,  the  County  Treasurer  was  directed 
to  issue  bonds  for  $245,000,  and  May  1,  1879,  the  same 
were  issued.  On  August  5,  1879,  the  Board  directed 
the  County  Treasurer  to  issue  bonds  to  raise  $17,000 
for  extra  plumbing.  On  the  22d  of  April,  1880,  an 
official  visit  was  made  by  the  Board  of  Supervisors, 
and  almost  immediately  thereafter  the  prisoners  were 
transferred  from  the  old  Jail  and  the  new  one  was  oc- 
cupied. 

In  building  the  Jail  there  was  a  very  singular  over- 
sight on  the  part  of  the  architect  or  Supervisors. 
When  it  was  completed  there  was  no  front  door  to  the 
building,  and  afterward  a  resolution  was  passed  appro- 
priating out  of  the  unexpended  balance  to  the  credit 
of  the' Jail  account  the  sum  of  $1,850  to  cut  out  and 
make  a  door  in  the  place  where  the  door  ought  to  have 
been. 

The  county  realized  $5,798.30  premiums  on  the 
bonds  issued  for  the  Jail.  This  speaks  well  for  the 
credit  of  the  county.  The  amount  unexpended  of  the 
appropriations  when  the  Jail  was  completed  was 
$405.18.  The  total  cost  of  the  Jail  was  as  follows 
(including  $25,000  for  land  purchase):    $320,393.12. 


GENERAL  TRADE  AND  MERCHANDISE 


Brooklyn    and   Kings   County. 


DRY  GOODS. 

IT  is  now  difficult  to  trace  the  early  history  of  the 
older  lines  of  the  retail  dry  goods  trade  in  this 
city,  owing  to  the  lapse  of  time  and  the  loss  of  re- 
liable information  concerning  them.  The  first 
Brooklyn  directory  published  in  1796,  gives  the  names  of 
Clows  and  Rhodes  and  Joseph  Fox  as  "  storekeepers  " 
in  the  "Main  Road;"  Jacob  Eagles,  Joseph  Field, 
grocers,  Main  Road;  Kyd  &  Jedlye,  grocers,  corner  of 
Main  and  New  Ferry  Roads;  Gilbert  Van  Mater, 
grocer.  Old  Ferry  Dock.  In  1801,  Furman  ik  Sands 
advertised  their  "  store  "  at  the  New  Ferry.  In  1806, 
Thomas  Langdon  was  dealer  in  boots  and  shoes,  and 
Henry  Hexolett  kept  a  stock  of  general  merchandise  near 
the  Old  Ferry. 

In  the  first  number  of  the  Long  Island  Star,  1809, 
Thomas  Morton  advertised  his  dry  goods  kept  in  the 
store  of  the  late  Mrs.  Brasher.  In  1810,  was  the  disso- 
lution of  the  firm  of  Rapmlye  &  Mooney,  after  which 
Abraham  Rapalye  kept  the  stock  of  dry  goods  on  Old 
FerryRoad,  and  ilffflry  il/oowey  retained  the  "millenary 
business,"  next  door. 

In  1811,  Abraham  Remsen  had  his  dry  goods  store 
at  the  corner  of  Fulton  and  Front  streets.  Henry  Ald- 
loorth  was  at  the  corner  of  Main  and  Middagh  streets, 
from  1817  till  after  1820.  At  about  the  same  time,  Mrs. 
J.  M.  Williams  and  Williams  &  JVichols.  In  1823,  we 
find  Henry  Dikeman  at  45  Fulton,  Hewlett  &  Allen,  46 
Fulton,  and  the  next  year,  E.  A.  Clowes,  also  Rushmore 
&  Snyder.  Dikeman  ife  Covert  came  the  year  following. 
In  1825,  Joh7i  tfc  George  Halla,Ye  mentioned  among  the 
merchants.  A  few  years  later  Robert  Pettit  and  F.  L. 
Rushmore,  were  retailers  of  dry  goods,  the  former  on 
Main  street,  the  latter  on  Fulton.  In  1828,  Elijah 
Lewis,  Sr.,  opened  a  store  on  Fulton,  between  High  and 
Nassau  streets,  which  was  then  thought  too  far  up  town, 
and  he  afterward  moved  down  to  the  corner  of  Sands 
street,  where  he  remained  many  years.  Cyrus  Bill, 
father  of  Chas.  E.  Bill,  began  business  in  1833,  on  the 
opposite    corner   of  Sands  and  Fulton,  where  he  was 


afterwards  succeeded  by  Henry  P.  Morgan.  Plant  & 
Co.'s  store  in  1839,  was  at  136  Fulton.  John  Sinclair 
was  located  at  the  corner  of  Middagh  and  Fulton,  and 
A.  Buckley,  between  Middagh  and  Henry.  The  first 
jobber  in  Brooklyn,  T.  M.  Hall,  had  a  store  between 
Sands  and  Prospect  streets,  afterwards  at  Orange  street, 
where  he  carried  the  largest  stock  of  goods  in  the  vil- 
lage. Among  his  clerks  were  two  young  men,  Messrs. 
Journeay  and  Burnham.  Abram  Suttoii's  store  was 
opposite  Henry  street,  where  he  was  succeeded  by  Youtig 
S  Underhill.  Wm.  Hinmati  started  in  business  near 
Sands  street  in  1840.  Opposite  Cranberry  street  were 
Bennett  tt  Payne,  and  Merwin  &  Carpenter.  They 
were  succeeded  by  Stewart,  who  afterwards  went  into 
carpets,  now  HardenhergKs  establishment. 

All  of  these  firms  have  passed  away  with  the  changes 
of  time.  The  oldest  dry  goods  house  now  existing,  is 
that  of  A.  D.  Matthews,  which  was  started  in  1836,  at 
83  Main  street,  afterwards  removed  to  lower  Fulton, 
and  in  1873  to  their  present  location,  at  No.  398  Fulton. 
The  firm,  now  A.  D.  Matthews  ct  Son,  employs  about 
ninety  persons,  and  its  annual  sales  amount  to  1200,000 
and  upwards.  Soon  after  Elijah  Lewis,  Jr.,  went  into 
business  on  the  corner  of  Main  and  Sands  streets,  re- 
moving afterwards  to  273  Fulton.  Within  a  short  time 
after,  T.  A.  Newman  opened  a  store  on  Fulton,  which 
is  now  T.  A.  <&  L.  F.  Newman,  at  305  Fulton.  In 
1844,  Journeay  tfc  Burnham  who  had  been  clerks  with 
Hall,  opened  a  store  on  Atlantic  avenue,  and  in  1851, 
removed  to  their  present  location  at  No.  126.  They 
began  in  a  small  way,  with  one  salesman  and  one  boy, 
but  now  have  over  two  hundred  employees.  Their  trade 
has  always  been  confined  to  dry  goods  alone. 

Osborn  Horton  commenced  trade  about  the  same 
time  as  E.  Lewis,  Sr.,and  was  afterwards  succeeded  by 
his  son,  T.  K.  Horton,  on  Fulton  street,  below  Orange. 
Burned  out  in  the  great  fire,  he  removed  to  the  block 
above.  He  built  one  of  the  four-story  brown-stone  front 
stores,  between  Johnson  and  Tillary,  and,  a  number  of 
years  later,  removed  to  Fulton  street,  above  Smith. 


GENERAL  TRADE  AND  MERCHANDISE. 


1363 


WECHSLER   &    ABRAHAM'S    NEW   STORES. 

In  these  days  of  intense  rivalry  and  sharp  competition,  a 
successful  merchant  must  be  made  of  good  stuff.  This  ap- 
plies with  particular  force  to  a  firm  carrying  on  its  business  in 
a  large  and  prosperous  city,  where  rivals  are  those  with  the 
acutest  brains  and  largest  experience. 

Messrs.  Wechsler  &  Abraham,  Nos.  397-299  Fulton  street, 
Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  are  the  leading  and  most  successful  dry 
goods  merchants  in  our  city.  They  began  their  business 
here  in  1865,  in  their  present  location,  leasing  additional 
room  from  time  to  time,  until  they  now  occupy  from  Fulton, 
tlirough  to  Washington  street,  covering  an  area  of  30,000 
square  feet.  Their  new  building,  Nos.  433  to 433  Fulton  street, 
into  which  they  will  soon  remove,  will  have  145,000  square 
feet  of  flooring,  over  three  acres,  and  with  one  exception,  will 
be  the  largest  retail  exclusivel}'  dry  goods  establishment  in 
the  U.  S.  It  will  be  fitted  in  the  most  artistic  maimer  which 
modern  skill  and  taste  can  suggest.  It  will  have  two  passen- 
ger elevators,  and  the  grand  dome  will  be  superior  to  any- 
thing of  its  kind  in  the  country.  The  dimensitms  of  this  dry 
goods  palace  are  as  follows:  main  building,  133x300  feet,  and 
a  wing  ninning  to  Gallatin  Place;  six  floors,  each  35x100  feet; 
four  80-horse  power  engines,  placed  in  a  detached  engine- 
house,  will  supplj-  the  motive  power  for  the  elevators,  elec- 
tric lights,  machinery,  sewing  machines,  etc.  They  will  give 
active  employment  to  1,500  people. 

Jlessrs.  Wechsler  &  Abraham  have  great  faith  in  the  future 
of  Brooklyn,  and  in  this  confidence  are  ever  ready  to  invest 
capital  in  improvements,  and  additional  departments  to  their 
already  immense  stock.  Their  patrons  are  from  the  best  of  our 
county,  and  it  is  one  of  the  sights  of  the  city — an  inspection 
of  their  bewildering  assortment  of  a  fine  and  well-selected 
stock. 

Mr.  Wechsler  is  of  German  descent,  and  came  to  America 
in  1850,  and,  previous  to  starting  in  his  jjresent  location  was 
a  merchant  on  Myrtle  avenue. 

Mr.  Abraham  is  a  native  of  New  York;  after  receiving  a 
good  business  education,  he  entered  a  mercantile  house  in 
New  York  city.  On  reaching  his  majority  he  started  in  Brook- 
lyn,  and  although  his  first  venture  was  made  with   gold 


quoted  at  308,   and  the  market  declining,   it  proved  suc- 
cessful. 

Messrs.  Wechsler  &  Abraham  are  justly  ranked  among  the 
few  successful  merchants  of  the  country.  Honorable  and  fair 
in  all  their  dealings  with  the  public,  their  past  is  a  guarantee 
of  increased  prosperity  in  the  future. 

C.  M.  West,  251  Fulton  street.— In  1856,  G.  P.  Dickinson 
entered  the  dry  goods  trade  at  351  Fulton,  opposite  Pierrepont 
street.  In  a  year  he  associated  C.  M.  West,  under  the  name 
of  Dickinson  &  West,  which  business  relation  bsted  twenty- 
one  years.  Mr.  West  succeeded  to  the  business,  and  removed 
to  351  Fulton.  The  house  has  a  trade  in  dry  goods  strictly, 
and  now  has  a  stock  of  about  |90,000,  employing  25  men. 

Frederick  Loeser  &  Co.— This  house  was  founded  in  1860, 
by  Mr.  Loeser  and  Mr.  Moritz  Dinkelspiel,  who  began  business 
in  a  small  way,  at  No.  377  Fulton  street,  opening  there  a  stock 
of  worsteds,  embroideries  and  trimmings.  In  1863,  Mr.  J.W. 
Jones  entered  the  firm,  and  a  branch  store  was  opened  at  No. 
737  Broadway,  New  York.  Three  years  after,  Mr.  Loeser  sold 
his  interest  in  the  latter,  and  purchased  the  shares  of  his 
partners  in  Brooklyn,  then  introducing  a  general  line  of  dry 
goods.  In  1870,  the  store  was  removed  to  its  present  location, 
and  Mr.  Louis  Liebmann  was  admitted  to  partnership;  tlie 
firm  was  further  increased  by  the  addition  of  Messrs.  Her- 
mann Liebmann  and  Gustav  Loeser  in  1873  and  1875  resjiec- 
tively.  The  house  now  ranks  among  the  foremost  in  the  city; 
its  business  has  grown  to  vast  proportions  in  response  to  the 
constant  efforts  of  the  firm  to  meet  the  wants  of  the  public. 
A  verj'  heavy  stock  of  goods  is  carried,  while  the  annual  sales 
exceed  a  million  dollars,  giving  employment  to  700  per- 
sons. Mr.  Loeser's  portrait  and  biography  mil  be  found  on 
page  1104. 

J.  O'Brien.— In  1863,  J.  O'Brien.  W.  A.  Papen,  and  Julius 
Meyer,  established  themselves  in  the  dry  goods  business  at 
151  Atlantic  avenue,  under  the  firm  name  of  J.  O'Brien  & 
Co.  In  1879,  the  junior  partners  retired,  and  J.  O'Brien  suc- 
ceeded. He  now  occupies  five  continuous  stores  which  are 
filled  with  ail  extensive  lice  of  goods,  including  everything 
that  people  wear,  besides  carpets  and  upholstering  goods. 
Mr.  O'Brien  has  |300,000  capital  employed,  and  his  yearly 
sales  foot  up  to  nearly  three-quarters  of  a  million,  while  his 
employees  number  150. 

James  Thorburn. — Mr.  Tliorburn  commenced  in  St.  Louis 
in  1863,  in  the  dry  goods  trade.  Ten  years  later  he  removed 
to  Brooklyn,  and  became  one  of  the  firm  of  Porter  &  Thor- 
burn, on  Fulton  street.  In  1880,  he  established  himself  alone 
at  419  Fulton  street.  His  stock  contains  only  dry  goods, 
with  silks  and  dress  goods  a  specialty.  Thirty  men  are  em- 
ployed, and  the  annual  sales  reach  $335,000. 

S.  B.  Jones,  309  Fulton  street,  established  1864,  now  em- 
ploys from  75  to  100  persons,  and  manufactures  to  the 
amount  of  |50,000  annually,  with  annual  sales  of  |350,000. 

S.  Wechsler  &  Bro. — Samuel  and  Herman  Wechsler  en- 
tered the  mercantile  business  together  in  1868,  with  a  moder- 
ate capital.  After  occupying  several  different  locations  on 
Fulton  street,  they  are  now  at  393.  Their  stock  consists  of 
dry  goods,  manufactured  dresses,  cloaks,  underwear,  etc., 
which  are  made  up  for  the  firm,  under  its  immediate  direc- 
tion. The  capital  employed  in  business  is  $300,000,  and  some 
75  persons  are  retained  in  the  house,  besides  the  services  of 
300  sewing  women  outside. 


1364 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Among  the  other  prominent  firms  in  the  dry  goods 
line  are: 

H.  Batterman 041  Broadway. 

R.   G.  Collins 200  De  Kalb  ave. 

Jeremiah  Walsh 471  Manhattan  ave. 

H.   G.  Walters IBl  Atlantic  ave. 

Established  1872. 

T.  A.  &  F.  L.  Newman 305  Fulton  st. 

James  Haslehurst 689  St.  Mark's  Place. 

A.  M.  Jackson New  Lots. 

A.  C.  Keister Atlantic  ave.,  E.  N.  Y. 

Edward  Milner 208  Rodney  St. 

W.  S.  Purdy 56  6th  st. 

D.  E.  Williams 267  Canal  st. 

J.  F.  White 127  Smith  st. 

J.  P.  Friedman New  Lots. 


On  October  17,  1864,  he  was  united  by  marriage  to  Miss  E. 
Matilda,  youngest  daughter  of  Dr.  Robert  Waters,  of  New 
Utrecht,  L.  I.  There  were  born  to  this  marriage  six  children 
— three  of  whom  are  now  living — the  eldest  a  son,  and  two 
daughters;  J.  E.,  the  son;  daughters,  Jessie  M.  and  Mabel  M. 

In  1866,  he  became  a  resident  of  Brooklyn,  and  engaged  in 
the  floral  business  adjoining  Greenwood  Cemetery,  his  pres- 
ent place  of  business.  It  is,  perhaps,  needless  to  add  that  INIr. 
Weir  has  been  eminently  successful  as  a  florist.  The  thou- 
sands upon  thousands  of  people  who  annually  visit  that  beauti- 
ful "city  of  the  dead,"  Greenwood,  and  who  pass  Mr.  Weir's 
charming  conservatory,  redolent  with  the  perfumes  of  the 
rarest  exotics  and  native  flowers,  find  this  one  of  the  chief 
attractions  of  the  Cemetery,  which  never  fails  to  elicit  the 
warmest  admiration.  From  this  conservatory,  also,  comes  a 
large  number  of  the  exquisite  wreaths  and  beautifully  wrought 
designs  which  are  used  on  funeral  occasions,  and  which 
embellish  many  of  the  tombs  in  the  great  Cemetery  near  by. 

In  the  arrangement  of  the  plants  in  Mr.  Weir's  conserva- 
tory one  can  not  fail  to  observe  the  artistic  skill  in  which 


JAMES   WEIR'S    CONSERVATORIES    AND    GREEN-HOUSES. 


FLORISTS. 

J.vMES  Weir,  Jr.,  proprietor  of  one  of  tlie  most  extensive 
and  beautiful  conservatories  or  green-houses  that  adorn  the 
grounds  adjacent  to  Greenwood  Cemetery,  was  born  in 
England,  October  17,  1843.  His  parents  were  James  and 
Ann  Weir,  who  came  to  this  countr}'  in  the  year  1844,  when 
the  subject  of  this  sketch  was  scarcely  one  year  old,  locating 
at  Bay  Ridge,  L.  I.  His  father  and  younger  brothers  are 
florists  and  nurserymen,  possessing  a  practical,  thorough  and 
tasteful  knowledge  of  that  business.  Young  Weir  attended 
the  public  schools  of  Brooklyn,  and  when  old  enough,  he  en- 
tered the  Collegiate  and  Polytechnic  Institute  of  that  city, 
where  he  acquired  a  good  and  useful  education. 

He  inherited  from  his  father  a  natural  love  of  the  delight- 
ful occupation  in  which  he  is  now  engaged.  His  taste 
seemed  to  assimilate  him  with  the  work  of  cultivating 
flowers;  accordingly,  after  leaving  school  he  engaged  with 
his  father  and  brothers  in  their  business,  where  he  continued 
until  the  j-ear  1861,  when  he  began  business  for  himself. 


each  plant  is  so  placed  in  relation  to  another  as  to  produce 
the  most  exquisite  harmony  of  color  and  form,  enhanced 
by  the  fine  arrangement  of  the  grand  center,  composed  of 
rock  work.  Connected  with  his  conservator}'  is  a  large 
florist's  establishment,  luxuriant  with  tastefully  arranged 
beds  of  blooming  plants  and  flowering  shrubs. 

In  politics  Mr.  Weir  has  always  been  a  democrat,  and  has 
generalh'  taken  an  active  interest  in  the  success  of  his  party. 
As  a  citizen,  he  is  held  in  high  esteem  for  the  possession  of 
those  <iualities  of  head  and  heart  which  naturally  give  men 
an  elevated  position  in  the  community  in  which  they  live. 
In  recognition  of  these  qualities,  he  was  elected  a  member  of 
the  Board  of  Aldermen  of  Brooklyn,  two  successive  terms, 
1880-1881  and  1883-1883.  In  1883,  he  was  honored  with  the 
position  of  Chairman  of  the  Board,  which  renders  him,  in 
absence  of  the  Mayor,  Acting  Mayor  of  the  city. 

Mr.  Weir's  religious  sentiments  attach  him  to  the  Episco- 
pal church,  the  church  of  his  father,  under  whose  teach- 
ings he  came  from  his  childhood,  his  youth,  to  his  manhood, 
and  to  which  he  is  strongly  attached. 


GENERAL  TRADE  ANB  MERCHANDISE. 


1365 


ItlLllAltn    SKANXdN'S    GREENHOUSF.S. 


Richard  Shannon,  Florist.— We  present,  above,  a  view  of 
the  beautiful  greenhouses  of  Mr.  Shannon,  on  Fort  Hamilton 
avenue,  Flatbush,  oi)posite  the  eastern  entrance  to  Greenwood 
cemeter}-. 

Mr.  Shannon  is  a  native  of  Ireland,  and  was  born  m  1837. 
He  came  to  Boston  in  1856,  with  a  good  knowledge  of  flori- 
culture, and,  after  spending  six  months  as  assistant  gardener 
on  the  estate  of  the  late  Col.  Thomas  Handasyd  Perkins,  he 
became  gardener  for  the  Hon.  Charles  Francis  Adams,  at 
Quincy.  He  remained  in  Mr.  Adams'  employ  till  that 
gentleman  sailed  for  England  as  Minister  to  the  Court  of  St. 
James,  m  the  spring  of  1861.  Thence  he  removed  to  New- 
port, R.  I.,  where  he  was  engaged  in  the  same  pursuit  for 
about  three  years,  when  he  came  to  New  York,  and  in  1863-4 
made  Brooklyn  his  home,  at  first  dealing  in  flowers  and 
plants  at  Fulton  and  Washington  streets,  but  in  1865  removed 
to  Greene  avenue,  near  Franklin,  where  he  erected  a  small 
greenhouse,  leasing  at  the  same  time,  with  the  privilege  of 
purchase,  ten  city  lots  adjacent.  The  7th  and  the  north  part 
of  the  !»th  Wards  (which  four  or  five  years  later  was  divided 
into  the  21st  and  33d  Wards)  had  just  begun  to  grow  at  this 
time,  and  they  have  continued  to  grow  ever  since.  New 
houses  were  constantly  going  up  and  requiring  the  laying 
out  of  gardens  and  grounds,  and  the  people  who  inhabited 
these  houses  were  enterprising  and  cultured  families,  to 
whom  a  good  florist  was  as  necessary  as  a  good  grocer.  Mr. 
Shannon  prospered;  the  single  greenhouse  multiplied  to  six, 
and  his  services  and  those  of  his  men  were  in  constant 
demand.  In  1878  he  determined  to  extend  his  business  by 
erecting  greenhouses  opposite  the  eastern  entrance  to  Green- 
wood, then  recently  opened.  He  secured  a  full  acre  of 
ground  and  has  erected  one  building  after  another  till  now 
he  has  more  than  10,000  square  feet  under  glass,  and  has  one 
of  the  most  complete  floral  establishments  in  the  vicinity  of 
Greenwood.  He  has  already  many  patrons  among  the  lot 
owners,  and  it  is  a  marked  characteristic  of  the  man  that 
those  who  employ  him  once  are  very  sure  to  continue  to  be 
his  patrons.     His  collections  of  flowers,  shrubs,  and  tropical 


plants,  both  at  Greenwood  and  at  his  Greene  avenue  houses, 
are  very  large  and  of  great  variety,  and  while  not  neglecting 
other  plants  and  flowers  he  has  given  special  attention  to  per- 
fecting his  collection  of  fine  roses  and  the  best  tropical  plants. 

The  grounds  of  the  well-known  florist,  James  Dean,  are 
situated  at  Third  ave.  and  Sixty-sixth  st.,  and  comprise 
nearly  three  acres .  In  front  is  Mr.  Dean's  handsome  resi- 
dence, and  at  the  rear  his  eight  large  greenhouses,  each  150 
feet  long,  with  boiler-house  and  all  necessary  appendages. 


J  \^MLS    DIANs    UKEENHUUbEb 


1366 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY 


including  a  wind-mill  and  tower  for  raising  water.  At  the 
side  are  numberless  cold-frames,  Iiandsome  flower-beds  and 
smooth  lawn.  The  green-houses  aie  well  stocked  with  plants 
and  flowers  of  all  kinds,  but  Mr.  Dean's  specialty  is  roses,  of 
which  he  has  innumerable  varieties,  and  on  which  he  has 
taken  many  first  premiums  at  New  York  Exhibitions.  His 
roses  ai-e  so  well  known  that  he  has  a  large  trade  in  Boston, 
New  York  and  Philadelphia.  He  now  employs  eight  men 
and  two  wagons  in  his  business,  which  he  commenced  in 
1865  on  a  small  scale.  Mr.  Dean  served  in  the  war  of  the 
Rebellion  in  the  72d  N.  Y.  Regt.,  under  General  Hooker,  and 
was  mustered  out  of  the  service  with  small  means;  but,  by 
his  industry  and  aiiplication  to  business  he  has  built  up  and 
maintains  a  large  and  jjrofitable  trade. 

Philip  Zeh  &  Son 5tli  ave.  cor.,  23d  St. 

E.  Kasold Henry,  cor.  4th  place. 

Peter  Mallon 473  Fulton  st. 

Thomas  Poynter 668  Fulton  st. 

Florist.     Est.,  1864,  in  Brooklyn. 

E.  L.  Rhoades 374  Gates  ave. 

Mrs.  Carl  Schmidt 233  Clinton  st. 

K.  Shannon 343  Greene  ave. 

L.  Schmitz Flatbush. 

A.  Walton 505  Fulton  st. 

Frederick  Weir Bay  Ridge. 

J.  Condon 734  5th  ave.  and  218  25th  st. 

John  Stubbs 585  Fulton  st. 

August  Jabn 108  Broadway. 

Florist.     Est.  1872,  at  present  location. 


GROCERS,  AND  DEALERS  IN  TEAS,  COFFEES 
AND  SPICES. 

There  seems  to  be  now  no  means  of  ascertaining 
who  was  the  first  man  who  embarked  in  the  grocery 
trade  in  Brooklyn.  It  was  the  early  custom  for  Brook- 
lynites  to  lay  in  their  family  supplies  "  across  the 
water,"  as  New  York  was  familiarly  referred  to.  In 
1809,  John  C.  Middleton  kept  a  grocery  at  the 
junction  of  New  and  Old  Ferry  sts.,  and  it  is  presum- 
able that  he  was  thus  engaged  for  some  time  afterward. 
Isaac  Weeks  and  Teunis  Johnson  were  prominent 
Brooklyn  grocers  in  1812,  and  Jacob  Garrison  and  J. 
cfc  S.  Schenck  in  1817.  In  the  last  mentioned  year, 
John  G.  Pray  opened  a  grocery  at  the  cor'ner  of  Main 
and  Middagh  streets,  and  another  was  established  by 
Abraham  D.  Ostrander  near  the  Navy  Yard.  Wil- 
liam It.  Dean  was  added  to  the  list  of  those  engaged 
in  this  trade  in  1820,  and  was  still  keeping  a  grocery, 
at  the  corner  of  Fulton  and  Sands  streets,  in  1828.  A 
grocery  was  opened  by  Messrs.  Hicks  &  Remsen  in 
1824,  and  another  the  following  year  by  Messrs.  Jones 
<b  Elbert.  In  1827,  the  latter  firm  was  succeeded  by 
Henry  Elbert.  About  this  time  the  firm  of  Conklin 
&  Tuthill  was  well  known  and  it  gave  place  to  that  of 
Raynor  &  Conklin  in  1829.  In  connection  with  his 
old  "  stage  house,"  near  Fulton  Ferry,  early  in  the  pre- 
sent century,  John  Bedell  had  a  grocery.     On  the   cor- 


ner of  Fulton  street  and  a  narrow  lane,  now  called  Eliza- 
beth street,  a  site  which  was  cleared  by  a  fire  in  1814,  a 
temporary  structure  was  erected,  which  was  occupied 
as  a  grocery  until  about  1832,  when  it  gave  place  to 
the  brick  building,  since  known  as  Carll's  stables.  In 
the  lower  part  of  Fulton  street,  next  door  to  Downing's 
"  stage  and  livery  stable,"  was  the  liquor  and  grocery 
store  of  Old  Mr.  Evert  Barkeloo,  which  was  also  the 
oflice  of  the  trustees  of  the  town  of  Brooklyn,  of  which 
body  Mr.  Barkeloo  was  clerk  during  a  portion  of  the 
first  quarter  of  the  present  century.  Upon  the  pur- 
chase of  the  old  Rapelye  house  by  Mr.  Abraham 
Remsen,  the  latter  tore  it  down  and  used  a  portion  of 
the  stone  in  the  erection  upon  the  same  site  of  a  brick 
and  stone  dwelling  and  store  where  he  dealt  in  gro- 
ceries and  other  domestic  merchandise.  The  site  of 
that  early  store  is  now  occupied  by  the  splendid  build- 
ing of  the  Long  Island  Safe  Deposit  Company.  On  the 
corner  of  Fulton  and  Ilicks  sts.  was  once  the  grocery  of 
D.  Pell,  a  low,  one-story-and-a-half  building.  Passing 
up  Fulton  street,  beyond  the  old  Hicks  mansion,  another 
old-time  grocery  was  approached.  Here  Mrs.  Thomas 
kept  "  green  groceries,  candy  and  yeast,"  and  was  suc- 
ceeded in  the  same  business  by  Mrs.  Flowers.  On  the 
easterly  corner  of  Fulton  street  and  Poplar  place  (then 
known  as  "  Buckbee's  Alley),  was  the  grocery  and 
general  store  of  Mr.  Ruckbee.  Seventy  years,  or 
longer,  ago,  Adam  Lippincott,  and  later,  Jenkins  ck 
Lipjpnncott  kept  a  grocery  on  Fulton  street,  between 
Prospect  and  Sands  streets. 

A  well-remembered  grocery  was  that  of  Peter  Cow- 
enhoven,  located  on  Fulton  street,  near  the  corner  of 
Cranberry,  and  kept  in  a  building  which  had  formerly 
been  occupied  as  a  paint-shop  by  old  Mattliew  Hall. 
Two  doors  above  Sands  street,  on  the  easterly  side  of 
Fulton,  was  the  residence  and  grocery  store  of  High 
Sheriff  John  Dean,  father  of  Colonel  Joseph  Dean. 
Dean  was  a  prominent  politician  in  his  time  and  was 
appointed  sheriff  in  March,  1813.  "  Dean's  Corners," 
as  the  locality  was  generally  called,  was  a  great  rendez- 
vous for  business  and  political  gossip.  A  few  doors 
further  uj)  the  street  was  the  grocery  of  Isaac  Moser^ 
An  early  landmark  in  that  part  of  the  town  was  Van 
Winkle's  tavern  and  grocery  on  the  north-east  corner  of 
Main  and  Water  streets,  and  Peter  Snyder  kept  a  gro- 
cery on  the  south-east  corner  of  the  same  streets.  In 
1815  there  was  a  two-story  frame  grocery  at  the  north- 
west corner  of  Front  and  Main  streets,  in  which  ex- 
Mayor  Edward  Copeland  is  said  to  have  commenced 
business,  and  on  the  north-east  corner  of  the  same 
streets  there  was  another  grocery.  A  grocery  was 
opened  in  Williamsburgh  by  John  Skillman  in  1818. 
The  groceries  of  the  early  days  differed  materially  from 
those  of  the  present.  Indeed,  it  is  doubtful  if  many  of 
the  earlier  ones  were  really  groceries,  pure  and  simple, 
the  demands  of  the  trade  of  that  period  necessitating 
the  keeping  of  a  more  or  less  extensive  and  varied  stock 


GENERAL  TRADE  AND  MERCHANDISE. 


1367 


of  general  merchandise,  and  the  stores  were  more  like 
the  groceries  in  small  towns  of  the  present  day  than 
the  large  groceries  to  be  seen  everywhere  in  Brooklyn, 
involving  the  investment  of  large  capital  and  the  carry- 
ing of  stocks  of  goods  which  in  some  cases  aggregate 
several-fold  the  combined  stock  of  the  groceries  above 
alluded  to.  Among  the  many  engaged  in  the  grocery 
trade  in  the  city  at  this  time,  either  as  wholesale  or 
retail  dealers  and  on  a  larger  or  smaller  scale,  may  be 
mentioned  the  following-named  individuals  and  firms  : 

Frederick  Allers 345  Court  st. 

J.  H.  Ashchoff 33  Smith  st. 

Julius  Bauer Fulton  ave. 

Wm.  Busch New  Lots,  L.  I. 

B.  Bischoff 388  Court  st. 

J.  M.  Clapp 346  Atlantic  ave. 

Wm.  Smith  Carlisle..    493  Fulton  st. 

Teas,  Coflfees  and  General  Groceries;  est.,  1861,  by  him- 
self; capital  employed  about  .$30,000;  number  of  em- 
ployees, 7;  amount  paid  annually  for  salaries,  |3,300; 
amount  of  sales  per  annum,  about  $190,000. 

Campbell  &  Cleighton 54  9  Fulton  st. 

Robt  Carson 912  Fulton  &  381  5tb  ave. 

Clapp  Bros '. 979  Fulton  st. 

Alex  Carson 756  Myrtle  ave. 

Geo.  Cunniff 16  Clinton  st. 

E.  Carmundy 466  Bergen  st. 

Henry  Carson   1205  Fulton  St. 

C.  Dengel New  Lots. 

W.  A.  Forte Gravesend. 

William  Gray 150  St.  James  PI. 

Herman  Gunter 317  Court  st. 

Groceries;  est.  1881;  capital  employed,  about  $4,000; 
amount  paid  annually  for  salaries,  $1,000;  amount  of 
yearly  sales,  $25,000. 

Simon  Gunder 7  Douglass  st. 

John  Gercken Bath. 

August  Graw Flatlands. 

Abijah  Haviland 118  Bridge  st. 

Gilbert  Hicks Flatbush. 

W.  H.  Harrison 585  Washington  ave. 

Robert  W.  Hawkins 1291  Fulton  st. 

M.  Hanly 615  Myrtle  ave. 

William  Irvine  &  Co 583  Grand  &  515  Court  st. 

Groceries;  came  to  America  in  1869;  worked  as  a  clerk 
for  two  years,  then  formed  a  partnership  with  Wil- 
liam Johnston  &  Co.,  establishing  themselves  on  the  cor. 
of  Court  and  9th  sts.  In  1876,  the  firm  dissolved  and 
Mr.  Irvine  carried  on  the  business  alone  until  1880, 
when  his  brother  was  admitted  as  partner,  under  the 
firm  name  of  Wm.  Irvine  &  Co.,  and  a  branch  store 
opened  on  cor.  of  Grand  &  Humboldt  sts.  A  branch 
store  was  also  opened  at  83  Fulton  st.,  in  1883.  Capital 
emploj-ed,  $20,000. 

Alex  Irvine 515  Court  st. 

Oliver  &  James  Johnston.  .553  Fulton  st. 

William  Johnston 691  Fulton  st. 

Groceries;  established  in  New  York;  removing  to 
Brooklyn  in  1868;  has  8  employees,  paying  then\  an- 
nually $4,000;  amount  of  yearly  sales,  $125,000. 


184  and  559  Fulton  St.,  607 

Geo.  Lockitt  &  Sons \      De  Kalb,  187  Myrtle,  and 

89  Atlantic  avenue. 
The  senior  member  established  his  first  store  in  1852  at 
187  Myrtle  ave.,  afterwards  another  at  91  Atlantic  ave., 
and  a  third  at  549  Fulton  street,  and  placed  the  three 
under  the  management  of  his  sons  Clement,  Alfred  and 
Theophilus  respectively,  while  he  attended  to  the  finan- 
cial duties. 

In  1868,  he  opened  the  store  corner  Fulton  and 
Orange;  and  admitted  his  sons  to  partnership  in  1870,  un- 
der the  present  firm  name.  In  1872,  the  store  on  DeKalb 
ave.  was  opened  ;  in  1876,  the  large  store  at  559  Fulton 
St.  was  occupied.  The  three  sons  are  members  of  the 
New  York  Produce  Exchange.  The  business  of  the  firm 
amounts  to  about  $500,000  annually.  George  Lockitt 
died  in  1883. 

Daniel  Lamberson 287  Court  st. 

F.  Middendorf New  Lots. 

Henry  C.  Mangels 52  Union  st. 

Robert  McKane Gravesend. 

W.  C.  Reamer 368  Court  st. 

Stephen  Stevenson 110  Atlantic  ave. 

Groceries,  Wines,  Liquors,  etc.;  established  in  1861, 
by  H.  Scranton,  W.  H.  Otis,  and  S.  B.  Harriman,  under 
the  firm  name  of  Scranton  &  Co.;  capital  employed, 
$40,000;  number  of  employees,  10;  amount  paid  an- 
nually for  salaries,  $6,000;  amount  of  annual  sales, 
$150,000. 

Richard  Slater Fort  Hamilton. 

George  Self Bay  Ridge. 

E.  H.  Sayre 29  Peck  Slip,  N.  Y. 

Lewis  A.  White 622  Myrtle  ave. 

D.  J.  Dann 500  5th  ave. 

J.  J.  Hillis 544  5th  &  648  Myrtle  ave. 

Wm.  H.  Sanford 211  DeKalb  ave. 

James  Fletcher 254  Withers. 

Charles  A.  Thayer 206  Flatbush  ave.  and  451 

Bergen  street. 
Dealer  in  groceries,  fruits,  meats,  and  other  goods;  es- 
tablished his  business  in  1883,  and  has  a  large  store  one 
hundred   and  nine  feet  long,  extending  from  street  to 
street. 
The  following  mentioned  houses  may  be  regarded  as 

in  one  important  branch  of  the  grocery  trade,  as  they 

are  dealers  in  teas,  coffees  and  spices: 

John  Baldwin  &  Sons 292  and  372  Grand  st. 

John  McGahie 210   Myrtle   ave.    and   321 

Columbia  st. 

H.  Wischmann  &  Co 78  Fulton  st. 

William  Waring 74  Fulton  st. 

PRODUCE,     FLOUR    AND     FEED     DEALERS 
AND  WHOLESALE  GROCERS. 

It  must  be  seen  that  the  history  of  the  business  of 
handling  produce  in  Kings  county  must  be  to  a  consid- 
erable degree  coincident  with  that  of  the  grocery 
trade.  It  had  its  beginning  with  the  beginning  of 
civilization  in  Brooklyn  and  vicinity,  and  assumed  tan- 
gible shape  long  since,  when  Brooklyn  was  but  a  mere 
villao-e,     The   old    Brooklyn    markets    are   elsewhere 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


referred  to.  As  elsewhere,  produce  was  early  handled 
at  the  general  stores,  and  every  merchant  as  well  as 
every  grocer  of  the  earlier  period  of  the  commercial 
history  of  the  city  was  in  some  sense  a  produce  dealer. 
A  few  facts  of  interest  in  this  connection,  concerning 
several  dealers  in  produce,  flour,  feed  and  kindred 
merchandise  at  this  time,  are  given  below.  George  W. 
Mumby,  wholesale  dealer  in  flour  and  grain,  140  Liv- 
ingston street,  began  business  in  1846  at  59  Fulton  St., 


rnn 


an  ^Mms^i^^M^' 


J0H^!5T0^    BROIHERS      ,5)   and    ^ft   1  ulton    Street 

as  a  retail  dealer  in  flour,  removing  to  his  present 
location  in  1876  and  increasing  his  trade  till  it  is 
now  very  extensive.  He  is  a  member  of  the  New 
York  Produce  Exchange,  and  enjoys  the  distinction  of 
having  been  the  first  man  to  tap  the  Brooklyn  city 
water  works.  May  24th,  1858.  Jacob  E.  Volyer,  46-50 
Flatbush  ave.,  dealer  in  flour,  feed,  hay,  etc.,  was  born 
in  Jerusalem,  L.  I.,  in  1839,  and  established  his  business 
in  Brooklyn  in  1859.  Henry  Glasser,  86  De  Bevoise 
St.,  Brooklyn,  E.  D.,  produce  commission  dealer,  is  well 
known  both  as  a  business  man  ancl  prominent  citizen, 
and  also  a  military  man,  having  served  as  colonel  and 


■f     Tf       .  , 

',:.,,,,o-  cROT'l-RS    |i  (tjjllll:  |L,. 


■jjialBi- 


'  r.RnnLHirs  Bcs 


JOHNSTON    BROTHEllS.  Myrtle  Avenue,  cor.   Cumberland  Street. 

chief  of  artillerists  of  the  2d  Division,  N.  G.,  S.  N.  Y., 
under  Gen.  Dakin,  in  1876,  and  as  a  member  of  the  Brook- 
lyn Board  of  Education,  1878-'81.  His  business  was  es- 
tablished in  1861  at  the  foot  of  North  Second  street,  and 
subsequently  removed  to  its  present  locality.  William 
K.  Voorhecs,  member  of  the  New  York  Produce  Ex- 
change and  of  the  Manhattan  Hay  and  Produce  Ex- 
change, and  dealer  in  flour  and  feed,  79  La  Fayette 
ave.,  wa,s  born  in  Flatlands,  L.  L,  and  established  his 


business  in  Brooklyn,  at  103  Flatbush  ave.,  in  1865. 
Johii  H  Fort  is  a  member  of  the  firm  of  Marsh,  White 
&  Co.,  long  prominently  identified  with  the  grain  and 
milling  interests  of  Brooklyn.  This  firm  began  busi- 
ness in  New  York  in  1868,  and  were  succeeded  by  two 
of  their  oldest  and  most  trusted  clerks,  John  H.  Fort 
and  George  T.  Howler,  who  are  members  of  the  firm 
as  present  organized  and  which  retains  the  old  style  of 
Marsh,  White  cb  Co.,  its  business  being  located  at  the 
foot  of  North  Fifth    st.,   Brooklyn,  E.  D.,  to   which 


iNBROTHER^l 


JOHNSTON    BROTHERS,  Court  Street, 


Baltic  Street. 


place  it  was  removed  in  1875.  Henry  0.  Collard,  grain 
dealer,  116  President  st.,  is  a  native  of  Brooklyn,  and 
has  been  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Supervisors  from 
the  6th  Ward. 

The  firm  of  Jolinston  Brothers  was  formed  on  May  1,  1883, 
consisting  of  James  and  Oliver  Johnston,  each  of  whom  had 
been  in  the  business  for  abt)ut  ten  }'ears;  previous  to  that 
date  had  started  and  operated  stores  at  diflferent  times  and 
places  tliroughout  Brooklyn.  Their  present  principal  store 
at  553  and  555  Fulton  street,  is  the  largest  of  its  kind  in  the 
city,  having  a  frontage  of  50  feet  on  Fulton  street,  50  feet  on 
De  Kalb  avenue,  and  100  feet  depth.     They  have  also  a  branch 


JOHNSTON    BROTHERS,  Fulton  Street,  cor.  Clermont  Avenue. 


store,  corner  Myrtle  avenue  and  Cvimberland  street,  30x80; 
one  on  Fulton  street,  corner  Clermont  avenue,  40x90  feet; 
and  one  at  Gravesend,  L.  I.  In  these  stores  they  give  em- 
ployment to  about  30  men,  and  keep  16  horses  and  10  wagons. 
The  memberrt  of  the  firm  were  born  in  the  county  of  Fer- 
managh, in  the  north  of  Ireland;  came  to  this  country  when 
about  16  years  old.  They  commenced  as  clerks  in  their  present 
business,  and  by  perseverance  and  close  attention,  they  were 
enabled  in  a  few  years  to  start  in  a  small  way  for  themselves, 
which  they  kept  steadily  increasing  until  they  united  and 
formed  the  present  firm,  and  to-day  they  are  the  leading 


GENERAL  TRADE  AND  MERCHANDISE. 


cash  grocers  of  Brooklyn.  Theirs  is  strictly  a  cash  business, 
selling  no  goods  on  weekly  or  monthly  payments.  Having 
noticed  the  unfairness  of  making  a  customer  who  paid  his 
bills  pay  an  extra  profit  for  those  who  did  not,  they  deter- 
mined when  they  started  in  business  to  sell  goods  for  cash 
only,  to  treat  every  customer  alike,  rich  or  poor,  honest  or 
dishonest:  and  this  they  have  carried  out  to  the  letter  for  the 
past  twelve  years;  and  to  this,  more  than  anything  else,  they 
attribute  their  success.  At  the  time  they  commenced,  and  for 
a  number  of  years  after,  the  great  bulk  of  the  retail  grocery 
trade  was  done  by  a  system  of  books  or  monthly  accounts.  It 
was  also  about  that  time  that  the  evil  effects  of  extravagance 
cultivated  by  the  people  during  and  succeeding  the  war 
(when  money  was  plenty)  began  to  be  felt;  money  was  getting 
scarcer,  business  quiet,  manufacturers  closing  down,  men 
who  had  been  considered  good  failing  in  business,  all  of 
which  worked  ruin  to  the  retailer  who  gave  credit,  having  to 
increase  his  profits  in  order  to  make  up  for  tlie  many  bad 
debts,  and  driving  his  trade  to  the  house  which,  by  selling  for 
cash,  could  always  afford  to  sell  goods  at  a  small  profit.  As 
a  consequence  the  business  done  by  each  of  the  present  firm 
of  Johnston  Brothers  increased,  whereas  a  great  number  of 
the  larger  and  older  firms  dwindled  out  of  business. 

Appended  are  the  names  and  addresses  of  various  in- 
dividuals and  firms  in  Brooklyn  connected  with  the 
flour  and  feed,  provision  and  general  pi-oduce  trade. 
Flour  and  Feed: 

E.  E.  Bunce 825  BVay&  1138  Myrtle  av 

R.  S.  Decker 521  Halsey  St. 

John  Gilbertson 9  Lafayette  ave. 

Ditmas  Jewell  &  Son Fulton,  cor.  B'way. 

S.  Hart Bergen,  n.  Carlton. 

Edward  Murphy 329  I'd  St.,  E.  D. 

J.  H.  Muniby 100  Fulton  st. 

Bernard  McCaffrey 19  Tillary  st. 

Wm.  M.  Shipman 123  Myrtle  ave. 

Tonges,  Moller  &  Co 31  B'way. 

Thomas  Gallagher 362  N.  2d  st. 

Ditmas   Jewell New  Lots. 

Provision  Dealers: 

Clias.  D.  Burrows,  Jr 192  Leonard  st. 

Carl  Sanford 466  Clermont  ave. 

J.  Schueltheis 16  Graham. 

W.  H.  Sayre 65  Hicks  st. 

Produce: 

W.  L.  Watson 130  LefiFerts  Place. 

Food  Products: 

The  manufacture  of  cocoa  was  first  begun  in  Brook- 
lyn, 1875,  by  (Beatson  J.)  Bell  <b  Co.,  at  839  Putnam 
avenue,  removing  successively,  as  the  demand  necessi- 
tated larger  accommodations  (1879)  to  Marcy,  then  to 
398  Gates  avenue;  finally  to  present  large  factory,  14 
Durham  Place,  E.  D.;  office  109  Fulton  street,  N.  Y. 
The  peculiar  feature  of  this  preparation  is  the  readiness 
with  which  it  is  prepared  for  use,  being  instantly  dis- 
solved in  boiling  water.  It  is  largely  recommended  by 
the  medical  profession,  and  has  received  the  medal  of 
superiority  at  the  American  Institute  Fair  for  the  past 
five  years. 


JOHN    HARRISONS   GROCERY. 

John  Hakrison. — The  subject  of  this  sketch,  an  extensive 
wholesale  and  retail  grocer  of  Fulton  avenue,  Brooklyn, 
N.  Y.,  was  born  at  Belfast,  Ireland,  in  the  year  1841.  His 
parents  were  Joseph  and  Margaret  Harrison  of  that  city. 

At  an  early  age  he  emigrated  to  this  country,  and  in  1855 
at  the  age  of  fourteen,  he  became  a  resident  of  the  city  of 
Brooklyn,  where  he  attended  the  public  schools,  attaining  a 
practical  business  education.  His  industrious  habits,  hon- 
esty and  probity,  paved  the  way  for  his  entrance  into  a  suc- 
cessful business,  which  ho  began  in  1862.  The  business 
chosen  by  him  was  that  of  grocer,  and  a  general  dealer  in  all 
productions  connected  with  that  business.  He  has  now  been 
engaged  in  it  for  the  period  of  21  years,  and  ranks  among 
the  most  successful  and  prominent  business  men  of  Brooklyn. 

It  needs  but  a  few  moments  spent  in  inspecting  his  large 
establishment,  with  its  well  arranged  and  well  stocked  de- 
partments, to  convince  oue  of  the  nature  and  permanency  of 
his  success. 

In  politics  Mr.  Harrison  is  a  Democrat,  firmly  and  con- 
scientiously adhering  to  the  principles  of  the  Democratic 
party:  but  he  has  never  been  a  seeker  for  any  kind  of  official 
position,  preferring  success  in  business  to  short-lived  official 
success. 

In  the  year  1873,  he  was  united  in  marriage  to  Elizabeth  A. 
Connoly;  seven  children  have  been  born  to  this  marriage. 
Mr.  Harrison  is  still  a  comparatively  young  man,  and  it  is 
easy  to  see  that  with  his  acknowledged  capacity  for  business, 
and  his  facilities  for  conducting  it,  a  very  prosperous  and 
prominent  future  is  open  to  him. 

Next  to  air,  the  most  constant  and  imperative  demand  of 
the  human  animal  is  for  food.  Its  supply  costs  more  time 
and  labor  than  all  of  the  other  bodily  wants.  The  first  and 
in  many  cases  the  greatest  problem  in  a  military  campaign, 
is  how  to  feed  the  army.  A  great  city  is  in  many  respects 
like  a  great  army  in  camp.  Its  greatest  necessity  is  to  be 
provisioniid.  What  the  quartermaster  does  for  the  army  the 
grocer  does  for  the  city  ;  he  obtains  and  distributes  the  ra- 
tions.   The  former  is  appointed,  but  the  latter  appoints  him- 


1370 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


A.   i-   S.   HA VI LAND   &  CO.'S   STORES. 

self,  and  his  term  of  service  and  compensation  are  measured 
by  t)ie  quality  and  efficiency  of  his  work.  The  health  of 
camp  and  city  depends  largely  upon  the  fitness  and  fairness 
of  those  men.  It  is  of  greater  importance  to  have  an  honest 
and  honorable  grocer  than  druggist,  for  everybody  buys  gro- 
ceries— only  the  sick,  the  unfortunate  and  the  ignorant  buy 
drugs.  Besides  ability  and  integrity,  the  successful  grocery- 
man  must  possess  a  peculiar  fitness  of  tact  and  disposition, 
and  a  body  and  brain  capable  of  enduring  extra  hard  work 
through  long,  continuous  hours,  from  early  dawn  to  late  bed- 
time. To  the  ranks  of  this  trade,  whose  sales  aggregate  a 
larger  sum  than  the  sales  of  any  other  one  or  two  legitimate 
honorable  callings,  many  able  men  and  much  capital  are 
attracted. 

The  firm  of  A.  &  S.  Haviland  &  Co.,  Wholesale  and  Re- 
tail Grocers,  corner  Bridge  and  Prospect  streets,  is  composed 
of  three  brothers,  Abijah,  Solomon  and  Benjamin  Franklin. 
Solomon  entered  the  firm  in  1873,  and  when  the  New  York 
store  was  opened  he  took  charge  of  it,  and  has  ever  since  re- 
mained at  its  head.  Benjamin  Franklin  became  a  partner  in 
1883,  and  has  charge  of  the  Bridge  street  store.  Abijah 
wishes  to  acknowledge  the  valuable  and  indispensable  co- 
operation of  his  brothers  in  bringing  the  business  to  its 
present  prosperity.  Their  father,  David  Abijah  Haviland, 
was  a  native  of  Westchester  county,  brought  up  on  a  farm 
till  31  years  of  age,  when  he  came  to  New  York  city,  en- 
gaged in  carting  for  about  15  years,  when  he  returned 
to  his  native  county  and  settled  down  on  the  old  farm,  where 
he  died  in  1878.  Abijah,  the  founder  of  the  business  we  are 
describing,  was  bom  in  Lawrence  street.  New  York  city, 
January  15,  1845.  After  considerable  exjierience  in  trade, 
he  started  for  himself  in  the  grocery  business  in  Myrtle 
avenue  in  1869.  About  six  months  later  he  took  Louis  A. 
White  in  partnership,  and  the  firm  of  Haviland  &  White 
opened  a  branch  store  in  Bridge  street  in  1871,  and  another  in 
New  York,  corner  of  1st  avenue  and  18th  street,  in  1875. 
This  firm  was  dissolved  in  December,  1883,  Mr.  White  retain- 
ing the  Myrtle  avenue  store,  and  Mr.  Ha\iland  the  New 
York  and  Bridge  street  stores.     The  building  and  lot  shown 


in  the  above  engraving  were  purchased  in  1880.  The  store  is 
four  stories  high,  each  floor  being  in  constant  use  to  accom- 
modate the  heavy  supply  of  goods  always  in  stock. 

The  Haviland  Brothers  have  always  made  a  specialty  of 
the  flour  trade.  They  manufacture  the  "White  Rose"  pre- 
pared flour,  which  takes  the  lead  of  all  other  kinds  they  have 
ever  sold.  The  sales  of  "  Haviland's  Baking  Powder,"  manu- 
factured exclusively  by  this  firm,  demonstrate  its  superiority, 
when  brought  in  competition  with  any  and  all  other  brands 
in  market.  Mr.  Abijah  Haviland  owns  the  old  family  home- 
stead in  Harrison,  Westchester  county,  2i  miles  from  White 
Plains  depot,  and  4  miles  from  Rye  and  Portchester  depots. 
With  a  natural  love  for  fine  horses,  he  has  turned  his  atten- 
tion most  successfully  to  this  very  attractive  branch  of  stock 
raising.  Already,  over  twenty  splendid  representatives  of 
the  standard  Hambletonian  blood,  grace  his  fields  and  stables. 
The  following  are  the  names  of  some  of  the  most  famous. 
The  oldest  is  Boss  H.,  7  years  old,  June  29,  1884;  has  a  record 
in  6-year-old  class  of  3:31  J,  at  the  May  meeting,  1883,  Belmont 
Park.  Philadelphia.  He  was  timed  May  4,  1884,  on  Fleetwood 
Track,  making  his  mile  in  3:27i,  last  quarter  in  36  seconds. 
Comment  on  such  performances  is  unnecessary.  Daisy  Dell, 
bay  mare,  15i  hands  high,  4  years  old,  June  25,  1884;  she  is 
elegant  and  stylish,  pure  gaited,  has  never  been  handled  for 
speed,  but  can  show  a  2:50  gait — a  most  promising  animal. 
Lady  Venture,  black  filly,  3  years  old.  May  7,  1884;  15|  hands 
high,  powerfully  built,  with  every  indication  of  speed  in  due 
season.  Governor,  bay  gelding,  4  years  old,  April  25,  1884; 
15  hands  Z\  inches  high,  own  brother  to  Lady  Venture,  a 
promising  colt.  Maud  H.,  dark  brown  filly,  3  years  old, 
April  6,  1884;  own  sister  to  Lady  Venture,  good  size,  and  very 
flattering  in  appearance.  Garfield,  bay  gelding,  3  years  t)ld. 
May  4,  1884;  15  hands  2J  inches  high,  not  broken,  but  has  in- 
dications of  fine  promise.  Dutchess  Queen,  light  bay  filly,  2 
years  old,  June  2,  1884;  has  all  the  characteristic  appearances 
of  the  noted  Hambletonian  blood.  Volunteer  Blackwood, 
bay  stallion,  3  years  old,  June  39,  1884;  a  little  over  16  hands 
high,  weighs  1,135  pounds,  Hambletonian  with  thoroughbred 
crosses,  unequaled  in  proportions  and  movement.  Paul 
Jones  (foal),  foaled  March  19,  1884.  Besides  the  nine  horses 
included  in  this  brief  mention,  Mr.  Haviland  has  nine  others 
of  the  same  Hambletonian  blood,  all  well  bred  and  possess- 
ing the  fine  points  so  much  admired  and  valued  by  horsemen. 
Here,  among  his  horses  on  the  old  farm,  and  surrounded  by 
the  many  familiar  scenes  and  associations  of  childhood,  he 
finds  that  rest  and  relaxation  from  business,  which  richly  re- 
jiays  his  many  years  of  unwearied  devotion  and  care.  Mr. 
Haviland  was  married  June  31,  1876,  to  Mary  P.  Nelson,  of 
Brooklyn. 


BUTCHERS  AND  MEAT  AND  FISH 
MERCHANTS. 

Butchers  have  long  been  numerous  in  Brooklyn. 
The  old  market-house  near  Fulton  Ferry  was  their 
rendezvous  during  the  period  of  its  existence.  The 
following  names  of  early  butchers  are  given  byDeVoe: 
Paulus    Van  der  Beeck,   1645;    Roelef  Jansen,  1654; 

William  Harck  and  Thonias  Willet,  1656;  James 
Harding,  1707;  Evardus  Brower,  1715;  Israel  and 
Timothy  Horsfield,  1720;  followed  by  the  sons  of  the 
former;  Samuel  Hopson,  1735;   John  and   Benjamin 

Carpenter,  1743;  Whitehead  Cornell,  and  his  sons 
John,  William,  Whitehead,  Jr.,  and  Benjamin,  and 
the  brothers  Suydam,  1755;   Thomas  Everitt,  and  his 


GENERAL  TRADE  AND  MERCHANDISE. 


ISVl 


sons  WiUiam,  Thomas,  Jr.,  and  Richard  and  Mat- 
thias Gleaves,  1756;  John  Doughty,  and  his  son,  John, 
Jr.,  1760;  George  Powers  and  Jonathan  Post,  1774; 
iTb/iM  Garrison,  and  his  sons,  tToA/i  P.,  Jacob,  and 
Thomas  and  Gersham  Ludlow,  1780;  Burdet  Stryker, 
and  his  sons,  1790;  and  later  ^Ifij'eZ  Titus,  and  his  sons, 
David  Seaman,  Jacob  Patchen,  Ralph  Patchen,  Jesse 
Goope,  Israel  Reynolds,  John  Raynor,  William  Foster, 
Michael  Trappel,  and  many  others.  On  the  south  side 
of  the  street,  a  little  up  from  the  marketplace,  lived 
John  Simonson,  a  well-known  butcher.  At  the  foot 
of  Main  street  another  market  was  established,  having 
a  close  resemblance  to  the  one  above  referred  to  as 
Titus'  Market,  from  the  fact  that  Abiel  Titus  kept 
a  butcher's  stand  there.  More  than  three-quarters  of 
a  century  has  wrought  great  changes  in  this  as  in  other 
interests.  The  number  of  butchers  now  required  to 
supply  the  trade  of  Brooklyn  is  very  large,  and  their 
shops  are  to  be  found  in  nearly  every  block.  But  at  this 
time  butchers  are  not  simply  butchers,  but  dealers  in 
fish  and  oysters,  as  well  as  in  meat;  some  of  them  on  a 
very  extensive  scale,  and  combining  with  these  other 
kindred  branches  of  trade.  One  of  the  oldest  meat 
markets  of  Brooklyn  at  this  time,  is  that  of  James 
Van  Dine,  140  Elliot  place,  who  is  the  successor  to  a 
business  established  in  1828  at  the  old  James  Street 
Market.  Among  the  many  butchers  and  dealers  in 
meat,  fish  and  oysters,  in  Brooklyn  at  this  time,  are 
the  following: 

P.  W.  Blattmacher 389  Flatbush  ave. 

Henry  Cook Flatbush. 

E.  R.  Coker 035  Fulton  st. 

Crummey  &  Son 114  Fulton  &  9  Henry  st. 

W.  R  Coker 272  Flatbush  ave. 

John  C.  De  Frain 85  Atlantic  ave. 

A.  Erzman Flatbush. 

P.  Fisher New  Lots. 

John  Fallon 672  Atlantic  ave. 

George  F.  Gildersleeve 932  Fulton  st. 

John  Hanley 70  Atlantic  ave. 

John  Hughes 329  Court  st. 

Edwin  Kershaw G40  Fulton  st. 

J.  A.  Ketchum 169  Lafayette  ave. 

C.  W.  Kirchner 51  Willoughby  place. 

John  Liddall 682  Bedford  ave. 

Anton  Mergel 421  Hudson  ave. 

Moses  May Johnson  ave.,  c.  White. 

M.  Mullins 020  Myrtle  ave. 

AmosF.  Oswald 131  Pacific  st. 

George  Roth 71  Montague  st. 

A.  Stoothoff Adelphi  and  Lafayette. 

Theo.  Schloerb 91  Orange  st. 

Henry  S.  Styles 1207  Fulton. 

M.  Schauback 182  De  Kalb  ave. 

Samuel  J.  Styles 204  Reid  ave. 

Carl  Symonds 108  Fulton. 

Samuel  Valentine Gravesend. 


J.  Van  Dyne Rear  141  N.  Elliot  st. 

Thomas  Wynne 451  Court  st. 

John  W.  Young 333  Myrtle  ave. 

H.  Kern 274  Columbia. 

G.  W.  Morrison 633  Fulton. 

Charles  Lockitt 145  Clinton  ave. 

Pork  Packer;  established  in  Fiirman  street,  near  Fulton 
Ferry,  in  1843;  the  firm  then  being  Joseph  Lockitt,  Sr., 
and  John  Lockitt,  they  were  the  first  in  the  city  to  ex- 
port to  the  English  market  their  different  forms  of 
English  cut  bacon  and  lianis. 

The  following-named  persons  may  be  referred  to  as 
among  those  who  make  a  specialty  of  fish: 

Frederick  Gultenberg 1001  &  1003  Fulton  st. 

Born  in  Woodhaven,  N.  Y.,  in  1851,  and  established 
himself  as  a  dealer  in  fish  and  oysters  in  1871. 

John  W.  Campbell 320  South  Fifth  st. 

Establislied  his  business  at  17  Fulton  Market,  N.  Y.,  in 
1873. 

S.  S.  Clark 1075  Fulton  st. 

Geo.  A.  Chappell 108  St.  Mark's  ave. 

Julius  Dixon 957  B'way. 

James  Gildersleeve 428  Gold  st. 

Charles  A.  Lester 346  Court  st. 


MILK. 

Long  Island  is  noted  for  the  quantity  and  quality  of 
the  milk  it  produces,  and  from  the  first  growth  of 
Brooklyn  that  point  has  been  a  prominent  market  for 
it,  though  large  quantities  have  long  gone  to  New 
York.  But  other  large  quantities  have  been  brought 
to  Brooklyn  from  New  York,  which  have  been  received 
from  Long  Island  as  well  as  from  contiguous  portions 
of  New  Jersey  and  New  York.  To  give  anything  like 
a  history  of  the  milk  traffic  of  Brooklyn  would  be 
impossible  from  the  very  nature  of  the  trade.  Promi- 
nent among  the  milk  dealers  of  the  city  may  be  men- 
tioned the  following: 
C.  H.  C.  &  J.  E.  Beakes.  .  .181  Atlantic  avenue. 

J.  W.  Gildersleeve 235  Atlantic  avenue. 

R.  F.  Stevens 338  Adams  street. 

S.  G.  Smith Market  street. 

F.  B.  Smith Market  street. 

R.  Vestalen 194  Bergen. 

BAKERS  AND  CONFECTIONERS. 

(See  also  pp.  770,  T71.) 

In  1809  Isaac  Osborn  had  a  bakery  in  Brooklyn,  the 
precise  location  of  which  is  now  unknown,  but  it  was, 
doubtless,  not  far  from  the  river.  How  long  he  con- 
tinued in  the  business  does  not  appear.  In  1824  and 
1825,  at  least  four  bakeries  existed  in  the  town.  They 
were  those  of  Walter  Mchols,  48  Fulton  street,  L.  E. 
Brewster  &  Co.,  Main  and  Fulton  streets,  S.  Healy, 
116  Fulton  street,  and  Oliver  T.  &  Joseph  Hewlett,  46 
Fulton  street.  With  the  advancement  in  the  popula- 
tion of  Brooklyn,  the  number  of  bakeries  increased. 


1372 


MISIORY  OT  KIKOS  COXINTT. 


There  are  now  many  in  the  city,  among  which  may  be 
mentioned  those  of 

H.  C.  Anderson 50  4tb  avenue. 

C.  E.  Anderson 120  Lafayette  avenue. 

Henry  Brant 206  York  street. 

Rudolph  C.  Bacher 377  <fc  483  Manhattan  ave. 

Daniel  Canty 532  Grand  street. 

S.  W.  Day  &  Son 167  Fulton  street. 

A.  B.  Herseman  &  Co 292  Graham  avenue. 

C  545  Myrtle  avenue. 
■n,    T    T       •  73  Atlantic  avenue. 

E.  J.  Jenmngs ^  ^SS  Columbia  street. 

[  245  Smith  street. 

J.  T.  Jennings, 181  &  393  Grand  street. 

James  Kernan, 449  Fulton  street. 

F.  B.  Moore 348  Bridge  street. 

Adam  Ranch 51  Broadway. 

C.  A.  Schilling 80  Ewen  street. 

In  many  establishments  the  departments  of  bakery 
and  confectionery  are  combined,  and  besides  these  are 
numerous  confectioners  who  confine  their  manufacture 
to  candies  and  kindred  goods  alone.  It  will  be  obvi- 
ous that  no  complete  history  of  this  interest  can  be 
given.  Among  the  numerous  confectioners  of  the 
present  time  we  may  refer  to 

C.  Mollenhagen 197  Atlantic  avenue. 

George  F.  Riley 753  Fulton  street  and  282 

Flatbush  avenue. 
W.  H.  Weeks 78  4th  st.,  Brooklyn,  E.  D. 

Henry  Wolfert  is  a  confectioner  at  New  Lots;  and 
Frank  C.  Swan,  of  Brooklyn,  is  proprietor  of  a  confec- 
tionery at  29  Cortlandt  street,  New  York. 


DRUGGISTS. 

(See  also  pp.  751,  940.) 
Among  the  first  druggists  in  Brooklyn,  in  the  early 
part  of  the  century,  was  Dr.  Osborn,  whose  "  apothe- 
cary's shop  "  was  bought  in  1811  by  Ithiel  iSmead,  and 
continued  for  a  number  of  years.  Later  followed  Dr. 
J.  W.  Smith,  Edijar  W.  Stevens,  Sands  and  Jay,  and 
along  Fulton  street;  S.  P.  Leeds,  at  Hicks  street;  C.  J. 
Blagrove,  at  Main;  G.  Sherrit,  at  Johnson;  and  Geo. 
F.  Mountain,  at  Adams;  1825,  J.  V.  M  Vanderhoef, 
95  Fulton  street.  In  1848,  Francis  M.  Bassett  estab- 
lished himself  at  Court  and  Atlantic,  succeeded  in  1881 
by  Luther  F.  Stevetis;  the  same  year  Thos.  J.  France, 
now  of  614  Myrtle  avenue,  opened  a  drug  store.     In 

1854,  Geo.  S.  Dhillips  began  business  at  39  Fleet  place. 
Later  came  .7!  G.  Koehler,  now  on  Grand  street,  and 
on  Broadway;  J.  B.  Winter,  138  Franklin;  2'hos. 
M.  Lahey,  146  Smith;  1857,  Herman  F.  Francke, 
Herman  A.  Muller,  204  Columbia  street;  1859,  E.  A. 
Sayre,  461  Myrtle  avenue;  1865,  G.  W.  Kitchen,  349 
Fulton;  J.  E.  Crawford,  736  Bedford  avenue;  E.  Alt, 
New  Lots;  Andrews  <&  Manney,  302  Flatbush  avenue; 

Grenville  M.  Baker,  487  Manhattan  avenue;  Robert 
Black,  264  Bridge  street;  M.  E.  Bui-rows,  2d  Place; 


A.  B.  Chadwick,  H.  A.  Dickinson,  84  Montague; 
W.  A.  Douglas,  423  Fulton;  Heydenreich  Bros.,    169 

Atlantic  avenue;  1862,  McDonald  <fc  Bro.,  120  Myrtle 
avenue;  A.  7'.  Metcalfe,  298  5th  street,  E.  D.;  Louis 
E  Nicot,  67  Union  (1871,  member  Board  of  Educa- 
cation,  ex-Pres.  and  Sec.  Kings  County  Board  of 
Pharmacy);  James  Quee,  256  Fulton;  1861,  Floyd  W. 
Rogers,  167  Atlantic  avenue;  1882,  Robert  Wendler, 
404  Atlantic  avenue;  Wheeler  ib  Bolton,  264  Fulton; 
J.  C.  Vbert,  Division  and  Lee  avenues. 

Wm.  J.  De  Forest 32  5th  ave. 

R.  J.  Dodge 58  Clark  st. 

Richard  Lauer 365  Pacific  st. 

B.  V.  B.  Livingston 231  Grand,  E.  D. 

L.  L.  Lazell   69  Livingston 

George  S.  Phillips 39  Fleet  place. 

Cyrus  Pyle 326  Fulton  st. 

Daniel  C.  Robbins 91  Fulton  st. 

A.  J.  Rozezlawski Gates,  n.  Classon  ave. 

The  whole  number  of  druggists  doing  business  in 
Kings  county  is  about  380,  and  the  aggregate  capital 
invested  is  $1,400,000. 

SILVER-PLATING. 

(See  also  p.  707.) 

Henry  Schade  was  born  in  Germany,  and  came  to  New 

York  in  1848,  when  he  learned  the  trade  of  metal  spinner, 

and  went  in  the  silver-plating  business  for  himself  in  1873. 

In  1883,  he  came  to  Brooklyn,  purchased  the  land,  and  built 


HENRY    SCHADE'S    SILVER-PLATING    FACTORY. 

the  silver-plating  factory,  Nos.  56  and  58  Ainslie  street,  shown 
by  the  above  cut.  He  uses  a  steam-engine  of  35  liorse  i)0wer, 
employs  25  hands,  mostly  skilled  workmen,  and  produces 
150,000  worth  of  goods  annually.  His  business  is  prosperous 
and  Increasing.  There  is  but  one  other  establishment  of  the 
kind  in  Brooklyn. 

FURNITURE  AND  UPHOLSTERY. 

(See  also  pp.  729,  733.) 
Among  the  many  furniture  dealers  and  upholsterers 
of  Brooklyn,  the  following-named  firms  and  individuals 
are  conspicuous: 

C.  H.  Baldwin 46  4th  St.,  E.  D. 

Brooklyn  Furniture  Co. .  .  .559  Fulton  st. 

John  A.  Baldwin 46  4th  st. 

John  C.  Brown 300-302  Fulton  st. 

W.  A.  Davis Sands,  cor.  Fulton. 

Fingleton  Bros 611  De  Kalb  ave, 


GENERAL  TRADE  AND  MERCHANDISE. 


1373 


William  N.  Howe 148  4th  st. 

Albert  Korber 355  Adams  st. 

James  Loader 971  Fulton  st. 

Lang  &  Nau 262  Fulton  st. 

C.  M.  Medicus 18  &  20  Throop  ave.,  and 

45-49  De  Kalb  ave. 

John  F.  Mason Myrtle  ave.  &  Bridge  st. 

J.  G.  Reither  &  Sons Fulton,  cor.  Navy  st. 

E.  H.  Storms 704  Fulton  st. 

P.  W.  Schmitz 264  Court  st. 

Jacob  Schneider 134  Metropolitan  ave. 

George  Wilson 42  Myrtle  ave. 

John  Wood 223  Fulton  st. 

Martin  Worn  &  Sons 103  Humboldt  st. 

Carman  Pearsall 337  Manhattan  ave. 

Arthur  Lott 1107  Pacific  st. 

Dealer  in  furniture;  began  business  in  1865. 

F.  B.  Jordan 155-157  Adelphi  st. 

Dealer  in  furniture,  drapery  and  upliolstery;  has  been 
in  business  since  1878,  employs  a  capital  of  $8,000;  pays 
a  large  sum  annually  as  salaries  to  thirteen  employees; 
his  yearly  sales  averaging  $38,000. 
The  following  are  well-known  upholsterers: 

E.  Estberg 72  Hamburg  ave. 

Rohmann  &  Killemann. . .  .347  Adams  st.,  ifc  90  Bow- 
ery,  N.  Y. 


COWPEKTHWAIT   CO   s    1  I  ENITURE   WAREHOUSE 

Co-WPERTHWUT  C0MP4^N\  —One  of  the  landmaiks  of  old 
New^ork  is  the„ieat  fuimtuie  h  useof  the  Cowperthwaits 
of  Chatham  street  The  estal  lishment  of  the  Bioikl} n  film 
of  Cow  perthw  ait  Company  bids  fur  to  maik  an  epoch  m  the 
history  of  the  sister  city.  At  the  beginning  of  the  present 
century,  John  K.  Cowperthwait,  a  sturdy  scion  of  Pennsyl- 
vania Quaker  stock,  establislied  the  New  York  house,  and 
controlled  its  destinies  from  1807  to  1838.  From  tliat  time 
until  186."),  Samuel  N.  Cowperthwait,  the  son  of  the  founder 


of  the  concern,  stood  at  the  helm.  Eighteen  years  ago  the 
firm  became  M.  B.  Cowperthwait  &  Co.,  Montgomery  B. 
taking  an  interest  with  his  brother.  In  1881,  Montgomery 
B.  Cowperthwait  and  Albert  Ammerman,  established  the 
Brooklyn  house.  Quaker  fidelity  to  the  principles  of  fair 
dealing,  have  made  the  name  of  the  Cowperthwaits  famous 
the  world  over  in  connection  with  the  furniture  trade.  This 
same  business  method,  allied  to  a  spirit  of  enterprise  in  ac- 
cord with  our  own  age  of  progress  and  commercial  exten- 
sion, has  given  the  Brooklyn  house  of  Cowperthwait  Com- 
pany phenomenal  success  in  the  three  years  that  it  has  been 
in  existence,  and  given  a  reasonable  guarantee  of  a  highly 
prosperous  future.  Mr.  Ammerman  was  Auditor  of  the  city 
of  Brooklyn  for  two  years,  having  been  extensively  engaged 
previous  to  liis  election,  in  the  lumber  trade  on  Gowanus 
canal.  It  would  be  hard  to  find  a  better  matched  team  of 
business  men  than  the  two  principal  members  of  this  pros- 
perous establishment,  about  which  so  many  traditions  of 
success  in  the  remote  past  cluster;  Mr.  M.  B.  Cowperthwait, 
with  the  prestige  of  his  name  and  his  specific  knowledge  of 
the  details  of  the  trade  in  which  his  family  have  been  en- 
gaged for  nearly  a  century;  Mr.  Ammerman  with  his  wide 
commercial  experience,  aptitude  for  the  management  of  a 
large  concern,  and  tried  executive  abilities.  The  present 
house  is  located  on  the  corner  of  Fulton  street  and  Gallatin 
jjlace,  but  a  short  time  will  doubtless  see  the  present  site  ex- 
tended, and  branches  in  difl'ercnt  parts  of  the  city,  as  Brook- 
lyn achieves  the  natural  development  we  may  expect  for  her 
as  the  next-door  neighbor  of  the  metropolis.  Mr.  M.  B. 
Cowperthwait  made  a  good  business  move  in  bringing  the 
time-honored  name  of  his  house  across  the  East  river.  (For 
biography  and  portx-ait  of  Mr.  A.,  see  lAst  of  Portraits.) 


BABY  CARRIAGES  AND  TOYS. 

Jfsse  A  Ci  ANDALi,  manufactuici  of  baby  carnages, 
children's  locking  hoi  ses,  velocipedes,  etc,  ttc  ,  has 
been  aheady  alluded  to  on  page  704  of  this  volume 
We  pitsent,  heiewith,  i  view  of  his  well  known  estab 


JLssE    A     CRANDALL&    M\NUF\Ci 


1374 


HISTORY  OF KIN^GS  COUNTY. 


lishment  on  the  comer  of  Fulton  and  Pierrepont  streets. 
His  enterprising  devotion  to  the  interests  of  "  baby- 
dom  "  and  childhood,  has  well  earned  for  him  the 
cognomen  of  the  "  The  Child's  Benefactor." 


CARPET  DEALERS. 

(See  also  p.  813.) 

One  of  the  oldest  carpet  houses  in  the  city  is  that  of 
Hardenbergh  S  Co.,  which  was  founded  in  1839,  by 
Jonathan  and  Samuel  Stewart.  On  the  ruins  of  the 
great  fire  of  1837  they  built  the  present  store,  174 
Fulton  street,  especially  adapted  for  the  business. 
L.  V.  D.  Hardenbergh  afterwards  entered  their  em- 
ploy, and,  on  the  death  of  Jonathan  Stewart,  in  1871, 
the  firm  was  reorganized  as  Hardenbergh  &  Co.,  and, 
in  1878,  Mr.  Hardenbergh  acquired  entire  control.  The 
annual  sales  average  $150,000,  and  employment  is 
given  to  20  men  in  and  about  the  salesroom. 

S.  W.  Woolsey  opened  a  carpet  store  at  167  Grand 
street,  in  1852,  where  he  has  since  remained  ;  he  em- 
ploys 10  men,  and  his  annual  sales  average  about 
$75,000. 

Brainard  G.  Latimer,  est.  1854,  at  Grand  and 
Sixth  streets  ;  afterwards  removed  to  196  and  198 
Grand  street,  and  (1884)  to  Broadway  and  Sixth  street; 
annual  sales,  about  $150,000;  employs  20  men. 

Wm.  jBerrPs  Sons,  est.  on  Fulton  street  about  1856 
by  Wm.  Berri,  who  was  succeeded  by  his  sons  in  1874. 
In  1880,  they  built  four  stores  at  526-530  Fulton  street, 
which  the  occupy  for  their  large  business.  Wm.  Berri 
is  joint  editor,  with  W.  A.  Harris,  of  the  Carpet  Trade 
Review. 

Other  prominent  firms  are  :  W.  M.  Batterman,  1 
Cook  street;  Campbell  &  Josten,  est.  1882,  at  424  Ful- 
ton street ;  Carr  &  Murray,  63  Myrtle  avenue,  est. 
about  10  years  ;  Andrew  J.  Dexter,  322  Fulton  street, 
est.  1873  ;  A.  H.  King,  294  Fulton  street  ;  Geo.  H. 
Titus,  607  Fulton  street ;  Willetts  Bros.,  201  Atlantic 
avenue. 


The  painting  and  paper-hanging  business  of  M.  Webster 
&  Son,  corner  Clinton  and  Degraw  streets,  represented  by 
tlie  accompanying  cut,  was  establislied  by  Webster  &  Haines 
in  1857.  Their  first  location  was  in  a  room,  6  by  40  feet,  on 
Degraw  street.  They  soon  found  the  place  too  small,  and 
moved  to  the  next  building  on  the  south.  In  1864,  they  had 
to  provide  still  more  room  to  keep  pace  with  their  work,  and 
built  the  block  clear  through  to  Clinton  street,  which  M. 
Webster  &  Son  now  own  and  occupy.  Mr.  Haines'  health 
becoming  poor,  he  left  the  firm  in  1867,  from  which  time  to 
1875,  Mr.  Webster  conducted  the  business.  At  the  latter 
time  mentioned,  he  took  his  son,  Fred,  into  the  partnership, 
which  still  exists  as  M.  Webster  &  Son.  Their  painting  and 
paper-hanging  became  extensive,  and  frequently  suffered 
while  waiting  for  other  repairs.  They  thought  it  desirable  to 
equip  themselves  with  help,  so  that  they  could  overhaul  a 
house  in  all  its  requirements,  accordingly,  they  added  car- 
penters', plasterers'  and  masons'  jobbing  work  to  their  busi- 
ness, and  have  ever  since  been  prepared  to  repair  a  house 


M.    WEBSTER   &    SON'S    WAREROOMS. 

from  basement  to  roof,  doing  all  the  work,  from  the  roughest 
to  the  most  elaborate  artistic  finish,  inside  and  out.  In  this 
line  they  do  more  than  any  concern  in  Brooklyn.  By  a 
queer  circumstance,  another  branch  of  industry  was  de- 
veloped about  this  time  (1877).  A  lady  for  whom  they  were 
kalsomining  wished  them  to  clean  her  carpets  at  the  same 
time.  It  was  a  new  thing,  but  they  hired  a  colored  man  and 
did  it  by  the  hour.  She  was  so  %vell  pleased  that  she  told  her 
friends,  and  before  they  were  aware  of  it,  they  had  still 
another  business  to  attend  to.  Becoming  too  large  to  do  by 
hand,  they  bought  out  a  patent  cleaning  apparatus,  and 
started  their  present  extensive  Open  Air  Cleaning  Works  at 
New  Utrecht.  Carpet  cleaning  had  been  done  generally,  vip 
to  this  time,  in  buildings,  but  the  results  were  unsatisfac- 
tory, the  dust  settling  back  into  the  goods.  By  their  new 
process,  each  carpet  is  whipped  by  machinery  under  a  large 
roof;  the  sides  being  entirely  open,  the  dust  and  dirt  are  car- 
ried away  by  the  wind,  after  which  each  piece  is  swept  by 
hand.  From  a  business  of  6,000  yards  the  first  year,  the  in- 
crease reached  300,000  yards  in  1881.  All  this  is  done  for 
from  5  to  7  cents  per  yard. 

Attached  to  this  cleaning  establishment,  in  New  Utrecht, 
is  the  "CUnton  Renovating  Co."  This  novel  institution 
takes  all  articles  of  house  furniture,  bedding,  mattresses, 
window  curtains,  any  and  everything  movable  that  ever  be- 
comes infested  with  moths  or  other  vermin,  and,  by  a  per- 
fectly harmless  process,  destroys  every  vestige  of  insect  life, 
and  completely  removes  all  accumulations  of  grease  or  filth, 
without  coloring  or  defacing  the  most  delicate  fabric  or 
finish.  The  ravages  of  moths,  so  destructive  to  carjjets,  are 
instantly  arrested,  at  the  small  cost  of  10  to  13  cents  per 
yard. 

To  do  all  this  work  in  New  Utrecht,  requires  a  steam 
engine  of  16-horse  power;  and,  from  a  working  force  of  only 
two  men,  with  which  they  commenced  business,  they  now 
employ  in  the  different  departments  fifty  men.  The  develop- 
ment of  this  varied  and  diverse  business  has  been  purely  a 
work  of  observation  and  enterprise,  and  it  is  not  a  matter  of 
surprise  that  M.  Webster  &  Son  are  thriving  and  prosperous. 


GENERAL  TRADE  AND  MERCHANDISE. 


13V5 


BOOT  AND  SHOE   MAKERS  AND  DEALERS. 

Joseph  Herbert  had  a  shoe  shop  on  Sands  street, 
I)etween  Bridge  and  Main,  in  1809,  as  appears  from  a 
notice  in  one  of  the  issues  of  the  Long  Island  Star  for 
that  year.  Of  course  he  had  predecessors,  but  who 
they  were  and  where  their  shops  were  located  cannot 
now  be  ascertained.  About  the  same  time  W.  P.  and 
Abraham  Bennett  had  a  shoe  shop  in  Brooklyn,  in  the 
ownership  of  which  they  were,  not  long  afterward,  suc- 
ceeded by  Winant  P.  Bennett,  who  was  probably  the 
W.  P.  Bennett  above  referred  to.  In  1812  Losee  Van 
Nostrand  was  shoe-making  on  Old  Ferry  street.  For 
some  time  previous  to  1815  Isaac  Van  JVbstrand  had  a 
shoe  shop  far  down  what  is  now  Fulton  street,  near  the 
ferry.  It  used  to  be  his  custom  to  boast  that  he  could 
"  fit  a  man's  foot  but  not  his  eye."  Just  below  Poplar 
Place  was  once  the  shoe  shop  of  John  Bergen,  who 
was  succeeded  by  Abraham  Van  Nostrand.  A  man 
named  Richardson,  and  called  "Marvellous,"  "Marvel" 
and  "  Miraculous  "  Richardson,  was  a  well-known  shoe- 
maker, who  had  his  shop  near  the  corner  of  Fulton  and 
]\Iiddagh  streets.  In  connection  with  his  grocery  on 
Fulton  street,  near  Sands,  Ex-Sheriff  John  Dean 
had  an  extensive  shoe  shop.  In  1817  Henry  Dikeman 
advertised  that  he  was  able  to  supply  all  demands  for 
ladies'  and  children's  shoes.  While  it  is  likely  that  he 
made  shoes  for  men  as  well  as  for  women  and  children, 
there  seems  little  reason  to  doubt  that  he  was  the  first 
who  made  a  specialty  of  the  kinds  of  shoes  mentioned. 
Benjamin  HuUurd  was  making  boots  and  shoes  in 
Brooklyn  in  1819,  and  during  that  year  was  succeeded 
by  Uriah  Ryder.  Dikeman,  mentioned  above,  seems 
to  have  formed  a  partnership  with  a  man  named  Conant, 
as  the  firm  of  Dikeman  &  Conant,  boot  and  shoe 
makers,  was  dissolved  by  mutual  consent  in  1823.  J. 
Rikenian  was  in  the  businesss  in  1827  and  had  then 
been  thus  engaged  for  some  time.  J.  Valentine  had  a 
shoe  shop  on  James  street  in  1828  and  Ednnmd  Sutton 
a  similar  establishment  at  195  Fulton  street  in  1829. 
These  and  other  shoe-makers  were  well  known  in  Brook- 
lyn early  in  the  present  century.  To  complete  the  list 
down  to  the  present  time  would  be  impossible,  and  even 
if  it  were  not  it  would  be  unprofitable.  Gradually  the 
manufacture  of  boots  and  shoes  by  machinery  was  in- 
troduced till  factories  entirely  superseded  the  once  busy 
shops  in  which  numbers  of  "  jour."  shoe-makers  worked, 
turning  out  their  wares  by  hand.  This  change  was  not 
wrought  without  the  exhibition  of  much  of  that  bitter 
rivalry  which  has  ever  characterized  the  transition  from 
the  "  hand  "  to  the  "  machine  "  period  of  manufacture. 
The  introduction  of  machine-made  shoes  led  to  the  es- 
tablishment of  retail  stores,  which  are  now  more 
numerous  than  were  ever  shoe  shops  within  the  same 
area.  Some  of  these  stores  are  large  and  elegant  and 
almost  any  of  the  more  important  of  them  contain 
stocks  of  boots  and  shoes  which  alone  would  have 
been  almost  sufficient  to  supply  the  trade  of    Brook- 


lyn early  in  the  century.  Only  a  few  of  these  establish- 
ments can  be  mentioned.  That  of  Messrs.  Crosswa?*  & 
Bergen  was  established  in  1859  by  J.  T.  Whitehouse, 
who  was  succeeded  by  the  present  firm  in  1871.  Their 
store  is  located  at  599  Fulton  street.  The  business  of 
Joseph  J.  Byers  <&  Co.,  at  110  Court  street,  was  estab- 
lished in  1879;  $20,000  capital  is  employed,  and  the  an- 
nual sales  amount  to  $57,000.  The  business  necessitates 
the  employment  of  ten  persons,  and  the  firm  pay  $4,000 
yearly  in  salaries.  Following  are  the  names  and  ad- 
dresses of  a  number  of  other  firms  or  individuuls 
engaged  in  this  branch  of  trade  : 

Brennan  &  Kelly 80  Grand  street. 

B.  L.  Cornell 463  Fulton  street. 

F.  W.  Deitz 24  Boerum 

Fred  J.  Finch 485  Fulton  street. 

H.  Holtz  &  Son 183  Montague. 

Harding  &  Co 317  Fulton  street. 

Christian  Hohn 737  Fulton  street. 

M.  J.  Kearney 547  Fulton  street. 

William  La  Sell 40  Schermerhorn. 

J.  Mundell  &  Sons 298  Fulton  street. 

L.  L.  Whitehouse 265  Fulton  street. 

Robert  C.  Westley 315  North  Second  street. 

F.  Edwards 166  Atlantic  avenue. 

James  L.  Smith 10th  street,  E.  D. 

Joseph  J.  Byers,  dealer  in  fine  boots  and  shoes,  No.  110 
Court  street,  corner  of  State,  was  born  May  9th,  1856,  in 
Brooklyn,  N.  Y.  In  early  life  he  attended  the  public  schools 
of  his  native  city,  and  Browne's  Business  College.  For  a  time 
lie  was  the  trusted  manager  of  an  old-established  shoe  house 
in  this  city,  and  May,  1879,  commenced  business  for  himself 
in  his  present  store.  At  the  very  outset  of  his  business  life, 
Mr.  Byers  was  fully  impressed  with  the  low  ratio  of  success 
among  business  men,  and  decided  that  blind  following  of  old 
methods  should,  in  his  case,  be  superseded  by  new  ways.  His 
success  has  proven  the  wisdom  of  his  decision.  His  fine  store, 
38x75  feet  in  dimensions,  speedily  grew  charming  and  attrac- 
tive, under  his  renovating  and  beautifying  system.  He  fitted 
it  up,  spending  money  with  a  lavish  hand,  and  ornamented  it 
in  every  possible  way.  He  was  the  first  to  introduce  "  open- 
ings "  into  this  trade.  On  these  occasions,  his  store  presents 
a  bewildering  array  of  ornamentation,  and  the  public  is  cor- 
dially welcomed,  while  he  dispenses  presents  to  his  customers 
in  a  liberal  spirit,  having  given  as  many  as  3,700  bouquets 
in  four  days.  On  another  occasion  he  had  a  children's  day, 
when  he  delighted  his  fair  little  visitors  by  giving 
them  1,000  plates  of  ice  cream.  In  1880  and  1881, 
he  gave  |1,500  worth  of  pictures,  besides  other  at- 
tractive presents  to  his  customers;  and,  in  1882,  spent 
$600  in  canary  birds  and  cages,  each  purchaser  to  a  certain 
amount  receiving  one  of  these  musical  gifts.  Every  lady 
possessing  a  scrap  album  should  remember  Mr.  Byers,  as  to 
his  originality  this  advertising  method  is  due,  and  he  has 
given  out  over  one  and  a  half  millions  of  these  cards.  In  the 
spring  of  1883,  his  presentation  of  a  pot  of  pansies  to  every 
customer  resulted  in  the  distribution  of  3,000  pots  of  these 
flowers.  In  the  giving  of  realistic  views  in  his  show-windows, 
he  again  illustrated  the  advantage  of  native  originality. 
Among  other  representations  are  a  model  of  the  ill-fated 
Arctic  steamer  "Jeanuette,"  tossing  in  the  ice;  a  miniature 


1376 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS    COUNTY. 


JOSEPH   J.    BYERS'    SHOE   STORE. 

mill  at  work,  a  faithful  portrayal  of  a  liistoric  old  mill  at 
New  London,  Conn.,  etc.  He  keeps  a  stock  on  hand  worth 
from  twent}-  to  twenty-five  thousand  dollars.  Many  of  his 
boots  and  shoes  are  fashioned  after  special  designs  of  his  son. 
He  keeps  ten  hands  constantly  employed,  and  his  messengers 
and  door-boj-s  are  neatly  uniformed.  His  sales  aggregate 
$60,000  annually,  and  he  has  an  extensive  out-of-town  patron- 
age. Though  yet  a  young  man,  Jlr.  Byers  can  be  ranked  with 
successful  merchants  of  Brooklyn,  and  his  future  years 
promise  but  additional  prosperity. 


THE  RETAIL  HATTERS. 

(See  also  p.  743.) 

The  hat  trade  has  been  an  important  interest  in  this 
city  from  a  very  early  day.  While  in  the  manufacture 
of  hats  Brooklyn  ranks  first,  the  retail  trade  alone 
aggregates  nearly  a  million  of  dollars  in  capital,  and 
employs  several  hundred  men.  The  first  Brooklyn 
directory,  issued  in  1796,  names  three  hatters,  John 
Middagh  and  Nathaniel  Toionsend,  in  "  Main  Road," 
and  Jeffrey  Tillotson  at  Old  Ferry  Dock;  a  good  pro- 
portion compared  with  the  other  lines  of  business,  being 
equal  in  number  to  the  grocers,  and  exceeding  that  of 
the  merchants.  In  1816,  Stephen  S.  Voris'  hat  store 
(formerly  John  Middagh's)  was  on  Fulton,  a  few  doors 
below  Henry  street.  In  1822,  Wm.  Voorhis  kept  a  hat 
store  on  Fulton  street,  opposite  Henry.  Robert  W.  Peck 
established  himself  in  1829  at  84  Fulton,  removing  two 
years  later  to  110.  His  brother,  ,7as.  W.  Peck,  succeeded 
in  1832,  and  is  still  hale  at  80  years  (1883),  the  oldest 
hatter  in  the  city.  In  186.2,  the  firm  became  J.  W.  Peck 
&  So7i,  in  1873,  W.  JI.  Peck  &  Pro.,  and  since  1873 
Isaac  W.  Peck,  and  is  the  oldest  house  in  the  trade, 
and  its  members  have  all  been  practical  hatters.  The 
next  was  Mr.  Campbell,  on  Fulton  street,  above  York. 


In  1832,  Gault,  Ballard  &  Bigelow  commenced  busi- 
ness at  the  corner  of  Fulton  and  High  streets;  the  firm 
afterwards  became  F.  H.  Bigeloic  &  Co.,  and  is  now 
Balch,  Price  tfc  Co.  Their  first  store  was  burned  in  the 
great  fire  and  rebuilt.  In  1872,  they  removed  to  their 
present  location,  876  Fulton  street,  being  the  second 
house  in  age  in  the  trade.  John  Phillips  next  opened  a 
store  in  Atlantic  avenue,  about  1836.  Gaston  was  next 
in  order,  at  the  corner  of  Middagh  and  Fulton.  Bassler 
opened  in  1863,  at  340  Fulton;  was  succeeded  by 
Attix  (£•  Co.,  and,  in  1883,  by  Knox.  In  1864,  James 
Tnrnhull  opened  a  store  at  39  Fulton,  then  removed 
to  the  basement  of  the  Union-Argus  building,  subse- 
quently returning  to  39  and  41  Fulton.  A.  C.  Jacobson 
began  in  1868,  at  the  corner  of  Tillary  and  Fulton, 
and  Fxtnnan  T.  Nutt  in  1870,  at  300  Fulton;  Heany 
Bros.,  in  1872,  moving  to  No.  79  in  1875.  The  follow- 
ing also  are  prominent  dealers: 

Thos.  F.  Brazell 116  Court. 

Wm.  Diehl 32  McKibbin  street. 

G.  A.  Price 376  Fulton. 

W.  H.  Slater 376  Fulton. 

H.  A.  Smith 151  4th  street,  E.  D. 


BOOKSELLERS,  STATIONERS  AND  BINDERS. 

(See  also  p.  738.) 

No  record  has  been  found  to  show  that  any  one  was 
prominently  engaged  in  the  book  trade  in  Brooklyn 
before  Thomas  Kirk,  who  had  a  book  store,  at  the 
printing  office  of  the  Long  Island  Star,  on  Main  street, 
next  door  to  Rapelye  and  Mooney's  dry-goods  store. 
During  the  time  the  paper  was  published  by  Mr.  Kirk, 
E.  Worthington,  Alden  Spooner  and  others,  there  was 
a  book  store  in  connection  with  the  establishment.  These 
gentlemen  at  different  times  published  such  books  as  a 
requisite  number  of  subscribers  could  be  obtained  for, 
and,  as  appears  from  advertisements  in  the  Star,  made 
proposals  to  issue  numerous  books  and  pamphlets 
which  were  not  bespoken  in  numbers  sufficiently  large 
to  warrant  their  publication.  A  leading  bookseller, 
importer  and  publisher,  for  many  years  until  his  death, 
was  the  late  W.  W.  Swayne,  whose  business  is  con- 
tinued since  his  death.  Among  the  numerous  living 
booksellers  and  stationers  of  Brooklyn  are  the  follow- 
ing, whose  establishments  in  different  parts  of  the  city 
are  well  known  and  liberally  patronized  : 

David  S.  Holmes 89  4th,  E.  D. 

George  Gilluly 83  Franklin  ave. 

Henry  Thorpe 454  Sackett  st. 

Thomas  B.  Ventres 62  Court  St. 

Weedon's  Book  Exchange.  122  Myrtle  ave. 

Henry  E.  Sackmann 445  Van  Buren  St.,  E.  N.Y. 

Book-Binder.  Born  at  Altenlande,  Germany  ;  learned 
trade  at  Hamburg  ;  came  to  America  m  1834  :  lived  in 
Texas  a  number  of  years,  and,  in  1840,  settled  at  East 
New  York,  establishing  a  book-bindery  at  68  Vesey 
street,  New  York,  removing  from  there  to  39  and  41  Cen- 
tre street,  present  location. 


GENERAL  TRADE  AND  MERCHANDISE. 


1377 


PRINTERS. 

(See,  also,  page  7:J8). 

J.  J.  Black 612  Bushwick  ave. 

David  Cook 204  Bridge  st. 

C.  Collins  &  Co 106  Livingston  st. 

Geo.  J.  Collins 301  Throop  ave. 

H.  G.  Coyle 18  Lafayette  ave. 

Albert  Fries,  Jr 157  S.  1st  st. 

W.  P.  Griffith 365  Fulton  st. 

Wilber  S.  Ilawkes 19  Court  st. 

M.   King 446  Grand  st. 

Charles  II.  Mcllvaine   . . .  .h.,  274  Hooper  st. 

Geo.  S.  Patton 80  Fulton  st. 

Henry  C.  Reimer 99  Broadway. 

W.  F.  Smith 282  Court  st. 

John  C.  Sullivan 302  Graham  ave. 

J.  Woehr,  Jr 60  Bergen  st. 

William  White 79  William  St.,  N.  Y. 

PHOTOGRAPHERS. 

(See,  aUo,  page  816). 

H.  W.  Biffar    113  4th  St.,  E.  D. 

George  Forshew 245  Fulton  st. 

Henry   Holler 149  Ewen  st. 

J.  F.  Kopke 407  Fulton  st. 

William   S.   Pendleton 336  Fulton  st. 

Charles  S.  Ravvson 255  Fulton  st. 

D.  H.  Smith 428  Fulton  st. 

Van  Doom 242  Fulton  st. 

Chas.   Weller 130  Broadway. 

William  Wendel 6  Nevins  st. 

MUSICIANS. 

Henry  E.  Brown 42  Fourth  ave. 

Charles  D.  Carter 197  Sixth  ave. 

A.  D.  Caswell 179  Montague  st. 

Lucian  Conterno 283  Ryerson  st. 

G.  A.  Connor 188  Pacific  st. 

H.  B.  Dodworth 47  Lafayette  place. 

Thomas  R.  Deverell 118  38th  st.,  S.  Bklyn. 

Thomas  R.  Deverell,  a  native  of  Ireland,  and  son  of  a 
British  army  officer;  early  life  spent  amid  military  associa- 
tions, and  his  musical  education  was  under  Mr.  Thos.  C:rozier, 
one  of  seven  brothers,  who  were  all  band-masters.  Coming 
to  U.  S.  1853,  he  entered  the  U.  S.  Navy,  at  Brooklyn  Navy 
Yard,  and  became  one  of  the  band  in  the  old  "  North  Caro- 
lina ; "  in  1854,  accompanied  the  flag-ship  Independence  on  a 
South  Pacific  cruise,  during  which  he  was  made  band-master. 
Leaving  the  service,  on  his  return  in  1857,  was  band-master 
for  16  montlis  of  the  3d  Regiment,  N.  Y.  S.  N.  G.  (afterwards 
"79th  Highlanders");  at  the  West  Point  U.  S.  Military 
Academy  (1858-'60),  he  gave  music  lessons  to  the  cadets, 
having  as  pupils  many  who  have  since  become  eminent  offi- 
cers. In  August,  1861,  was  one  of  the  band-leaders  of  the  63d 
N.  Y.  (Anderson  Zouaves)  Regiment;  became  leader  of  the 
8th  Regiment,  N.  J.  S.  N.  G.  band  in  1873;  serving  nearly 
tliree  years  :  was  band-master  of  the  13th  N.  Y.  S.  N.  G.,  and 
of  9th  Regiment,  N.  J.  S.  N.  G.,  1876;  of  47th  Regiment, 
N.  Y.  S.  N.  G.,  1879,  which  two  latter  positions  he  stiU  re- 


tains. Mr.  Deverell's  Band  (the  47th  Regiment)  is  well  known 
to,  and  appreciated  by,  the  citizens  of  Brooklyn,  from  their 
performances  on  many  public  occasions.  Mr.  Deverell 
(December  33,  1883)  was  appointed  Recruiting  Agent  for  the 
U.  S.  Army  Bands  by  Geia.  Sherman. 

Juo.  M.  Loretz,  Jr 207  Washington  ave. 

Raphael  Navarro 536  State  st. 

Martin  Papst 130  Livingston  st. 

E.  C.  Phelps   24  Greene  ave. 

A.  Noziglia 92  Orange  st. 

John  Schneider 74  Lee  ave. 

Mert  C.  Wisko 80  Taylor  st. 

J.  Vankeuren 74  Hooper  st. 

Carl  Wagner 229  10th  st. 

E.  J.  Fitzhugh 238  Lafayette  ave. 

F.  Fauciulli 350  Henry  st. 

DEALERS   IN    PIANOS. 

(See  also  p.  Sl3.) 

George  Lyding 487  Broadway. 

W.  H.  McDonald 114  4th  St.,  E.  I). 

The  Arion  Piano  Warerooms,  138  Fourth  st.,  E.  D., 
was  established  by  Mr.  McDonald,  a  native  of  Philadel- 
phia. When  quite  young,  he  came  to  New  York,  and, 
for  more  than  30  years,  was  a  citizen  of  Brooklyn  ;  was 
engaged  in  the  sale  of  pianos  for  many  years,  formerly 
in  New  York,  and  latterly  in  Brooklyn,  first  at  144,  then 
at  143  Fourth  St.,  Brooklj'n,  E.  D. ;  was  a  man  of  con- 
siderable literary  talent,  and  of  rare,  noble  principles. 
He  died  in  July,  1883,  and  the  business  was  re-established 
by  his  widow  in  December,  1883,  at  144  Fourth  St.,  then 
moved  to  138  Fourth  st.,  where  she  now  remains. 

DEALERS  IN  MUSIC. 

Daniel  J.  Lent 333  Sackett  st. 

Frederick    Schneider 73  Lafayette  ave. 

H.  Depew  Tier 257  17th  st. 


CHINA,  GLASS  AND  CROCKERY. 

As  early  as  1810,  Mrs.  Van  Antwerp  had  a  crockery 
store  on  Main  street.  J.  G.  Dwell  &  J.  &  A.  Sutton 
is  the  long  and  somewhat  oddly  constructed  name  of  a 
firm  advertising  in  1823  a  china  and  glass  store  at 
82  Fulton  street.  The  ne.xt  year,  Henry  A.  Tollman 
kept  a  similar  establishment  at  8  New  Slip.  In  1829, 
Messrs.  Underhill  ct  Doolittle  had  another,  at  109  Ful- 
ton street.  Among  the  leading  dealers  in  china  ware 
in  both  Brooklyn,  New  York,  and  110  Clark  street, 
Chicago,  at  this  time,  are  Messrs.  Ovington  Brothers, 
246  and  248  Fulton  street.  They  were  estab.  here 
(1846)  at  85  Fulton  street,  were  burned  out  in  1883, 
have  rebuilt,  and  occupy  one  of  the  largest  and  most 
elegant  stores  in  Brooklyn,  and  are  eminently  one  of 
the  institutions  of  the  city.  Another  dealer,  well 
known  in  this  city,  is  Mr.  J.  L.  Jensen,  144  Greene 
avenue.  Mr.  Francis  Thill,  16  Taylor  street,  and  T. 
Storm,  corner  oi  North  11th  and  Second  streets,  are 
known  in  connection  with  the  glass  trade. 


IS18 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


In  connection  with  the  crockery  trade  of  Brooklyn, 
we  may  also  mention  C.  C.  Leif/h,  born  in  Phila- 
delphia, located  here  1833;  was  an  early  abolition- 
ist, one  of  the  originators  of  the  FreedmarCs  Relief 
Association,  formed  in  early  part  of  the  civil  war,  and 
(under  special  autograph  passes  from  Pres.  Lincoln, 
the  Secretary  of  War,  and  Gen.  Grant)  had  access  to 
every  portion  of  the  Union  lines,  in  the  work  of  for- 
warding the  interests  of  the  "  contrabands."  In  secur- 
ing funds  for  this  purpose,  he  visited  also  Great  Britain, 
France,  Germany,  and  Holland.  He  afterwards  eifected 
the  establishment  of  the  Franco- American  telegraph 
system,  as  an  offset  to  the  Anglo-American  cable,  both 
ends  of  which  latter  were  virtually  under  British  con- 
trol, which  would  be  detrimental  to  American  interests 
in  case  of  war  between  U.  S.  and  Great  Britain.  He 
is  an  ardent  temperance  advocate;  as  member  of  the 
N.  Y.  Legislature,  has  rendered  eifective  service  in  the 
cause.  In  1880,  was  Pres.  of  N.  Y.  City  Temperance 
Alliance;  and,  in  1873,  org.  Kings  Co.  Prohibition 
Alliance.  Is  a  member  of  Old  Brookhjnites,  and  is  a 
well-known  and  honored  citizen. 


PAINTERS,  PAPER-HANGERS  AND  INTERIOR 
DECORATORS. 

(See  also  p.  724.) 

No  record  of  any  painter  in  Brooklyn  earlier  than 
the  Aliens  is  to  be  found.  From  a  reference  to  the 
Long  Island  Star,  it  appears  that  Messrs.  J.  <fc  31. 
^/few  were  advertising  themselves  as  painters  in  1819. 
Matthew  James,  another  painter,  inserted  his  advertis- 
ing card  in  1823.  Near  the  corner  of  Fulton  and  Cran- 
berry streets  was  once  the  paint  shop  of  old  Matthew 
Hall,  father  of  ex-Mayor  Hall,  who  was  known  in  the 
town  more  than  half  a  century  ago.  If  not  the  first 
painter  in  Brooklyn,  a  distinction  which  could  not  well 
be  claimed  for  him,  Mr.  Hall  was  one  of  the  earliest 
who  became  prominent  both  as  a  painter  and  a  citizen. 
In  1825,  David  Price  had  a  paint  shop  at  20  Sands  street, 
and,  in  1828,  John  Dean  was  engaged  in  the  same  line 
at  14.5  Fulton  street.  A  year  later,  John  Miller  ad- 
vertised that  he  was  "  prepared  to  receive  orders  for 
all  kinds  of  painting,  at  the  corner  of  James  and  Main 
streets." 

These  may  be  regarded  as  having  been  the  best 
known  among  the  early  painters  of  Brooklyn.  Since 
their  day  the  demand  for  painters  has  increased  so 
greatly  that  it  is  probable  that  the  painters  of  Brook- 
lyn are  now  numbered  by  thousands.  Gradually  paint- 
ing has  been  combined  with  paper-hanging,  kalsomin- 
ing  and  other  branches  of  the  art  decorative  as  applied 
to  the  interiors  of  buildings.  As  the  city  has  advanced 
in  wealth  and  refinement,  a  demand  for  finer  and  more 
artistic  work  has  grown  up  until  at  this  time  the  man 
who  is  a  skilful  interior  decorator  is  an  artist  in  his 
way  of  no  mean  ability.     The  following  brief  notices  of 


some  of  the  well-known  painters,  paper-hangers  and  in- 
terior decorators  and  dealers  in  the  supplies  of  the 
craft  in  Brooklyn  at  this  time,  may  prove  not  uninterest- 
ing. Prominent  in  this  class  of  tradesmen  is  Mr. 
William  Harkness,  of  690  Fulton  street,  of  whose 
career  a  sketch  appears  elsewhere  in  these  pages. 
George  Elford,  painter,  decorator  and  paper-hanger, 
506  Fulton  street,  began  business  at  his  present  loca- 
tion in  1856.  In  1802,  his  son  became  his  partner  and 
the  house  became  known  as  that  of  George  Elford  & 
Son.  M.  Webster^s  Son,  Degraw  street,  at  the  corner 
of  Clinton,  is  the  present  proprietor  of  the  business 
established  by  his  father,  M.  Webster,  in  1858,  and, 
besides  taking  rank  among  the  most  enterprising 
painters  and  decorators,  is  the  representative  of  the 
Oj?en-Air  Carpet  Cleaning  Company.  The  establish- 
ment of  Mr.   WiUiani  H.    Wilkcyson,   27V  Broadway, 

E.  D.,  dealer  in  paints  and  paper-hangings,  has  been  in 
existence  since  1858  also.  William  W.  Reaver, 
painter  and  paper-hanger,  19  Gates  avenue,  began  busi- 
ness in  1862,  and  is  well  known  in  band  and  military 
circles,  having  served  as  Drum-Major,  under  the 
militia  organization,  twelve  years,  and  three  years  as  a 
member  of  the  New  York  State  Volunteers.  Peter 
Bertstih,  painting,  japanning,  gilding,  carving,  engrav- 
ing, etc.,  374  Broadway,  E.  D.,  began  business  in  1863. 
George  R.  Elmore,  painter  and  decorator,  654  Fulton 
street,  began  business  in  1860,  at  314  Bridge  street. 
He  served  three  years,  during  the  late  war,  as  a  mem- 
ber of  the  61st  Regiment,  New  York  State  Volunteers, 
and  was  promoted  to  the  rank  of  Captain.  Joh7i  W. 
Rowe,  painter  and  decorator,  98  Court  street,  came  to 
Brooklyn  September  1st,  1832,  learned  his  trade  in  New 
York,  and  established  his  business  in  Brooklyn  in  1876. 
R.  H.  Newman,  painter,  paper-hanger  and  decorator, 
425  Gates  avenue,  began  business  in  1877  in  a  small 
building,  which  the  increase  in  his  trade  has  since  com- 
pelled him  to  enlarge.  James  S.  Sch7ieider,  511  Broad- 
way, E.  D.,  dealer  in  paints,  oils,  chemicals  and  dyes, 
was  a  sign-painter  previous  to  1869,  when  he  estab- 
lished his  present  business  at  the  location  named.  Fol- 
lowing are  the  names  and  addresses  of  others  engaged 
in  this  branch  of  industrial  art  : 

J.  Avila 145  Fulton  street. 

F.  Aldridge 24  Myrtle  avenue. 

Chas.  H.  Berry 144  Broadway. 

W.  H.  Bushfield 21  Chauncy  street. 

W.  W.  Bearan 442  Clermont  avenue. 

Hugh  Carrick  &  Son 284  Division  avenue. 

E.  A.  Dubay 356  Fulton  street. 

W.  H.  Garrison 520  DeKalb  avenue. 

J.  A.  Greany 324  Albany  avenue. 

Geo.  Hudson 1  York  street. 

Geo.  W.  Hall 322  Bergen  street. 

John  McComb 85  Orange  street. 

John  McNeill 446  Fulton  street. 

Rockf eller  Bros 22  Broadway. 


GENERAL  TRADE  AND  MERCHANDISE. 


1379 


Anthony  Ris 333  Court  street. 

Joseph  E.  Tomes 572  Atlantic  avenue. 

Isaac  H.  Williams 1250  Fulton  street. 

Loftus  Wright 216  S.  8th  street. 

Charles  L.  Zellensky  ....!.  Ill  Livingston  street. 

Following  will  be  found  the  names  of  some  of  those 
who  deal  in  paints,  oils  and  general  painters'  supplies: 

William  C.  Carrick B'way,  cor.  11th  st.,  E.  D. 

G.  DoremuB 449  Carleton  avenue. 

Cornelius  Janscn 127  Broadway. 

J.  &  W.  Mathison 107  &  109  N.  Ist  street. 

D.  Maujer's  Nephews 147  Grand. 

S.  B.  Richardson 528  Fulton  street. 

L.  Richardson 281  Plymouth  street. 

William  Staats 57  Johnson  avenue. 

R.  Thurston's  Sons 77  Broadway. 

Hugh  Carrick 248  TIewes  street. 

I.   H.   Williams 1250  Fulton  st.  and  02  4th 

street,  E.  D. 


William  IIaukness.— Mr.  William  Harkness,  the  subject 
of  this  sketch,  is  Icnown  as  cue  of  Brooklyn's  prominent  busi- 
ness men  and  puljlic-spirited  citizens.  Extensively  engaged, 
as  he  is,  in  tlie  business  of  house  decoration,  his  name  has 
become  a  synonym  for  trustworthiness,  while  as  a  member 
of  the  Board  of  Education  he  takes  a  high  rank  among  the 
men  who  Iiave  devoted  their  time,  tlieir  labor  and  their  skill 
to  the  public  interest,  with  a  zeal  and  disinterestedness  worthy 
of  all  praise. 

Mr.  Harkness  is,  in  the  truest  sense  of  the  word,  a  self-made 
man.  Without  inherited  capital  or  influence  to  start  in  busi- 
ness, lie  now  occupies  a  foremost  place  in  his  own  department. 
Without  the  advantages  of  a  liberal  education  in  his  youth, 
he  has  fought  his  way  to  usefulness  and  prominence  in  the 
community.  He  was  born  Nov.  1,  1840,  at  Smithborough, 
Co.  Monaghan,  Ireland,  of  that  mixed  Scotch  and  Irish 
stock,  whose  industry  and  frugality,  wliose  grit  and  hard- 
headedness  have  redeemed  the  North  of  Ireland  from  iioverty 
and  rendered  their  sons  successful  in  ever}-  foreign  land  to 
which  they  have  emigrated.  Mr.  Ilarkness's  career  adds  one 
more  to  the  many  stories  told  of  the  success  of  the  Scotch- 
Irish  in  America.  He  was  brought,  by  his  father,  along  with 
one  brother  and  three  sisters,  to  this  country  when  he  was 
eight  years  of  age.  For  a  brief  interval  he  attended  Public 
School  No.  1,  but  his  father  dying,  in  1850,  stern  necessity 
ordered  that  tlie  boy  often  should  leave  the  class-room  for  the 
work-shop  and  drop  the  pen  to  take  up  the  hammer.  He  was 
apprenticed  to  Aaron  A.  Degraw,  now  a  prominent  citizen  of 
Jamaica,  L.  I.,  to  learn  the  trade  of  brass  moulding  and  fin- 
ishing. This  done,  he  went  to  hat  making,  in  Prentice's  hat 
factory.  We  next  find  him  back  with  his  old  employer,  Mr. 
Degraw,  in  his  establishment  on  Wyckoff  street.  Neither 
brass  moulding  nor  hat  finislung,  liowever,  was  altogether  to 
his  taste,  and  lie  l)Oimd  himself  for  three  3'ears  to  Wm.  Bon- 
ner, to  learn  tlie  work  of  house  painting;  and  afterwards,  for 
two  years,  to  William  Harvest,  to  acquire  the  art  of  frescoing. 
Tlius,  before  he  had  reached  his  majority,  and  while  the 
average  boy  is  still  thinking  of  arithmetic  and  base-ball, 
young  Hai'kness  had  made  himself  proficient  in  these  distinct 
handicrafts,  at  any  one  of  which  he  was  well  qualified  to  earn 
a  good  living,  and  all  the  time  liad  contributed  largely  to  the 
support  of  his  mother  and  sisters. 

Wliilo   his   general   intelligence   was    thus  sharpened    by 


filfP, 


h  1    ^'  W 


WILLIAM    HARKNESS'    STOKES. 

rubbing  against  the  world,  and  his  hand  and  eye  were  being 
trained  in  the  work-shop,  such  advantages  as  came  in  his  way 
for  a  more  literary  education  were  not  neglected.  Every 
evening  during  the  night-school  term  found  him  in  his  place, 
a  willing  and  a  diligent  pupil.  Such  were  the  only  facilities 
for  education  within  his  reach,  but  of  them  he  made  the 
most. 

On  reaching  his  majority  he  started  as  a  journeyman 
painter.  The  v^ork  was  not  to  his  liking.  He  had  a  mind 
that  craved  for  the  direction  of  work — not  its  mere  execu- 
tion. He  felt  that  he  was  intended  for  something  liiglier  than 
to  continually  work  for  t)thers,  and  was  determined  to  reach 
the  goal  of  his  ambition.  But  how?  Capital  he  had  none; 
and  without  capital  independent  work  was  impossible.  There 
was  but  one  alternative,  to  bori'ow  money  or  to  continue  as 
a  journeyman.  He  chose  the  former.  In  this  crisis  of  his 
life  he  appealed  to  his  old  employer,  Wm.  Harvest,  for  a  loan 
of  ten  dollars  to  start  in  business  for  himself.  The  appeal 
was  an  extraordinary  one,  but  Wm.  Harvest  was  not  the 
man  to  refuse  a  helping  hand  to  a  faithful  workman.  He 
loaned  the  money  and  the  journeyman  became  a  capitalist 
and  employer.  It  is  unnecessary  to  add  that  Mr.  Harkness 
cherishes  the  most  kindly  and  grateful  feelings  toward  his 
early  benefactor,  who  still  lives. 

Soon  Mr.  Harkness  was  in  a  position  to  purchase,  for  a  small 
sum,  the  stock  and  good  will  of  a  paint  store  at  the  corner  of 
Lafayette  avenue  and  Fulton  street ;  and  subsequently,  in 
1864,  he  bought  out  the  store  of  John  L.  Gritfin,  at  No.  G93 
Fulton  street— a  stand  wliich  he  has  since  occupied,  and 
where  he  has  eminently  prospered. 

In  public  life  Mr.  Harkness  is  chiefly  known  through  his 
connection  with' the  Board  of  Education.  He  was  first  ap- 
pointed to  that  body  by  Mayor  Howell  in  1880,  and  has  since 
been  re-appointed  by  Mayor  Low.  Besides  taking  part  in  the 
usual  work  of  the  Board,  and  acting  as  Chairman  of  the  Local 
Committee  of  Public  School  No.  1,  Mr.  Harkness  has  held 
prominent  places  on  the  Evening  School  and  School  House 
Committees,  and  is  Chairman  of  the  Committee  on  High  and 
Normal  Schools.     The  recollection  of  what  he  himself  owes 


1380 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


to  the  evening  schools  has  caused  him  to  take  a  deep  interest 
in  night-school  work;  while  his  practical  knowledge  has  been 
of  no  small  value  to  the  Board  and  to  the  city  in  regard  to 
the  work  of  repairing  and  constnictmg  school-houses.  It  is, 
however,  as  Chairman  of  the  Committee  on  High  aud  Normal 
Schools  that  he  is  most  likely  to  be  remembered.  When 
Superintendent  Calvin  Patterson  outlined  in  his  Annual  Re- 
port for  1882  a  plan  for  a  Normal  School,  to  be  exclusively  de- 
voted to  the  training  of  teachers,  Mr.  Harkness  saw  not 
merely  its  feasibility  but  its  desirability.  With  characteristic 
energy  he  threw  himself  into  the  work  of  securing  the  adop- 
tion by  the  Board  of  the  Superintendent's  plans,  and  in 
April,  1884,  his  efforts  were  crowned  with  success.  At 
that  time  the  Board  passed  resolutions  adopting  the  Superin- 
tendent's i)lan,  and  placing  at  the  disposal  of  the  High  and 
Normal  School  Committee  a  school-house  on  Berkeley  place  in 
which  to  organize  a  Normal  School.  At  the  present  writing  the 
school  yet  remains  to  be  organized;  but  when,  in  future  times, 
the  history  of  the  educational  system  of  Brooklyn  comes  to 
be  written,  the  historian  will  not,  in  all  probability,  be  called 
upon  to  chronicle  a  more  far-reaching  movement  than  the  es- 
tablishment of  an  institution  for  the  training  of  teachers  in 
their  special  work  ;  and  with  it  will  always  be  associated  the 
name  of  William  Harkness. 

HARDWARE  DEALERS. 

(See,  also,  page  821). 

Among  the  earliest  in  this  line,  were:  1809,  Joel 
Bunce,  cor.  old  Ferry  and  Front;  John  Moon,  nails, 
etc.;  1821,  John  C.  Thompson,  Fulton  street;  1823,  J. 
Martense,  46  Fulton  street.  Among  the  present  repre- 
sentatives of  the  trade,  we  may  mention: 

S.  O.  Burnett 288  Fulton  st. 

Hardware;  established  1831,  at  81  Fulton  street,  by  I.  C. 
Duryea,  who  removed  to  present  location  in  1846,  and 
was  succeeded  in  1847  by  Young  &  Palmer,  who  were  in 
turn  succeeded  by  Young  &  Burnett.  Mr.  Burnett  has 
carried  on  the  business  since  the  decease  of  Mr.  Young, 
in  1866. 

William  Marlow,  Jr 335  Manhattan  ave. 

Hardware  and  house  furnishing  goods;  established 
1856,  cor.  of  Franklin  street  and  Greenpoint  avenue,  by 
Bliss  &  Brown,  for  whom  Mr.  Marlow  acted  as  clerk 
until  1861,  when  he  succeeded  to  the  business,  removing 
to  his  present  location  in  1880. 

PLUMBERS. 

(See  also  p.  815). 

The  business  of  plumbing  and  steam  and  gas  fitting 
in  Brooklyn  has,  as  elsewhere,  been  one  of  gradual  and 
comparatively  late  development.  At  first  needed  re- 
pairs were  made  by  men  who  went  from  house  to  house 
for  that  purpose,  and  many  of  whom  were  employed 
regularly  as  tinsmiths  or  blacksmiths.  With  the  intro- 
duction of  gas,  water  and  other  modern  improvements, 
the  business  under  consideration  was  developed  as  a  ne- 
cessity. Some  of  the  mechanics  whose  attention  had 
been  directed  to  this  much  needed  branch  of  industry 
opened  small  shops,  which  in  time  grew  to  be  large  es- 
tablishments with  extensive  salesrooms  and  offices  at- 
tached. Following  will  be  found  a  few  interesting 
items  concerning  some  gentlemen  well  known  in  connec- 


tion with  this  branch  of  business  at  the  present  time: 
The  business  of  Mr.  William  J.  Roche,  plumber  and 
gas-fitter,  64  Henry  street,  was  established  at  99  Orange 
street  in  1866,  by  Gilmour  and  Roche,  and  was  re- 
moved to  65  Henry  street  in  1875,  whence  it  was  subse- 
quently removed  by  Mr.  Roche  to  his  present  address. 
The  business  of  Mr.  Frederick  A.  Hutchinson,  334 
Myrtle  avenue,  a  prominent  plumber  and  dealer  in  gas 
fixtures,  was  established  by  the  father  of  the  present 
proprietor  in  Trenton,  N.  J.,  in  1855,  and  by  him  sub- 
sequently removed  to  Brooklyn,  Mr.  Frederick  A. 
Hutchinson  succeeding  him  in  1877.  Mr.  R.  M. 
Moffat,  113  Fourth  street,  Brooklyn,  E.  D.,  established 
himself  as  a  plumber  and  lead-burner  at  143  Fourth 
street  in  1872,  and  has  done  a  successful  business,  at 
this  time  occupying  the  position  of  Consulting  Plumber 
and  Inspector  of  Plumbing  in  the  Department  of 
Health.  James  Hueston,  a  former  Inspector  of  Plumb- 
ing for  the  Board  of  Health,  began  business  as  a  sanitary 
engineer  and  plumber,  at  6  Hoyt  street,  in  1875.  In  1880 
he  opened  a  manufactory  at  Flatbush.  His  store  and 
office  are  at  390  Cumberland  street.  The  business  of 
Mr.  G.  Alfred  Smith,  90  Cranberry  street,  plumber 
and  steam  and  gas  fitter,  was  established  at  11  High 
street,  in  1875,  by  Messrs.  Smith  <&  Heath,  who  were 
succeeded  by  Messrs.  Smith  &  Wright,  and  they  in 
turn  by  Mr.  Smith.  Mr.  James  W.  Birkett,  president 
of  the  Plumbers'  Association  of  Brooklyn,  established 
his  business  at  83  Myrtle  avenue,  and  removed  thence 
to  his  present  location,  83  Myrtle  avenue,  doing  all 
general  plumbers'  work,  and  making  a  specialty  of 
steam  heating.  There  are  few  plumbers  in  the  Eastern 
District  who  enjoy  a  larger  patronage  than  Mr.  George 
W.  Coger,  of  whom  a  biographical  sketch  is  given  on 
the  opposite  page. 

The  following-named  gentlemen  in  this  line  of  busi- 
ness have,  from  longer  or  shorter  association,  become 
familiar  to  the  residents  of  various  parts  of  the  city: 

James  Armstrong. 348  Court  &  409  Myrtle  ave. 

Henry  Anderson 236  De  Kalb  avenue. 

Stephen  Alexander 489  Manhattan  avenue. 

Richard  J.  Burnett 122   10th  street,  E.  D. 

John  Buckbee 183   William  street,  N.   Y. 

James  W.  Birkett 169  C'mbia  &  68  Myrtle  ave. 

Piatt  S.  Conklin 594  Atlantic  avenue. 

Edward  C^allahan 349  Smith  street. 

Edward  Carley 51  Greenpoint  avenue. 

Daniel  Corcoran 276  Court  street. 

Geo.  W.  Coger 104  Broadway,  E.  D. 

Jno.  J.  Dillon 541  Atlantic  avenue. 

Alexander  Davidson 383  Atlantic  avenue. 

A.  Elmendorf 475  Washington  avenue. 

P.  &  J.  Foley 11  Willoughby  avenue. 

Geo.  C.  Gunning 100  Orange  street. 

E.  Gateson  &  Son 125  Broadway,  E.  D. 

Geo.  Gilmore 89  Orange  street. 

Gannon  &  Hueston 4  Hoyt  street. 


GENERAL   TRADE  ANB  MERGKANBISE. 


Gfroehrer  &  McCarty 492  Grand  street. 

John  Hasford 267  Monroe  street. 

H.  Hawkes 425  Flatbush  avenue. 

Henry  S.  Ilartman 324  Court  street. 

Thomas  F.  Harrington 334  De  Kalb  avenue. 

Wm.  J.  llosford  &  Co 460  Fulton  street. 

Robert  Hill 179  Chauncey  street. 

James  Harley 288  Flatbush  avenue. 

G.  S.  James 1088  Fulton  street. 

James  Iveenan 948  Fulton  street. 

Samuel  R.  Kimball 619  De  Kalb  avenue. 

Wm.  INIcDoiiald 83  Cranberry  street. 

Alex.  McGarvey 140  Vanderbilt  avenue. 

Thomas  Munkenbeck 94  Hamilton  avenue. 

Jas.  F.  McNulty 81  Court  street. 

J.  T.  Matthews 288  Division  avenue. 

O'Keefe  &  McKenna 473  5th  avenue. 

Jas.  J.  Powers 99  Pineapple  street. 

Phil  Post,  Jr., 127  McDougall  street. 

John  Paterson 660  Fulton  street. 

H.  Reid 113  Flatbush  avenue. 

Thos.  Read 822  Fulton  street. 

John  H.  Read 156  Gates  avenue. 

B.  Reid Myrtle  avenue. 

Henry  L.  Stiles 973  Fulton  street. 


Benj.  Samuels 108  Atlantic  avenue. 

Toohill  Bros 37  Hamilton  avenue. 

Walker  &  Woods 38  Myrtle  avenue. 

Henry  Williams   404  Broadway. 

J.  H.  Wamsley   564  Manhattan  avenue. 

Geokge  W.  Coger.  plumber  and  steam  and  gas  fitter, 
No.  104  Broadway,  Williamsburgli,  was  born  in  Huntington, 
L.  I.,  September  10th,  1833.  His  parents  were  William  and 
Mary  (Jarves)  Coger,  his  father  having  been  a  pump  and 
block  maker. 

Mr.  Coger  attended  the  public  schools  of  his  native  town, 
and,  at  the  age  of  fifteen,  began  a  six-years'  apprenticeship  to 
the  plumbing  trade,  four  years  of  which  he  served  with  John 
A.  Brush,  No.  83  Pike  Slip,  N.  Y.,  and  two  years  with  T.  & 
J.  Chardavoyne,  Cherry  street,  N.  Y.,  near  Catharine  street. 
After  he  completed  the  acquisition  of  his  trade,  he  went  to 
Chicago  and  worked  at  it  for  several  years,  latterly  as  super- 
intendent of  pumps  and  appliances  for  supplying  water  to 
the  engines  of  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  Company. 

Returning  east,  in  the  fall  of  1859,  Mr.  Coger  bought  the 
branch  store  of  John  A.  Brush,  at  No.  11  Broadway,  Wil- 
liamsburgh,  whence  he  removed  to  No.  20,  and  seventeen 
years  ago  to  No.  103,  and  thence,  in  1883,  to  his  present  loca- 
tion. His  business  has  been  very  prosperous,  and  at  this 
time  he  carries  a  large  stock  of  goods  in  his  line  and  gives 
employment  to  a  considerable  number  of  men.  He  has  done 
the  plumbing  and  other  work  in  his  line  in  the  Williams- 


1382 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


burgh  Savings  Bank,  the  Kings  County  Savings  Bank,  the 
Metropolitan  Life  Insurance  Company's  building,  New  York, 
and  in  other  large  buildings.  For  several  years  he  did  most 
of  the  work  in  houses  erected  along  the  Hudson  River,  and 
at  this  time  he  does  much  out-of-town  work.  He  is  vice- 
president  of  the  Master  Plumbers'  Association  of  the  city  of 
Brooklyn;  a  member  and  Past  Master  of  Manual  Lodge,  No. 
636,  F.  &  A.  M. ;  a  member  of  DeWitt  Clinton  Commandery 
K.  T.  No.  27,  and  of  Progressive  Chapter  No.  198,  R.  A.  M. 

In  1856,  Mr.  Coger  married  Martha  A.  Hampson,  of 
Yonkers,  N.  Y.,  who  has  borne  him  nine  children.  Their 
residence  is  at  102  Rutledge  street. 


LUMBER   DEALERS. 

(See,  also,  page  706). 
It  would  be  difficult,  if  not  impossible,  to  ascertain 
who  was  the  first  lumber  merchant  in  Brooklyn,  as  some 
one  or  more  persons  must  have  manufactured  or  sold 


places,  and  as  the  building  up  of  the  city  has  progressed 
they  have  become  very  numerous.  As  representatives 
of  this  department  of  trade,  the  following  gentlemen 
and  firms  are  well  and  favorably  known,  and  some  of 
them  have  been  in  business  so  long  that  their  establish- 
ments rank  among  Brooklyn's  oldest  business  institu- 
tions : 

Alexander  &  Ellis Flushing  &  Wash'ton  aves. 

Sherlock  Austin Kent  avenue,  c.  Cross. 

Beers  &  Resseguie Flushing  ave.,  c.  Wash'ton. 

Charles  K.  Buckley 105  15th  st. 

Timber  Mills.    Est.  1868,  Prospect  and  Hamilton  aves. 
Annual  business  about  |3,000,000. 

H.  Deringer 134  Leonard  street. 

H.  E.  Fickett  &  Co    3d  street,  near  Third  ave. 

Aug.  I.  Frankenfeldt Van  Brunt  &  Elizabeth  sts. 


f^   it 


LOUIS    BOSSERT'S    MANUFACTORY. 


lumber  of  some  sort,  from  the  beginning  of  all  improve- 
ment'and  progress.  Regular  lumlier^yards  were  estab- 
lished about  the  beginning  of  the  present  century,  and 
before  that  period  and  after,  individuals  sold  lumber 
which  was  brought  in  by  boats  for  consumption  in  the 
growing  village.  In  1817  Richard  Stanton  tfc  Co.  had 
"  a  saw-pit  and  lumber  yard,"  with  "  a  store  of  nails 
and  groceries,  &c.,"  at  some  convenient  point  in  the 
place.  How  long  they  had  at  that  time  been  in  busi- 
ness is  unknown.  In  1818  Richard  Stanton  &  Co.  were 
succeeded  by  Moon  &  Htanton.  In  1820  this  firm  was 
dissolved,  and  Richard  Stanton  and  John  Moon  each 
engaged  in  the  same  trade  for  himself,  the  latter  at  the 
corner  of  Washington  and  Water  streets.  In  1828  a 
lumber  yard  was  advertised  "by  T.  <&  H.  Conkli7ig,  the 
proprietors.  Others  whose  names  are  not  now  remem- 
bered engaged  in  the  business  at  different  times  and 


Hardy,*  iVoorhees ft.  N.lst,  &  239  Mon'se  ave. 

O.  F.  Hawley Kent  ave.,  c.  Rodney  st. 

Kenyon  &  Newton 528  Union  street. 

R.  W.  Kenyon 309  1st  street,  East. 

J.  S.  Loomis Nevins  &  Baltic. 

Daniel  Lake 25th  street,  c.  Third  avenue. 

E.  D.  Newman 789  Grand  street. 

Richard  G.  Phelps  &  Co. . .  Kent  &  Hewes  streets. 

Ed.  C.  Pease Bond  &  Third  streets. 

Julian  Ross  &  Sons Nevins  &  Butler  streets. 

Elbert  Verity 93  Plymouth  street. 

Wattson  &  Pittenger Carroll  &  Nevins. 

Chief  among  the  many  causes  of  failure  is  unfitness  for  the 
work,  which  seems  at  the  time  to  be  the  only  means  of  labor 
by  which  a  livelihood  can  be  obtained. 

Many  of  those  who  go  to  make  up  the  large  percentage  of 
business  ruins,  had  they  been  occupied  in  work  suitable, 


GENERAL  TRADE  AND  MERCHANDISE. 


1383 


LOUIS    BOSSEET. 


would  have  made  a  different  showing.  Environments  are  a 
great  factor;  but,  with  the  best  surroundings,  a  natural 
machinist  would  not  succeed  as  a  musician. 

Louis  Bossert,  from  his  earlier  years,  was  particularly 
fortunate  in  finding  a  suitable  field  for  his  mechanical  genius, 
Mr.  Bossert  was  born  in  Germany,  30th  of  November,  1843, 
and  received  the  usual  primary  education  of  that  country. 
In  1854  he  came  to  America,  and  until  16  years  of  age  alter- 
ternately  attended  school  and  worked  in  a  factory  in  Brook- 
lyn. From  then  until  1869  he  was  engaged  as  a  workingman 
in  the  manufacture  of  sash  and  doors.  In  that  year,  with  his 
brothers  Henry  and  Jacob,  the  firm  name  being  Bossert 
Brothers,  he  started,  on  the  land  now  occupied  by  him,  as  a 
manufacturer  of  sash,  blinds,  doors,  ceilings,  siding,  mould, 
ings  and  all  interior  household  ornamentations  that  are  made 
of  wood. 

In  1875  his  brothers  both  retired,  and  from  that  time  the 
business  has  been  conducted  bj'  Mr.  Bossert,  the  firm  name 
being  his  name.  In  1883  the  commodious  buildings,  Nos.  18- 
30  Johnson  avenue  (with  ottice  and  salesroom  Nos.  6  and  8 
Union  avenue,  near  Broadway,  Brooklyn,  E.D.),  were  erected, 
riiese  buildings  occupy  over  twenty-two  city  lots.  There  are 
eight  floors,  twenty-five  by  sixty  feet,  and  four  floors  one 
hundred  and  twenty-five  by  sixty  feet,  irrespective  of  the 
area  of  the  planing  mills.  He  gives  employment  to  over 
three  hundred  men,  and  tlie  annual  output  of  his  manufac- 
tory is  a  half  a  million  dollars,  and  is  the  largest  concern  in 
this  line  in  New  York  State.  A  good  cut  of  his  manufactory 
is  shown  herewith. 

Mr.  Bossert  was  married  in  1869  to  Elizabeth  Neger,  and  in 
February,  1884,  suffered  the  irreparable  loss  of  her  death, 
tlu-ep  children,  two  daughters  and  one  son,  surviving  her. 


In  politics  Mr.  Bossert  is  Republican,  and  two  years,  1881 
and  1882,  represented  the  16th  Ward  of  Brooklyn  as  Super- 
visor. He  is  Colonel  of  the  33d  Regiment,  N.  G.,  enrolling  as 
private  sixteen  years  ago.  In  private  life  Jlr.  Bossert  is 
genial,  companionable,  and  finds  his  recreation  and  relief 
from  business  cares  in  out-door  sports.  Near  his  elegant  home 
at  Far  Rockaway  his  boats  are  moored,  and  there  he  enjoys  the 
reward  of  a  business  life  fitly  spent. 


CONTRACTORS  AND  BUILDERS. 

Henry  Bevan 566  Bushwick  ave. 

Contractor;  established  1862. 

John  A.  Lachner 250  Moore  St. 

Was  foreman  for  Col.  John  Rueger,  builder,  for  11 
years;  for  15  years  connected  with  32d  Regt.,  N.  G.,  S. 
N.  Y.,in  first  company  org.  under  Capt.  (afterwards  Col.) 
Rueger. 

John  Rueger Stuy vesant  ave.  &  Hart  st. 

Established  1865. 


COAL  AND  WOOD  DEALERS. 

Among  the  earliest  dealers  in  this  line  we  find,  in 
1817,  A.  Robinson,  on  Von  Bokkelen's  wharf;  in  1822, 
John  Galloway,  at  25  Water  street;  in  1827,  W.  &  G. 
Cunningham,  on  Front  street.  The  oldest  establish- 
ment in  Brooklyn  is  that  of 

William  H.  Makston,  born  at  Newburg,  Orange  County, 
N.  Y.,  in  1825.  His  father,  Wm.  Marstou,  was  born  at 
Sands'  Point,  L.  I.,  in  1793.     When  quite  a  young  man,  he 


1384 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


removed  to  Newburg;  in  his  route,  he  crossed  the  East 
river  from  Brooklyn  in  one  of  the  early  horse-ferry  boats. 

After  becoming  a  resident  of  Newhurg,  he  married  a  Miss 
Wyatt,  of  Orange  county,  whose  mother  was  a  Sands,  a  con- 
nection of  the  Sands  family  of  Kings  county.  The  father  of 
the  subject  of  this  sketch  was  a  man  of  intelligence,  indus- 
try, probity  and  honor  ;  and  he  taught  his  son  those  princi- 
ples of  integritj'  and  devotion  to  business  and  honorable 
dealing,  which  has  led  to  his  success  in  life.  He  lived  to  the 
advanced  age  of  89  years,  dying  ui  August,  1882,  in  Brook- 
lyn, N.  y. 

H  iWhen  his  son,  Wm.  H.  Marston,  was  five  years  old,  he  re- 
moved to  the  city  of  New  York  ;  here  young  Marston  re- 
ceived an  excellent  common  school  and  business  education, 
for  the  bent  of  his  mind  tended  to  the  occupation  of  a  busi- 
ness man.  In  1849,  he  associated  himself  with  George  F. 
Power,  Esq.,  in  the  coal  trade  in  Brooklyn,  and  the  follow- 
ing year  took  up  his  permanent  residence  there;  and  it  is  an 
interesting  fact  that  the  commodious  office  which  Mr.  Mars- 
ton now  occupies  stands  substantially  on  the  same  premises 
on  which  he  commenced  liis  business  thirty-four  years  ago. 
Mr.  Marston  has  been  longer  in  the  coal  business  in  Brooklyn 
than  any  other  dealer  in  that  product  now  living  there. 

When  he  began  business,  the  Anthracite  coal  trade  was  in 
its  infancy.  The  facilities  for  transportation  were  then 
limited,  and  his  stock  was  brought  to  Brooklyn  by  the  Dele- 
ware  and  Raritan,  the  Morris,  and  the  Delaware  and  Hudson 
Canals,  and  he  was  compelled  to  lay  in  his  winter  stock  of 


coal  in  the  Fall.  In  those  days  the  total  product  per  year  of 
the  anthracite  mines  was  only  about  3,000,000  tons;  now  it  is 
more  than  30,000,000  of  tons  per  year.  In  1849,  Mr.  Marston 
was  united  by  man-iage  to  Miss  Merrill,  daughter  of  Charles 
Merrill,  Esq.,  a  prominent  hardware  merchant  of  Grand 
street,  New  York,  whose  business  has  been  conducteil  in  that 
city  for  more  than  sixty  years.  Five  children  were  born  to 
this  marriage,  two  sons  and  three  daughters.  The  eldest  son, 
Frank  H.  Marston,  now  about  33  years  of  age  (a  young  man 
of  acknowledged  business  talents,  and  high  character  as  a 
citizen)  is,  and  for  eleven  years  has  been,  the  partner  of  his 
father,  under  the  firm  name  and  style  of  Marston  &  Son,  a 
business  concern  of  the  higliest  rank  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn. 

Mr.  Marston,  the  senior  member  of  the  firm,  is  a  Republi- 
can, and  has  been  since  the  formation  of  that  party.  He 
adopted  this  party  from  princijjle,  modestly  but  firmly  main- 
taining its  i)rinciples,  though  in  no  sense  of  the  word  an  ac- 
tive politician,  never  seeking  prominence  nor  office;  indeed, 
he  could  not  be  induced  to  accept  of  an  office;  but  he  always 
voted  [the  ticket  of  his  party,  belie\  ing  that  it  is  incumbent 
on  e^•ery  citizen  to  discharge  thoughtfully  and  intelligently 
the  great  and  responsible  duty  of  an  elector. 

He  is  a  member  of  the  Classon  Avenue  Presbyterian 
Church.  Many  years  ago  he  united  with  the  Presbyterian 
church,  of  which  Rev.  Dr.  Rockwell  was  then  pastor,  now 
under  the  pastoral  charge  of  Rev.  T.  DeWitt  Talmage. 

Though  unassuming,  and  entirely  uni)retentious,  Mr. 
Marston  occupies  a  high  and  influential   position  among  the 


'^ 


-^^'.fi^^ 


GENERAL  TRADE  ANDIMERCHANDISE. 


business  men  of  Brooklyn.  By  strict  integrity,  excellent 
practical  abilities  and  devotion  to  business,  courteous  and 
manly  bearing,  be  has  won  the  confidence  of  the  community 
and  achieved  a  most  gratifying  success  in  life. 


rilTTLE'S   SON    &   CO.'S   COAL   YAEDS.';^ 


The  large  and  prosperous  coal  business  now  con- 
ducted by  Messrs.  S.  Tuttle's  Son  &  Co.,  was  established 
in  1846,  by  Mr.  Silvester  Tuttle,  a  well-known  New 
York  merchant.  His  son,  Ezra  B.  Tuttle  (whose 
portrait  faces  this  page,  and  whose  biography  will 
be  found  on  page  305),  entered  the  firm  in  1855  ; 
Augustus  P.  Day  in  1870;  and  Winthrop  H.  Tuttle, 
a  son  of  Ezra  B.  Tuttle,  on  the  1st  of  January,  1884. 
Since  the  decease  of  the  senior  member  In  1874,  the 
business  has  been  conducted  under  the  firm  name  of 
S.  Tuttle's  Son  &  Co.  From  a  moderate  tonnage, 
it  has  gradually  assumed  large  proportions.  The  old 
plan  of  unloading  coal  by  horse-power  was  found 
inadequate  to  meet  the  demands  of  a  rapidly  increasing 
business;  and,  in  1865,  an  entire  block  was  bought  on 
the  Wallabout  water-front,  between  Ross  and  Wilson 
streets,  where  they  built  extensive  coal-pockets;  the 
first  ever  erected  in  Brooklyn.  Steam  power  is 
used  to  elevate  the  coal  from  the  barges  to  the  pockets, 
and  the  bins  are  so  arranged  that  a  cart  or  wagon 
passing  under  them  can  be  loaded  with  well  screened 
coal  in  two  minutes.  In  the  spring  of  1883,  an  addi- 
tional water-front  of  five  hundred  feet  on  Newtown 
creek,  between  Grand  street  and  Metropolitan  avenue, 
was  purchased,  with  over  fifty  adjoining  lots;  and  sub- 
stantial docks  have  since  been  completed.  In  addition 
to  the  above  supply  yards  on  the  water-front,  six  dis- 
tributing yards  have  been  located  by  them  on  the  lead- 
ing thoroughfares  of  the  city.     This  firm  is  one  of  the 


most  enterprising  in  the  city,  and  spares  no  pains  or 
expense  in  adopting  all  improvements.  It  has  a  large 
factory  for  the  preparation  of  kindling  wood  by 
machinery,  large  and  well  equipped  stables,  private 
telegraph  lines,  telephone  connection,  and  all  kinds  of 
labor-saving  machinery,  while  the  general  office  at  No. 
40  Broadway,  Brooklyn,  is  fitted  up  in  a  manner  that 
is  unsurpassed  in  convenience  and  elegance  in  the  two 
cities. 

Charles  Henry  Reynolds  is  one  of  tlie  most  active,  en- 
terprising, and  best  known  business  men  on  Newtown  creek. 
His  history  is  that  of  a  boy  who  early  realized  that  wliat  he 
was  to  be  in  this  world  depended  on  what  he  could  do,  and 
how  he  should  do  it.  He  was  born  in  New  York  city,  July 
31, 1837.  His  father,  Henry  Reynolds,  came  from  Greenwich, 
Conn.,  and  was  the  son  of  Joshua  Reynolds,  an  old  and 
highly  respectable  citizen  of  that  town,  and  a  soldier  in  the 
Revolutionary  war.  His  father  died  when  he  was  four  years 
old,  and  for  a  time  he  went  to  live  witli  his  grandfather 
Lawrence,  in  Manhassett,  L.  I.  At  the  age  of  12,  he  chose  to 
learn  the  book-binders'  trade,  and  was  regularly  indentured 
as  an  apprentice  to  Harper  &  Bros. ,  New  York  city,  for  the 
period  of  6  j-ears,  11  months  and  21  days.  True  to  his  deter- 
mined purpose,  Charles  served  his  time  faithfully,  and  then 
worked  two  years  as  a  journeyman,  fully  mastering  a  trade 
that  was  then  done  mostly  by  hand,  and  now  mostly  by 
machinery.  The  close  times  of  1860  compelled  a  reduction 
of  help  in  the  great  pulilishing  house  of  Harper  &  Bros.,  and 
they  most  justly  discriminated  in  favor  of  married  men,  dis- 
charging those  who  had  no  families.  Mr.  Reynolds  had. 
with  his  mother,  lived  in  Brooklyn  since  18r)0,  and  now  find- 
ing himself  out  of  work,  he  leased  a  lot,  328  Grand  street,  put 
up  a  building  of  rough  boards,  8  feet  by  10,  with  board  roof 
covered  with  tar  paper,  bought  a  barrel  of  kerosene,  and 
started  an  oil  store.  The  next  year  he  took  a  partner,  and  the 
firm,  which  was  Lewis  &  Reynolds,  added  the  wood  trade  to 
the  oil  business.  At  the  end  of  one  year,  George  Robinson 
took  Mr.  Lewis'  place,  under  tlie  firm  name  of  C.  H.  Rey- 
nolds &  Co.,  and  the  new  firm  added  coal  to  the  wood 
business,  locating  their  coal  yard  on  the  corner  of  South  1st 
and  9th  streets.  The  oil  and  wood  trade  was  continued  at 
the  old  place,  the  wood  being  sawed  at  first  by  horse  power, 
and  then  by  a  small  5-horse  steam  engine.  This  arrangement 
lasted  for  10  years,  and  was  so  prosperous  that  Mr.  Reynolds 
paid  Mr.  Robinson  $20,000  for  his  half  interest,  when  he 
withdrew  and  went  South.  Since  that  time  till  recently,  he 
has  had  no  partners.  In  1877,  he  came  to  his  present  location, 
and  was  largely  instrumental  in  opening  Grand  street,  from 
the  bridge  to  Newtown.  He  bought  two  acres  of  land  and 
built  an  oflice,  stable,  and  a  large  coal  pocket  of  3,500  tons 
capacity.  Two  years  later  he  added  a  wood  yard,  with  all 
appliances  necessary  for  the  trade.  In  1881,  he  built  a 
planing  and  moulding  mill,  equijiped  with  the  most  approved 
machinery.  Within  the  past  year  he  has  put  in  an  engine  of 
150  horse  power,  with  ample  boilers,  all  from  the  engine 
works  of  James  Bulger,  of  North  3d  street.  To  supply  his 
large  trade,  nearly  5,000  cords  of  wood  and  60,000  tons  of 
coal  are  sold  annually.  His  appliances  for  handling  coal  of 
all  kinds  are  very  perfect,  and  his  kindling  wood  department 
is  a  model  of  its  kind.  The  accompanying  cut  conveys  to 
the  eye  a  good  representation  of  this  large  establishment  as 
it  appears  in  the  spring  of  1884.  To  do  this  heavy  business, 
90  hands  are  employed,  and  25  wagons,  carts  and  trucks.  In 
order  to  get  a  little  relaxation  from  constant  cares,  Mr. 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS   COUNTY. 


Reynolds,  in  May,  1883,  took  his  two  sons,  Charles  H.  and 
Mortimer  L..  and  his  brother-iii-law,  Gilbert  M.  VanderWater, 
into  partnership  under  the  firm  name  of  C.  II.  Reynolds, 
Sons  &  Co.  This  gives  him  more  time  to  manage  his  large 
real  estate  interests,  which  now  aggregate  fourteen  acres  in 
the  Eastern  District,  which  he  now  owns,  and  on  which  he 
is  constantly  erecting  more  buildings.  Such  is  the  honorable 
record  of  one  who,  from  a  book-binder's  apprentice,  has, 
through  his  own  unaided  efforts,  attained  to  a  leading  posi- 
tion in  a  community  of  prosjierous  and  able  men.  December 
:i,  1862,  Charles  H.  Reynolds  man'ied  Naomi  Adeline  Vander 
Water,  of  South  Oyster  Bay.  They  have  had  10  children  (6 
sons  and  4  daughters),  8  of  whom  are  living  (4  sons  and  4 
daughters). 

Other  well-known  dealers  in  wood,  coal,  etc.,  are: 

Abraham  J.  DeBaun 30-34  Jay  street. 

Wood  and  coal;  established  1855. 

Nelson  J.  Gates 636  Greene  avenue. 

Wholesale  coal  merchant;  established  1865,  N.  Y. 
Member  Board  of  Education  from  1874  to  1881. 

Henry  M.  Peckbam 18  Columljia  Heiglits. 

Coal  and  wood.  In  1852,  became  member  of  firm 
known  as  Samuel  Thompson's  Nephews,  successors  to 
Everitt,  Thomj^son  &  Co. 

Frederick  E.  Teves 280-296  2d  street. 

Coal  and  wood;  establislied  1865,  by  J.  &  P.  Wintjen, 
on  cor,  N.  3d  and  3d  streets.  Mr.  Teves  succeeded  the 
firm  in  1878,  and  removed  to  his  present  address,  1883. 


Cliarles  D.  Willits 644  Fulton  street. 

Coal  and  wood;  established  1857,  corner  Fulton  street 
and  Clermont  avenue. 

Thomas  W.  Wood 191  Schermerhorn  street. 

Coal;  established  1866,  corner  State  and  Nevius  streets. 
Native  of  Sraithtown,  L.  I. ;  ancestors  settled  at  South- 
ampton, Long  Island,  1640.  Was  Supervisor  of  3d  Ward 
one  year. 

Daniel  W.  Wilkes 491  State  street. 

Coal  and  woo<l  contractor;  established  1881,  corner 
Douglas  and  Nevins  sts.     Elected  Supervisor  for  1884. 

DENTISTS. 

(See  pages  816  and  940-948). 

Frank  P.  Abbott 100  Hanson  place. 

N.  M.  Abbott    11  Greene  avenue. 

S.  W.  Bridges 199  Clinton  street. 

Jas.  F.  Brogan 305  Fulton  street. 

H.  T.  Darrow 263  Fulton  street. 

M.  Connor 60  Court  street. 

L.  J.  Elliot 22V  Clinton  street. 

Geo.  W.  Fraim 301  Fulton  street. 

Samuel  S.  Guy,  Jr 132  Flatbush  avenue. 

O.  E.  Hill 160  Clinton  street. 

Charles  W.  Harreys 108  4th  street,  E.  D. 

William  Jarvie 105  Clinton  street. 


GENERAL  TRADE  AND  MERCHANDISE. 


1387 


C.    H.    REYNOLD'S   COAL   AND    WOOD    VARDS. 


S.  M.  Lyon 119  Kent  avenue. 

D.  R.  Longnecker 519  Fulton  street. 

C.  A.  Marvin 169  Clinton  street. 

H.  G.  Mirick 156  Clinton  street. 

James  E.  Miller 294  Henry  street. 

Charles  E.  Mensch 169  Clinton  street. 

I.  C.  Monroe 191  Joralemon  street. 

J.  K.  Powell Xew  Lots. 

T.  A.  Quinlan 463  Fulton  street. 

W.  M.  Rainsdell 50  Livingston  street. 

David  S.  Skinner 124  Montague  street. 


JEWELERS. 

(See,  also,  page  834). 

The  first  watchmaker  and  jeweler  in  Brooklyn,  of 
whom  there  is  any  trace,  is  Thomas  Smith,  who  was 
located  at  Brooklyn  Ferry,  in  1782.  Later,  April 
1818,  came  Samuel  Carman,  whose  shop  was  on  lower 
Fulton  St.  Soon  after,  1819,  Samuel  Smith  and  John 
Lowe  were  engaged  in  the  business.  In  1820,  James 
Gray,  on  Front  St.,  and  later  still,  one  F.  White,  about 
1826,  on  Sands  St.,  and  Pressac,  a  Frenchman.  The 
oldest  firm  now  existing  is  that  of  William  Wise,  239 
Fulton  St.,  established  in  1834,  at  old  No.  79  Fulton 
St.,  about  50  yards  above  Ralph  Patchin's  house  and 
grounds,  which  stood  about  where  York  st.  enters 
Fulton  St.  In  1864,  he  built  the  store  which  he  and 
his  son  now  occupy.  In  1848,  Wm.  R.  Tice  opened  a 
store  on  Atlantic  St.,  next  Henry  St.,  removed  to  311 
Fulton  St.,  in  1860,  and  in  1870  retired,  his  brother 
Thomas  S.  Tice,  succeeding.  Jacob  Weis,  104  Mon- 
trose ave.,  established  in  1876,  at  116  McKibben  st. 
Other  prominent  firms  are: 


Jas.  H.  Hart 313  Fulton  st. 

Hay  den  &  Stanwood 451  Fulton  st. 

Jacob  Morch 110  Broadway. 

B.  F.  Spink 329  Fulton  st. 

D.  Younger  &  Brother 276  Grand  st. 

P.  W.  Taylor 521  Fulton  st. 

John  D.  Bennett East  New  York. 

E.  S.  Browe .338  Grand  ave. 

Louis  Finkelmeier 336  So.  3d  st. 

Jeweler;  established  1868,  23  Maiden  Lane.  Boru  in 
Germany;  came  to  United  States,  1853;  member  of  N.  Y. 
Volunteers,  1861-3;  came  to  Brooklyn,  1865. 

Charles  Pope 147  Hopkinson  ave. 

Enos  Richardson 116  Remsen  st". 

W.  H.  Welch 85  Myrtle  ave. 


MERCHANT    TAILORS. 

(See,  also.  Clothing,  page  788). 
The  first  hundred  and  fifty  years  of  this  country's 
history  were  the  days  of  homespun  linens  and  woolens, 
when  every  man's  clothing  was  cut  and  made  at  home 
by  the  "  gude  wife "  or  by  the  tailoress  who  went 
from  house  to  house.  After  the  Revolutionary  War  a 
more  exacting  taste  in  men's  apparel  began  to  prevail, 
partly  owing,  no  doubt,  to  the  presence  of  the  French 
soldiery  and  their  influence  on  American  society  during 
our  struggle  with  Great  Britain.  Then  professional 
tailors  began  to  be  known  in  the  larger  towns  of  the 
Eastern  States.  In  1816,  the  sign  "Merchant  Tailor" 
hung  over  the  shop  of  Reter  JPrest  on  the  north  side  of 
Old  Ferry  Road,  nearly  opposite  Elizabeth  St.,  though 
he  afterwards  removed  farther  up  town.  Sylvanus 
B.  StillweWs  tailor  shop  was  in  an  old  frame  building, 
on  the  site  of  the  Union  Office.      In  1818,  occurs  the 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


name  of  G.  Jay  as  a  tailor.  In  1820,  Van  Kensen  <fe 
Dickerson  were  engaged  in  the  business.  Five  years 
later,  Wm.  Conncdl  had  a  shop  in  his  dwelling,  45 
Front  St.  In  1826,  Elishn  Bigelow  was  at  55  Fulton  st. 
When  the  village  became  a  city,  Hoyt  &  Hanahergh, 
John  P.  Emmens,  Wm.  Heicit  Sharp  <&  Sturges,  F. 
H.  Chichester,  a,\\A  J.  W.  Boues  were  located  on  Fulton 
St.;  J.  Proctor,  2  High  st. ;  Wm.  Fva?is,  Atlantic  ave., 
established  in  1840,  who  was  followed  by  the  present 
house  of  F.  W.  Richardson,  156  Atlantic  ave.  The 
more  prominent  houses  of  to-day,  arranged  alphabet- 
ically, are  : 

Adam  Sem ...   63  Court  st. 

Merchant  tailor;  established  1871. 

Arneberg  &  Brother 209  Montague  st. 

T.  Branagan Atlantic  ave.,  E.  N.  Y. 

Mercliant  tailor,  and  dry  and  fancy  goods  store;  estab- 
lished 1866,  on  Miller,  between  Fulton  and  Atlantic  aves. , 
removing  to  present  location  in  1875. 
E.  B.  Bundick 90  Broadway. 

E.  W.  Richardson 156  Atlantic  ave.,  c.  Clinton 

Importer  and  tailor;  established  1840  by  Wm.  Evans. 

His  importations  are  selected  by  himself  from  English 

and  Scotch  houses. 

Wm.  J.  Collins 227  Court  st. 

G.  H.  Conklin 140  Franklin  st. 

John  Craft  &  Son 183  Montague  st. 

John  Donohue 107  Montague  st. 

J.  V.  Dubernell 333  Fulton  st. 

F.  A.  Ernst  &  Son 302  Court  st. 

James  B.  Healy,  1881 .    . .  .205  Montague  st. 

E.  J.  Hutchings 53  4th  St.,  E.  D. 

John  S.  McKeon Broadway,  cor.  4th  st. 

(McKeon  &  Todd)  clothiers;  originally  of  the  firm  of 
Gray,  McKeon  &  Co.,  having  been  admitted  in  1872;  the 
present  firm  being  formed  in  1878,  on  the  admission  of 
Mr.  Todd. 

James  Mitchell 80  Montague  st. 

James  Porter 288  Fulton  st. 

J.  J.  Rife 193  Atlantic  ,ive. 

S.  H.  Shipman 48  Bond  st. 

a    •♦!,   n        x   n  (  91  B'way,  60  4th  st.,E.D.,  & 

Smith,  Gray  &  Co -     ,,     ,    •!,'       r\  n<  '  ^ 

'         ■'  {    Manhattan,  C.  Greenpomt. 

C.  E.  Teall 611  Fulton  st. 

GENTS'  FURNISHING  GOODS. 

Frank  J.  Cole 153  Flatbush  avenue. 

Ithamar  Du  Bois 328  Fulton  street. 

See  Biography,  page  792. 

A.  W.  DeGraw 73  Broadwaj'. 

Edward  L.  Tripler 407  Fulton  st. 

Willoughby  Buildings;  established  1871,  di-ess  shirts 
and  underwear,  a  specialty. 

T.  E.  Wallace 53  Broadway,  cor.  2d  st. 

Men's  Furnishing  goods;  established  1873,  at  61  Broad- 
way, having  been  a  carpenter  previous  to  that  time;  in 
1876,  enlarged  and  removed  to  55  Broadway  ;»in  1879,  on 
account  of  rapidly  increasing  business,  was  obliged 
again  to  remove  and  enlarge  his  establishment,  which  he 


did  by  purchasing  the  building  (104  2d  st.)  in  the  rear  of 
his  present  location;  in  1882,  purchased  the  comer  build- 
ing, Broadway  and  2d  street,  forming  the  whole  into  one 
laige  store.  He  has  about  45  employees,  his  specialty 
being  the  manufacture  of  shirts,  of  which  some  15,000 
are  annually  sold.  Member  of  the  Empire  Club,  the 
Amphion  Musical  Society,  the  Wilhamsburgh  Athletic 
Club,  Fraternity  Council,  Royal  Arcanum;  Bedford 
Lodge,  Kniglits  of  Honor;  and  Crusader's  Lodge,  1.  O. 
of  O.  F.  Is  also  Director  of  the  N.  Y.  Homceopathic 
Life  Ins.  Co.,  and  Secretary  of  the  Brooklyn,  E.  D., 
Dispensary  and  Hospital. 
H.  C.  Walters 161  and  163  Atlantic  ave. 

MILLINERY. 

A.  J.  Foren 40  Boerum  place. 

James   Murphy 169  Grand  street. 

Millinery  Goods  and  Notions.     Est.  1857,  near  present 
locality,  removing  to  above  address  in  1864. 

John  North 249  Fulton  street. 

J.  Rothschild 269  and  271  Fulton  St.,  and 

56  W.  14th  St.,  N.  Y. 
Importer  and  manufacturer  of  Millinery.  Est.  1870, 
56  and  58  W.  14th  street.  In  1874,  started  a  branch 
house  at  249  Fulton  street,  Brooklyn.  In  1876,  enlarged 
and  removed  to  261  Fulton  street,  removing  from  there 
to  their  present  location  in  1879.  Is  one  of  the  largest 
and  most  extensive  establishments  of  the  kind  in  the 
United  States,  having  branch  houses  at  Philadelphia, 
Boston  and  Paris. 

Henry  M.  Winter 489  Fulton  street. 

David  A.  Herrick 423  Vanderbilt  avenue. 

Manufacturer  of  Embroideries  and  Millinery  Goods. 
COSTUMER. 
Annie  E.  Lawrence 166  Broadway. 


UNDERTAKERS. 

On  Fulton  street,  just  above  Middagh,  stood  in  1815 
the  residence  of  Richard  H.  Cornwell,  a  "  cabinet- 
maker and  coffin-maker,"  who  was  well-known  early  in 
the  century.  It  is  by  no  means  probable  that  he  was 
the  first  coffin-maker  in  Brooklyn,  for  it  was  the  custom 
to  have  coffins  made  by  mechanics  in  wood,  even  before 
coffin-making  and  furniture-making  was  combined.  In 
1828,  Joseph  H.  Van  Nostrand  advertised  in  the  Long 
Island  Star  that  he  kept  "  ready-made  coffins  "  for  sale 
at  14  Hicks  street.  No  evidence  has  been  found  that 
any  one  in  Brooklyn  made  a  business  of  buying  and 
selling  factory-made  coffins  before  him,  though  it  is  not 
improbable  that  he  had  predecessors.  It  is  certain  that 
local  coffin-makers  plied  their  trade  later  than  this,  for 
from  subsequent  notices,  it  appears  that  there  was 
rivalry  between  some  such  and  dealers  in  "  ready-made  " 
coffins.  The  development  of  undertaking  as  a  distinctive 
business  was  gradual,  and  during  its  later  years  very 
rapid.  Undertakers  established  themselves  in  various 
localities  until,  at  this  time,  the  business  has  numerous  re- 
presentatives, whose  shops  and  warehouses  are  to  be 
found  in  all  parts  of  the  city.  Among  them  it  may  not 
be  without  interest  to  refer  to  a  few.  The  business  of 
Sam,uel  Henderson  &  Son  was  established  at  the  corner 


GENERAL  TRADE  AND  MERCHANDISE. 


1389 


of  Washington  and  Tillary  streets  in  1852,  and  was  re- 
moved from  that  point  to  128  Myrtle  avenue,  and  thence 
to  62  Myrtle  avenue.  Oweii  Gallagher,  161  North  Sixth 
street  and  297  Fourth  street,  established  his  business  in 
1861,  at  292  Fourth  street,  and  has  a  livery  in  connec- 
tion therewith.  Among  the  undertakers  of  Brooklyn, 
who  are  dealers  in  undertakers'  supplies,  may  be  men- 
tioned L.  A.  Wldtehill,  78  First  street,  and  Bain  db 
Smith,  12  Boerum  place.  The  following-named  under- 
takers are  well-known  in  various  parts  of  the  city. 

Henry  Burhenne N.  J.  &  Liberty. 

James  Benson 397  Atlantic  ave. 

Wm.  H.  Burrill 13  Flatbush  ave. 

Wm.  H.  Bryan 149  4lh  street. 

Geo.  F.  Corlis 702  Fulton  street  and  107 

Flatbush  avenue. 

James  Conley 195   Park  and  552  Myrtle 

avenue. 

J.  H.  Farrell 274  Jay  street. 

Peter  Farrell 302  Bergen  street. 

Thomas   Foran 506    Court    and    273    Van 

Brunt  streets. 

J.  M.  Hopper Court,  cor.  Joralemon  sts. 

Estab.  on  Montague  st.,  1850,  with  S.  N.  Burrill  (of  S. 
N.  B.  &  Co.);  partnership  existed  five  years;  a  year  later, 
Mr.  B.  located  at  present  place,  where  he  has  been  for 
28  years;  has  conducted  the  funerals  of  many  most  dis- 
tinguished citizens,  among  whom  were  Gens.  O.  M. 
Mitchell,  Underhill,  Sanford  and  Dakiu  (the  largest 
funeral  ever  held  in  the  city),  Louis  Tappen,  Hon.  Owen 
Lovejoy  (who  died  in  Brooklyn),  Rev.  Lyman  Beecher 
(father  of  Henry  Ward  Beecher),  Col.  J.  M.  Perry,  and 
John  Brown,  "the  Liberator." 

Moses  Genung 370  Fulton  street. 

David   Longworth 42  Fourth  street,  E.  D. 

Andrew  Lennart 297  Columbia  street. 

W.  F.    Moore Penn  avenue.  East  N.  Y. 

M.    McMahon 144  Hamilton  avenue. 

George   H.    Nason 196  Franklin. 

John  T.  Parker 135  Union  ave.,  E.  D. 

Established  1859. 
Francis  E.  Pouch  &  Bro . .  305  Adams  street,  and  893 
Gates  avenue. 
Established  1877. 

Leonard   Ruloff 244  Devoe  street. 

John  H.  Snyder 409  Grand  avenue. 

Taylor  &  Halvorsen 10  Hoyt  street  &  13  Market 

street,  N.  Y. 

Edward  M.  Wunder 817  Flushing  avenue. 

John  W.  Newman,  General  Furnishing  Undertaker,  181 
Court  St.,  bought,  in  1879,  the  premises,  and  erected  the 
building  now  occupied  by  him.  The  business  was  estab.  by 
his  father,  Michael  Newman,  about  1850,  on  Jay  St.,  opposite 
the  old  St.  James'  Catholic  Church;  from  there  he  moved  to 
Court  St.,  corner  of  Pacific,  continuing  in  the  same  avoca- 
tion till  his  death,  which  occurred  in  August,  1868.  The 
Newmans  have  always  been  among  the  leading  imdertakers 
in  Brooklyn,  having  performed  their  part  in  the  last  rite  of 
burial  at  the  decease  of  many  of  her  most  noted  and  worthy 
citizens. 


LIVERY  STABLES. 

Charles  H.  K.  Smith 846  Fulton. 

Jno.    Bennett 155  Division  avenue. 

Wm.    Burtenshaw 13  College  Place. 

P.   Bartlett 214  5th  street,  E.  D. 

C.  R.  Collyer 2  College  Place. 

Geo.  R.  Cate Flatbush. 

Douglass  &  Peterkin 165  Clymer  street. 

J.  J.  Donnelly 104  Henry  street. 

Owen  Gallagher 297  4th  street,  E.  D.,  <fe  161 

N.  6th. 

William  Greene 17  Red  Hook  Lane. 

George   Hudson 120  De  Kalb  avenue. 

G.  H.  Hen je Bath. 

A.  B.  Lane 174  Carlton  ave. 

Wm.  T.  Morford 515  Classon  &  464  Clermont 

aves. 

Chas.  H.  McGovern 46  Love  Lane. 

Oakley  &  Sons 21  Hoyt  st. 

A.  &  G.  Polhemus 106  Division  ave. 

A.  L.  Rogers Sterling  pi.,  near  7th  ave. 

P.  Roemmele  &  Son 522  North  2d  st. 

W.  H.  Rynus  &  Son Clinton,  cor  Degraw  st. 

S.  E.  Sturdevant Warren  &  Henry  sts. 

James  W.  Van  Riper 431  Sth  ave. 

Francis  J.  York 343  Union 

Ruloff  R.  Bennett,  228  and  261  Greene  avenue,  first 
established  his  boarding  and  livery  stables,  in  1874,  at 
311  Grand  avenue,  and  was  formerly  known  in  connec- 
tion with  the  old  Volunteer  Fire  Department,  having 
been  a  member  of  Hose  Company  No.  10. 

George  W.  Oaldey,  liveryman,  21  and  23  Hoyt  street, 
began  business  in  1855,  at  18  and  20  High  street.  The 
business  is  now  owned  by  Messrs.  Oakley  &  Sons. 

Harris  &  Stilwell,  Flatbush  avenue,  opp.  Prospect 
Park.  Prospect  Park  Carriage  Service.  Mr.  Harris 
established  the  Park  work  in  1873.  In  1875,  Mr.  Stil- 
well entered  into  partnership  with  Mr.  Harris,  under 
the  firm  name  of  Harris  &  Stilwell.  They  ran  first 
public  conveyance  on  Coney  Island  ;  also  have  boat 
privilege  in  Prospect  Park. 


OILS,  &c. 

Wm.  S.  Purdy 56  6th  ave. 

Inspector  of  petroleum,  oils,  etc.  Resident  of  Brooklyn 
for  85  years;  established  1863,  118  Maiden  Lane,  N.  Y. 
Was  member  Volunteer  Fire  Department  for  11  years. 

Samuel  Van  Wyck 65  New  York  ave. 

Oil  Commissioner;  established  1863,  155  Maiden  Lane, 
N.  Y.     Supervisor  34th  Ward,  1879-'80. 

WINES,  LIQUORS  AND  CIGARS. 

John  Bauer 121  Graham  av.,  c.  Boerum 

Wines  and  liquors;  established  in  Brooklyn  about  18 
years.     The  head-quarters  of  the  83d  Regt. ,  N.  G. ,  S.  N.  Y. 

Robert  Hill   Hunterfly  Place. 

Cigars;  established  1883.  Served  as  a  member  of  the 
Board  of  Aldermen  from  1873  to  1883. 


1390 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Herman  Colell 171  South  9th  st. 

Leaf  tobacco;  established   1860,   202  Chatham  street, 
N.  Y.     Excise  Commissioner  of  Brooklyn  in  1880-'81. 

William  N.  Moeneh 29  Humboldt  8t. 

Manufacturer  of  tobacco:  estabhshed,  1869,  Brooklyn, 
E.  D. 
William  B.  Vredenburgh. ..104  Court  st. 

Cigars,  tobacco  and  pipes;  established  Sept.  1,  1873. 


BREWERS. 

(See  also  p.  771.) 

Warren  G.  Abbott 234  Bushwick  ave. 

S.  Blumenstock 14  Union  ave. 

Edsrar  Conklin Kent  and  Division  aves. 

Dahlbender  &  Greiner 174  Ewen  st. 

Joseph  Fallert 66  Meserole 

C.  A.  Goetz . .  .• 948  Dean 

Henry  Grass 435  1st  st. 

Otto  Huber Bushwick  ave.,  c.  Meserole. 

S.  Leibman's  Sons 36  Forest  st. 

Joseph  Leibman 33  Forest  st. 

Geo.  Malcom Flushing  ave.  &  Skillman. 

Obermeyer  &  Liebman 67  Bremen  st.,  E.  D. 

William  Ulmer Beaver,  c.  Belvidere. 

Fred.  W.  Witte 102  Luqueer 

John  Welz Myrtle  ave.,  c.  Wyckoflf. 

Chas.  Zerwick Myrtle  &  Wyckoff  aves. 

IRON  MERCHANTS. 

John  O.  Carpenter 7  St.  Felix  st. 

Iron  merchant;  established  in  John  street,  N.  Y.,  1868; 
has  been  connected  for  more  than  ten  years  with  some  of 
the  largest  iron  and  steel  manufacturers  of  the  United 
States;  also  has  connection  in  London;  has  resided  15 
years  in  Brooklyn,  twelve  years  in  tlie  11th  Ward.  His 
firm,  J.  O.  Carpenter  &  Co.,  are  agents  for  the  Rome 
Merchant  Iron  Mills,  the  Fort  Pitt  Iron  and  Steel  Works, 
the  Manhattan  Rolling  Mill,  the  Kensington  Spike 
Works  and  the  New  Haven  Nut  Company. 

ICE  COMPANIES. 

RiDGBWOOD  Ice  Company,  organized  1874,  by  John 
M.  Lawrence,  who  bought  out  the  Brooklyn  Ice  Com- 
pany, and  was  President  of  the  new  company  until 
1879.  The  company  was  then  reorganized  with  ad- 
ditional capital  and  working  capacity;  John  Clark, 
Pres.;  J.  M.  Lawrence,  Treas.,  and  E.  H.  Close,  Sec, 
which  board  of  officers  still  remains.  Capital,  $1,000,- 
000,  of  which  $140,000  is  paid  in;  business  mostly  whole- 
sale, extending  largely  to  New  York.  The  Brooklyn 
depots  are  at  the  Wallabout,  and  foot  of  Sackett  street; 
offices,  186  Flushing  avenue,  and  207  Montague  street; 
Hudson  river  ice  is  entirely  used;  capacity  of  ice- 
houses, 250,000  tons. 


PILOTS. 

W.  Baulsir 455  Hudson  ave. 

Robert  Williams 158  Hart  st. 


MISCELLANEOUS. 

Wm.  Kam2yfmuller,  71  Broadway,  between  2d  and 
3d  streets.  Bird  and  Gokl-Fish  Depot  and  Sporting 
Goods.  Established  1869,  at  Broadway,  between  3d 
and  4th  sts.  The  first  bird  and  gold-fish  store  opened 
in  Brooklyn  ;  has  several  gold-fish  ponds  on  Long 
Island,  where  he  breeds  the  Lish  ;  has  sales  all  over  the 
United  States  and  Canada.  In  1877  he  published 
a  book  on  Cage  Birds,  named  "Our  Pets,"  that  has 
now  reached  its  fourth  edition. 

P.  W.  Sawers,  189  Washington  St.,  Artist.  Makes  a 
specialty  of  coloring,  transferring  and  crystalizing 
photographs  on  glass. 

Jbsejjh  Hegenian,  21  Willoughby  avenue.  Auctioneer. 
Est.  1841,  14  Fulton  street. 

Joseph  Harris,  245  Court  street.  Pawn  Broker.  Est. 
1870,  at  191  Smith  street. 

Cotton  and  Woolen  Rags,  Paper  Stock,  Rags  and 
Bagging. — Peter  Young,  wholesale  dealer,  233,  235 
and  237  Tillary  street ;  also  at  261  and  263,  corner  of 
Tillary  and  Raymond  streets  ;  storehouses,  corner  Di- 
vision avenue  and  1st  street.  Amount  of  rag  and 
other  paper  stocks  bought  and  sold  runs  from  7,000  to 
8,000  tons  per  year,  besides  his  bag  trade,  which  often 
is  15,000  per  day.  In  1881,  he  bought  the  machinerj' 
in  the  Locust  Valley  Paper  Mills,  which  he  moved  to 
7  and  9  Elm  street,  N.  Y.  He  rented  the  old  Man- 
hattan Well,  that  yields  an  abundant  water  supply, 
and  commenced  manufacturing  wrapping  and  Manilla 
paper.  The  product  the  first  year  has  been  1,000  tons, 
consuming  1,200  tons  of  material.  He  employs  30 
men  in  Brooklyn  and  New  York. 


LIST  OF  THE  MAYORS  OF  BROOKLYN. 


John  M.  Otto . 


ROOFING. 
453  Grand  st. 


NAMES. 

George  Hall 

Jonathan  Trotter. . . . 
Jeremiah  Johnson  . 

Cyrus  P.  Smith 

Henry  C.  Murphy. . . 

Joseph  Sprague 

Thos.  G.  Talmage... 
Francis  B.  Stryker . . 
Edward  Copeland . . . 

Samuel  Smith 

Conklin  Brush  

Ed%vard  A.  Lambert 

George  Hall 

Samuel  S.  Powell.  . . 
Martin  Kalbfleisch. . 
Alfred  M.  Wood. . . . 

Samuel  Booth 

Martin  Kalbfleisch. . 
Samuel  S.  Powell  . . 
John  W.  Hunter. . . . 
Fred.  A.  Schi'oeder.. 

James  Howell 

Seth  Low 


OF 


1834 

1835-36 

1837-38 

1839-41 

1842 

1843-44 

1845 

1846-48 

1849 

1850 

1851-52 

1853-54 

1855-56 

1857-60 

1861-63 

1864-efi 

1866-67 

1868-71 

1872-73 

1874-75 

1876-77 

1878-81 

1882-85 


Sept.  21, 
May, 
Jan.  23, 
April  5, 
July  5, 
July  25, 
Oct.  22, 
Dec.  11, 
May  30, 
May  26, 
March  8, 
June  10, 
Sept.  31, 
Feb.  16, 
Feb.  8, 
April  19, 
July  4, 
Feb.  8, 
Feb.  16, 
Oct.  15, 
March  9, 
Oct.  16, 
Jan.    18. 


April  16,  1868 
April  5,  1865 
Oct.  20,  1852 
Feb.  13,  1877 
1,  1883 
12,  1854 
4,  1863 


Dec. 
Dec. 
May 


1795  . 
1797. 
1766  ( 
1800  : 
1810 : 
17 

1801 : 

1811 
1793. 

1788] 

1794. 

1813 

1795  . 

1815  1 

1804: 

1828 

1818 

1804  Feb.  13,  1873 


June  18,  1859 
May  19,  1872 
July  4,  1870 


April  16,  1868 
Feb.  6,  1879 
Feb.  13,  1873 


1815 
1807 
1833 
1829 
1850 


Feb.  6,  1879 


ADDENDA. 


1391 


ADDENDA    AND    ERRATA. 


ADDENDA. 

THE  MOTTO  OF   THE    CITY  OF    BROOKLYN. 

" Eendracht  maakt  macht.''''  The  meaning  of  the 
motto  literally  is,  "  Unity  makes  might,"  which  is  sub- 
stantially, "  In  union  there  is  strength,"  and  it  was  the 
motto  of  the  United  Provinces  of  the  Netherlands,  the 
inhabitants  of  which  had  very  good  reason  to  appreci- 
ate its  value.  At  the  time  of  the  Dutch  Republic,  each 
of  the  United  Provinces  coined  its  own  money,  and 
many  of  those  coins  (which  were  in  extensive  circula- 
tion not  so  very  long  ago,  and  may  be  occasionally  met 
with  now)  bear  the  legend  "  Eendracht  maakt  macht," 
or  its  equivalent  in  Latin,  "  Concordia  facet  fortes." 
The  motto  bore  about  the  same  relation  in  the  United 
Provinces  of  the  Netherlands  as  the  "  E  pluribus 
ununi  "  does  in  the  United  States  of  America. 


THE    POPULATION    OF    BROOKLYN  IN    1884. 

This,  according  to  Lain's  BrooJdyn  Directory,  is- 
sued June  14th,  1884,  amounts  to  704,610,  instead  of 
the  650,000  with  which  the  city  has  been  generally  cred- 
ited. In  this  Directory  there  are  161,238  families  men- 
tioned. In  1875  there  were  only  85,000,  so  that  the 
population  has  nearly  doubled  in  less  than  fifteen  years. 
The  book  contains  1,450  pages  of  names,  against  1,368 
last  year.  Altogether  it  contains  about  1,600  pages, 
and  8,500  names  have  been  added. 

Mr.  Lain,  in  his  Preface,  says: 

"  We  took  occasion  in  the  Directory  of  1880  to  refer  to  the 
great  annual  increase  m  population  in  our  city.  There  has 
since  been  no  subsidence  of  that  growth.  Taking  the  rule 
stated  in  18S0,  based  upon  the  National  and  State  census,  it 
was  found,  by  comi)aring  that  census  with  the  number  of 
names  in  the  Directory,  that  the  proportion  of  tlie  latter  to 
the  former  was  4  37-100.  Adoj^ting  that  rule  this  year,  we 
demonstrate  that  as  the  Directory  of  this  year  contains  161,- 
23H  names,  an  increase  of  8,950  names  over  last  year,  so  the 
population  of  Brooklyn  is  704,610. 


SPIRITUALISM  IN  BROOKLYN. 

Any  one  who  believes  that  communication  under  any 
circumstances,  be  it  ever  so  rare,  between  those  who 
live  on  this  earth,  and  those  who  have  lived  on  it,  is 
possible  and  actual,  is  reckoned  by  those  who  do  thus 
believe,  essentially  a  spiritualist.  Not  the  nature  of 
the  communication,  but  the  fact,  covers  all  that  is  vital 
in  the  tenets  of  this  numerous  body  of  believers. 

Spiritualism  dates  back  in  Brooklyn  to  earlier  days  of  the 
movement.  Dr.  Wm.  Fishbough,  formerly  a  Universalist 
clergyman,  and  who  was  tlie  amanuensis  of  that  remarkable 
book,  "  Nature's  Divine  revelations,"  through  the  medium- 


ship  of  Andrew  Jackson  Davis,  was  prominent  in  conducting 
spiritual  meetings  which  were  held  m  the  Brooklyn  Institute, 
on  Washington  street,  near  Concord.  These  meetings  were 
fairly  attended.  Children's  Lyceums  have  been  established 
in  different  parts  of  the  city,  with  varied  success.  As  far  back 
as  1860,  Mr.  I.  A.  Wilson  was  President  of  the  Brooklyn  So- 
ciety of  Spiritualists,  who  held  their  meetings  in  the  Brooklyn 
Institute,  and  at  the  Hall,  corner  of  Smith  and  Fulton  streets, 
E.  V.  Wilson,  a  well  known  medium  and  pioneer,  organized 
the 

Brooklyn  Society  of  Spiritualists  in  1876.  Mr.  Charles  R. 
Miller  was  elected  to  the  Presidency  of  tliis  organization  and 
held  it  until  1881,  when  Mr.  Benedict  was  its  President,  suc- 
ceeded, in  1884,  by  Mr.  Johnson.  This  society  holds  meet- 
ings in  Conservatory  Hall,  cor.  Bedford  and  Fulton  avenues, 
which  are  fairly  attended. 

The  Brooklyn  Spiritual  Fraternity  was  organized  Jan., 
1880,  with  S.  B.  Nichols  for  Pres.;  D.  M.  Cole  for  Vice-Pres.; 
Charles  J.  Warner,  Treas.;  Dr.  John  C.  Wyman.  It  held  Sun- 
day services  in  Fraternity  Hall,  cor.  Fulton  and  Gallatin 
place,  and  in  Brooklyn  Institute;  has  a  membership  of  150, 
including  some  of  the  active  workers  in  the  cause,  and  has 
been  fairly  iirosperous. 

The  Brooklyn  Spiritual  Conference  was  organized  by  E. 
V.  Wilson,  July,  1878.  S.  B.  Nichols  was  its  chairman  until 
Jan. ,  1880,  when  Capt.  I.  David  was  elected  its  presiding  offi- 
cer. These  meetings  have  always  been  held  in  Everett  Hall, 
398  Fulton  street,  on  Saturday  evenings. 

A  conference  meeting  was  organized  in  1878,  in  the  East- 
tern  District.  Mr.  C.  R.  Miller  has  been  its  President  since 
its  organization;  it  holds  its  meetings  weekly  in  Composite 
Hall. 

The  South  Brooklyn  Spiritualist  Society  was  organized 
in  July,  1884,  S.  B.  Bogert.  Pre.".,  and  hold  Sunday  and  week- 
day meetings  in  Franklin  Hall,  3d  ave.  and  18th  st. 

The  Second  Eastern  District  Spiritualist  Association  has 
recently  been  organized,  and  holds  regular  Sunday  evening 
meetings  in  Masonic  Temple,  corner  Grand  and  Seventh 
streets.  Mr.  N.  A.  Schroeder  is  President,  and  Mr.  A.  A. 
Conklin,  Treasurer. 

There  are  two  publications  in  Brooklyn  devoted  to  the 
elucidation  and  defense  of  the  phenomena  and  philosophy 
of  Spiritualism,  viz.:  Miller's  Psychometric  Circular,  and 
The  Gallery  of  S^nrit  Art.  The  former  is  a  monthly  of  16 
pages,  royal  size;  the  latter,  an  illustrated  quarterly  maga- 
zine. Both  are  published  by  C.  R.  Miller  &  Co.,  at  No.  16 
Willoughby  street. 

See  Chapter  on  ArcMtccts,  Builders  and  Real  Estate  Agetits. 
(Page  829.) 

E.  D.  Phelps  was  born  in  Brooklyn,  in  1850.  Was 
for  a  time  in  Importers'  and  Traders'  Bank,  New  York 
City.  Established  piano  business,  308  Fulton  Street, 
Brooklyn,  in  1870;  afterwards  took  his  father  in  part- 
nership. Phelps  &  Son  were  first  firm  in  this  city  to 
sell  pianos  on  small  monthly  installments.  Moved  in 
1880  to  Washington  Street.  Mr.  E.  D.  Phelps  built 
the  first  apartment  house  in  Brooklyn,  "The  Ply- 
mouth," in  Orange  Street,  in  1881. 


1392 


HISTORY  01  KINGS  COUNTY. 


In  1883  he  commenced  "The  Columbia"  in  Pine- 
apple Street,  which  is  nearly  completed;  is  8  stories 
high  and  has  14  sets  of  apartments,  each  10  rooms; 
has  open  stone  staircase,  the  best  fire-escape  known, 
fire  and  smoke  proof.  The  apartments  rent  from  $800 
to  81,000  each.     Every  room  is  an  outside  room. 

Myron  C.  Rush,  324  Franklin  ave. ;  born  at  Peeks- 
kill,  N.  T.;  established  at  329  Franklin  ave.,  1875;  has 
built  nearly  forty  houses  in  Brooklyn  since  then. 


PHYSICIANS  PRACTICING  IN  BROOKLYN. 

(Addenda  to  page  934.) 

Jenkins,  J.  A 702  Leonard  street. 

Loewenstein,  Henry 150  Bush  wick  avenue. 

Preston,  Henry  G 138  S.  Oxford  street. 

Born  Hartford,  Conn.,  1847;  rem.  to  St.  John's,  N.  B., 
1859;  grad.  B.  A.  Univ.  N.  B.,  1806;  studied  med.  with 
his  father,  Dr.  H.  C.  Preston,  and  with  Dr.  G.  S.  Green, 
of  Hartfoi-d,  Conn. ;  grad.  Bellevue  Hosp.  Med.  CoU. ,  N. 
Y.,  1869;  passed  naval  exam.;  practiced  awhile  in  N.  Y. 
city,  and  a  year  in  St.  John's,  N.  B. ;  then,  until  1876,  at 
Albany,  N.  Y. ;  then  succeeded  Dr.  John  Butler  and  Dr. 
KoUin  Gray,  in  Brooklyn  ;  has  been  Surg.  Horn.  Disp., 
St.  Johns,  N.  B.;  Vice-Pres.  1871,  and  Pres.  1873,  Albany 
Co.  Horn.  Med  Soc;  del.  to  State  Hom.  Med.  Soc,  1871- 
'75,  and  memb.  of  since  1875  ;  Surg.  Albany  City  Disjj., 
and  of  Alb.  Hom.  Hosp.;  Electro-Therapeutist  of  B. 
Hom.  Disp.,  1877 ;  Visiting  Phys.  B.  Maternity,  1877 ; 
Lect.  Gen.  Path,  of  School  of  Nurses  ;  of  the  Maternity, 
1877;  contributor  toVols.  IX.,  Xlll.,  XIV.,  Trans.  State 
Horn.  Med.  Soe.,  special  department.  Surgery  and  Gyne- 
cology. 

Traneurs,  Ludwig 548  Atlantic  avenue. 

Born  Gottenbui-gh,  Sweden,  1820;  completed  the  philo- 
sophical course,  1840,  at  Univ.  of  Upsal,  where  he  grad. 
M.D.,  1881  ;  was  2i  years  Surg,  in  hosp.,  Stockholm,  and 
at  Co.  Hosp.,  Udde valla,  1853-'60  ;  Res.  Phys.  at  Sahl- 
gren's  Hosp.,  Gutteuburgh,  1800-62;  at  St.  Mary's  Hosp., 
1863-'70:  1st  Surgeon  (Capt.)  Royal  Marine  Hosp.,  1864- 
-'70;  came  to  U.  S.,  1870  ;  settled  in  St.  Louis,  Mo.;  then 
in  Chicago;  in  Brooklyn,  1873;  his  grad.  thesis  (pub.)  was 
on  Musculus  Multijidus  Spinoe  and  Muse.  Rotatores 
Dor  si;  Plaster  of  Paris  for  immovable  dressing  of  am- 
putated stumps,  1853 ;  the  Home  Physician  (a  popular 
treatise),  1872.  Originally  an  Allopathist,  Dr.  T.'s  atten- 
tion was  called  to  Homoeo.  in  St.  Louis,  in  1871,  since 
which  time  he  has  preferred  that  practice. 
Note.— Keference  should  also  be  made  in  this  History  to  an  article 

of  great  historic  value,  on  The  Rise  and  Progress  of  Homoeopathy  in 

the  County  of  Kings  (Brooklyn),  L.  I.,  from  1840  to  October,  1863,  itiy 

Robert  C.  Moffat,  M.D.,  published  in  the  Transactions  of  the  N.  Y. 

State  Hormeopathic  Medical  Society,  for  the  year  1864. 


The  Sedford  Dispensary  should  have  been  included 
in  our  list  of  these  institutions,  page  925.  Wm.  C. 
Hoople,  Pres.;  Thos.  P.  Wilkinson,  Vice-Pres.;  H.  W." 
Brinkerhoff,  Sec;   Geo.  Stannard,  Treas. 


Lafayette  Academy,  149  Lafayette  avenue, 
Brooklyn,  N.  Y.  Rev.  D.  Marvin,  Jr.,  A.  M.,  Princi- 
pal, who,  in  Oct.,  1875,  purchased  from  Rev.  R.  H.  L. 
Tighe,  at  present  minister  of  Grace  (P.  E.)  Chapel,  in 


High  street,  the  school  known  as  "Young  Ladies'  Sem- 
inary," at  149  Lafayette  avenue.  In  1877  the  name 
was  changed  to  "Lafayette  Academy."  At  first, 
pupils  of  both  sexes  were  received  ;  now,  boys  only 
are  received.  The  school  is  designed  as  a  preparatory 
school  for  college,  business,  or  scientific  schools.  The 
course  of  study  includes  classics,  modern  languages, 
mathematics,  natural  sciences  and  English  branches. 


Society  for  the  Aid  of  Friendless  Women  and  Children. — 
In  1809  Mrs.  Abigail  Bulkley,  who  had  traveled  in  Europe 
and  observed  the  practical  workings  of  benevolent  institu- 
tions there,  became  impressed  with  the  desirableness  of  an 
institution  for  the  temporary  shelter  and  protection  of  friend- 
less women.  In  connection  with  Mrs.  A.  Crittenden  and 
others  she  rented  rooms  for  the  purpose,  and  they  com- 
menced the  work  of  relieving  those  whom  they  found  in  dis- 
tress and  destitution,  and  whose  only  shelter  would  be  the 
"station  house."  Others  soon  joined  them  in  their  good 
work,  which  was  at  first  carried  on  ac  their  own  expense. 
This  was  the  nucleus  of  the  association  that  has  since  been 
known  as  the  Society  for  the  Aid  of  Friendless  Women  and 
Children. 

The  work  of  these  ladies  attracted  the  attention  of  other 
benevolent  people,  who  contributed  for  it,  as  they  saw  its 
good  results;  and,  in  1871,  the  society  was  incorporated  by  an 
Act  of  the  Legislature.  In  the  same  year  the  building  now 
occupied  by  the  society,  on  Concord  street,  between  Fulton 
and  Washington  streets,  was  purchased  for  ,$30,000.  The 
annual  disbursements  now  reach  the  sum  of  10,000,  and  the 
number  receiving  relief  is  600  annually. 

The  object  of  this  society  is  to  give  temporary  relief,  and 
to  aid  in  finding  homes  and  employment  for  those  who  have 
been  overtaken  by  adversity. 

The  first  President  of  the  society  was  Mrs.  Bulkley,  who 
died  in  July,  1876;  her  successor  was  Mrs.  A.  S.  Barnes, 
whose  death  occurred  in  October,  1881.'  Mrs.  H.  L.  Packer 
was  chosen  to  succeed  Mrs.  Barnes  in  the  presidency. 


Skiivner. — The  residence  of  the  late  Dr.  Salmon 
Skinner,  No.  124  Montague  .st.  (see  view,  page  948),  is 
the  present  dental  office  of  his  son  and  successor,  David 
S.  Skinner.  It  is,  also,  one  of  the  two  houses  first 
erected  on  that  street. 


Humphreys,  A.  ~W. — In  our  biography  of  this  gentle- 
man, (see  page  515a),  it  should  have  been  mentioned 
that  he  is  one  of  the  managers  of  the  New  York  Metal 
Exchange. 


Turkish  Baths. — According  to  Dr.  Dio  Lewis,  the 
first  Turkish  Bath  in  the  U.  S.  was  built  by  Dr.  Shep- 
ard  in  Brooklyn  (seep.  1361);  the  first  in  Boston  by 
Dr.  Esterbrook,  in  1861;  the  second  by  Dr.  Adams,  in 
1862  or  '63;  third  by  Dr.  Adams,  in  1863,  under  Dr. 
Wood's  supervision. 


Acknowledgments  should  be  made  to  Messrs.  Harper 
Brothers  for  the  use  of  the  excellent  portrait  of  the 
late   Mr.    Thomas  Kinsella  on   page    1185.     Also   to 


ADDENDA. 


1393 


Messrs.  Funk  &  Wagnall,  publishers,  for  the  use  of 
the  portrait  of  Rev.  Hbnrt  Ward  Beechee,  on  page 
1019. 


Edward  Ridley,  whose  portrait  and  biography  will 
be  found  on  page  210,  and  Wililuam  H.  Engeman, 
(on  page  204)  have  both  deceased  while  these  pages 
liave  been  passing  through  the  prt'ss. 


Musicians,  (page  1377). — Received  too  late  for  inser- 
tion in  proper  place: 

Rafael  Navarro,  536  State  sti-eet.  Professor  of 
Music;  established  in  Brooklyn,  1869;  has  been  organ- 
ist and  choir-master  in  several  prominent  Brooklyn 
churches  ;  has  been,  and  still  is,  director  of  several 
Brooklyn  musical  societies,  such  as  the  "  Handel  and 
Haydn  Society,"  the. "Symphony  Society,"  the  "Ama- 
teur Opera  Society,"  etc. 

Henet  Giesemann,  32  and  34  University  Place,  N. 
Y.  city;  orchestra;  established  1870;  member  of  0.\- 
ford  Club;  a  leading  pianist,  and  furnishes  some  of  the 
best  music  obtainable  for  social  purposes. 


U.  S.,  COUNTY   AND   CITY   OFFICIALS   AND 
EX-OFFICIALS    AND     EMPLOYES 

WHO   AKE   PATRONS   OF   THIS   WOKK. 
F.  A.  Briggs,  County  Auditor,  606  Franklin  ave. 
W.  Barre,  Deputy  Register.  883  Carlton  ave. 
Chas.  A.  Bartow,  Water  Department,  151  No.  Oxford  St. 
Wm.  Bryan,  ex-Keeper  of  Jail,  55  Jefferson  st. 
W.  II.  Bacon,  District  Attorney's  Otlice,  Court-House. 
Edward  Brooks,  Post-office,  101  Java  St. 
M.  A.  Brown,  Postmaster,  New  Lots. 
John  Barr,  Police  Captain,  383  State  st. 
Wm.  A.  Brown,  Board  of  Audit,  City  Hall. 
Geo.  Brown,  Office  of  Com'r  of  Charities,  174  Kosciusko  st. 
John  B.  Byrne,  Qlerk  Sup.  Court,  575  Henry  St. 
David  Brower,  Ass't  Engineer,  185  Keap  st.,  Munic.  Building. 
H.  F.  Cadley,  County  Treasurer,  457  Gold  st. 
I.  S.  Catlin,  District  Attorney,  3  Court-House. 
W.  D.  Cornell,  Auditor's  Office,  City  Hall. 
John  Y.  Culyer,  Superintendent  Prospect  Park. 
M.  W.  Cole,  Arrears  Department,  113  Nevins  st. 
Edward  B.  Cadley,  Clerk  Board  of  Sup's,  42  Hanson  Place. 
J.  L.  Conelly,  Clerk  Board  of  Supervisors,  10  Court-House. 
Thomas  Carroll,  Register,  344  Jay  st. 

R.  D.  Crotty,  C\k.  Board  of  Educa.,  City  Hall  (Board  Educa.) 
James  Campbell,  Police  Captain,  411  Dean  st. 
Francis  R.  Core,  Inspector,  55  St.  Felix  st. 
Samuel  H.  Cornwell,  Searcher,  335  Madison  st. 
Charles  H.  Colton,  Board  of  Election.s,  196  Greene  ave. 
John  Cullin,  Supervisor,  223  Tillary  st. 
John  Courtney,  Justice,  304  Myrtle  ave. 
E.  W.  Coburn,  Searcher,  8  Municipal  Building. 
W.  H.  N.  Cadmus,  Searcher,  180  18th  st. 
Geo.  N.  Dick,  Supt.  Street  Repairs,  416  Nostrand  ave. 
Henry  Dawson,  Jr.,  Clerk  Fire  Commissioners,  City  Hall. 
George  H.  Day,  City  Surveyor,  219  Montague  st. 
James  Dunn,  Police  Captain,  9th  Precinct  Station. 
A.  C.  De  Merritt,  Board  of  City  Works,  28  Stirling  Place. 
R.  J.  Doyle,  Justices'  Court,  351  Myrtle  ave. 


Wm.  De  Lacy,  Assessor,  354  Dean  st. 

James  Dunn,  Keeper  of  City  Hall,  City  Hall. 

Wm.  De  Vigne,  Register's  Office,  248  DeKalb  ave. 

Chas.  B.  EUiott,  County  Clerk,  102  Oak  st. 

Wm.  F.  Early,  Captain  of  Police,  New  Lots. 

Thos.  Eimis,  Assessor,  544  Herkimer  st. 

Barnard  Fowler,  Clerk  Board  of  City  Works,  496  Bedford  ave. 

Wm.  A.  Furey,  Commissioner  of  Jurors,  255  Bridge. 

Francis  B.  Fisher,  Justice  of  Police  Court,  216  Quincy. 

Chas  E.  Fiske,  Inspector,  20  Ft.  Greene  Place. 

E.  B.  Fowler,  TJ.  S.  Int.  Revenue,  44  Court  st. 

Chas.  B.  Farley,  Asst.  Engineer  Fire  Dept.,  125  DeKalb  ave. 
John  Green,  Penitentiary  Supt.,  Kings  Co.  Penitentiary. 
W.  H.  Gaylor,  Building  Commissioner,  City  Hall. 
Samuel  H.  Harlow,  ex-U.  S.  Marshal,  168  Montague. 

F.  S.  Hodgkinson,  Deputy  Sheriff,  8  Court-House. 
Granville  W.  Harman,  Revenue  Department,  403  Macon  st. 
M.  J.  Hannan,  ex-Assemblyman,  113  Tillary. 

W.  J.  Hobday,  Inspector,  517  Pacific. 
John  Heydinger,  Jr.,  Clerk  U.  S.  Court,  168  Montague. 
Theo.  F.  Jackson,  Register  of  Arrears,  45  Broadway. 
Darwin  R.  James,  U.  S.  Representative,  123  Maiden  Lane, 

New  York. 
James  Jourdan,  ex-Police  Commissioner,  21  Schermerhorn. 
Wm.  C.  Kingsley,  Pres.  Bridge  Trustees,  Washington  Park. 
Wm.  Kowalske,  City  Surveyor,  397  Fulton  st. 
Chas.  Kiehl,  Justice,  196  Johnson  ave.. 
Geo.  W.  Knabel,  City  Clerk,  303  Gates  ave. 
Thomas  J.  Kenna,  Justice,  115  North  8th  st. 
Wm.  Kaiser,  Police  Captain,  1,763  Atlantic  ave. 
Henry  Keller,  Police  Captain,  164  Pacific. 
Daniel  M.  Kelly,  Assemblyman,  393  Bridge  st. 

E.  A.  Kollmeyer,  Auditor's  Office,  125  Lafayette  ave. 
John  J.  Kiernan,  Senator,  2  Broad  st.,  New  York. 

Aug.  D.  Limburgher,  Custom  House  Insp.,  61  Willoughby  st. 
Wm.  Mayo  Little,  Ex.  Board  of  City  Works,  72  Greene  ave. 
Richard  Lauer,  Excise  Commissioner,  365  Pacific  st. 
L.  W.  Lloyd,  Police  Captain,  139  Uth  st. 
Walter  L.  Livingston,  Surrogate,  92  Hewes  st. 
James  Lanagan,  Surrogate's  Office,  127  10th  st.,  E.  D. 
Jeremiah  Lott,  Supt.  Water  Works,  Flatbush,  L.  I. 
P.  H.  Leary,  Police  Captain,  Third  Precinct. 
Wm.  SlacTammaay,  Supt.  Truant's  Home,  Plank  Road. 
Frank  C.  Mason,  Supt.  Police  Telegraph  Bureau,  16  Munici- 
pal Building. 
Edward  P.  McManus,  Supt.  Van  Brunt  Post-office  Station. 
D.  McNamara,  ex-City  Clerk,  120  Willoughby. 
John  Mitchell,  ex-County  Treasurer,  184  Devoe  st. 
Chas.  A.  McLaughlin,  Water  Register,  361  Quincey  st. 
James  McLeer,  Postmaster,  Post-office. 
Wm.  Murray,  Aims-House  Keeper,  Flatbush. 

C.  B.  Morton,  Assistant  Postmaster,  283  South  5th  st. 
Thos,  Murphy,  Police  Captain,  289  13th  st.,  226  2l8t  st. 
J.  MacKellock,  PoUce  Captain,  119  11th  st. 

H.  M.  McKeever,  Dept.  of  Arrears,  50  Broadway. 
P.  H.  McLoughlin,  Police  Department,  Ninth  Precinct. 
B.  J.  MulhoUand,  Assemblyman,  123  Tillary. 
Thos.  F.  Nevins,  Chief  Fire  Dept.,  367  Jay  st. 

D.  L.  Northrup,  Sec.  Board  City  Works,  133  South  9th  st. 
J.  W.  Naughton,  Supt.  School  Buildings,  107  Carroll  st. 
Daniel  O'Reilly,  ex-Congressman,  149  Huntington. 
Richard  H.  PoiUon,  Deputy  Fire  Com'r,  295  Carroll  st. 

F.  G.  Quevedo,  ex-Sec,  Park  Com'rs,  255  9th  st. 
Chas.  Rushmore,  Tax  Dept.,  109  Cambridge. 

Dom.  Roche,  Sec.  of  Board  of  Assessors,  Municipal  Building, 
Samuel  Richards,  Register,  Municipal  Building. 
Benj.  W.  Wilson,  Assessor,  1609  Broadway. 


1394 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Edward  Reilly,  Police  Captaio,  568  Clinton  st. 

George  Rowland,  Supervisor,  84  Colyer. 

Lewis  R.  Stegman,  Sheriff,  174  Taylor  st. 

R.  B.  Sedgwick,  ex-Sheriff's  Clerk,  79  Orange. 

Aug.  D.  Sterling.  Inspector,  9  St.  Felix  st. 

Charles  F.  Schultz,  Keeper  Jail,  Raymond  st. 

R.  S.  Steves,  Cashier,  An-ears  Dept. ,  Municipal  Building. 

H.  W.  Sabin,  Bridge  Police  Sergeant,  4  Dean  st. 

J.  Short,  Jr.,  Clerk,  Board  of  Charities,  244  Fulton  st. 

D.  W.  Tahnadge,  Sec.  Board  of  Education,  209  Macon  st. 

D.  C.  Toal.  Board  of  Charities,  444  Fulton  st. 

Wm.  51.  Tliomas,  ex-Building  Com'r,  219  Schernierhorn  st. 

James  Tanner,  Tax  Collector,  362  9th  st. 

John  A.  Taj-lor,  Corporation  Counsel,  City  Hall. 

Truman  V.  Tuttle,  Examiner,  169  South  9th  st. 

Aug.  C.  Tate,  U.  S.  Marshal,  105  St.  Felix  st. 

Walter  Thorn,  Shore  Inspector,  Bay  Ridge. 

John  L.  Voorhees,  Town  Clerk,  Gravesend. 

Robert  Van  Buren,  Eng.  Water  Works,  29  Municipal  Buildg. 

Rodney  C.  Ward,  U.  S.  Revenue  Collector,  44  Court  and  139 

Joralemon  street. 
Peter  L.  Williamson,  Supervisor,  Flatbush. 
T.  C.  Wilmarth,  Police  Captain,  263  Adelphi  st. 
John  A.  Westervelt,  Supervisor,  316  Lorimer  st. 
W.  H.  Whitlock,  Internal  Revenue,  44  Court  st. 
F.  Wrightington,  Supt.,  Navy  Yard,  76  Freeman  st. 
Thos.  H.  York,  Clerk,  County  Court,  151  Willoughby. 


OFFICIALS   OF  CITY   CORPORATIONS. 

Theodore  Cocheu,  Supt.  Cemeteries,  280  Ainslie  st. 

J.  Crandall,  Supt.  Street  Railroads,  1609  Broadway. 

John  Cunningham,  Pres.  Street  Railroads,  264  Van  Bnmt. 

W.  H.  Curran,  Superintendent  R.  C.  Cemetery,  Flatbush. 

Whitson  Colyer,  Railroad  Office,  New  Lots. 

C.  W.  Douglass,  Railroad  Supt.,  120  Liberty  st.  (N.  Y.) 


Addenda  to  the  sketch  of  Hon.  Eben  Moody  Botnton,  page  836. 

The  record  of  the  Boynton  family  in  England  begins 
with  Bartholomew  Boynton,  Lord  of  the  Manor  of 
Burton  Acres,  Bryerton,  England,  A.  D.  1014,  and 
continues  uninterruptedly  to  the  present  time. 

Mr.  Boynton's  social  reliitions  have  been  singularly 
fortunate  and  happy.  His  summer  home  is  on  Pipestave 
Hill,  in  West  Newbury,  Mass.,  overlooking  Newbury- 
port  and  the  lovely  valley  of  the  Merrimac,  whose 
tidal  waters  sweep  the  base  of  the  eminence.  His  par- 
sonage farm  was  once  the  property  of  Caleb  Moody, 
his  ancestor;  and  his  tower  commands  a  view  of  forty 
mountain  peaks,  including  Mt.  Washington.  The  first 
Senator  of  the  United  States  from  Massachusetts  re- 
sided there.  Senator  Dalton,  and  his  brother-in-law, 
Hooper,  entertained  upon  this  hill  many  distinguished 
French  exiles  after  the  French  Revolution,  among 
whom  were  Louis  Phillipe,  afterwards  king  of  France, 
M.  de  Talleyrand,  and  the  young  poet,  Brissot,  who 
here  wrote  his  sketches  of  the  most  beautiful  scenery 
in  New  England. 

Within  a  half  hour's  drive  arc  the  birth-places  of 
the  poet  Whittier,  Gov.  .Tosiah  Bartlett,  Hon.  Caleb 
Cushing,  Wm.  Lloyd  Garrison,  Caleb  Moody,  Major 
Ben.  Perley  Poore,  John  Newell,  and  other  distin- 
guished men,  while  just  below  on  a  beautiful  island  is 
the  residence  of  Harriet  Prescott  Spofford.  James 
Parton,  the  historian,  resides  a  mile  further  in  New- 
buryport,  opposite  the  old  home  of  Dr.  Tyng.  The 
castellated  house  erected,  and  for  six  years  inhabited 
by  the  British  Minister,  Sir  Edward  Thornton,  looks 


out  from  Laurel  Hill  near  by,  the  property  of  Capt. 
H.  W.  Moulton,  and  his  literary  family. 

Mr.  Boynton  came  to  his  present  place  of  residence 
when  he  was  fourteen  years  old,  to  reside  with  Mrs. 
Susan  Coker,  a  sister  of  Mrs.  General  Peabody,  of 
Newburyport,  who  had  in  her  household  her  nephew, 
George  Peabody,  the  banker,  during  his  early  man- 
hood. The  influence  of  Mrs.  Coker,  and  her  daughter 
Catherine,  was  of  value  to  young  Boynton  in  the  form- 
ative age,  and  when  he  married,  she  gave  him  the 
Peabody  clock  as  a  souvenir  of  the  distinguished 
banker. 

In  1872,  on  May  1st,  Mr.  Boynton  married  Anna 
Bartlett  Gale,  the  only  daughter  of  Dr.  Stephen  M. 
Gale,  of  Newburyport,  connected  through  her  father 
with  the  Bartletts,  Josiah  Bartlett  being  her  great- 
grandfather, and  the  Websters,  on  the  side  of  her 
mother,  Hannah  Whittier  Johnson,  with  the  Johnsons 
and  Whittiers.  She  is  a  lady  of  high  literary  and 
musical  culture,  uniting  these  pursuits  with  domestic 
tastes.  Among  their  friends  are  numbered  some  of 
the  best  people  in  the  land.  Their  union  h.as  been 
blessed  with  four  promising  daughters.  That  their 
summer  home  is  one  of  rare  beauty  and  happiness,  we 
can  testify  from  personal  knowledge. 

Erratum. — In  the  sketch  of  the  Hon.  E.  M.  Boyn- 
ton, page  826,  third  line  from  the  bottom,  "  Gen. 
George  Thorn  "  should  be  Gen.  George  Thorn. 


John  J.  Hardy.— This  well-known  citizen  of  Brooklyn, 
was  born  in  Nottingham,  England,  January  26,  1811, 
and  passed  the  earlier  years  of  his  life  in  the  mother  country. 
Like  so  many  others,  he  determined  to  seek  his  fortunes  in 
in  America,  and  made  Brooklyn  his  place  of  residence.  Mr. 
Hardy  first  married  Miss  Mary  Reek,  who  died  in  1832;  their 
son,  William  T.,  is  a  resident  of  Brooklyn,  and  has  two  sons, 
William  T.,  Jr.,  and  Winfield  A.  Mr.  Hardy  married,  for  his 
second  wife.  Miss  Anna  Reek  (sister  of  his  former  wife),  but 
she  lived  only  a  few  years.  He  afterward  married  Miss 
Louise  A.  Wykes;  the  result  of  this  union  was  one  daughter, 
Fanny  L.,  who  resides  at  the  liomestead  on  3d  avenue.  Some 
time  after  the  death  of  his  wife,  Mr.  Hardy  married  his  jjies- 
ent  wife,  Emily  Singleton,  who  was  born  in  Nottingham 
also.  Mr.  Hardy's  business  career  has  been  fortunate.  His 
industry  and  integrity  have  brought  prosperity.  In  1851,  he 
established  the  manufacture  of  axle  grease,  on  a  small  scale, 
but  graduall}'  extended  his  operations  until  the  annual 
product  is  large.  The  manufactory  is  in  South  Brooklyn. 
Mr.  Hardy  is  an  upright  business  man,  somewhat  conserva- 
tive, yet  enterprising,  and  has  the  esteem  and  confidence  of 
those  who  know  him. 


ERRATA. 

Medical  History  of  Kings  Co. — On  page  415  it  is 
stated  that  Dr.  Beekman  refused  to  ask  pardon  of  Gov. 
Slaughter,  and  was  ultimately  released.  This  is  an 
error.  Beekman  did  ask  ])ardon,  but  was  not  released 
until  after  the  arrival  of  Slaugliter's  successor  to  the 
Governorship.  F.  B.  G. 


William  Matthews. — The  name  of  this  gentleman 
occurring  in  the  history  of  Flatbush  (page  235),  and 
also  in  connection  with  the  mention  of  the  Episcopal 
Church  in  that  village,  should  be  spelt  with  two  "<'s." 


^^-^u 


GENERAL     INDEX 


HISTORY    OF    KINGS    COUNTY 


A  PAGE 

Addenda 831,  1391 

Academy  of  Design,  The 505,  1143 

of  Music 486 

Agricultural  Capabilities  of  L.  I . .  38 
Amateur  Dramatic  Associations 

OF  B'klyn 1163 

Ambvilance  Service,  The  Hosp..  .566,  567 

American  Legion  of  Honor 1350 

Anglo  American  Dry  Docks 641 

Annex  Ferry  Boats,  The 513 

Ansonia  Clock  Co 515 

Architects,  Builders,  and  Real 

Estate  Agents  of  B'klyn 839-864 

Armories 509,  510,  511,  513 

Art  in  Brooklyn 1137 

Association,  The  Brooklyn 1140 

Clubs  of  Brooklyn,  The 1145 

Products 816 

Artists  in  Brooklyn 1168 

Arts,  the  Fine,  in  B'klyn 1137,  1161 

Assessments  and  Collections,  Dept. 

of  Internal  Revenue 869 

Asylums  and  Industrial  Schools. .  618 
Athletic  Clubs,  See  Associations. 

Atlantic  ave.  R.R 431 

Docks,  The 636 

Harbor  Co.,  The 833 

Insurance  Co 515 

Attendance  Schools 618 

Authors  in  Kings  Co.  and  B'klyn.  1313 
Autographs : 

Antonides,  Rev.  V 335 

Baxter,  Geo 164 

Cortelyou,  Jacques 257 

De  Beauvois,  Carel 409 

De  Sille,  Nicasius 358 

Hainelle,  Michael 334 

Hegeman,  Adrian 230 

Hubbard,  James 164 

Indian 187 

Jause,  Dirck 233 

Lot,  Peter 318 

Moody,  Henry 158 

Pietersen,  Leffert 217 

Reycke,  Hendrick 317 

Reyerse,  Adrian 218 

Selyns,  Rev.  Henry  331 

Schenck,  Johannes,  Jr 324 

Snedicor,  Jan 320 

Strycker,  Jacob 23-") 

Jan    317 

Suebringli,  Jan 230 


Tilton,  John 

Van  Barkelloo,  W.  Jansen 362 

Vanderbilt,  Jan  Aertsen 332 

Vanderveer,  Cornelis  Janse. . .  317 

Van  Duyn,  Genet  Cornelisen.  363 

Van  Salee,  Anth.  Jansen 158 

Van  Wyck,  Coraelis  Barent . . .  254 
Associations.     (Clubs,      Societies.) 
See  also  Histories  of  Toivns. 

Alcyone  Boat  Club 1340 

Amateur  Dramatic 1312 

Pioneer  Photo.  Club.  1313 

Apollo  Clul).  The 1310 

Art  Guild,  The  Brooklyn 1309 


Associations.  page 

Astronomical,  The  American.  1307 

Athletic  Clubs  of  New  Lots.  .  316 

Atlantic  Base  Ball  Club 134 1 

Yacht  Club 1339 

Audubon  Gun  Club 1338 

Brooklyn  Amateur  Base  Ball 

Assoc 1342 

Brooklyn  Art  Guild 1309 

Club... 500,  1307 

Gun  Club  ...   1337 

Institute,  The 1301 

Lyceum 1303 

Women's  Club 1310 

Yacht  Club 1339 

Bryant  Literary  Soc,  The 1300 

Burns,  The 1313 

B'klynites,  The  Soc.  of  Old.  .515, 1311 

Bowling  Clubs  of  New  Lots. . .  316 

Caledonian,  The 1312 

Capitoline,  The 489 

Carleton,  The 1308 

Clinton  Club,  The 1308 

Columbia  Boat  Club 1340 

Coney  Island  Rod  &  Gun  Club  1338 

Constitution  Club,  The 1309 

Crescent  Literary  Soc,  The. . .  1313 

Dramatic  (Amateur)  Assoc. .. .  1312 

Durer  Club,  The 130!) 

East  Brooklyn  Y.  M.  Assoc. . .  1101 

East  River  Yacht  Club 1339 

Eckford  Base  Ball  Club 1341 

Eclectic  Club,  The 1309 

Empire  Club,  Tlie 1308 

Entomological  Soc.  The  Bklyn  1307 

Everett  Lit.  Assoc,  The 130G 

Excelsior  Club,  The 1307 

Base  Ball  Club  1341 

Faust  Club,  The 1309 

Fleetwood  Yachting  Club 316 

Fountain  Gun  Club 1337 

Franklin  Literary  Soc 1305 

German  Evan.  Aid  Soc 1101 

Gilbert  Dramatic  Assoc 1313 

Glenmore  Rod  &  Gun  Club,  316,  1339 

Hamilton  Club,  The 518, 1308 

Literary  Assoc 1304 

Heights  Wheelmen 1340 

Hist.  Soc,  The  L.  I.  .40,  514,  516, 1304 

Kings  Co.  Club,  The 1307 

Kings  Co.  Wheelmen 1340 

Lincoln  Club,  The 1308 

Lyceum.  The  Brooklyn 1303 

Long  Island  Forester  Club. .  . .  1339 
Historical  Soc.  .40,  1304 

Life  Sav'gAss'n.  1340 

Shooting  Club...  1336 

Yacht  Club 1339 

Lincoln  Club,  The 1308 

Mechanics'  and  Traders'  Ex. . .  1313 

Microscopical.  The  B.  Club.. . .  1307 

Nereid  Boat  Club 1340 

New  England  Society 515,  1311 

New  York  Arbroath  Assoc...  .  1311 

New  Lots  Yacht  Club 316 

Old  Brooklynites,  Soc.  of.. 515,  1311 
Oxford  Club,  The 515,  1308 


Associations.  page 

Paul  Morphy  Chess  Club 1308 

Philomathean  Soc,  The 1306 

Pho'uix  Gun  Club 1336 

Pioneer  Boat  Club 1340 

Polytechnic  Debating  Soc 1306 

Prevention  of  Cruelty  to  Ani- 
mals, Soc.  for 503 

Prevention  of  Cruelty  to  Chil- 
dren, Soc.  for  515 

Rembrandt  Club,  The 1309 

Robin's  Island  Club 1339 

Sangerbund,  The  Brooklyn. . .  1312 

Seawanhaka  Boat  Club 1340 

Sketch  Club.  The 1140 

St.  Nicholas  Soc.  of  Nassau  I'd  1311 

St.  Patrick's  Soc.  of  B'klyn. . .  1311 

Students'  Guild,  The 1309 

Tupper  Literary  Soc 1300 

Turn  Vereins  von  B.  (E.  D.). .  1340 

Twiliglit  Club,  The 1309 

Union  for  Cliristian  Work. . . .  1101 

Union  Club,  The 1308 

Varuna  Boat  Club 1340 

Washington  Gun  Club 1338 

Weber  Quartette,  The 1313 

Williamsbgh.  Athletic  Club. .  1340 

Yacht  Club  ...  1339 

Windsor  Club,  The 1308 

W(  man's  Club,  The 1310 

Young  Men's  Christian  Assoc.  526 

B 

Baby  Carriages 1373 

Banking  and  Insurance 619-633 

Bakers.    (See  Dealers). 

Banks. 

Atlantic  State 020 

Banking  and  Insurance 619 

Banks  of  Deposit 619 

Bank  of  Wiiliamsliurgh,  The,  630 

Brooklyn  Bank  513 

Guar,  and  T.  Co. . . .  511 

Savings  Bank 630 

Trust  Co 627 

Bushwick  Savings 625 

Central 509 

City,  of  Williamsburgh 303 

Commercial 624 

Dime  Savings 626 

of  W'msbujgh..  623 

East  Brooklyn  Savings 624 

East  N.  Y.  Savings 318 

Farmers'  &  Citizens,  of  L.I.,  303,  633 

First  National 626 

Fulton,  of  Brooklyn 624 

Gerraania  Savings 623 

German  Savings 623 

Greenpoint  Savings 034 

Guar,  and  T.  Co.,  The  B'klyn,  511 

Home  Trust  of  Vol.  of  B'klyn,  439 

Kings  Co.  Savings 632 

Long  Island  Savings. . .  .513,  019,  037 

Manufacturers',  of  N.  Y 022 

Mechanics' 488,  510,  (i25 

Mechanics',  of  Williamsburgh.  303 

Nat.  of  W'msb'gh.  308 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Banks.  PAGE 

Mechanics'  Savings 510 

Mechanics' and  Traders' 626 

Nassau  National 632 

National,  City 621 

Savings  Banks 619 

South  B"klyu  Savings 621 

Sprague  National 520,  637 

Trust  Co.,  The  B'khTi 510,  619 

AVilliamsbuvgh  Savings 621 

Bank 680 

Bar,  The  Present  Kings  Co 1269 

Base  Ball  Clubs.    (See  Assoc''7is). 

Batlis.  (See  Coney  Island) 1361,  1393 

Bay  Ridge.    (See  New  Utrecht). 

Bench  and  Bar  of  B'klyn 1214-1299 

Kings  Co  ...338-369 

Beneficent  and   Social    Organiza- 
tions, History  of 1346 

Beneficent  and  Social  Oegani- 
ZATiONS,  History  of 1346,  1357 

Biograpliies,  Legal 346,  1375 

BlOORAPHIES    and    BIOGRAPHICAL 

Notices. 

Abbott,  Benj.  V 1242 

Abraliam,  Mr 1363 

Adams,  Col.  Julius  W 1335 

Adams.  Rev.  Thomas 1058 

Ager,  Rev.  J.  C 1090 

Albani 1135 

Ambrose,  Daniel,  M.D 658 

Ammann,  Rev.  J.  J 1057 

Ammerman,  Albert 510a 

Anderson,  John  D 838-839 

Andersen,  Rev.  Rasmus 1085 

Angell,  Robert  H 1179 

Armor,  Dr.  S.  G 893 

Arnold,  Rev.  Anthony 1057 

Aspmwall,  Rev.  J.  A 1013 

Aten,  Dr.  Henry  F 930 

Ayers,  Dr.  Daniel 893 

Baird,  Andrew  D 805 

Bacchus,  Rev,  John  G 1013 

Backus,  Prof.  Truman  J 953 

Baker,  Rev.  Chas.  R 1005 

Dr.  Geo.  W 920 

Dr.  Jennie  Van  H 920 

Dr.  Richard  C  930 

Baldwin,  Rev.  J.  A 1074 

Barberin,  Dr.  John  J 417 

Barker,  Dr.  John 907 

Israel  A 1099 

Barnard,  Daniel  P 1243 

Barnes,  Gen.  A.  C 878-880 

A.  S 740 

Hon.  Demas 1173 

Barney  Nathan 835a,  836a,  837a 

Barnhart,  Rev.  J.  W 1043 

Barnitz,  Rev.  M.  C.  R 1044 

Bartlett,  Dr.  Homer  L 896 

Bartow,  Edgar  John 1003 

Bass,  Rev.  J.  G 1038 

Bates,  Rev.  E.  0 1042 

Bauer,  Paul 198 

Bayles,  Dr.  Havens  B 930 

Bayliss,  Rev.  Samuel 1098 

Beard,  Sylvester  M 803 

William 639 

BedeU,  Chester 855-856 

Beecher,  Rev.  H.  W.  .1019, 1020, 1316 

Beekman,  Abraham  J 626 

Dr.  Gerardus 414 

Behman.  Louis  C 1165 

Behrends,  Rev.  A.  J.  F 1034 

Behringer,  Rev.  Geo.  F 1085 

Bell,  Dr.  A.  N 893 

Benedict,  Rev.  B.  G 1074 

Bengless,  Rev.  J.  D 1083 

Bennett,  Dr.  Chas.  L 920 

Ruloff  R 1389 

en,  Jacob  1 1250 

JohnH 1348 

Hon.  Tennis  G 367,  516 

Tunis  G 1386 


Biographies.  page 

Bergen,  Van  Brunt 590 

Beyer,  Rev.  J.  P 1086 

Bigelow,  Rev.  J.  P' 1083 

Binns,  James 820-831 

Birch,  Geo.  L 1170 

Birdsall,  Dr.  S.  T •     916 

Birdseye,  Lucien  E 1281 

Bishop,  Mrs.  Anna 1138 

Black.  Albert 940 

Blackford,  Eugene  G 966 

Blakeman,  Rev.  W.  C 1044 

Bliss,  Neziah 513 

Boerum,  Henry 390 

Bonnel,  Dr.  Chas.  L 920 

Booth,  Samuel 500 

Bossert,  Louis 1383 

Bowdish,  Rev.  W.  W 1034 

Bowne,  Samuel 439 

Rodman 439 

Boyle,  Fred.  T.  Lee 1147 

Boynton,  Eben  M 825-828 

]Mrs 1394 

Braham,  Mr 1127 

Brandt,  Geo.  W 841 

Brasher,  Hon.  Philip 1215 

Breed,  Rev.  Joseph  B 1082 

Brevoort,  J.  C 1320 

Brick,  Joseph  K 807 

Bridge,  Col.  Chas.  E 753 

Martin  K 942 

Rev.  W.  J 1074 

Britton,  Winchester 1280 

Broach,  John 304 

Bromley,  Rev.  Henry. .     ....  1082 

Brougli,  Wm.  Francis 1127 

Brown,  Geo.  W 839-840 

Wm.  K 940 

Wm.  M 1149,  1168 

Brush,  Conklin 153 

Bryant,  Dr.  Joel 907 

Budington,  Rev.W.  L,  515, 1022, 1033 

Bulklev,  Edwin 880 

Bunker,  Dr.  E.  S 903 

Bunn,  Rev.  Albert  C 1006 

Burch,  Robert  A 1189 

Burnett,  Edwin  H 856-857 

S.  0 1380 

Burrell,  F.  A.  M 781 

Burroughs,  Claude 1121 

H.  F 835 

Burrows,  Jr..  Chester  D 864 

Burt,  Rev.  Wm 1044 

Byers,  Joseph  J 1375 

Byrne,  Dr.  John 934 

Cabbie,  The  Bros 695 

Edward 695 

Elijah 696 

Callen,  Rev.  J.  H 1074 

Camp,  Rev.  Stephen  H 1087 

Campbell,  Dr.  Alice  B 920 

Hon.  Felix 41.5a 

Rev.  L  B 1013 

Joseph  W 842 

Canfield,  Rev.  A.  J 1088 

Carlisle,  W.  S 1366 

Carpeuter,  John  0 1 390 

Carroll,  Rev.  M 1056 

Carter,  Rev .  Frederick  B 1007 

Catlin,  Isaac  S 1254 

Chad  wick.  Rev.  J.  W 1087 

Chamberlain,  Dr.  L.  T 1070 

Chanfrau,  Mr 1110 

Chapin,  Dr.  Edward 920 

Chapman,  Isaac  F  661 

Rev.  E.  M 1089 

Chappell,  Alonzo 1146 

Christian,  H.  S 835 

Chauncev,  Daniel 519,  625 

Claghorn,  Chas 960,  961 

Clark,  James  B 1351 

Kate  Upson 1315 

Clement,  Nathaniel  H 1336 

Clussman,  Dr.  Samuel  A 417 


Biographies.  page 

Coffin,  Timothy 300 

Coger,  Geo.  .W 1381 

Collingwood,  Francis 460 

ColHns,  Geo.  J 537 

Conroy,  Dr.  Wm.  E 930 

Conselyea,  Hon.  Wm 290 

Cook,  Rev.  J.  B 1090 

Cookman,  Rev.  John  B 1041 

Cooper,  George  A 941 

Nicholas 861 

Corner,  Rev.  C.  P 1042 

Copeland,  Edward 153 

Cort,  Dr.  Lottie  A 931 

Cocks,  John  D 518 

Crandall,  Jesse  A 1372 

Creamer,  Wm.  G 693 

Creed,  Dr.  Wm.  D 417 

Crefield,  Dr.  Richard 1168 

Crittenden,  Alonzo 519 

Crooke,  Gen.  Philip  S 358 

Crowe,  Rev.  S.  J 1073 

Cullen,  Edgar  M 1353 

Cuyler,  Rev.  Theo.  L 1067 

Daegener.  Rev.  H 1086 

Daggett,  Hon.  Albei-t 1334 

Dailey,  Abraham  H 1244 

Dakm,  Maj.-Gen.  Thos.  S..514,  1306 

Dana,  Francis  E 1397 

Darling,  Dr.  Orlando  G 931 

Darlington,  Rev.  James  H. . . .  1010 

Davenport,  Julius 863 

Dawson,  Rodman  B 1349 

Dean,  James 1365 

De  Bevoise,  John 138 

Robert 138 

De  La  Vergne,  Dr.  E 931 

Dehnar,  John 370 

Dennis,  Charles 660 

Deverell,  Thos  R 1377 

DeWitt,  Wm.  C 1244 

Dick,  William 673 

Dikeman,  Hon.  John 359,  515 

Diller,  Rev.  Jacob  W 1001 

Dixon,  Rev.  Wm.  T 1083 

Doherty ,  John 848-849 

Doughty,  John 114 

Douglass,  Maj.  David  B 1334 

Rev.  F.  A 1083 

Dower,  Dr.  Andrew  J 931 

Driggs,  Edmund 513a 

Du  Bois,  Dr.  Francis  H 418,  888 

Dr.  J.  E 888 

Ithamar 792 

Rev.  Dr.  Anson 64 

Dudlev,  Dr.  W.  H 933 

Du  Flbn,  John  F.  L 135 

Duryea,  Harmanus  B 1333 

Samuel  B 1233 

Duryee.  Jacob 537 

Eadie,  James  C  . . .   860 

Eaton,  Asahel  K 1328 

Eddy,  Geo.  M 794-795 

Edwin,  Mr 1127 

Elliott,  Charles  B 371 

Dr.  Joseph  B 921 

Blwell,  James  W 6.56 

Engeman,  Wm.  A 204 

Enos,  Dr.  De  Witt  C 889 

Entwistle,  Mrs 1108 

Eschmann,  Rev.  John 1090 

Eulner,  Rev.  L 1074 

Everet  Family,  the 123 

Richard ..  134 

Thomas,  Sr 133 

Thomas,  Jr 134 

William.... 124 

Farley,  Rev.  F.  A 1087 

Farmer,  Aaron  D 883 

Feltman,  Charles 199 

Field,  Thos.  W 1331 

Fingleton  Bros 733 

Finklemeier,  Louis 1387 

Firth,  Dr.  Henry  S. 931 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


139V 


Biographies — Continued.  page 

Firth,  Dr.  Lambson  B 921 

Fiske,  Dr.  Wm.  M.  L 909-910 

Fisher,  Francis  B.,  Justice 519 

Geo.  H 1249 

Fleet  Family,  the 133 

Samuel 133 

Ford,  Dr.  Nathaniel 931 

Foord,  John 1179 

Foote,  Rev.  L.  R 1069 

Forrester,  G.  B 757 

Fowler,  Dr.  Geo.  R 903 

Fraim,  Dr.  Geo.  W 946 

Freel,  Edward 843 

Freeman,  Rev.  Barnardus. . .  .  335 

Frey,  Rev.  A.  E 1085 

Frost,  John  S 843-844 

Fulton,  Rev.  J.  D  1079 

Furman,  William 108 

Gabriel 349 

Gaegan,  Rev.  Chas.  F 1060 

Gallagher,  Bernard 838 

Garside,  Dr.  W.  B 931 

Garrison,  John 115 

Gaylor,  Wm.  H 580 

Gessler,  Rev.  T.  A.  K 1077 

Giberson,  Dr.  Chas.  H 890 

Gilbert,  Hon.  Jasper  W 1375 

Rev.  Lyman 1(174 

Gilfillan,  Dr.  George.. .  .514,  888,  889 

Gill,  Robinson 804 

Gillette,  Dr.  Fidelio  B 931 

Gillmore,  Gen.  Q.  A 1307 

Gleason,  Rev.  Anson 1037 

Gleavy,  Dr.  John  J 931 

Good,  John 733 

Goodi-ich,  Dr.  Chas.  S  889 

W.  W 1349 

Gorton,  Dr.  David  A 914-915 

Grav,  Dr.  Landon  C 934 

Green,  Dr.  Frank  B 414 

Greenwood,  Hon.  John 1213 

Griggs,  Dr.  Stephen  C 921 

Griswold,  Dr.  Chas.  E 931 

Groves.  Samuel 302 

Gunnison,  Rev.  Almon 1088 

Guttenberg,  Fred 1371 

Hainer,  Rev.  E.  A 1(190 

Hall,  Rev.  Chas.  H 1003 

George 146-147 

Rev.  Geo.  A 1044 

Halliday,  Rev.  S.  B 1031 

Hallam,  Dr.  Albert  C 921 

Hanford,  Dr.  Wm.  H  931 

Dr.  Samuel  C 931 

Hardy,  John  J 1394 

Harkness,  William 1379 

Harreys,  Chas.  W 949 

Harrison,  Col.  Andrew 1345 

Gabriel.... 1151 

John 1369 

Hart,  William 1145 

Hasbrouck,  Dr.  Everitt 931 

Haskins,  Rev.  S.  M 1007-10(i9 

Hatton,  Rev.  M.  J 1058 

Hausleen,  Rev.  C 1086 

Haviland,  A.  and  S 1370 

Hayes,  Catherine 1138 

Haynes,  Rev.  E.  J 1078 

Hazzard,  William  H 591 

Heenev,  Cornelius 990 

Hehr,  Rev.  J.  G 1074 

Heischmann,  Rev.  J.  J 1084 

Herr,  Frederick 847-848 

Herries,  William 1188 

Hester,  Col.  William 1187 

Hewlett.  Mr 1107 

Hicks,  Jacob 130 

Hinklev,  Miss 1133 

Hirsh,  "Hugo 1350 

Hobbs,  Edward  H 1285 

Hoffmann,  Rev.  J.  P 1056 

Hogan.  Timothv 666 

Holmes,  David  S 1192 


Biographies.  page 

Holton,  F.  H 774 

Hopkins,  Dr.  Geo.  G 893 

Hopper,  J.  M 1389 

Horslield,  Israel 123 

Timothy 123 

Howell,  Hon.  James 513 

Hubbard,  Rev.  W.  C 1004 

Dr.  Fred.  H 931 

Hughes.  Rev.  D.  C 1083 

Hulbert,  Henry  C 881-883 

Hull,  Dr.  A.  C  906 

Hulst,  Rev.  Geo.  D 996 

Humphreys,  A.  W 51oa,  1393 

Humphries,  Rev.  E 1044 

Humpstone,  Rev.  John 1081 

Hunt,  Dr.  J.  G.  T 418 

Hunter,  Hon.  John  W 511 

Hutchins,  Dr.  Alex 896 

Hutchison,  Dr.  Joseph  C 894 

Dr.  N.  G 890 

Hyde,  Dr.  Joel  W 924 

IngersoU,  Rev.  Edward  P.. 995,  1036 

Rev.  Wm.  H 1037 

Irvine,  Wm.  &  Co 1367 

Isaacs,  Dr.  Chas.  E 8«9 

Jackson,  Samuel 127 

Jacobi,  Dr.  August 933 

James,  Hon.  Darwin  R 416a 

Jan  de  Swede 373 

Jenks,  Grenville  T 350,  509 

Jennings,  A.  G 808-809 

EphraimJ 768 

Jensen,  Thomas  M 1150 

Jewett,  Dr.  Chas 893 

Johns,  Rev.  John 1043 

Johnson,  Jesse 1251 

Jeremiah,  Gen 147 

Jr 1099 

Hon.  Samuel  E 509 

Johnston  Bros 1368 

Wm 1367 

Jones,  Rev.  Robt.  W 1038 

S.  B 1303 

Joralemon,  Tunis 133 

Jordan,  F.  B 1373 

Kalbfleisch,  Hon.  Martin 504 

Keegan,  Very  Rev.  William . .  1046 

Keep,  Dr.  John  Lester 909 

Kelley,  Rev.  Wm.  V 1034 

Kellogg,  Clara  Louise 1133 

Kelsay,  Rev.  R.  B 1080 

Ketcham,  Eaoch 702 

Isaac  A 828a 

Kiely ,  Rev.  J.  M 1057 

Kiernan,  Hon.  John  J 418a 

Kilner,  Thos 1107 

Kimberly,  Gideon 137 

King,  Michael 1192 

Kingsley,  Hon.  William  C.  .461-463a 

Kinsella,  Hon.  Thomas 1185 

Kirk,  Thos 1169 

Kissam,  Brewster 1296 

Knapp,  Rev.  H.  W     1082 

Kramer,  Rev.  Geo.  R 1090 

Lachner,  John  A 1383 

Lahey,  Thos.  M 940 

Laimbeer,  Richard  H 653 

Lambert,  Hon.  Edward  A 154 

Lander.  Benjamin 1V>0 

Lansing,  Rev.  John  A 998 

Lauer,  Richard 940 

Lawson.  Rev.  A.  G 1078 

Lazell.  Lewis  T 885-886 

Leary ,  James  D 798 

Lee,  John 840-841 

Lefferts,  Hon.  John 1299 

Leigh,  C.  C 1378 

Lincoln,  Geo.  Burt 866 

Littlejohn,  Rt.  Rev.  A.  N 1013 

Livingston,  Walter  L 1389 

Lockitt,  Charles 1371 

George 1B67 

LK)eser,  Frederick 514,  1104,  1363 


Biographies.  page 

Loomis,  John  S 736 

Loring,  Rev.  Henry  H 1012 

Lott,  Hon.  John  A 352,  514 

Loughlin,  Rev.  John 1059 

Loveridge,  Clinton 1168 

Low,  Abiel  A 646 

Seth 513a,  520 

Seth,  Hon 516 

Lowe,  Rev.  Peter 336 

Lowrey,  Charles  J 355 

Lublin,  Isaac 1249 

Ludlow,  Rev.  James  M 1067 

Ludlam,  Silas 1325 

Lung,  Dr.  Jesse  B 922 

Lynch,  Benj.  T 850-851 

Lyon,  Hon.  Wm.  H 874-876 

McCabe,  Daniel. 849 

Rev.  E.  J 1056 

McChesney,  James 662 

McCue,  Alex 1234-1235 

McCullagh,  Rev.  A 1069 

McDonald,  W.  H 1377 

Mcllvaine,  Chas.  H 1192 

McKane,  John  Y 209 

McKeon,  John  S 1388 

McKinney,  Dr.  Susan  S 922 

Rev.  W.  G 1012 

McLean,  Andrew 1188 

McLeer,  Col.  Jas 514,  867-869 

McNamara,  Rev.  J.  V 1060 

Rev  P.  J 1055 

McNamee,  Rev.  J.  F 1060 

McNulty,  Geo.  W 460 

Macdowell,  Rev.  W.  J 1073 

Mairs,  Wm.  H 737 

Malone,  Dr.  Edward 922 

Rev.  Sylvester 1050 

Mann,  Dr.  C.  S 904a 

Dr.  Edward  C 903a 

Markham,  Charles  C 1149 

Marlow,  Wm. ,  Jr 1380 

Marston,  Wm.  H 1383-1385 

Martin,  C.  C 460 

Rev.  Wm.  M 1074 

Marvin,  C.  A 949 

Rev.  Dan,  Jr 1012 

Mason,  Rev.  Alfred  De  W. . . .  998 

Matthews,  Azel  D 1098 

Mathewsou,  Dr.  Arthur.  . .  .893,  904a 

Maujer,  Daniel 518 

May',  Rev.  Michael 1054 

Maynard,  Rev.  Newland 1010 

Meeker,  Samuel   M 302,  1249 

Melmoth,  Mrs.  Charlotte 131 

Merwin,  Rev.  J.  B 1033 

Meserole  Fam.  of  Bush.,  The,  371,373 

Gen.  J.  V 1336 

Meyenborg,  Henry  A 1249 

Meyer,  Julius  E 1333 

Millard,  A.  OrvUle 1297 

Miller,  Benj.  C 855 

Dr.  Francis 823 

Fam.  of  Bush.,  The....  272 

James  E 941 

Mrs.  Olive  Thorne 1315 

Rev.  D.  H 1081 

Samuel  B 970 

Minton.  Dr.  Henry 922 

Mitchell,  Dr.  C.  L 932 

Moffat,  Dr.  John  L 923 

Montressor,  Sig.  Charles 1127 

Moody,  Leonard 859 

M'  ore,  Henrv  A 1252 

Moort,  Rev.  Paulus 1013 

Morehouse,  Rev.  H.  L 1082 

Morrill,  Dr.  H.  E 907 

Morris,  Hon.  Samuel  D 1336 

JohnR 1098 

S.  D 1336 

Morse,  Nathan  B 1251 

Rev.  F.  R 1078 

Mortensen,  Rev.  Andreas.  . . .  1086 

Morton,  John. 836 


1398 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Biographies— Coreimt/«d.  page 

Moser,  Joseph 116 

Mudge,  Charles  C 520,  1098 

Murdock,  Henry  S 1121 

James  E 1111 

Murphy,  Hon.  Henry  C,  149, 360, 518 

Murtha,  Hon.  W.  H 562 

Navarro,  Rafael 1393 

Neilson.  Hon.  Joseph 1216 

Nelson,  Rev.  Thomas  A 1071 

Ne^vman,  J.  W 1389 

Nichols,  Squire 117 

John  A 1297 

Nicot,  Louis  E 940 

Noble,  Rev.  Franklin 1027 

Norris,  Dr.  Thomas  P 899 

North,  Dr.  Nelson  L  922 

Northall,  Dr.  Wm.  K 1111 

Northcote,  James 1 150 

Oakey,  Hon.  John 1299 

O'Beirne,  Rev.  James 1054 

O'Brien,  J 1363 

P.  F 842-843 

O'Donohue,  Joseph  J 663 

Olcott,  Dr.  Cornelius 897 

O'Reillv,  Rev.  T.  S 10.58 

O'Rourke,  John  H 846-847 

Ormiston,  Dr.  Robert 922 

Orr,  Alexander  E 648 

Osborne,  Dr.  Samuel 408 

Ostrander,  Dr.  Ferd.  W 904 

Owen,  Dr.  Edward  W 922 

Packer,  Wm.  S 952-953 

Paine,  W.  H 469 

Palmer,  Dr.  Warren  B 992 

NoyesG 1327 

Parker,  John  A 1148 

Parmentier,  Andre 135 

Paiodi 1129 

Parsons,  Rev.  B 1074 

Samuel  L 1099 

Pardee,  Dr.  Ward  C 922 

Partridge,  Rev.  Alfred  H...520,  1009 

Col.  J.  N 577 

Patchin,  Jacob 114 

Patterson,  Rev.  Charles  J 1250 

Peace,  Harvey  W 700 

Pearce,  Hosea  0 745 

Henrj'  0 746 

Pearsall,  G.  Frank  E 1167 

Thos.  E 1253 

Peed,  Charles  N 1360 

Peck,  Rev.  J.  O 1037 

Dr.  E.  F 40a 

Peloubet,  Seymour  S 1255 

Pendleton,  Dr.  Edward 922 

Pentecost,  Rev.  Geo.  F.  1028 

Perry,  A.  J 1293a 

JohnC 1238 

Joseph  A 606 

Rev.  R.  L 1082 

Timothy 1290 

Peters,  Bernard 1177 

Phelps,  E.D 1391 

PhUlips,  Dr.  Geo.  S 940 

Rev.  W.  L 1036 

Piercy,  Henry  R 1099 

Pierrepont,  Hezekiah  B 129 

Henry  E 443 

Pierson,  Wm.  M 1099 

Pike,  Col.  Nicholas 1327 

Pilcher,  Dr.  Lewis  S 893 

Pinto,  Gen.  Francis  E 653 

Polhemus,  H.  D 632 

Porter,  Rev.  Elbert  S 994,  995 

Rev.   James 1044 

Powell,  Samuel  S 485,  514 

Powers,  George,  Sr 134 

Praa,  Capt.  Peter 274 

Pratt,  Hon.  Calvin  E 1: 

Preston,  Dr.  H.  G 1392 

Wm.  Irvine 829 

Prout,  Dr.  Jonathan  S 893,  922 

Pryor,  Roger  A 1245 


Biographies.  page 

Pullman,  Rev.  Joseph 1036 

Purdv,  Wm.  S 1389 

Pyne",  Louisa 1129 

Randolph,  Dr.  Wm.  H 922 

Rapal je,  Williamson 319 

Rapelye,  Jacob 859 

Rappelyea,  Jeremiali  J 886 

Rappold,  Dr.  Julius  C 922 

Raymond,  Dr.  Joseph  H 923 

Reed,  Rev.  Geo.  C 1038 

Reeve,  Rev.  B.  F 1032 

Reid,  Rev.  Wm 1079 

Reynolds,  Chas.  H 1385 

Geo.  G 1235-1236 

Rev.  Joseph 1012 

Rhode8,Rev.  C 1081 

Richardson,  Lemuel 399 

Leonard 713 

Riddle,  Miss 1108 

Ridgway,  James  W 1254 

Ridley,  Edward 210 

Riplev,  Henrv  E ...  392 

Ritchie,  A.  H 1149 

Rivers,  Charles  H 961-962 

Robbins,  Amos 1103 

Eli 1102 

Daniel  C 884 

Roberts,  Mr 1107 


Rev.  C.  G 1083 

Robinson,  Jeremiah  P 637 

Mr 1106 

Robinson,  Hon.  William  E. .  .  1190 

Rockwell,  Dr.  Frank  W 923 

Hon.  William 354 

J.S 780 

Rodell,  Rev.  Albert 1086 

Rodwell,  James 841 

Roebling,  Jolm  A 458,  506 

Col.  Washington  A.,  458 

Roehr,  Col.  Henry  E 1175 

Rolfe,  John  P 1250 

Rome,  Andrew  H 1192 

John  844 

Rosa,  Parepa 1135 

Ross,  Dr.  John  H 923 

Rothschild,  J 1388 

Rowe,  Geo.  H 1191 

Rueger,  JuUus 1168 

Runcie,  JohnT 608 

Ruslmiore,  Dr.  J.  D 904a 

Russell,  Henry 1127 

Rutan,  Thomas  B 843 

Sabin,  Joseph 1323 

Sackett,  Grenville  A 1313 

Samuel 116 

Sackman,  H.  E 1376 

Sands,  Comfort 119 

Joshua 120 

Sangster,  Margaret  E 1316 

Saxtan,  Daniel  Y 688 

Schade,  Henry 1372 

Schenck,  Isaac  C 324 

James  1344 

Rev.  Noah  H 1000 

Schieren,  Charles  A  781 

Schroeder  Frederick  A 512 

Schoonmaker,  Rev.  M 336 

Schurig,  Charles .'J20 

Scott,  John 942 

J.  R 1110 

Rufus  L 1291 

Scudder,  Rev.  Henry  M 1024 

Searle,  Dr.  Wm.  S 923 

Seguin.  Mr.  and  Mrs 1127 

Seitz,  Nicholas  and  Michael. .  772 

Seelig,  M.  J 816-817 

Selleck,  Rev.  A.  F 1044 

Selyns,  Rev.  Henry 330-331 

Shannon,  Richard 1365 

Shearman.  Thos.  G 1239 

Sheehy,  Rev.  D.  J 10."i8 

Sheldon,  Henry 514a 

Sheppard,  Warren  W  1168 


Biographies.  page 

Sidebotham,  Thos.  B 1191 

Silliman,  Augustus  E 1331 

B.  D.,  1229, 1230,  1231,1232 

"  Simmons,  Dr.  Daniel 923 

Rev.  1 1044 

Sizer,  Nelson 1330-1331 

Skene,  Dr.  Alex.  J.  C 892 

Skinner,  David  S 948,  949 

Dr.  Salmon 947,  1392 

Smith,  Andrew  A 1098 

Cyi-us  P 149,  355 

Dr.  D.  D 907 

Edward 789 

Samuel 152 

Thos.  C 765 

Dr.  Thos.  L 904 

Snedeker.  Elbert 838 

Snively.  Rev.  Wm.  A 1003 

Snowden,  Rev.  Robt.  B 1012 

Somers  Brothers,  The 702 

Sontag 1128 

Soper,  Abram  D 301 

Speir,  Dr.  Samuel  Fleet 894 

Robert 832a 

Spencer,  Dr.  Wm.  E 923 

Spiller,  Mr 1107 

Spicer,  Elihu,  Jr 663 

Spooner  Family,  The 1 169 

Col.  Alden 1169 

Alden  J 356,516 

Sprague,  Joseph 149 

WmiamE 579 

Stearns,  John  M 279,  292,  1295 

Stegman,  Lewis  R 369 

Stevens,  Rev.  C.  Ellis 1011 

Stevenson,  Stephen 1367 

Stevhens,  Dr.  Anna 923 

St.  Clair,  Dr.  R.  Wallace 923 

St.  John,  Rev.  0 1074 

Stiles,  Dr.  Henry  R 1318 

Dr.  R.  Cresson 889 

Dr.  S.  Edward 923 

StUlwell,  Wm.  H 212 

Stine,  J.  R 781 

StockweU,  Rev.  A.  P 156,  998 

Storer,  Samuel  L 970 

Storrs,  Charles 1158 

Rev.  Richard  S. . .  .1016-1017 

Stranahan.  Hon.  J.  S.  T 598 

Stringham,  Admiral  S.  H 512 

Strong,  Rev.  R.  G 998 

Stryker,  Francis  B  150 

Burdett  109 

Stuart,  Dr.  Francis  H 923 

Sullivan,  Dr.  John  D 923 

Sumner,  Dr.  A.  E 518,  912 

Wm.  0 861 

Suydam.  Hon.  Adrian  M 291 

Swalm,  Dr.  Wm.  F 923 

Swertcope,  John  V 117 

Swift,  Gen.  Joseph  G 1324 

Syme,  Rev.  David 1074 

Taafe,  Rev.  James 1054 

Talmadge,  Thomas  G 150 

Talmage,  Dr.  John  F 916 

Dr.  Samuel 923 

Rev.  T.  De Witt.  .1062-1063 

Tanner,  James 521 

Tate,  Augustus  C  877 

Taylor,  Rev.  C.  W 1074 

James  A .       686 

John  A  1247 

Rev.  Jere.  B 1082 

WilUam 685 

William  R 679 

Templeton,  Mr 1127 

Terhune,  Dr.  Jas.  J 923 

TeiTy,  Edmund 1292 

Teves,  Fred.  E 1386 

Thallon,  Dr.  Wm   M 923 

Thomas,  Rev.  J.  B 1075 

Robert 849-850 

Wm.  M 581 


(GENERAL   INDEX. 


\U9 


Biographies — Continued.  page 

Thompson,  Hon.  George 1287 

Jonathan 134 

Thorburn,  James 13fi3 

Thorpe,  Henry 1 192 

Thwing,  Rev.  Edward  P 1027 

Tibbals,  Rev.  Chas.  A 1004 

Ticknor,  Dr.  Martin  A 923 

Toedteberg,  Augustus 132^ 

Tracy,  Gen.  Benj.  F.,  1232, 1223, 1224, 
1225,  1226,  1237 

Traneurs,  Dr.  Ludwig 1892 

Trask,  Alaijson 78o 

Tredwell,  Daniel  M 1322,  1332 

Trotter,  Jonathan. ...    147 

Troy,  James 1250 

Turner,  Dr.  Joseph  M  924 

John  S     817 

Rev.  Chas,  Wm 1006 

Tuthill,  Dr.  James  Y 924 

Tuttle,  Ezra  B .305,  1385 

Sylvester 305,  1385 

Ubert,  J.  C 940 

Valentine,  Dr.  John  F 924 

Van  Anden,  Isaac 1183 

Van  Boerum,  Willem  220 

Van  Buren,  Robert 594, 1335 

Van  Der  Beeck,  Dr.  Paulus. . .       414 

Vanderbilt,  Hon.  John 1299 

Vanderveer,  Dr.  Adrian 887-888 

Charles  B 323 

Dr.  John  R 924 

Mrs.  Wm  201 

Stephen  Lott 330 

Van  De  Water,  Rev.  Geo 1001 

Van  Nuyse,  Aucke  Jansen. .  . .       222 

VanZandt,  Mrs 1133 

Ventres,  T.  B  1192 

Vining,  Harrison  S 651 

Voorhees,  John  A 1342 

Wackerhagen,  Dr.  Geo 901 

Wade,  Dr.  Jas.  D 924 

Wagner,  Rev.  Jolm  M 998 

Walcott,  Mr 1109 

Wallace,  James  P 506-509 

T.  E 1388 

Wall,  Charles  720 

Hon.  Wm 719 

Michael  W 720 

Walsh,  Rev.  E.  H 1060 

Walstein,  Mr.  and  Mrs 1 108 

Waring,  Henry 137 

Henry  P 1293 

N.  F 1352,  1293 

Hon.  Wm.  H 1293 

Watson,  Gaylord 1191 

Weaver,  James 846 

Webster,  E.  G.  &  Brother 707 

M 1375 

Wochsler,  Mr 1363 

Samuel 1363 

Herman 1363 

Weedon,  W.  J 1192 

Weeks,  Dr.  Joshua  R 924 

Weidmann,  Paul 787 

Weir,  James,  Jr 1364 

Wells,  Rev.  J.  D 1065 

John 346 

Lindsay  J 857 

Wemmel,  Dr.  A.  A 924 

Wendell,  Dr.  Mathew 887 

Wendt,  Louis  A 1191 

West,  Benj.  W 968 

Charles  E 1320 

CM 1363 

Rev.  Jacob  998 

Westbrook,  Dr.  Benj.  F 924 

Wheedon,  Dr.  Thos.  J 934 

Wight,  Dr.  Jar  vis  S 893,  924 

Wilkes,  Daniel  W 1386 

Williams,  John 625 

Rev.  Samuel 1082 

Winslow,  John 1227-1228 

Wintner,  Rev.  L 1089 


Biographies.  page 

Wischmann,  H 801-802 

Woehr,  Jolm,  Jr 1192 

Wood,  Col.  Alfred  M 491 

Wood,  Geo 941 

Geo.  M 347 

Rev.  Chas 1066 

Thos.  W 1386 

Woodhull,  Gen 32 

Jacob 1109 

Woodruff,  Albert 1093 

Frauklm 643 

Rev.  Robert 1043 

Woods,  Rev.  John  T 1056 

AVorn,  Martin 731 

Wright,  Dr.  Albert  914 

Wurster,  Rev.  Fred 1043 

Wyckoff,  Van  Brunt 940 

Dr.  R.  M 904a 

Wyman,  Luther  B 1134 

Young,  Augustus 1160 

Zabriskie,  Dr.  J.  B 888 

Zimmermann,  Rev.  J.  C 1083 

B'nai  B'rith,  Order  of 1357 

Book-binders 1376 

Boots  and  Shoes 1375 

Booksellers,  etc.  (See  Dealers.) 

Brewers 1390 

Brooklyn. 

And  L.  I.  Fair,  1863 493 

Annals  of  Village  of ,  1817-34,  139 

As  a  Village 103 

^     Battle  of 53 

Bennet  and  Bentyn  Purchase,  83 

Charter  of,  1863  489 

Charter  of,  1873,  The  City. ...  510 

City  Charter 397 

Cholera  in,  1866  501 

Church  of,  Second 332 

City  Court  of 546 

City  of.  The  First,  1834-'54  ...  145 
Consolidated  History 

OF  THE 484,  530 

Civil  Hist.  Dur.  Dch.  Regime,  88 

Under  Dk.  of  Yrk..  89 
Civil  List  of  Officers  of  Town 

and  ViUage  of  B.,  1671-1883  423a 

Commerce  of  633 

Commerce,  Gov't  Inspect'u  of,  645 
Consolidation  of  the  City  of, 

with  Williamsburgh 533 

Court  of  Special  Sessions.     .  .  547 

Dongan  Oak 597 

Draft  Riots,  The,  1863 490 

During  the  British  Occupation, 

1776-1783 94 

Early  Dutch  Patents 81 

Inhabitants  of 68 

Settlements  of.  1646....  81 

Village  Constabulary. .  557 
Earlier      Sanitary     Provision 

Priorto  1854 563 

Elec.  Light  First  Introduced 


Enlarg'm't  of  Vil.  Dist.,  1795,  570 

Fire  Insurance  Companies. .. .  638 

Fire  District  Created,  1801   . .  104 

First  City  of,  1834-1854 145 

Fortifications  in,  1812 61 

From  the  Close  of  the  Revolu- 
tion to  the  War  of  1812  ... .  101 
From  its  Incorp.  as  a  Village,  105 

Growth  of,  in  1868 505 

Guy's  Snow  Scene,  1820.  .    ...  113 

HaifWay  House,  E.N. Y.,  The.  505 

Heights 126 

History  of  First  City  of.  . .  145-155 

Town  OF 80-105 

Village  of 139-145 

Improvement  Co 643 

Mayors  of  City  of 1390 

Middagh    House    and    Barn, 

Viewof Ill 

Military  Execution  at,  A 100 


Brooklyn.  page 
Military  Punishm'ts  at,  during 

British  Occupation 101 

Motto  of  City  of 1391 

Municipal  History  of 538-564a 

Of  To-Day,  1883 522-527 

Officials  of,  List  of 1394 

Olympia  Described 102-104 

Police  Courts  and  Other  Jus- 
tices   547 

Population  (1884) 1391 

Presidents  and  Trustees  of  the 

VUlage,  1816-1834 434a 

Seventy-seven  Years  Ago 103 

"Single  Head"  Commissioners 
appointed  over  the  Dept.  of 

Fire  and  Building,  1880 577 

Snow  Scene  in,  1820 113 

Stocks  and  Whipping  Post. . .  229 

Town  of,  Hist,  of 80 

Town  Pound 229 

Under  the  English 90 

Village,  The 107 

Village  of,  The,  1817-'34,  An- 
nals of 139 

Water  Front,  Warehouse  and 

Dry  Dock  Co ...  659 

Yellow   Fever  District,   1822, 

Map  of 141 

Bushwick. 

Arbitration  Rock 288 

Boerum  House,  The 286 

Church,  Old 337 

Civil  History,  1660-1708 275 

De  Voe  Houses,  The 284 

During  the  British  Occupat'n,  280 

Early  Settlers  and  Patents 270 

Ecclesiastical  History 278 

Fi-om  Close  of  Revol.  to  1854..  282 

Greenijoint 274 

Since   the  Revolu- 
tion;   286 

Het  Dorp,  Map  of 282 

History  of  Town  of 270-291 

Manout,  Bond wyn,  Auto.  of..  276 

Old  Graveyard 283 

Old  Mills 285 

Old  Miller  House,  The 272 

Revolutionary  History 279 

Butchers.     (See  Dealers.) 


Canals  and  Docks. 

Anglo-American  Dry  Docks . .  641 

Atlantic  Docks 636 

Brooklyn  Basin,  The 637,  642 

Erie  Basin,  The 637,  640-641 

Erie  Basin  Dry  Dock 502 

Gowanus  Bay  and  Canal 643 

Gowanus  Canal  Improvem't. .  503 

Internal  Imp.  of  the  State. ...  16 

Newtown  Creek  and  Canals. .  644 

Wallabout  Basin  and  Canal  . .  644 

Wallabout  Canal  Improvem't,  504 

Carpets.    (See  Dealers.) 

Cath.  Benev.  Legion,  The 1356 

Knights  of  America 1357 

Cemeteries. 

Battle  Hill,  Green-Wood 603 

Cemeteries  of  B'klyn,  The 602 

Cemeterj-  of  the  Holy  Cross. .  609 

Citizens'  Union  Cemetery. . . .  608 

Cypress  Hills 607 

• '  Evergreens, "  The  608 

Friends',  The 609 

Green- Wood 602-607 

Cem.  Ass'n 520 

Northern  Entrance  to  Gi-een- 

Wood(eng.) 602 

Union 609 

Washington 609 

Charitable   Instit'ns   in   Kings 
County 974-992 

China  and  Glass.  (See  Dealers.) 


1400 


HISTORY  Ot  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Churches.    (See  also  Histories  of  page 
tJie  Several  County  Towns). 
Baptist. 

Calvary 1080 

Central 1076,1081 

Clinton  Ave 1078 

Concord 1081 

East  Brooklyn 1076 

Emmanuel 1081 

First 1074,  1081 

(E.  D.) 1083 

German 1080 

Swedish 1083 

Greenpoint          ••  1081 

Greenwood 1078 

Hanson  Place  1078 

Harrison  Ave 1083 

Herkimer  St 1079 

Marcy  Ave 1080 

Pierrepont  St 1074 

Sands  St.  Mission 1079 

Second 1074 

Sixth  Ave 1080 

Strong  Place 1077 

South 1076 

Tabernacle 1078 

Trinity ll»80 

Washington  Ave 1077 

Willougliby  Ave  1076 

Congregational. 

Bedford 1023 

Central ...1024,  1028 

Church  of  the  Covenant 1026 

Church  of  the  Pilgrims 1015 

Clinton  Ave 1022 

East 1028 

Elm  Place 1 023 

Fifth  Ave -026 

First 1020 

First,  Brownsville 1028 

First  Identity 1028 

Free 1018 

Grand  Ave.  Cliapel 1022 

Independent,  the 1015 

Lee  Ave 1027 

Lewis  Ave 1027 

Mayflower  Mission 1033 

Mt."  Prospect  Mission  (S.  S. ) . . .  1022 

Navy  St.  Mission 1015 

Nazarene 1027 

N.  Y.  and  B'klyn  Ass'n 1029 

NewEnghmd 1026 

Plymouth 1018 

Plymouth  Bethel 1021 

Puritan 1024 

Rochester  Ave 1024 

Scandinavian  Free  Mission. . .  1028 

StateSt 1033 

South 1023 

Tompkins  Ave 1027 

Union 1023,1028 

Union  Mission  Chapel 1028 

Warren  St.  Mission 1015,  1032 

Dutch  Reformed. 

Bedford  Ave 994 

Bethany  Cliapel 997 

Centennial  Church,  First 998 

East 997 

First  Ch.  of  B 993-994 

Fourth 995 

German 996 

Ger.  Evang.  St.  Peter's  Ch. . . .  998 

Greenpoint 995 

Lee  Ave 997 

Middle 995 

North 996 

Second,  or  Central 994 

So.  Bushwick 996 

Third,  or  South 995 

Washington  Ave 995 

Protestant  Episcopal. 

All  Saints  1006 

Atonement 1006,  1014 


Churches  {Prot.  Episcopal).  page 

Calvary,  Free 1001 

Calvary  (E.  D.) 1010 

Chapel  Ch.  Char.  Foundation,  1007 

Christ 1000,  1009 

Emmanuel 1001,1005 

Episcopal  Churches 999 

Good  Shepherd 1007 

Grace  Ch.  Chap.  (St.  Michael),  1004 

Grace 1003,  1011 

Holy  Trinity 1003 

Mediator 1007 

Messiah 1005 

Our  Saviour 1006 

Redeemer 1005 

Reconciliation    1014 

Redemption 1004 

Reformation 1004,  1006 

St.  Andrew's  1006 

St.  Ann's  (Old) 131,  515 

St.  Barnabas'  Chapel  (E.  D.). .  1011 

St.  George's 1007 

St.  James' 1006,  1010 

St.  John's  (E.  D.) 1011 

St.  John's  1000 

St.  John's  (S.  S.) 1097 

St.  Luke's 1001 

St.  Mark's 1004 

St.  Mary's 1001 

St.  Matthews' 1006 

St.  Paul's  (Old) 515 

St.  Raid's 1004 

St.  Paul's  (E.  D.) 1010 

St.  Paul's,  Free 1000 

St.  Peter's 1004 

St.  Stephen's 1007 

St.  Thomas' 1001 

Trinity 1000 

The  Ascension 1011 

Friends  {Quakers). 

Meeting  House 1014 

Lutheran  (The  Evangel,  and). 

Emmanuel 1085 

German  Evangel 1083 

Evang.  Mission.  Hop- 
kins St 1085 

Grace  Eng.  Evangel 1085 

Harrison   Ave.  Church   of   E. 

Assoc,  N.  A   1085 

Norwegian  Seaman's 1084 

Our  Saviour's  (Danish) 1084 

St.  Johannes' 1083 

St.  John's 1083 

St.  Luke's  (German) 1084 

St.  Mark's 1085 

St.  Matthew's  (Eng.) 108:!,  1084 

St.  Peter's  (German) 1084 

St.  Paul's 1084 

Zion  (German) 1083 

Methodist  Episcopal. 

Methodism  in  Brooklyn 1039 

First 1030 

African  (Wesley an) 1031 

Bethel,  African 1033 

Brooklyn  (Prim.) 1043 

Carlton  Ave 1032 

Carroll  Park 1042 

Cedar  St 1042 

Central 1041 

DeKalbAve 1032 

Elders,    Presiding,    in   B'kljn 

and  L.  I.  Dist 1044 

First  (Greenpoint)  1034 

First  German 1037 

First  (Prot.) 1043 

First  Place  (Free) 1043 

First  Place 1034 

Fleet  St 1034 

Fleet  St.  Bethel 1038 

Forty-Fourth  St 1042 

Fourth  Meth.  Prot 1043 

Grace 1041 


Churches  {Meth.  Episcopal).  page 

Grand  St 1038 

Greene  Ave 1043 

Hanson  Place 1037 

Janes 1037 

Johnson  St 1033 

Leonard  St 1041 

Mt.  Zion  African  Prot 1033 

Mariners'.    .    1042 

New  York  Ave 1037 

North  Fifth  St 1033 

Nostrand  Ave 1038 

Norwegian  Bethel  Mission. . . .  1043 

Orchard  (Prim.) 1043 

Pacific  St  1033 

Park  Ave.  (Prim.) 1043 

Preachers  in  L.  I.  Circuit 1044 

St.  John's 1034 

St.  Paul's  1036 

Sands  St 1029 

Sheepshead  Bay 183,  1043 

South  Third  St 1037 

Summerfield 1036 

Summerfield  Mission 1037 

Swedish 1043 

Unionville 182 

Warren  St 1036 

Washington  St 1031 

Williamsburgh 1041 

Willoughby  Ave 1038 

York  St 1031 

Zion 1042 

Zion's  Chapel 1043 

York  St.  (S.  S.) 1097 

Presbyterian. 

Chapel,  City  Park 1060 

Christie  St 1069 

Classon  Ave 1069 

Clinton  St 1064 

Cumberland  St.  Chapel 1067 

First 1060,  1064,  1069 

United 1073 

Fifth 1064 

Ft.  Greene 1073 

Fom-th 1064 

Free 1064 

Genevan 1067 

German  Evangelical  1066 

Greene  Ave 1073 

John  Knox 1067 

Lafayette  Ave 1067 

Lawrence  St 1066 

Memorial 1070 

Noble  St 1073 

Ross  St  1069 

Second 1061 

Siloam 1065 

Sixth 1064 

South  Brooklyn 1065 

South  Third  St 1064 

Tabernacle 1061 

Third 1061 

Throop  Ave  1069 

Wallabout 1065 

Westminster 1067 

Reformed  Presbyterian. 

First 1073 

Second  (United) 1073 

Free  Presbyterian. 

First 1073 

Roman  Catholic. 

All  Saints' 1056 

Annunciation,  B.  V.  M 1056 

Assumption,  B.  V.  M 1046 

Holy  Name 10.55 

Holy  Family  (Ger.) 1058 

Immaculate  Conception 1055 

Our  Lady  of  Mercy 1055 

Our  Lady  of  Victory  1057 

Nativity 1057 

Sacred  Heart 1057 

St.  Agnes' 1058 


&EisrERAL   INDEX. 


1401 


Churches  (iJ.  C.) — Continued.  page 

St.  Alphonsus'  (Ger.)  1057 

St.  Ambrose's 1058 

St.  Anne's 1056 

St.  Anthony's 1055 

St.  Augustine's 1057 

St.  Bernard's 1057 

St.  Benedict's 1055 

St.  Boniface's 1055 

St.  Bridget's 1058 

St.  Cecelia's 10.57 

St.  Francis  de  Sales' 1056 

St.  Francis'  1055 

St.  James' 1045 

St.   John's 10.54,  1058 

St.  John  the  Baptist 1056 

St.  Joseph's 1054 

St.  Leonard's 1057 

St.  Louis' 1057 

St.  Mary's  Star  of  the  Sea 1055 

St.  Mary's  Parochial  School..  10.55 

St.  Michael's 10.58 

St.  Nicholas' 10.56 

St.  Patrick's 1054,  10.58 

St.  Paul's 1046 

St.  Peter's 1055 

St.  Peter's  and  St.  Paul's 1050 

St.  Stephen's 10.56 

St.  Theresa's 1058 

St.  Vincent's 1057 

St.  Vincent  de  Paul's 1056 

Transfiguration 10.57 

Visitation,  B.  V.  M 1055 

Reformed  Catholic. 

Ref .  Catholic  Churches 1060 

Jewish. 

Temple  Israel 1089 

Beth  Elohim 1089 

Ahavis  Achim 1089 

Unitarian. 
First    Congreg.    (Ch.    of     the 

Saviour) 1086 

Second 1087 

Third  Union 1087 

Universalist. 

First.. 1086 

Church  of  Our  Father 1088 

All  Souls' 1088 

Miscellaneous. 

Chr.  Ch.  of  the  Evangel 1089 

First  Moravian 1090 

Life  and  Advent 1090 

Union  Cliapel 1090 

German  Evangelical  Mission.  1072 

Navy  Mission,  The 1097 

German  Church  of  the  Holy 

Trinity 1054 

Church  of  Blessed  Hope 1090 

Society  of  the  New  Jerusalem 

(Svi'edenborgian) 1090 

Spiritualistic  Circles 1391 

City  Officials 1393 

City  of  B.  ,  History  of  the  Con- 
solidated   484-520 

Clarendon  House,  The 1359 

CUnton  House,  The 1359 

Clubs.     (See  Associations.) 

Athletic 316,1340 

Bicycling 1340 

Boat....   1340 

Sporting 1336 

Yachting 316,  1339 

Coal  and  Wood.    {See  Dealers.) 

Colonial  Legislation 372,  373,  374 

Commerce  of  Bklyn..  The 634-667 

Commissioners    of    Charity   of 

Kings  County 493a-510a 

Coney  Island. 

Bauer,  Paul 19« 

Discovery  of  loJ 

Divisions  of 1^1 


Coney  Island.  page 

Feltraan,  Charles 199 

Map  of,  1666 190 

Modern  Development  of 194 

Piracy 192 

Ocean  Pavilion 199 

Roads 192 

Seaside  Home  for  Children . . .  197 

Sanitarium 197 

Settlement 189 

Topography  of 189 

Town's  Commonage  Leases. .  .  193 

Tragedy  of  Brig  Vineyard... .  192 

West  Brighton  Hotel 198 

Confectioners.     (See  Dealers.) 
Conservatories.    (See  Florists.) 
Consolidated   City  of  B.,  The 

Hist,  of 484-520 

Contractors  and  Builders 1383 

Convention  of  17.54,  The 373 

Costumer 1388 

County  Officials 1392 

D 

Dealers  —  Dry  Goods 1363 

Bakers 1871 

Books,  etc 1376 

Boots  and  Shoes 1375 

Butchers 1370 

China  and  Glassware 1377 

Coal  and  Wood 1383 

Confectioners 1371 

Druggists  940 

Fish 1370 

Furniture 1372 

Gents'  Furnishing 1388 

Grocers 1366 

Hardware 1380 

Hats 1376 

Jewelers 1387 

Lumber. 1382 

Meat 1370 

Milk 1371 

MUlinery 1388 

Music 1377 

Pianos 1377 

Stationers. 1376 

Tailors,  Merchant 1387 

Teas,  Coffees,  etc 1366 

Dental. 

B'kljn  Dental  Assoc,  The 944 

Brooklyn  Dental  Society,  The  944 
Brooklyn    Society    of   Dental 

Science 944 

Dental  Infirmary 509 

Dentists'  Materials 816 

Kings  Co.  Dental  Soc 945 

L.    I.   Association    of   Dental 

Surgeons 943 

Mechanical  Dentistry ...  816 

New  York  Dental  Soc. ,  The ...  944 

Pioneers  of  Dentistry  in  K.  Co.  941 

Profession  of  Dentistry 941 

Services  of  B'klyn  Dentists  in 

the  Civil  War 943 

Dentistry  in  Br'klyn,  The  Pro- 
fession of 941-949 

Dentists 1386 

Drama  and  Opera  in  B'klyn,  1105-1135 
Dramatic. 

Academy  of  Music 486,  1112 

Amaranth,  The 1163 

Amaryllis 1164 

Amateur  Opera  Association. .  1164 

Amateurs,  Since  Professionals,  1165 

Amphitheatre,  The  1108 

Amphion,  The 1164 

Arcadian,  The          1164 

Athenaium,  The  Brooklyn 1112 

Brooklyn  Lvceum,  The 1302 

Theatre 510,  1117 

Burning  of  the 513 

Bulwer,  The 1416 

Colonnade  Garden,  The  1109 


Dramatic.  page 

Drama,  The,  in  Brooklyn 1105 

Dramatic  Amateur  Ass'n 1163 

Entre  Nous,  The 1162 

First  Dramatic    Performance 

in  Brooklyn  1106 

Grand  Opera  House 1135 

Haveiiy's 1123 

Hooley's  Opera  House 1115,  1124 

Kemble,  The 1163 

Mozart  Gardens 518 

■     Music  Hall,  The 1124 

Music  and  Opera,  Progress  of, 

in  Brooklyn 1126 

Museum,  The  Brooklyn 1110 

Music  in  Public  Schools 1161 

Novelty,  The 1125 

Olympic,  The 1125 

Otiier  Dramatic  Societies 1163 

Park,  The 1116 

Prospect  Heights,  The 1164 

Standard,  The 1124 

Volks,  The  1124 

Druids,  United  Order  of 1355 

Druggists.     (See  Dealers.) 

Dry  Goods.     (See  Dealers.) 

E 

Eastern    Star,    Lodges    of.      (See 

Masons.) 
East  New  York.     (See  New  Lots 

Hist.) 
Ecclesiastical. 

B'klyn  Objects  to  Ch.  Taxes. .  328 
B'klyn  Petitions  for  a  Separate 

Minister 329 

Ch.  Erected  at  Brooklyn 832 

Erected  at  Flatlands 330 

Church  Masters 337 

Ecclesiastical  History    of 

Kings  Co.,  163.8-1800 327-337 

First  Ch.  on  L.  1.  at  Flatbush.  327 
First  Ministers  of  New  Nether- 
lands    327 

Ecclesiastical  Organizations  op 

B'KLYN 993-1090 

Education,  Higher,  in  Bklyn.  .950-962 

Public,  Dep't  of 609 

Educational.    (See  Histories  of  the 
Several  County  Towns). 

Adelphi  Academy,  The 954 

Board  of  Education,  B'klyn. .  485 

Members  of 615,  618 

Officers  of 184,  618 

Organization  of,  1835. . .  614 
Brooklyn.   (See  Board  of  Ed.). 
Asylums  and  Industrial 
Schools,  under  charge 
of  Board  of  Educat'n,  618 
Attendance  and  Princi- 
pals   618 

Colored  and  Principals..  618 

Evening  Schools 617 

Free  Sch'1-Book  System  617 
First  School  Teacher  in,  409 
Grammar    and     Princi- 
pals    618 

Grammar  Schools 618 

Primary  and  Principals,  618 

Primary  Schools 613,  618 

Sources  of   Income   for 
the  Support  of  Public 

Schools  in 616 

Statistics  of 616 

Scholarships  in  Colleges,  615 

Teachers 617 

Bklyn   Collegiate   and   Poly- 
technic Institute 953 

B'klyn  Conservatory  of  Music.  958 
B'klyn  Froebel  Kindergarten, 

The 958 

B'klyn  Heights  Sem 9.53 

B'klyn  Juvenile  High  School.  953 


1402 


kiS2  OR  Y  OF  KINGS  CO  UNTT. 


Educational — Continued.  page 

Browne's  Business  College. . . .  958 
Brvant  and  Stratton  Business 

College,  The 959 

Columbia     Conservatory     of 

Music ,958 

Dawn  of  a  Higher  Education, 

The 410,  950 

Dept.  of  Public  Education. .. .  609 
Early  Educational  Advantages 

and  Methods 411 

Earlv  Private  Schools 413,  950 

Education  in   Kings   Co.,   1659- 

1883,  History  of  409-413 

Education  in  Kings  Count}'  . .  48 

Greene  Collegiate  Inst 957 

Industrial  School  for  Destitute 

Children 518 

Kissick's  Business  College. .. .  959 

Lock  wood's  Academy 955 

MoUenhauer's  Coll.  of  Music. .  958 

Private  and  Endowed  Schools  525 

Packer's  Collegiate  Inst 951 

School  for  Destitute  Children, 

Industrial 518 

Schools    During   the    Eevolu- 

tionarj-  War 410 

Schools  After 411 

Schools  in  the  State  ef  N.  Y. .  16 
Schools  of  the  Town  of  Bush- 
wick   and   Vdlage    of   Wil- 

liamsburgh 611 

St.  John's  College 955 

Wright's  Business  College  and 

Eclectic  Academy 959 

Elks,  Benev.  Order  of 1355 

Ephemeris  of  Materia  Sledica 1190 

Epidemics. 

Epidemics  which  have  visited 

Kings  county.  The 891 

Map  of  Yellow  Fever  district.  141 

YeUow  Fever 485,  487,  504 

Errata 1394 

F 

Federal  Building,  The 865a-868a 

Ferries. 

Ancient  Ferry  Rights 436 

Atlantic  St.  or  South 439 

Annex.". 446,  513 

Bridge  St 444 

Brooklyn   Ferries  and   Ferry 

Rights 435-446 

B'klvn,  Hist  of 435-446 

Catharine  St 102,  438 

Contest  as  to  Ferry  Rights 437 

Dangers    and    Difficulties    of 

Ferry  Travel  in  Olden  Time,  431 

Division  St 445 

Earliest  Ferry  to  B'klyn 425 

Erie  Annex 446 

Ferrv   District  of    Village  in 

1816,  Map  of 109 

Ferry  Houses  443 

First  Ferry-Master  (eng.) 446 

Fulton,  Collision  on 505 

Grand  St.  (E.  D.) 445 

Greenpoint 803,  446 

Gouvemeur  St 442 

Hamilton  Ave.,  View  of 441 

Houston  St 445 

Kings  Co.,  Tabular  List  of . . ..  446 

Map  of  Old  Ferry  Dist.,  1816..  109 

Navy  Yard 444 

N.  Y.  &  B'klyn  Steamboat  As- 
sociates. The 434 

Old  Grand  St.,  View  of 445 

Peck  Slip 446 

Renewed    Agitation    of     the 

Ferry  Question,  1821 435 

Roosevelt  St 442 

Steam  Introduced  on  the  Ferry 

Lines 433 

South 439 


Ferries.  page 

Steamboats  on  the  B.  Ferry. .  483 
Team,  or  Horse-Boats  on  the 

B.  Ferrv 433 

TheB.  U."F.  Co 436 

The  New 438 

The  N.  Y.  and  B.  F.  Co 436 

Union  Ferry  Co. .  .437,  509,  516,  525 

Wall  St.  View  of 441 

Fire  Dejiartuient. 

B'klyn  Vol.  Fire  Department., 

Personnel  of,  1869 576 

Board  of  Fire  Com 486 

B'klyn's  First  Fire  Eng. ,  (eng.)  568 
Chief     Engineer,     Office     of. 

Created,  1816 571 

City  Fire  Dep't,  1855    573 

Corn's  of  Fire  Dep't.,  1869. . . .  576 
Exempt   Firemen's   Assoc,    of 

the  City  of  B'klyn 583 

Fire    and   Buildings,    Depart- 
ment of 568,582 

Fire  Dep't.  Board  of  Estimates  504 

Fire  of  1848,  Great 151 

Fire  Commissioners,  Board  of  486 

File  Department 568,  525 

Fire  Department  of  Brooklyn.  485 

Fire  Dep't.  Statistics '  578 

Fire  Dept.,  The  Volunteers.. .  .  506 

First  Fire  Dept,  1788 569 

Fire  Dept.,  Eastern  District.. .  574 

Fire  Wardens  Appointed,  1817.  571 

Fire  Wardens  and  Marshals...  580 
Firemen's  Mon.  in  Greenwood 

Cemetery,  eng 578 

First  H'k.  and  L.  Co.,  1817.. . .  571 
First    Fire   Co.    of    Brooklyn, 

1785 568 

First  Village  Fire  Bell,  1795  . .  570 

Hose  Companies 573a 

Map  of  Fire  of  1848 151 

Single  Head  Commission.  1880  577 
Village   Fire  Dep't.,  1823,  In- 
corporation of  the 573 

Widows'  and  Orphans'  Fund..  583 

W'burgh  Fire  Dep't.  inc.  1843.  575 
Fish.     (See  Dealers.) 

Culture  on  L.  1 963-970 

Flatbush. 

Annexation  Question 337 

Beginnings  of  Settlement.   . . .  213 

Board  of  Health 241 

Board  of  Improvement 236 

Boundary  Disiiute  with  New- 
town    316 

British  Occupation  of.  The. . .  237 

Cemetery  of  the  Holy  Cross. .  248 

Changes  in  the  Village 230 

Church  in  the  Woods,  The. ...  245 

Commutation  of  Quit  Rents. .  218 

Congregational  Church 245 

Distinguished  Citizens 225 

Dongan  Charter  of 216 

Diu'ing  the  Revolution 225 

Educational  History  of 249 

Erasmus  Hall  Academy 250 

Fire  Engine  Co 234 

First  Baptist  Church 248 

M.  E.  Church 244 

Houses 314 

Village  Newspaper 336 

Five  Dutch  Towns,  The 330 

Gas  Company  235 

History  of  Town  of  218-254 

Healthf ulness  of 241 

Historical  Trees 230 

Indian  Deed  of,  1670 314 

Justices  of  the  Peace 334 

Last  Court  held  at  Flatbush. .  .  345 

Law  and  Order  Association. . .  239 

Literary  Societies 354 

Local  Officers  Appointed 220 

Main  Road,  The 231 

Melrose  Hall 237 


Flatbush.  page 

Mission  School  245 

Modern  History  of.  The 230 

Musical  Associations 245 

Office  of  Overseers  cliaiiged  to 

Commissioners 323 

Old  Mills 227 

Old  Stage  Routes 231 

Organization  of  Local  Govern- 
ment and  Ports 219 

Original  Seat  of  Justice 323 

Overseers  of 221 

Parkville,  The  ViUage  of 332 

M.E.  Church 345 

Public  School 253 

R.  C.  Church 247 

Patentees  of.  Facsimiles  of  Au- 

tograplis  of 217 

Police  Corn's  Appointed 239 

Population 230 

R.  C.  Ch.  of  the  Holy  Cross. . .  246 

Sabbath  Schools  of 343 

Select  Schools 252 

Second  Reformed  German  Ch.  248 

.     Sidewalks  Regulated 231 

Sisters  of  St.  Joseph,  Tlie 247 

Sidew'ks  and  Cross'gs  Flagged  231 

Skirmishes  of 236 

Stocks  and  Whipping  Post.. . .  328 

Street  Cars  Introduced 331 

Streets  Laid  Out 233 

Social  and  Political  History. . .  218 

St.  John's  P.  E.  Ch '. . . .  343 

St.  Paul's  P.  E.  Ch.,  Hist.  of..  243 

Supervisors  Appointed 323 

Sunday  Laws 233 

Telegraph  Co    337 

Temperance  Societies 238 

The  Nicolls  Patent  of 214 

Town  Clerks 234 

Town  Hall 238 

Town  Pound 228 

Treasurers  of  the  Co.  from.. . .  235 

Waterworks 340 

Windsor  Terrace 333 

Windsor      Ten'ace      Sabbath 

School 346 

Windsor  Terrace  School 353 

Flatlands. 

Barren  Island 77 

Common  Schools  of 75-77 

German  Evan.  Ref.  Ch. . .    . ..  75 

M.  E.  Churchof 75 

Prot.  ivieth.  Church  of.   ......  75 

Reformed  Dutch  Church  of. . .  73 

Second  Ch.  at  Flatbush,  1698..  333 

Situation  of 64 

Sons  of  Temperance  in 77 

St.  Matthew's  Lutheran  Ch . . .  75 

Town  of.  History  of 64-79 

Florists 1304 

Foresters,  Anc.  Order  of 316,  1355 

Furniture.     (See  Dealers.) 

O 

Garfield  Budding,  The 648, 1300 

Gas  Corporations. 

Brooklyn  Gas  Light  Co 675 

Citizens'  Gas  Light  Co 676 

Fulton  Municipal  Gas  Light  Co  676 

Gas  Light  Companies 675 

Illuminating  Oils 675 

Metropolitan  Gas  Light  Co  . . .  676 

Nassau  Gas  Light  Co 676 

People's  Gas  Light  Co 676 

General  Trade  and   Merchan- 
dise  1363-1393 

Gents'  Furnishing.     (See  Dealers.) 
Good  Templars.  (See  Temperance.) 

Graham  Art  School,  The 1140 

Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  316,  1310 
1213 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


1403 


Gravesend  page 

Addenda 186-188 

Ancient  Plot  of,  1645 186 

A.  P.  StockweU's  House.    .   ..  118 

Assessors 169 

Avenue 171 

Bay  Ridge  Landing 203 

Brighton  Pier  at  C.  1 204 

Brighton  Beach  B.  P.  at  C.  I. .  205 

Cattle  and  Fences 165 

Cemeteries 183 

Chapels 181 

Church  History 177 

Coney  Island  Causeway 171 

Chapel A.  182 

Hist,  of 189-212 

Plank  Road 171 

County  Treasurer 1 69 

Court  of  Sessions 168 

Division  of  Lands 163 

First  Town  Patent 160 

General  History.  ...   185 

Geography  of 156 

Highways 170 

History  of,  ToWiN  of 156-188 

Hotel  Brighton  at  C.  1 205 

Houses  of  Olden  Time 166 

Household  Furniture 166 

Indian  Purchases 162 

Johnson  House 188 

Libraries 18iJ 

Magistrates' Pew  in  Church  ..  185 

Manhattan  Beach  at  C.  1 208 

Hotel,  C.  I.,  208 

Marine  R.  R.  at  C.  1 208 

Ministers 181 

Miscellaneous 177 

Name,  Origin  of    158 

Neck  Road.  The 171 

Observatory  at  C.  1 202 

Ocean  Ave 171 

Parkway 172 

Pier  at  C.  1 204 

Odd  Fellows'  Lodge  183 

Orders  and  Contracts,  Sundry,  166 

Oriental  Hotel  at  C.  I.         ...  208 

Parsonage 181 

Pioneer  Settlers 158 

Post  Offices 173 

Quit  Rent 168 

Race  Courses 186 

Revolutionary  Incidents 176 

Sea  Beach  Hotel  at  C.  1 208 

Settlement 156 

Schools,  Public 173 

Sheepshead  Bay 183 

Soil 156 

Stillwell  House 187 

Stryker  House 188 

Sunday  Laws 165 

Supervisors 185 

Temperance  Laws,  Early 165 

Topography 156 

Town  Clerks 185 

Court 166 

Hall 186 

of.  History  of 156 

Organization 164 

Dnionville 185 

Church.  M.  E 182 

Vanderveer's  Bathing  Pavjl'n,  201 

ViUages 183 

Water  Supply 186 

Grocers.     (See  Dealers.) 

B 

Hardware.     {See  Dealers.) 

Hatters.     (See  Dealers.) 

Hempstead  Conven.,  1665,  The.  .372,  373 

Heptasophs,  Order  of 316 

Home  Circle,  The 1354 

Honor,  Knights  of 316,  1353 

Knights  and  Ladies  of.. 316,  1353 

Legion  of,  The 1351 


Hospitals  and  Institutions.  page 

Bedford  Dispensary 1392 

B'klyn  City  Dispensary 936 

Central  Dispensary.  ..485,  937 

City  Hospital 485 

Diet  Dispensary 939 

Eye  and  Ear  Hospital..  935 

Nursery 913 

Women's  Horn.   Hosp. 

and  Disp 914 

Home  for  Cons'm't'ves,  935 

Horn.  Disp "  910 

Hosp 911 

Maternity 912 

Sanitarian    Hosp.   and 

Disp 939 

Bushwick  and  East  B.  Disp. . .  938 
Bushwick  Germ.  Mutual  Ind. 

Sick  Ben.  Society 1357 

County  Hosp. ,  Flatbush 467 

E.  D.  Dispensary 519,  937 

E.  D.  Horn.  Disp.  Ass'n 913 

Erin  Fraternal  Bene  v.  Ass. . . .  1358 

Garfield  Home  for  Cous'm't's,  518 

Gates  Ave.  Horn.  Disp 909 

German  Home  for  the  Aged . .  518 

Lutheran  IIosp 516 

Home  for  Destitute  Children..  489 

for  the  Aged  German. .  518 

Hosp.  and  Disp.,  E.  D 515 

The  Seney 516,  518 

Keith  Home 936 

Kings  Co.  Aims-House 477 

Inebriate  Home  . . .  503 

Lunatic  Asylum. . .  485a 

Lucretia  Mott  Dis.  and  Inf'y..  937 

L.  I.  Col.  Hosp 487,  509 

M.  E.  Hospital,  The 935 

N.  Y.  State  Training  School 

for  Nurses 913 

Old  Men's  Home 514 

R.  C.  Home  for  the  Aged 518 

Southern  Disp.  and  Hosp 938 

St.  Mary's  Hosp 515,  933 

St.  John's  Hosp 513,  935 

Superintendents  of  the  Poor, 

Hist,  of 463 

Hotel,  Clarendon,  The 1359 

Clinton,  The 1359 

Mansion  House,  The 1359 

Old  and  New 1358-1359 

Pierrepont  House,  The. . . .  1359 

Waldo  House,  The 1360 

Hotels  and  Baths 1358 

Hunt   Horticultural   and   Botanic 

Garden 485 

I 

Ice  Co.,  The  Ridgewood 1390 

Institutions.     (See  Histories  of  the 
Several  County  Towns). 

Baptist  Home,  The 512,  978 

Brothers  of  St.  Francis'  Mon- 
aster}', The 955 

B'klyn  Ass'n  for  Improving  the 

Condition  of  the  Poor 974 

B'klyn  Benevolent  Soc 977 

Bureau  of  Charities. ..  974 
B'klyn  Children's  Aid  Society, 

The  980 

B'klyn  Schools 957 

Bk'ljn   Howard    Colored    Or- 

Ijhan  Asj'lum 983 

B'klyn  Home  for  Aged   Men, 

The  974 

B'klyn  Nursery,  The 977 

Home  for  the  Aged. ..  512 

Orphan  Asylum 973 

Indian  Ass.,  The 988 

B'klyn  Soc.  for  the  Relief  of 
Respectable   Aged   Indigent 

Females 976 

Business  Women's  Union,  The  987 


Institutions.  page 

Children,  Home  for  Destitute,  489 

Children's  Aid  Society,  E.  D.,  303 

Ch.  Charity  Foundation 509 

Ch.   Charity    Foundation    of 

L.  I  ,  Tlie 978 

•Christian   Union  for  Chinese 

Work,  The 986 

Convent  of  the  Good  Shepherd  981 
Convent    of    the    Sisters    of 

Mercy 981 

Dispensary,  E.  D.,  Hos.  and. .  515 

Emerald  Association 992 

Evangelical     Home    for     the 

Aged 974 

Female  Employment  Soc 982 

First  Brooklyn  Woman's  Chr. 

Temperance  Union  980 

Flower  and  Fruit  Charity,  The  976 

Germau  Ladies' Association. .  992 

R.  C.  Orph.  Asylum..  992 

Good  Samaritan,  The 982 

Gr'npoint  Home  for  the  Aged, 

The 982 

Howard    Benev.    Soc.     (New 

Lots) 303 

Hebrew  Benevolent  Soc 984 

Orphan  Soc.  of  B 984 

Helping  Hand.  The 992 

Home  for  the  Aged 981 

Home  Association  for  Working 

Women  and  Children.  The.  983 
Home  for  Friendless  Women 

and  Children 976 

Home  for  Incurables 976 

Hospital   Sat.    &    Sun.    Ass., 

The 988 

Indus   School  Assoc.  &  Home 

for  Destitute  Children 984 

Industrial  School  &  Home  of 

Brooklyn,  E.  D  985 

Industrial      Restaurant     and 

Training  School 986 

Inebriates'  Home  for  K.  Co.,  562a,989 

Jewish  Societies 13.57 

Ladies'  Fruit  and  Flower  Mis- 
sion      511 

Lutheran   Home  Association, 

N.  Y.  City 318 

Mutual  Sick  Aid  Soc 316 

Orphan   Home  of  the  Ch.   of 

the  Holy  Ti-inity 986 

Prot.    Epis.    Mission     to    the 

Public  Institutions  988 

Relief  Work 992 

R.  C.  f)rphan  Asylum  Soc.  of 

the  City  of  Brooklyn 990 

Sailors'  Coflfee-House  Co.,  The  987 

Sheltering  Arms  Nursery,  The  983 
Society  for  the  Prevention  of 

Cruelty  to  Animals,  The ... .  987 
Society  for  the  Prevention  of 

Criielty  to  Children 987 

St.  Francis"  College 956 

St.  Joseph's  Inst,  for  the  Im- 
proved Instruction  of  Deaf 

Mutes 990 

St.   Joseph's  Female   Orphan 

Asylum 992 

St.  Leonard's  Academy 956 

St.  Michael's  Kranken  Unter- 

setzungs  Verein 316 

St.  Paul's  Industrial  School. . .  993 

St.  Phebe's  Mission 9H6 

St.  Vincent's  Home 992 

Truant  Home  of  the  City  of  B., 

The 562a,  990 

Visiting  Committee  of  State 

Charities  Aid  Ass.  for  the  K. 

Co.  Institutions  988 

Wayside  Home 989 

Wartburg  Home 317 

Williarashurgh  Benev.  Soc...  992 

Missionary  Soc 303 


HISTORY   OF  KINGS    COUNTY. 


Institutions. — Continued.  PAGE 
Woman's  Work  Exchange  & 

Decorative  Art  Soc.  of  B.  . .  987 

Y.  M.  Assoc,  Third  Pres.  Ch.,  303 

Zion  Relief  Association 988 

Woman's  Dispensary 937 

Pharmaceutical. 
B'klyn  Board  of    Pharmacy, 

The 940 

Homoeopathic  Pliarmacies 913 

Kings  Co.  Phar.  Society 940 

Pharmaceutical  Associations.  940 

Insurance  Companies. 

Atlantic 515 

B'klyn  City  Safe  Deposit  Co. .  633 

Brooklyn  Fire 628 

Brooklyn  Life 631 

Continental 630 

Fireman's  Trust .  630 

Fire 638 

Fulton,  of  W'msburgh 303 

Germania 631 

Home 631 

Life 631 

Ins.  and  Safe  Deposit  Co 629 

Kings  Co.  Fire 630 

Lafayette  Fire 639 

Life 631 

Long  Island 629 

Safe  Deposit  Co..  632 

Mechanics'  Fire 630 

Montauk  Fire 630 

Nassau  Fire 629 

Phenix 639 

Real  Estate  and  Insurance . . .  863 

Safe  Deposit  Co 633 

Williamsburgh  City  Fire  . . .  .303,629 

Iron  Merchants 1390 

J 

Jail,  County,  The 1361 

Jewelers.     (See  Dealers.) 

K 

Kings  County. 

Bench  and  Bar  op.  . .  .338-369,  1269 

Board  of  Charities 514 

Census,  1880 515 

Charities  Com 516 

County  Courts 343 

Comm'rs  of  Jurors 421a 

Charities 493a-510a 

Court-house 489,  535 

Court  of  Common  Pleas 343 

Ecclesiastical  Hist,  op 327-337 

First  Court  held  at  B'klvn  ...  316 

First  Circuit 345 

First  Court  of  Record 342 

Court  of  Oyer  and  Terminer. .  345 

Courts,  Town  and  Justices'.  . .  341 

Customs,  Domestic  and  Social  48 

Court  of  Sessions 343 

Supreme  Court 342 

District  Attorneys 356,  366 

District  Attorneys  under  Con- 

•       stitution  of  1846 367 

Dutch  Names,  Early 44 

Early  Courts  of  Kings  Co 340 

Education  in 409^13 

Epidemics  in 891 

First  Court-house  in 339 

Second  Court-house  and  Jail 

at  Flatbush 339 

Third  at  Flatbush,  1793 340 

First  Settlement  of 43 

Furniture  and  Houses  of  Dutch 

Times 46 

History  of 43-63 

1668-1833 338 

Indian  Purchasers 71 

Industries  in.  Primitive 48 

Interpreter  in  the  Courts  of. .  433a 
County  Judges  under  Consti- 
tution of  1846  .. , 366 


Kings  County.  PAGE 

Judges  of  the  Common  Pleas,      366 
Judicial    Officers    under    the 

Duke's  Laws 366 

Justice  of  the  Quorum 366 

Justices  under  Gov.  Andros.  .       366 

Legislative  Officers  from 372 

List  of  County  Officials 360 

Med.  Prof,  in,  1644-1833 414-418 

Med.  Soc 488 

Estab 418 

Under  Fed.  Gov.  and  Consti- 
tution of  State  N.  Y 393 

Penitentiary 476 

Poor  House  Estab 463 

Registrar 419a^50a 

Settlement  of 43 

bv  the  Dutch 65 

Single  Head  Bill 515 

Slavery  in 48 

Slaves  in,  1755 69 

Social  Conditions  of  Early  In- 
habitants          70 

S.  S.  Union 1097 

Superintend'ts  of  the  Poor. .  .463-493a 
Supei-visors,  1st  meeting  after 

Rev.,  1784 393 

Supervisors.  1st  meeting  after 

Incorp.  of  B'klyn 404 

Temp.  Court  Accbm..  1833-37,      340 

Travel  and  Transit  in 419 

Treasurers 418a 

Will,  The  First  Recorded  in. .     419a 

Knights,  Cath.  of  America 13.57 

of  Honor 316,  1353 

of  Pythias 316,  317,  1354 

and  Ladies  of  H 316-317 

13.53 
L, 
Law  and  Trials. 

(See  Bench  and  Bar  of  B'klyn.) 
Asa  P.  and  F.  W.  Robinson  vs. 

City  of  Brooklyn 1364 

Beecher-Tilton  Trial.  ..511,  512,  1316 

1330,  1222 

Case  of  Newspaper  Reporter. .     1264 

Coppin  vs.  Gatewood 1368 

Executors  of  P.  W.  Radcliff  vs. 

Mayor  and  C.  C.  of  B'klyn  .     1365 
Great    Ropewalk     Litigation 

with  the  City  of  B'klyn  ....     1366 
Henry  W.  Sage  vs.  City  of  B.     1304 

Hope  vs.  English 1363 

Municipal    Court    under    the 

First  Charter 530 

The  People  vs.  Rubenstein 1363 

Tilton-Beeoher  Trial. .  .511,  513,  1310 
1330,  1223 

Surrogates 368 

Sheriffs H68 

Legal  Biographies 1375 

Legion  of  Honor.  American 1351 

Catholic  Benev 1356 

Legislative  Officers    from  K. 

Co 872-377 

Libraries. 

Apprentices',  The 1301 

Brooklyn,  The 1301-1303 

Law,  The 1.303 

Institute,  The 1301 

City,  The 1303 

Eastern  District  Assoc 1304 

Garfield  Law,  The 1303 

Kings  Co.  Med.  Soc 890 

Long  Island  Historical  Soc.  50a,1304 
Mechanics'  Free  Read'g  Room     1304 

Mercantile 486,  506,  510 

Private 1309 

Literature  and  Science  in   B. 

1301-1332 

Literature  (See  Assocs.,  Socs.  and  Clubs.) 

Literature  and  Science  in  B. 

(See  Authors  and  Scientists.)    1301 

Livery  Stables 1389 


Long  Island.  page 

Agricultural  Capabilities  of . .  38 

Battle  of.  The 53 

British  Occupation  of  33 

Customs,  Primitive,  of 29 

Colonial  History  of 25 

Discovery  of  25 

Fish  Culture  on 963 

General  History  of 18-42 

Geology  of 18 

History., 40 

Indians  of 30 

Indian  History  of,  by  Alden  J. 

Spooner 30 

Indian  Owners  of 64 

Industries  of.  Early 29 

Institutions  of 89 

Kidd,  Capt. ,  on 29 

Library,  Mercantile 510 

Natural  History  of 18 

Primitive  Customs  of 39 

Revolutionary  History  of 31 

Smuggling  on 32 

Topography  of 18 

Lumber.    (See  Dealers.) 

M 

Mansion  House,  The 1359 

Manufactures. 

Manufacturing     Industries 

op  Brooklyn 668,824 

Agricultural  Tools 822 

Implements 704 

Arcliitects,  Builders,  and  Real 

Estate  Agents. . .  .839,  830,  831,  833 

Awnings 817 

Axles  and  Carriage  Springs. ..  800 

Baking  Powder  Manufacturers  754 

BoUers 679,  833 

Box  Manufacturers 823 

Boot  and  Slioe  Manufacturers,  783 

Braids,  Worsteds 823 

Brass  Founders 833 

Brass  Foundries,  etc 691 

Bread  and  Baking  Products. .  767 
Breweries  and  Distilleries....  770 
Brewers'    and    Distillers'   Ma- 
chinery   679 

Brooms,  Brushes 814 

Builders  and  Architects 853,  854 

Builders'  Hardware 704 

and  Masons'  Materials  834 

Camp  &  Sons'  Docks 641 

Carpenters  and  Masons 837 

Carriages    833 

Can-iages,  Cars 799 

Caulkimr  Irons 833 

Census  Returns,  Imperfection 

of  U.  S 668 

Cigars  etc.  (See  Tobacco). 

Clothing 788 

Coffee,  Spices  and  Teas 800 

Confectioners 770 

Cracker  Bakery 823 

Dealers  in  Builders'  Materials .  823 

Distilleries  and  Breweries. . .  .  770 

Doors,  Sash  and  Mouldings. . .  735 

Drugs  and  Chemicals 751 

Dyeing  and  Cleaning 813 

Eiectro-platers 708 

Engine  Makers 681 

Fancy  Metal  Goods 822 

Fertilizers  78,  756 

Fire  Brick  and  Tile 806 

Flouring  and  Feed  Mills 813 

Foundry  and  Machine  Shops..  677 

Furniture  Manufacture 729 

Galvanized  Iron 701 

Glass  Manufacture 759 

Glassworks 831 

Glue 756,758 

Hardware  and  House  F'sh'g. .  831 

Hats 743,  832 

Heating  Apparatus 823 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


Manufactiu'es — Continued.  page 

Housekeeping  Hardware 704 

Iron  Cans 833 

Iron  Railings,  Fences 833 

Iron-work 694 

Jewelry 776 

Jute  Manufacture 733 

Kindling  Wood 818 

Leather  Manufacture 778 

Locks 833 

Lumber 796 

Dealers 837 

Machinists 833 

Marble  and  Stone 803 

Marine  Railway  and  Shipyard  834 

Mats,  Matting,  and  Rugs 814 

Mechanics'  and  Traders'  Ex. .  1313 
Measuring  Tapes  and  Instru- 
ments of  Precision 793 

Meat  Slaughtering 677 

Minor  Machine  Shops 694 

Mineral  Paint 754 

Waters 754 

Miscellaneous     Manufactures 

and  Industries 819 

Musical  Instruments 810-813 

Nickel-plating    708 

Paint  Manufacturers 713 

Eaint  and   Varnish  Manufac- 
turers  709,  714 

Paper-making 727 

Paper -box  Manufacture 728 

Paper-hangings  Manufactories  734 

Patent  Medicines 753 

Petroleum  Refining 673 

Photography  in  Brooklyn 1166 

Photographic  Materials 816 

Plumbing  and  Gas  Fixtures. .  815 

Pottery 832-833 

Porcelain  Pottery 761 

Presses  and  Die  Manufactures  688 

Printers 1193 

Publishers 1191 

Publishers  and  Book  Manufac- 
turers   738 

Pump  Manufacturers 823 

Real  Est.  Dealers  and  Agents.  858 

Refrigerator  Manufacturers..  706 

Refrigerating  &  Ice  Machines.  818 

Roller  Skates. . .-. 832 

Ropes,  Cordage  and  Twine 716 

Rope-making  Machinery 733 

Roofing  Materials 813 

Rubber,  Elastic  Goods 774 

Sash,  Door,  and  Mouldings. ...  831 

Saws  and  Files 698,  833 

Silver-plating 707 

Silver-plated  Ware 821,  1373 

Silk  and  Lace  Goods 807 

Soap  Manufacture 810 

Stamped  and  Drawn  Wares. . .  701 

Stationers 1193 

Steam  Engine  Manufacturers.  678 

Steam  Fittings 832 

Steam  Pump  Makers 68 1 

Steam  Presses 822 

Steel  Manufacture 697 

Sugar  Refining 669 

Tin  and  Sheet  Iron  Wares  . . .  701 

Tobacco,  Manufacture  of.    ...  775 

Ti-ucks 799,  823 

Upholstery 733 

Wagons 799,  833 

Watches  and  Clocks 776-777 

Water  Meters 833 

White  Lead  Manufacture 709 

Window  Blinds  and  Shades. . .  785 

Wire 822 

Wire  Works 695-696 

Women's  Clothing 790 

Wood-working  Machinery. . . .  693 
Woolen  and  Cotton  Goods..  .807-810 
Manufacturing  Corporations. 

Abendroth  &  Root  Mfg.  Co. . .  681 


Manufacturing  Corporations.  page 

Agricultural  Machine  Works.       705 

Ansonia  Clock  Co 705 

Arcade  Mfg.  Co 79 

Artificial  Ice  Machine  Works.       635 
Atlantic  Steam  Engine  Co. . . .      678 

Sugar  House 672 

White  Lead  and  Lin- 
seed Oil  Co 713 

Atlas  Iron  Works 694 

Averill  Paint  Co 635,  713 

Bay  State  Shoe  Co 785 

Britton  Brewing  Co 773 

Brooklyn  City  Foundry 705 

Eagle  Bindery 743 

Felt  Hat  Co. .  .747,  748,  750 
Flint  Glass  Works..       760 

Furniture  Co 733 

Gas  Light  Co 675 

Mfg.  Co 703 

Pie  Baking  Co 770 

Refinery 560a,  675 

Roofing  Co 813 

Spring  Bed  Co 738 

Sugar  Refining  Co., 672,787 

Wn-e  Works 694,  734 

•Watch  Case  Co 776 

White  Lead  Co. . .  .712-714 
Wire  Cloth  Works..       697 

Budweiser  Brewing  Co 773 

Bush  &  Denslow  Mfg.  Co.   ...       675 
Cabbie   Excelsior   Wire   Mfg. 

Co 734 

Campbell  Mining  and  Reduc- 
ing Co 694 

Citizens' Gas  Light  Co 676 

Charles  Pratt  &  Co 674 

Chesebrough  Mfg.  Co 675 

Columbian  Iron  Works 684 

Cooper  Glue  Factory 757-758 

Davidson  Steam  Pump  Co 

Devoe  Mfg.  Co 673-674 

Eagle  Iron  Works 694 

Oil  Works 675 

Empire  Roofing  Works 813 

Refining  Co 673,675 

Eureka  Glass  Annealing  W'ks.      831 
Fi'ancis'    Metallic    Life    Boat 

Co 288 

Franklin  Oil  Works 67-" 

Fulton  Municipal  Gas  Co 675-676 

Sugar  Refinery 672 

Germania    Coffee    and    Spice 

Mdls 801 

Grain  Warehousing  Co 653 

Greenpoint  Bolt  Works 819 

Gas  Light  Co 288 

Glass  Works 760 

Oil  Works 675 

HalstedMfg.  Co 705 

Harding  Mfg.  Co 791 

Havemeyer  &  Elder 684 

Hudson  Oil  Works 675 

Island  City  Knitting  Mills 810 

Iron  Clad  "Can  Mfg.  Co 703,  823 

Keep  Mfg.  Co 791 

Kings  Co.  Oil  Works 675 

Livingston  Sugar  Refinery 673 

Locust  Hill  Oil  Factory 560a 

L.L  Brewing  Co 773 

Improved  Roofing  Co 813 

Saw  &  Planing  Mill  Co.,  738,  796 

Manchester  Gimp  Co 810 

Manhattan  Chemical  Co 754 

Compress  and  Pipe 

Factory 635 

Meriden  Britannia  Co 707 

Silver  Plate  Co 707 

Metallic  Upholstering  Co 738 

Metropolitan  Gas  Light  Co 676 

Mfg.  Co 738 

Pie  Bakery 770 

Middletown  Silver  Plate  Co  . .       707 
Monarch  Mfg.  Co 791 


Manufacturing  Corporations  page 

Nassau  Fire  Insurance  Co 626 

Gas  Light  Co 676 

National  Baking  Co 768 

Chemical  Works 754 

Chem.  Wood  Treat- 
ment Co 818 

Nelson's  Torpedo  Factory.   . . .  307 

N.  Y.  Book-binding  Co 743 

Kerosene  Gas  Light  Co .  675 
Patent    Steam     Carpet 

Beating  Co 818 

Roofing  Co 813 

Tartar  Co 635 

Wire  and  Wire  Rope  Co.  697 

Niagara  Steam  Pump  Works.  683 

North  American  Iron  Works..  694 

Open  Air  Carpet  Cleaning  Co.  813 

People's  Gas  Light  Co 676 

Pheuix  Chemical  Works 754 

Pioneer  Iron  Works 684 

Planet  Carpet  Mills 810 

Pond's  Extract  Co 560a,  754 

Puritan  Iron  Works 680 

Ridgewood  Distilling  Co 771 

Royal  Baking  Powder 635,  755 

Sherill-Ropes  Air  Engine  Co. .  678 

Singer  Sewing  Machine  Co. . .  693 

Standard  Oil  Co 673-675 

Sone  &  Fleming 675 

Steam  Heating  Co 671 

South  B'klyn  Saw  Mill  Co..  .738,  796 

Steam  Boiler  Works 679 

Steam  Engine  Co..  .678,  684,  693 

Sun  Mfg.  Co  791 

Tobacco  Inspection  Stores. . . .  635 
Union  Porcelain  Works,  705,  761,  763 

Print  Works 810 

Toy  Mfg.  Co 704 

AVhiteLeadCo 713 

Vesta  Oil  Works 675 

Vulcan  Saw  Works 705 

Waltham  Watch  Co 776 

Washington  Oil  Works 675 

Weyer  Annealing  Co 831 

White  Dental,  The  S.  S.,  Mfg. 

Co 816 

Williamsburgh  Brewery 772 

Manufacturing    Industries    of 

BKiYN.,  The 668-834 

Maps.    (See  List  of  Illustrations.) 

Markets,  Brooklyn 971 

Hamilton 509 

Public,  at  the  Wallabout.  530 

Masons,  F.  and  A 1346 

Chapters,  Royal  Arch 1348 

Commanderies  of  K.  T. . .  1348 

Eastern  Star  Lodges. .  .316,  1348 

Lodges  of 1346,  1348 

Scottish  Rite  Bodies 1348 

See,  also,  Hist.  New  Lots,  316 

Mayors  of  Brooklyn 1390 

Meat 1376 

Medical. 

Ambulance  Service,  The 567 

Biographies 894 

Hist,  of  the  Profession  of  the 

City  of  Brooklyn 887 

Hist,    of    the    Profession    of 

Kings  Co.,  1644-1823 414 

Homoeopathy  in  Kings  Co 905 

Kings  Co.  Med.  Soc 887 

Medical  Chemists 753 

Night  Medical  Service 567 

Pharmacies,  the  Homoeopathic  913 

Society,  Medical,  of  Kings  Co. ,  488 

Society,  The  Kings  Co.  Med., 

Library  and  Publications. . .  890 

Medical  Profession  of  B'klyn,  887-940 

Medical   Profession    in    Kings 

Co.,  Hist,  of  414r-418 

Military. 

Civil  Rebellion,  B's  Share  m. .  487 

French  War,  The 13 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


Military — Continued.  page 
Fortifications  in  B.,   War  of 

1812 61 

Grand  Army  of  Republic.  .1210-1213 

Great  Sanitary  Fair 503 

K.  Co.  in  the  Revolution 51 

in  the  War  of  1812 60 

Soldiers  in  War  of  1812  63 

L.  I.,  Battle  of 52 

Martyrs  of  the  Prison  Sliips. . .  56-60 

MiUtia  Companv  in,  1715 69 

National  Guard,"  N.  Y.  S 1193 

Annual  Muster 1203 

Battery,  Third  (Gatling)  1199 

Brigade,  Third 1195 

Fourth 1199 

Camp     of     Instruction, 

State 1203 

Civil  War,  B'klyn  Regts. 

in 1203 

13th  Regt.  Armory,  510, 511, 512 

32d  Regt.  Armory. 1202 

47th  Regt.  Armory 1201 

56th  Regt.  Armorv 1203 

17th  Separate  Co. ! 1203 

Rifle  Practice,  Dept.  of .  1203 

Regiment,  13th 1195 

14th 1197 

28th 1199 

23d 1200 

32d 1202 

47th 1201 

Second  Division  of 1194 

Third  Brigade  of 1195 

Organization,   of  in  K. 

Co 1193 

Old  Jersey  Prison  Ship   57 

Prison  Ships,  The 56-57 

Revolutionary  History     72 

Revolution,  The,  in  K.  Co 51 

Revolution,    The   Commence- 
ment of 12 

Revolutionary  Incidents  in.. . .  13 

Soldiers'  War  Medals 502 

The  48th  Reg't 1204 

67th  Vol.  Reg't 1204 

87th  Vol.  Reg't 1205 

139th  Vol.  Reg't 1205 

158th  Vol.  Reg't 1205 

173d  Vol.  Reg't 1305 

Vol.  Regt's  in  Civil  War 1203 

War  Fund  Com 503 

War  Statue  of  Lincoln 508 

War  of  1812,  The 14 

Operations  on  Long  Island  36 

Gravesend 177 

War  with  France 13 

1812,  The  War  of 14 

Military   Organizations  of  K. 

County,  The 1193-1212 

Milk.     (See  Dealers.) 
Millinery.     (See  Dealers.) 
Missionary,    Bible,    and   Tract 

Work 1100 

Motto  of  City  of  B'klyn 1391 

Municipal  Administration. 

Administrative  Power  under 

the  First  City  Charter  ....  529 
Administrative   Power  under 

the  Last  Charter 541 

City  Hall 534 

Civil  Jurisdiction  of  Justices 

of  the  Peace 548 

Courts  of  Civil  and  Criminal 

Jurisdiction  in  B'klyn ,532 

Early  Municipal  Buildings 533 

Leg.  and  Admin.    Powers   of 

the  Corp.  of  the  City 540 

Mayors,  Prest's.  of  C.  C,  and 
City  Officers  of  B'klyn.  .563a,  1391 
1394 

Municipal  Building 512,  536 

Municipal  Hist,   of    Brook- 
lyn   528-564a 


Municipal  Administration.  page 

Nassau  Water  Co    485 

New  Plumbing  Law 560a 

Ridgewood  Water,  Intro,  of. .       486 
Sewerage  System  of  B'klyn. . .       591 
Municipal  Departments. 

Ambulance  Service 567 

Board  of  Char,  and  Cor 509,  515 

Elections ...515,  536 

Board  of  Health  of  the  Village, 

1824 563 

Board  of  Health,  1854 563 

Health,  Metropolitan      501 

Health,  1873 565 

Health,  1870.. 560a,  563,  564 

Sewer  Com 486 

Bureau  of  Combustibles 560a 

Telegraph 558a 

Commissioner  of  Repairs 531 

Comptroller 531 

Corp.  Attorney  and  Counsel. .       531 

Dep't.  of  Arrears 536,  557a,  1028 

Assessment 543 

Audit 536,  542 

Buildings. . .  .504,  560a,  580 

City  Works 544,  584 

Education,  Public  . .       609 

Excise 525,  536,  559a 

Finance 542 

Fire  and  Buildings. .      568 

Health 563 

Law 543,  546 

Parks 515,  561a,  595 

Police  &  Exc,  535,  543  557, 
558,  558a,  560,  561 

District,  Met.  Sanitary 501 

District,  Met.  San.,  and  Board 

of  Health,  1866 563 

Financial 560a 

Health  Statistics.  1883 566 

Municipal  Departments 536 

Park  Commissioners,  List  of. .      598 

Parks,  Maintenance  of 562a 

Police,  First  Regular  City 557 

Life  Insurance  Fund . .       559 

Metropolitan 486,  557 

Pension  Fund,  The.. .       559a 
Redemption  Fund...       558a 

Statistics.  1883 561 

Steam  Boiler  Inspectors 559a 

Street  Com.   under  the  First 

Charter  : 531 

Taxes,  Equalization  of 557a 

Tieasury  of  City 536 

Water  and  Sewerage  Com. .  .486,  584 
Music.     (See  Dealers.) 
Musicians 1377 

Sf 

Names,  Early  Dutch 44 

Nassau  Water  Works 485 

New  Lots. 

Andrews  M.  E.  Church 312 

BrownsvUle 307 

Cypress  Hills 307 

Early  Settlers  of 306 

East  New  York 306 

Ebenezer  M.  E.  Church 311 

Fire  Dep't 309 

First  Baptist  Church 313 

First  Congregational  Church. .  313 

German  Lutheran  Church. . . .  312 

History  of  Town  of 306-336 

Hamilton  C.  Warren 306 

New  Church  Erected  at  Flat- 
bush,  1793 337 

Newspapers  308 

Old  Bushwiok  Church,  View 

of 337 

Organization  of 306 

Police  Department 308 

Post  Office 318 

Public  Schools 314 


New  Lots.  PAGE 

Reformed  Church,  The 310 

St.  Malachi's  Church,  R.  C. . .  313 

St.  Michaels  R.  C.  Church 314 

Seal  of  Flatbush  Ch  337 

Second  B'klyn  Church,  View 

of 333 

Societies  (See,  also,  Assoc'ns).  316 

The  First  Town  Election 307 

The  Old  Village  of 306 

Town  Officers  308 

Trinity  P.  E.  Ch 310 

Trustees  of  Church,  1785 337 

Union  Gas  Light  Co 308 

Union  Congregational  Ch. . . .  313 

Van  Sinderen,  Rev.  Ulpianus  336 
Newsjiapers. 

Advance,  The  Brooklyn 1180 

Advertiser,  The  B.  Daily..  1170,  1171 

The  Weekly 1189 

Advocate  and  Nassau  Gazette, 

The  Brooklyn 1170 

Age,  The  1171 

Anzeiger,  The 1177 

Apologet.  Der 1172 

Ai-gus.  The  Brooklyn 513,  1173 

Bee,  The  Brooklyn 1174 

Blade,  The  Brooklyn 1180 

Brooklyn  Union 508,  513,  1178 

Catholic,  The  Brooklyn 1174 

Examiner,  The  B...  1180 

Casket,  The  Literarv 1172 

City  News,  The  Brooklyn 1171 

Daily  News,  The  Brooklyn. . .  1170 

Register,  The 1172 

News  and  Long  Island 

Times,  The  B'klyn. . .  1170 

Democrat,  The  W'm'sburgh.  .  1170 

Drum  Beat,  The 1172 

Eagle,  The  Brooklyn 1181 

The  Sunday 1174 

Echo,  The  Brooklyn 1180 

Freeman,  The  Brooklyn 1171 

FreiePresse,  The  Brooklyn...  1174 

Gazette,  Tlie  Williamsburgh.  1170 

Globe,  Greenpoint 1190 

Greenpoint  Advertiser,  The. . .  1171 

Hornet,  The 1190 

Independent  Press,  The 1171 

The 1171 

Index,  The 1172 

Journalists 1191 

Kings  Co.  Rural  and  Brooklyn 

Gazette 1180 

Lance,  Brooklyn  Daily 1189 

Laterne,  The 1180 

Ledger,  The  Brooklyn  Daily.  .  1174 

Long  Island  Daily  Times,  The.  1170 

Patriot 1170 

Messenger  Bird,  The  1171 

Monthly,  The  Brooklyn 1172 

Magazine,  the  B.  . .  1171 

Morning  Post,  The  B'klyn....  1171 

News,  The  Brooklyn 1180,  1190 

Neophyte,  The 1172 

Once-a- Week,  The 1173 

Orbit  and  Excelsior,  The 1171 

Programme,  The  B.  Daily 1180 

Quarterly,  The  Packer 1172 

Record,  The 1180 

The  Brooklyn 1180 

Review,  The  Brooklyn 1180 

Sentinel  and  Brooklyn  Herald, 

The  East  New  York 1190 

Sentinel,  The  East  New  York.  1180 

Standard,  The  Brooklyn  1171 

Stats     Svenska     Argus,     The 

N.Y : 1180 

Sun,  The  Brookl}^!  Sunday. .  .  1174 

Times,  The  Brooklyn 1177 

Transcript,  The  B.  Daily.    ...  1173 

Tyro,  The 1171 

Union- Argus,  Brooklyn 513 

The  Brooklyn  Daily,  513, 1178 


GENERAL  INDEX. 


1407 


Newspapers — Continued.  page 

Volks  Blatt,  The  Brooklyn  ...  1172 

Wochenblatt,  The  Deutsches.  1180 

Zeitung,  The  L.  1 1177 

New  Utrecht. 

And  Brooklyn 361 

African   Zion   M.   E.   Church, 

•'  Unionville '' 265 

A  New  Town  Patent,  1666  ...  260 

Another  Change  of  Masters. . .  260 

Bay  Ridge  P.  E.  Church 265 

Captain  Scott's  Raid  Upon 259 

Constables 263 

De  Sille  House,  View  of 259 

Dongan  Patent 261 

Ecclesiastical  History  of 263 

Educational 265 

End  of  the  Dutch  Regime 261 

First  Ch.,  Dutch  Reformed. . .  263 

First  Houses 257 

First  Settlements 256 

First  Town  Charter 258 

Founding  of  the  Town 257 

History  of 255,  269 

Hotels,  Roads  and  Drives 266 

Increase  of  Population 261 

Indian  Inhabitants 255 

Inhabitants  in  1698,  Names  of  261 

In  War  of  the  Civil  Rebellion.  263 

Location 255 

Manufactories 267 

M.  E.  Church  of 264 

Militia  262 

Modern  Public  Buildings 266 

Old  Village  Graveyard 266 

Overseers 368 

Pastors  of 264 

Population    and    Valuations, 

Statistics  of 263 

Railroads 267 

R.  C.  Ch.  at  Fort  Hamilton. ..  365 

Sabbath  Schools 264 

St.  John's  P.  E.  Church 265 

Share  in  the  Rev.  War 263 

Slaves 262 

Supervisors  263 

Town  Grants,  1684 261 

Town  Clerks 263 

Unionville  Colored  Church . . .  265 

Unionville  M.  E.  Church 264 

Zion  M.  E.  Church 265 

New  York  State. 

Canals  in 16 

Colonial  Governors  of 10 

Convention,  the  Provincial . . .  373 


Council  of  Appomtment 374 

Revision    374 

Discovery  of 9 

English  Governors  of 10 

Government  of 13 

Governors  of.  Colonial 10 

English 10 

Since  1777 17 

History  of.  Outline 9-17 

Improvements  of,  Internal...  16 

Incidents  of,  Revolutionary...  13 

Legislature  of 374 

Population  of 17 

Provincial  Congress  of 373 

Revolutionary  Incidents  in. . .  13 

Under  the  Dutch 10 

O 

Odd  Fellows,  I.  O.  of 1349,  1350 

Oils 1389 


Painters 1378 

Paper-hangers 1378 

Parks.  ' 

Boulevards ^-'O 

Carroll 596 

City 5^6 


Parks.  PAGE 

City  Hall 596 

Dept  of 536,  595 

On  Columbia  Heights 596 

Prospect 525,  597 

Tompkins 596 

Washington 595 

Parkville.  (See  Flatbush  History.) 

Photographers 1377 

Physicians 1391 

Pianos.     (See  Dealers.) 

Pilots 1390 

Plumbers 1380 

Population  of  B'klyn,  1884 1391 

Press  of  Kings  Co.,  The 1169-1193 

Printers 1377 

Provident  Assoc,  of  Odd  Fellows.     1350 
Pythias,  Knights  of 316,  317,  1354 

R 

Red  Men,  Imp.  Order  of 1355 

Roofing 1390 

Royal  Arcanum,  The 1352 

Safe  Deposit  Companies 619 

Scientists  in  Brookl}n 1313 

Seawanhaka,  The  Burning  of  the,      515 

Spiritualism  in  Brooklyn 1300 

Sons  of  Temperance 316 

Sporting   Clubs   op   Kings   Co. 

(See,  also.  Associations.) 1336,  1342 

St.  George,  Sons  of 316,  1354 

State   of   New  York,   Outline 

Hist,  of 10-17 

Stationers.     (See  Dealers.) 
Sunday-School  Unions. 

B'klyn  S.  S.  Union.  . .  .485,  515,  1091 

Foreign 1093 

First,  in  Brooklyn 1095 

Missionary,   Bible,   Tract  and 

other  Organizations 1100 

Systematic  Visitation 1092 

Union  Society,  The  B'klyn ....     1091 

Union,  The  Sunday-School 1093 

Sunday-School  Work  in  B.,  The    1091 
Superintendents  of  the  Poor  of 

Kings  Co 463-492a 

Supervisors  in  Kings  Co.,  His- 
tory of 377-423a 


Tailors,  Merchant.     (See  Dealers.)] 
Tea,  Coffees,  etc.     (See  Dealers.) 

Temperance,  Sons  of 316 

Societies 1355 

Templars'  Good,  I.  O.  of 1355 

Travel  and  Transit  in  K.  Co.  ,  419-464a 


Turnpikesjandjiridges. 
B'klj-n  and  Jamaica  Turnpike, 
East  River  Bridge.  .447,  505,  509, 

Accidents  and  Casualties. 

Anchorages  of 

Approaches 

Bridge  Co 510, 

Caissons  of 

Cost  of 

Elevation  of  (eng.) 

Engineering  Staff,  The . . . 

First  Active  Measures  to- 
wards a  Bridge 

Formal  Opening  of 456, 

Incorporated 

Making  the  Cables 

Panic  on  the 

Plan  of  B'klyn  Approach 
(eng.) 

Plan  of  N.   Y.  Approach 
(eng.) 

Railway 

Section  of,  (eng.) 

Statistics  of 


Travel  and  Transit.  page 

East  River  Bridge. 

The  Directorate  of 460 

Tolls  on 530 

View  of,  from  B'klyn  ....  457 

Go wanus  Creek  Bridge 462 

Penny  Bridge,  Newtown  Crk,  461 

Railroads. 

Atlantic  Ave.  R.  R.  Co 421 

B'klyn,  Canarsie  &  Rockaway 

Beach  R.  R.  &  S.  B.  Route. .  423 

B.  City  R.  R 421,  509,  530 

B.  City  &  Newtown  R.  R.  Co.  423 

B.  Cross  Town  R.  R.  Co 422 

B.  &C.  LR.  R 423 

B.  &  Jamaica  R.  R 430 

B.,  Bath  &  C.  I.  R  R 433 

B.  Elevated  R.  R.  Co 511 

B.,  Flatbush  &  C.  I.  R.  R. . .  .434,  514 

B'way  R.  R.  Co 433 

B'way,  Tompkins  Ave.  &  Har- 
rison Ave.  R.  R 512 

Bushwick  R.  R.  Co 432 

C.  I.  R.  R 489 

C.  I.  &  B.  R.  R.  Co 423 

Culver's  R.  W.,C.  I 424 

E.  R.  Bridge   &  C.   I.    Steam 

Transit  Co 516,  518 

Elevated  R.  W.  Schemes.. ..515,  516, 

518,  520 

Flatbush  R.  R.  Co 423 

Grand  St.  &  Newtown  R.R.  Co.  422 
Grand  St.,  Prospect   Park  & 

Flatbush  R.  R.  Co 423 

L.  L  R.  R 37,430,  514,  515 

Manhattan  Beach  R.  R.,  513,  514,  518 

Marine  R.  W.,  C.  1 424 

N.  Y.,  Bay  Ridge  &  Jamaica 

E.R...    ..    ..    513 

N.  Y.  &  M.  B.  R.  R.  Co 434 

N.  Y.  &  Sea  B.  Ry.  Co 434,  513 

New  Williamsburgh  &  Flat- 
bush R.  R,  Co 423 

North  2d  St.  &  Middle  Village 

R.  R.  Co 423 

Prospect  Park  &  C.  I.  R.  R. 

Co  423 

Prospect    Park  &  Gravesend 

R.R 202 

Railroads  on  L.  1 37 

R.  R.,  Statistical  Table  of. .  .424,  425 

Rapid  Transit  Commissioners.  515 

Rapid  Transit  Trains 513 

Sea  Beach  &  N.  Y.  R.  R 513 

South  B.  Central  R.  R.  Co. . . .  422 

The  Elevated  R.W..  C.  1 424 

Van  Brunt  &  Erie  Basin  R.  R. 

Co , 423 

Williamsburgh  &  Flatbush. . .  423 
Grand  St.,  Prospect  Park    & 

B.  Steam  Transit  Road 514 

Stage  &  Omnibus  Line 419 

SurfAve.,  C.  I 


515 


Roads. 

L.  I. ,  Wagon  Roads  on 37 

Ocean  Park  Roadway 513 

Plank  Roads 425 

Tree  Planting  and  Fountain  So- 
ciety  519,1165 

Trials,  Important 1256 

V 

Undertakers 1388 

Unionville.    (See  New  Utrecht.) 
United  States. 

Assessment  and  Collection  of 

Internal  Revenue 869 

Christian  Commission 497 

Commissioner,  The 876 


Dist.  Attorney. 


876 


Dist.  Judge 876 

Fort  Lafayette 506^ 


1408 


HISTORY  OF  KINGS  COUNTY. 


United  States. 

Grov.  Inspection  of   Brooklyn 

Commerce 645 

Interests  in  Kings  Co 865-878 

Marshal's  Office,  The 76 

Navy  Yard,  U.  S. .  .643,  870,  871,  872 
873 

NavT  Yard  Scare,  The 488 

Officials 1393 

Presidential  Electors 417a 

P.  O.  in  Brooklyn 865 

Representatives  in  Congress  of 

the  U.  S 414a 

U.  S.  Benev.  Fraternity 1356 


U.  S.  Interests  in  Kings  Co 865-878 

\¥ 

Waldo  House 1360 

Williamsburgh. 

»A  New  Start 297 

Citv  Charter,  The 297 

City  of ,  The  303 

History  of  Town  of 392-305 

Street   Nomenclature    of   the 

Villao*e  297 

The  Era  of  Speculation '.'.  296 

The  Morrell  Speculation  293 


Williamsburgh. 

The  Period  of  Fin,   Collapse  296 

^Yoodhull  Speculation 292 

Ti-ustees  of  the  Village 299 

Village  Beginnings 294 

Charter 294 

Organization 294 

Wallabout  Canal,  The 304 

WaUabout      and      Newtown 

Turnpike,  The 293 

Yorkton 293 

Street   Nomenclature  of  Wil- 
liamsburgh    297 

Wines,  Liquors,  etc 1389 


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